Cocktails & Kimchi

On today's episode, Banchan John and DJ Indoe lead the episode while Laney's out of office. Joining them as our guest, Iz, has been in the fashion industry for the past decade. She gives us some insight into the design world. Being mostly a homebody creative, she also has a lot of hobbies that we get into, one of which is sheep sheering. Intrigued? Well, tune in to find out more!

Just Drey and John on today's episode while Laney's out of office. Since we've lost our female perspective for today, Chopstixx felt it would be a good opportunity to ask the guys of the C&K crew some questions to let the audience get to know them better. We go over life goals, deal breakers, and personal experiences when it comes to certain things. For Shooketh Not Stirred, we do a bit of quickfire round on personal preferences.

Growing up Asian, we all learned about all the ways to dishonor your family. For the uninitiated, this usually comes down to the 3 main taboos of hair dying, tattoos, and piercings. Times have definitely changed, but that hasn't stopped our parents' generation from holding onto these stigmas. Since we're technically millennials, we give our take on these taboos and how they relate to the professional working world. After that, Laney found a way to make $50 during Shooketh not Stirred, so you'll want to stick around for that.

Everyone got their shots and got our schedules aligned to do our first live recording since the pandemic started! For today's episode, we decided to do the Cube Personality Quiz.  It's basically a thought experiment that's meant to reveal things about your personality that you weren't aware of. Laney Darling and Banchan John take a crack at it to see what they learn about themselves and each other. Whether you want to just listen in or play along, this is a fun one to tune into!

For those in the know, Laney got married a few months ago, which is why she was missing in a lot of the recent episodes. Once she was back and ready to go again, we knew we had to recap the wedding. Apparently, its unclear who had a better time at the wedding, Laney or Banchan John.  After going over that funny story, the team took the opportunity to talk about the do's and don'ts of weddings, from both the host and the guest side. A lot of good info and funny stories in this recap, so you definitely don't want to miss it!

Back by popular demand, we decided to do another episode where we answer people looking for advice.  Banchan John, DJ Indoe, and Chopstixx give it their best shot in trying to help people with their issues dealing with life goals, relationship problems, and social media addiction. Then, in today's Shooketh not Stirred section, we try to associate popular foods with U.S. states and end up having some fun at Florida's expense. Sorry Florida.

At the time of this recording, LaneyDarling's wedding was right around the corner, so we decided it would be a fun idea to talk about one of the events that immediately precedes it: the bachelor/bachelorette party. Chopstixx and Banchan John talk about their experiences with the ones that they've attended in the past and Chopstixx goes a little in depth about her own party. They talk about do's and don'ts, tips and tricks on how to plan one for others, and their philosophies on exotic dancers.  

When we were little, we had big dreams about what we want to be when we grow up. Life pushes and pulls you in different directions and sometimes you end up somewhere different than you thought you would. Today, the C&K team goes over their aspirations and how they ended up where they are. It's funny where life takes you.

On today's episode, we meet RubyReelin: an influencer/roller skater/videographer/pole dancer extraordinaire! Born and raised in the Philippines, Ruby takes us through her journey of immigrating to the US, overcoming adversity, and finding opportunities.

The C&K team received an email from one of our listeners regarding a dire situation they were in. Of course, we replied to it right away, but we figured we could make an episode dedicated to her and her issue. This story is rife with family and relationship drama and is a lot to unpack. Afterwards, the team gets into it with another round of "shooketh not stirred" dealing with some hot takes on random current events and we end up learning a lot about each other.If you have any stories or have an issue you'd like us to talk about, feel free to reach out to us at cheers@cocktailsandkimchi.com.

Spinning off from our last episode, we bring on Jed's business partner, Jeremy! Today, we get Jeremy's side of the story on start of Transparency BH as well as his journey to becoming an influencer manager. Jeremy drops a serious amount of knowledgeon the inner workings of social media industry to the C&K staff. You won't want to miss this episode!

We've had a few influencers on the show and learned about that side of the business. What about the people behind the scenes? What about those who manage influencers and help connect them with brands and create the necessary connections? Enter: Jed the Brand Builder. As a brand and talent manager, Jed takes us on a deep dive on what that side of the industry is like and his journey on getting there. Being that he's quite a few years younger than the C&K staff, we have a fun little lingo battle between him and resident old guy of the podcast, Banchan John.

Today's a fun one! We got DJ Ravell in  to talk to us about his journey in becoming a critically acclaimed DJ. From his humble beginnings in working mobile gigs with his dad, Ravell  worked hard over the years to earn his spot on world stages such as EDC and Coachella. He shares with us some behind the scenes moments he's had on this journey and gives us some tips and tricks for those in the audience aspiring to be DJs.

We got ourselves an influencer today! Being that Laney works in the industry, she decided to ask one of her talents to guest on the show. Ellerie Marie has graciously allowed us to peer into the live of a social media influencer. Having completely blown up on TikTok a few years ago, Ellerie has had to balance her social media life with trying to be a normal student. If you ever wondered what it was like to be an influencer and see the other side that not everyone gets to see, this is the episode for you. 

Laney's out sick for today's episode, so the boys move on in. Banchan John and DJ Indoe do a bit of a takeover in the studio and take this opportunity to answer questions from our female viewers. 

Today, we're joined by Josue, a pastry cook originally from Fresno, but currently based out of Las Vegas, NV. Having worked at both the Bellagio and the M Resort, Josue gives us some insights into the wild world of the Vegas culinary scene and some funny stories of what has happened throughout his career. Being gay, he also was kind enough to share some of his experiences with that and has some encouraging words for all of our listeners.

We have a very special episode for you today! Today's guest, coincidentally also named Elaine, packs quite a punch with her resume. An established journalist having built a career going from the UK, to LA, to South Korea, then Hong Kong, before recently settling in San Francisco. After talking about her career thus far, we also get her to talk about her experience as a COVID19 survivor as well as her take on the current state of anti-Asian hate crimes. In true C&K fashion, after we finish talking about the real important stuff, we get right into one of Chopstixx's games. This one's a rollercoaster, but trust, it's the good kind. *Elaine never worked in Singapore.*

After a solid break to catch up with life, the C&K crew are finally back at it again! First order of business is to recap the year that was 2020. Since it's been over a year since our first recording, we felt it would be a good idea to take a look back at the unusual year it ended up being. After putting things into perspective, Laney and Banchan John mix it up and try to find out how much they actually know each other.

Christmas is finally here, complete with a holiday drinking game that you can partake in! As the debauchery ensues, the full C&K crew shares their own holiday stories. Following that, we do another rousing game of Would You Rather, but Holiday Edition this time. Thank you again to all of you who support us this year and a special thanks to all of our guests this year:Nadine The PhotographerAcupuncturist JohnSteph Teaze HairMillennial Dating Coach MarquitaRealtor FefeShogo TwinsWe couldn't have done it without you and we're excited to start fresh early next year!

Are you stuck trying to figure out what to get your loved ones this holiday season? Are gift cards okay? Should you go with expensive or sentimental? Do you have someone in your life that's hard to shop for? C&K is here to help, sort of. We mostly just talk about our personal experiences with gift giving and receiving during the holidays and hopefully you can take something away from it.

2020 has been an interesting year so far and Thanksgiving is upon us already. Since this year will likely not be as socially festive due to the pandemic, we decided to recount some of our own Thanksgiving stories from years past. This somehow results in us talking a lot about pie. Like, a lot. During the Shooketh Not Stirred segment, Chopstixx prepared a little Thanksgiving trivia for all of us so that we learn some history and fun facts about the holiday. Afterwards, we all share  what we're thankful for this year.

Today, we take a trip down memory lane. So that our banchans can get to know us better, we talk about the people we were in high school and how that helped shaped the adults we became. Both Laney and Banchan John had pretty surprising adolescent lives. Might want to tune in to find out how and why it's surprising. OH and we end up trailing off and talking about ghost peppers towards the end so there might be a new upcoming challenge that DJ Indoe is somehow getting roped into.

On today's episode, we end up getting a bit of double trouble.  The Shogo Twins, Rad and Dylon Shogo, stop by the show as our special guests. With 2.9 million TikTok fans at only 21 years old, they're both the youngest and most well known guests we've had to date. Tune in to hear about their journey to success. Along the way, we get to mess around and end up getting to know them as people. 

Special guest, Fedora AKA Fefe, joins us on the show today. After kicking off the usual happy moments and binges of the week, we get right into meeting Fefe and finding out what she's all about. Not only does she share her experience of becoming a realtor, she was nice enough to share tips with us about buying and selling homes. Consider it a free webinar, except that everyone's getting drunk at the same time. Easily beats any webinar that I've ever had to attend.

Meeting Asian parents: is it always scary? I guess it really depends on who you ask. This week, the C&K crew has some stories they'd like to share on their experiences. Along the way, we drop some helpful tips to help you out with what can often be an ordeal. We fortunately have a good mix of different kinds of Asians on the team (along with drop-in guests in the studio), so we're able to run the gamut of the different cultures that Asia offers. Oh, and John gets drunk again this week.

If you grew up Asian or around Asians, you know there are a fair share of superstitions that each culture has. We go over a few of the more notable ones, as well as bring up some that you may not have been aware of. DJ Indoe and Chopstixx join Laney and John so the whole group weighs in on the topic.

With a name like Cocktails & Kimchi, we had to talk about alcohol sooner or later. After going over our show binges, we dive right into our favorite types of alcohol as well as our favorite drunk stories. We then go over a brief history of alcohol itself and end the episode with our tips on how to treat your bartenders. Oh, and John gets pretty drunk again.

On today's episode, we talk about sex and John gets drunk, again. Before he gets too sauced, we talk about the 11 different Sex Personality Types as described by Vanessa Marin. We came across this post from the Huffington Post and felt it was worth sharing with all of you and having our own little discussion about it. We got to learn a lot about each other and it ended up being a lot of fun.

On this episode, the CK crew discusses work thaaangs. Work etiquette, horror stories, horrible bosses are just some of the things we talk about. We also share some tips from having been on both sides of the employee/manager relationship. We got to be helpful and funny this week so you don't want to miss out!

On today's episode, we welcome Marquita AKA the Millennial Dating Coach! The CK team has been talking a lot about relationships lately so it only makes sense to bring on a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC)/National Certified Counselor (NCC) that specializes in millennial relationships. We don't want this opportunity to go to waste so we make sure to ask Marquita some pointed questions that not only we came up with, but also those asked by you, the listener. Real knowledge is about get dropped so you don't want to miss out.

After months of quarantine, the CK gang is getting travel withdrawals and decided to talk about it. Laney and John tell stories of their travels and give us some of their best tips. Chopstixx joins in a bit later to test the crew on geographic trivia.

Steph Teaze joins us on the show. After John and Laney talk about their recent show binges, we welcome Steph to the show. Being a hairstylist by profession, she shares with us how the stay at home has affected her livelihood and her industry at large. Since business has been kind of slow, Steph has turned to her love of cooking and restarted her YouTube channel. We also learn about how she got through a rough relationship and how big of a BTS fan she is. This episode is simply packed full of content!

On this episode, the CK team reflects hard on their dating history. Laney and John bring in DJ Indoe and Chopstixx talk about first dates, dating apps, ghosting, and friends with benefits. John shares his prom story and Laney shares her thoughts on how people should deal with rejection.

In this episode, another John joins the fray. Our second guest, John, is an acupuncturist and an avid cook, with a darker than normal history. This dark history created quite the wild ride for his journey to start his own practice. Is this making you curious? Well I guess you just need to tune in to find out the whole story.

In this episode, Chopstixx celebrates her birthday. In Notflix and Chill, Laney talks about Riverdale and John is watching The Crowned Clown. We get into some fun stuff in Drinking Games and DJ Indoe joins the cast to talk about first times. No, not that "first time," but the various other firsts that everyone has in their lives. After the fun, we get a bit serious and talk about how to stay positive in the face of competition.

In this episode, we have our very first guest of the show! Nadine is a professional photographer, certified accountant, professional drifter, and mother of 4. There's a lot to unpack, so join us as we learn about how she got to where she is, and how she's able to accomplish so much.

In this episode, Laney Darling and Banchan John talk about the poker tax, sake baths, NOTflix and Chillin with strangers, if Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead created a show (Kingdom), becoming one with the poop, Her Private Life and aggressively knocking zombies. Then we get into the fun stuff and play Would you Rather including the biggest debate: reverse mermaid or reverse centaur? Then we play Would you Rather, celebrity style and end it with a little F/Marry/Kill. We discuss John not being able to visit family, Laney having to cancel wedding plans due to quarantine and doing embarrassing things in front of your significant other.

Topics discussed on today's episode: Hotel De Luna, Hi Bye, Mama!, learning about Life Path Numbers, why Banchan John is a natural born leader, what Laney Darling has in common with Eleanor Rosevelt and romance during quarantine.

Topics discussed on today's episode: Laney Darling's wedding, Shwayze ghost shows, Accel World, My Holo Love, Round of Shots with special guest DJ Indoe, talking about the advantages of being a man vs. a woman.

Meet Laney Darling and Banchan John, the hosts of Cocktails & Kimchi! Topics discussed on today's episode: Single Parents, Crash Landing On You, guy & girl friends on overnight trips, Pre-ance, kimchi ASMR and advice to our high school selves.