The Reef Beef podcast is the casual conversations that "old salty aquarists" have at conventions or trade shows. The hosts have experience working with marine aquariums. They also invite guests who maintain tanks and identify corals. The show results in eclectic stories about marine life and other unconventional topics.

Richard Ross and Ben Johnson lead the Reef Beef show. Richard has over three decades of experience with saltwater animals. He managed a 212,000-gallon aqua tank for the California Academy of Sciences. Ross has worked with cephalopod husbandry and consulted for South Pacific coral farms. He writes a column called "Skeptical Reefkeeping" on Reefs.com, Animal Planet, National Geographic, Scientific American, and Fox News have featured his work. Richard has also been a professional juggler, scuba diver, and underwater photographer.

Ben installs and maintains aquariums at his company, Captive Aquatic Ecosystems. He has worked in the industry for about 25 years. The Tropical Fish Hobbyist magazine has published Ben three times. Richard and Ben wanted to start Reef Beef because they couldn't find the topics they wanted to talk about anywhere else. The show allows them to discuss the hobbies and passions they love.

The podcast hosts talk about tank maintenance and ventilation. They discuss creatures they're taking care of and new experiments in their environments. Coral spawning is a recurring subject of the show. The Reef Beef episodes offer listeners organic conversations that go surprising places.

Ben and Richard welcome guests to the show. They talk with James Biggers, who has maintained many tanks in his lifetime. His heart once stopped for four minutes during an encounter with Palytoxin. The hosts also speak with Rob Mougey. He is very familiar with the marine aquarium industry.

The Reef Beef podcast releases episodes every two weeks. Episodes average about an hour in length. The hosts share their adventures of maintaining tanks for decades in every episode.