Podcasts about crack shack

Did you know one of the country's most celebrated sommeliers lives and works in San Diego? It's true! This week, we welcomed Coco Randolph of Black Radish and San Francisco's Californios to the Happy Half Hour podcast. Randolph is new-ish to town, having moved here about a year and a half ago from San Francisco, where she helped her family run two Michelin-starred Californios. Her sister is married to its decorated chef, Val Cantu, and the whole Randolph clan (plus Cantu) started the restaurant in 2013. Since then, Californios has been granted many awards and accolades from various organizations (like Michelin), including for its wine program, which is under Randolph's direction. When her Texas-born-and-raised family first embarked upon opening a restaurant, the clan tasked Randolph with being its sommelier as well as the general manager. No idle hands in this crew. The only problem was that Randolph knew little about wine, though she knew she loved Mexican food after having lived there for years following homeschooling and graduating from Texas Tech. No problem. She's an autodidact, sharp as a whip, and incredibly ambitious. She picked up a copy of The Wine Bible, studying obsessively every second she wasn't working Californios' front-of-house. In 2015, just two years after opening, Michelin awarded Californios its first star. By 2017, the restaurant had the distinction of being the world's only two-star Michelin spot focused on Mexican cuisine. And Randolph's wine program, which started as a list with a dozen producers and had expanded to a cellar boasting hundreds of the world's finest vintages and rarest allocations in less than a decade, was awarded the Best of Award of Excellence from Wine Spectator and the Best Wine Restaurants nod from Wine Enthusiast. In 2021, Randolph was awarded Michelin's first-ever Sommelier of the Year designation; she was just one of two somms to receive the nod. While she's still involved with Californios and the family from afar, her heart and body are very much in San Diego. She's growing Black Radish's wine program exponentially by regularly bringing top producers to town for special wine dinners and other events. And there's more good news. “I moved here for my lover boy!” Coco excitedly exclaims any time anyone gives her the chance. She didn't come here for food or wine, but for love, which to me signals she's planting deep roots. “It's true, we are fully staying here, building a life,” Randolph confirms. Expect to hear a lot more from Coco wherever anyone's pouring grape juice in town. In addition to trying some of Coco's wine selections, of which you can hear more about in the episode, we also talk about the news. Crack Shack is opening its fifth location in Pacific Beach; even more Korean Fried Chicken called Season Ave is arriving to Clairemont Mesa; Eleven Madison Park and Herb & Wood alum Sebastian Becerra is opening Peruvian spot Pepino in La Jolla to much fanfare; Gator by the Bay is in town once again beginning May 9, and Oddish Wine turns 1 on May 11.

The fascinating world of data within the restaurant industry unfolds with our expert guest, Andrew Smith, the co-founder of Savory Fund. His unique insights, stemming from an impressive blend of tech and restaurant industry experience, truly bring to light the enormity and complexities of data management spanning across multiple restaurant brands. Can you grasp the concept of data as the new oil? Join us as we navigate this intriguing landscape, tackling brand consolidation trends, the evolution of restaurants into e-commerce entities, and the art of breaking down vast data sets into actionable decision-making commodities.We dive into the heart of guest acquisition and marketing strategies in the restaurant industry. Discover how the apparent burden of marketplace fees transforms into an ingenious marketing cost for potential customers and the role of A/B testing in guiding marketing expenditure. Listen closely as Andrew unveils the pivotal role of technology in growing a business and his personal journey of leveraging a suitable tech stack to fuel brand growth. He paints a vivid picture of how tech innovations heighten efficiency profits and foster a more targeted marketing approach.This episode culminates with deeply exploring building customer loyalty and brand galvanization. Andrew emphasizes the significance of a carefully chosen tech stack in cultivating customer loyalty and boosting efficiency. Our discussion sheds light on how A/B testing can enhance our understanding of customer behavior and how marketplace fees can be deployed as a marketing cost. Andrew's experience in investing in a brand, scaling it through an appropriate tech stack, and the essential role of data in these processes is a journey worth listening to. This engaging blend of tech and restaurant industry wisdom promises practical strategies for business growth. We promise you this is one episode you won't want to miss!Support the show

Jumping off what the gang at Duck Foot learned while making Hazy McBeer Face, Cluck Buddies a collaboration with The Crack Shack turns the tropicality of hazy IPAs to 11!

The Slackers formed in New York in 1991. The band, fronted by Vic Ruggiero, played a bit of everything. But eventually, Vic realized that they needed to focus, and suggested they stick with the ska and reggae tunes and drop the other stuff. It suited the band. Though The Slackers signed with Moon Ska and then Hellcat Records, they were always a smaller band during the 90s Ska Boom. That changed in the 2000s when ska became a dirty word and many of the bands broke up or changed their sound. The Slackers carried on and became ska scene leaders. And they continue to be so in 2023. Today we speak with Slackers frontman/keyboardist Vic Ruggiero. We go deep into Slackers' history and talk about their early years, the long journey to signing to Hellcat and we break down the song "Statehouse" from their new album. (Though the song dates back to 1998. Rancid played an early version of it called "Wrongful Suspicion" on their Life Won't Wait Album. Vic also fills us in on the short-lived Silencers project he had with Tim Armstrong, and even tells us why he quit Tim's other band, Transplants, after "only 10 seconds." Plus Vic tells us about the time he met The Wu-Tang Clan, which was one of the funniest stories ever told on this podcast. Not to mention, we even circle back to an early episode of this podcast and get Vic's memories of playing The Crack Shack in Tuba City.  Support the show

I enjoy large rear ends, I can't falsify that fact. Don't you see my five stars?! Dollar Stores Anchored by Spirit Halloweens. Making Thickened Liquid Great Again. Father of the Year 2 hours in. I will call in my cover favor. It's An 'OK' From Paul Hollywood. Lyft: moving at the speed of the DMV. Twas the testicle work what killed him! Fat Bottomed Ants you make the rockin world go round. Free Coke at the Crack Shack. Star Trek As Hell. My son called after the ball dropped. The Chicken is Red, Chickens Aren't Supposed to be Red. Giving People the Bird with Bill and more on this episode of The Morning Stream.

I enjoy large rear ends, I can't falsify that fact. Don't you see my five stars?! Dollar Stores Anchored by Spirit Halloweens. Making Thickened Liquid Great Again. Father of the Year 2 hours in. I will call in my cover favor. It's An 'OK' From Paul Hollywood. Lyft: moving at the speed of the DMV. Twas the testicle work what killed him! Fat Bottomed Ants you make the rockin world go round. Free Coke at the Crack Shack. Star Trek As Hell. My son called after the ball dropped. The Chicken is Red, Chickens Aren't Supposed to be Red. Giving People the Bird with Bill and more on this episode of The Morning Stream.

An enjoyable evening at the Crack-Shack turns into dinner and a show when the party answer a cry for help.   #kiwisanddragons #D&D #DND #RPG #TTRPG #kiwisanddragons #D&D #DND #RPG #TTRPG #KiwiRPG  #kiwipodcast

In this week's episode of Living in the Sprawl: Southern California's Most Adventurous Podcast, host Jon Steinberg shares his list of 10 must visit Southern California spots as seen on "Man vs. Food". His list includes: Philippe the Original in Chinatown, Bruxie's in North Hollywood, Broken Yolk Cafe in San Diego, The Crack Shack in San Diego, Genkiyaki in Lakewood, Burnt Crumbs in Huntington Beach, La Super Rica in Santa Barbara, Manuel's El Tepeyac in Boyle Heights, Orochon Ramen in Little Tokyo and Manhattan in the Desert in Palm Springs.Instagram: @livinginthesprawlpodcastEmail: livinginthesprawlpodcast@gmail.comWebsite: www.livinginthesprawlpodcast.comCheck out our favorite CBD gummy company...it helps us get better sleep and stay chill. Use code "SPRAWL" for 20% off.  https://www.justcbdstore.com?aff=645Check out Goldbelly for all your favorite US foods to satisfy those cravings or bring back some nostalgia. Our favorites include Junior's Chessecakes from New York, Lou Malnati's deep dish pizza from Chicago and a philly cheesesteak from Pat's. Use the link https://goldbelly.pxf.io/c/2974077/1032087/13451 to check out all of the options and let them know we sent you.Use code "SPRAWL" for (2) free meals and free delivery on your first Everytable subscription.Support the podcast and future exploration adventures. We are working on unique perks and will give you a shout out on the podcast to thank you for your contribution!Living in the Sprawl: Southern California's Most Adventurous Podcast is on Podfanhttps://www.buymeacoffee.com/sprawlSupport the show

On this week's episode of LFHM, Courtney and Jonah drink special wine to celebrate Jonah's new job and talk about where they ate on one of their recent trips to San Diego.  Where we ate - Medina, Communal Coffee, La Clochette Du Coin, Crack Shack, Salt & Straw, Pop Pie, Stella Jean's Ice Cream. https://linktr.ee/lovefoodhatemoney Send us your industry stories here: Hello@lovefoodhatemoney.com or on IG @lovefoodhatemoney. Original music and editing by Jon Watkins of Feathered Fiction Studios.    

In the latest episode of Hospitality Hangout, Michael Schatzberg “The Restaurant Guy'' and Jimmy Frischling “The Finance Guy'' chats with Alonso Castañeda, vice president of brand development and strategy at Savory Restaurant Fund about finding emerging concepts and helping to develop the brand for fast growth. Castañeda says “the Savory Restaurant Fund is a fund that works and identifies brands in their infancy stage and when I say infancy I don't mean that the brand is brand new. They could be in business for ten years but as an emerging concept. They are starting to think about growth, and that's where we come in and we identify these brands that are loved in their communities that are financially healthy and that have a great product and we come in and we support them.” He adds, “We help them grow from five to fifty, we've identified that we are experts at that stage. We know how to come in and set up a good foundation for growth and build a team and then start scaling. We grow those companies from five to fifty in anywhere from three to five years depending on the concept. So it's fast growth.”  The Savory Restaurant Fund has built a team of sixty food and beverage veterans with diverse backgrounds to help each of their companies to succeed. Their team consists of experts from real estate,  payroll, sales, accounting, marketing, operations, training and development, says Castañeda. They don't just provide the money they provide the team that helps build their partner's brand. Castañeda shares the names of a few brands that Savory Restaurant Fund partnered with including Hash Kitchen, Pincho Burgers + Kebabs, and The Crack Shack. He says that they are currently looking at brands and they have seven brands that are opening eighty-five stores. They talk about the current climate of the real estate market, Castañeda says, that the perception is that due to the pandemic that there would be available real estate but on the contrary, a lot of brands did very well especially fast casual. He adds that everyone is looking for the same drive-thrus and the same corners, and there are not many great opportunities available. Castañeda talks about what the company does when they take on a brand and says, “it's a lot about identifying where the opportunities are and we can come in and make an impact.” Adding, “yes, we're onboarding the brand but our real estate team is already going strong because we all know it's going to be ten or twelve months before they find something but they're moving right away.”To hear Castañeda share how the Savory team helps a brand grow, the tools to retain talent, and how new technology is constantly evolving, tune into this episode of Hospitality Hangout on Spotify.This syndicated content is brought to you by Branded Strategic Hospitality.

In the latest episode of Hospitality Hangout, Michael Schatzberg “The Restaurant Guy'' and Jimmy Frischling “The Finance Guy'' chats with Alonso Castañeda, vice president of brand development and strategy at Savory Restaurant Fund about finding emerging concepts and helping to develop the brand for fast growth. Castañeda says “the Savory Restaurant Fund is a fund that works and identifies brands in their infancy stage and when I say infancy I don't mean that the brand is brand new. They could be in business for ten years but as an emerging concept. They are starting to think about growth, and that's where we come in and we identify these brands that are loved in their communities that are financially healthy and that have a great product and we come in and we support them.” He adds, “We help them grow from five to fifty, we've identified that we are experts at that stage. We know how to come in and set up a good foundation for growth and build a team and then start scaling. We grow those companies from five to fifty in anywhere from three to five years depending on the concept. So it's fast growth.”  The Savory Restaurant Fund has built a team of sixty food and beverage veterans with diverse backgrounds to help each of their companies to succeed. Their team consists of experts from real estate,  payroll, sales, accounting, marketing, operations, training and development, says Castañeda. They don't just provide the money they provide the team that helps build their partner's brand. Castañeda shares the names of a few brands that Savory Restaurant Fund partnered with including Hash Kitchen, Pincho Burgers + Kebabs, and The Crack Shack. He says that they are currently looking at brands and they have seven brands that are opening eighty-five stores. They talk about the current climate of the real estate market, Castañeda says, that the perception is that due to the pandemic that there would be available real estate but on the contrary, a lot of brands did very well especially fast casual. He adds that everyone is looking for the same drive-thrus and the same corners, and there are not many great opportunities available. Castañeda talks about what the company does when they take on a brand and says, “it's a lot about identifying where the opportunities are and we can come in and make an impact.” Adding, “yes, we're onboarding the brand but our real estate team is already going strong because we all know it's going to be ten or twelve months before they find something but they're moving right away.”To hear Castañeda share how the Savory team helps a brand grow, the tools to retain talent, and how new technology is constantly evolving, tune into this episode of Hospitality Hangout on Spotify.This syndicated content is brought to you by Branded Strategic Hospitality.

Canary Cry News Talk #444 - 02.09.2022 JOE'S CRACK SHACK LINKTREE: CanaryCry.Party SHOW NOTES: CanaryCryNewsTalk.com CLIP CHANNEL: CanaryCry.Tube SUPPLY DROP: CanaryCrySupplyDrop.com SUPPORT: CanaryCryRadio.com/Support MEET UPS: CanaryCryMeetUps.com Basil's other podcast: ravel Gonz' YT: Facelikethesun Resurrection App Made by Canary Cry Producer: Truther Dating App   INTRO Gonz, rough night with kids 444   FLIPPY How humans and robots can help each other in the newsroom (Int'l News Media Ass.)   ELITE Bill Gates thinks C19 was “last pandemic,” book (Forbes)   COVID19/I AM WACCINE Comedian faints on stage, coincidence? (TMZ) Twitter Trending J&J quietly ends jab production (NYT, Insider) → USA: Rep. Sean Patrick Mahoney, “ready to give people their lives back” (DailyCaller) → Illinois, New York to lift all mandates (USA Today/MSN) Truckers: Hacked FB account that gained supporters for convoy (Grid) [agent provocateur?] → Saskatchewan lifts all mandates (rfi, clip) → Alberta passports expires at midnight (DH News) → Clip: Canadian Parliament member Raquel Dancho gets mad   Party Pitch///BREAK 1: Executive Producers, Paypal, Patrons///SPEAKPIPE   POLYTICKS Biden program, $30 million, handing out crack pipes (FOX) → Clip: Terrell hammers Biden, crack pipe racial equality (FOX) → Clip: Blackburn demands answers (FOX) https://www.samhsa.gov/sites/default/files/grants/pdf/fy22-harm-reduction-nofo.pdf   CHINA/OLYMPICS Olympians complaining, “it's a joke…no longer believe in any tests” (Yahoo/Independent) BREAK 2: Art, Reviews, Jingles, Meet Ups   DAO How DAO's and blockchain will re-shape corporations (WEF)   ANTARCTICA Glacier named “the Pope” melting could destroy Houston (Yahoo) New penguin colonies discovered, “canary in the coal mine”…for climate change (Smithsonian) → NOTE: Rothchilds, Coronation, Delta, Omicron   ADDITIONAL STORIES: Wealthy babies have more brain activity than poor babies, study suggests (Euro Sting) High tech college kids (Montclair State U) Understanding metaverse and multiverse (Forbes) Metaverse must accept Capitalism (FOX) Max More's transhuman declaration (blog) Fukushima, robot with arm sent into worst hit melted reactor (abc) Future might be filled with squishy 3D printed robots (Popular Science) “Entertainment robot” market growth report (MarketWatch) Insect robot that could save peoples lives! (CountryLive)   PRODUCERS FOR EPISODE 444 444 Daimyo Dame Caroline Daimyo of Rivendell***   444 Roundtable/Executive Producer Sir Dendy Knight of the Northern headwaters** Sir Martin Knight of The Wrong TimeLine** Dame Mity of Amor Dei** Sir Casey the Shield Knight**   Associate Executive Producer Child of God*   Supply Drop Jeremy H   Producers MORV, Aaron J, JC, Laura C, Palmer B, HeatherSirRuss, Sir Scott Knight of Truth, Sir Casey the Shield Knight, Sir Sigrah the Beast, Gail M, Veronica D, DrWhoDunDat, Jackie U, Amanda P   Timestamps: Mondays: Jackie U Wednesdays: Jade Bouncerson Fridays: Christine C AUDIO PRODUCTION (Jingles, Iso, Music): Shilok   ART PRODUCTION (Drawing, Painting, Graphics): Dame Allie of the Skillet Nation Sir Dove Knight of Rusbeltia MissGBeauty Isaac G   CONTENT PRODUCTION (Microfiction etc.) Runksmash: “Captain Rosewater, this is A61GAI7, the archeologists who META singled in on.” Says Rayna with a firm salute. Basil's eyes roll, “Rayna, we've been over this, it's just Basil.” He looks over the robot who's form resembles that of a lady fighter.   The Sentinel: Basil glided around the rink with the elegance of a one-winged crane. Like almost everyone else there, he simply wanted to enjoy roller skating. Just then, Basil felt a smaller than average male hand grab his bicep. A short man glided past Basil, briefly making eye contact with him. The short man's alpha male eyes tried to stare into Basil's soul. “Why can't I see into him?” The alpha male thought. “The light inside him is blinding me.” The short man quickly rendezvoused with his friends, they all whispered, and then turned to look at Basil with anger. They knew that he was a threat to their territory. The alpha-boi skaters were not the only ones though who noticed Basil that night. In the shadows of the Janitor's corner stood an elderly Asian man, whose skates had hung on the wall far too long.

It's a new year and we all need great employees to support our existing and new restaurants. Jessica Moyer, VP of Learning and Development, Dan Pena, Director of Operations of The Crack Shack and Chase Wardrop, President of Swig discuss how executing a new employee's first day onboarding process is the most effective retention techniques. And most of us fail at this miserably. Hear some tips and tricks on how to make this more effective today!

INTRODUCTION:The Ramble by the River podcast is hosted by none other than Jeff Nesbitt!!! Jeff has been podcasting for quite some time and he brings a unique passion and flavor to the table that I resonate quite well with. In this interview we talk about how Jeff got kicked out of church for getting a divorce, how hypnosis plays into church services, male body image issues and Jeff's mushroom experiment in the Crack Shack.  INCLUDED IN THIS EPISODE (But not limited to):·      Jeff's Recount Of Getting Kicked Out Of Church For Getting A Divorce·      The Inspiration Behind The Ramble By The River Podcast·      The Value Of Podcasting·      Why It Is Important To Separate God From The Church·      How Hypnosis Plays Into Church Services ·      The Pandemic And Maintaining Connections ·      Male Body Image Issues·      The Family Gratitude List·      The Marshmallow Test ·      Jeff's Mushroom Experiment In The Crack Shack  CONNECT WITH JEFF:Website & Podcast: https://ramblebytheriver.captivate.fmFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeff.nesbitt.9619/Twitter: https://twitter.com/rambleriverpodInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/ramblebytheriver/ DE'VANNON'S RECOMMENDATIONS:·      Pray Away Documentary (NETFLIX)       - https://www.netflix.com/title/81040370       - TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tk_CqGVfxEs SDJ MEMBERSHIP (FULL EPISODES):·      $2.99 per month.·      Donate any amount for 30 days of access.·      $25 per year.https://www.sexdrugsandjesus.com/membership-account/membership-levels/ Jeff Nesbitt [00:00:00] You're listening to the sex drugs and Jesus podcast, where we discuss whatever the fuck we want to. And yes, we can put sex and drugs and Jesus all in the same bed and still be all right. At the end of the day, my name is De'Vannon and I'll be interviewing guests from every corner of this world. As we dig into topics that are too risky for the morning show, as we strive to help you understand what's really going on in your.There was nothing on the table and we've got a lot to talk about. So let's dive right into this episode.Jeff: Ramble by the river podcast is hosted by none other than Jeff Nesbitt. Jeff has been podcasting for quite some time. Now when he brings a unique passion and flavor to the table that I personally resonate well with. You all will too. And this interview, we're going to talk about how Jeff got kicked out of his church for getting a divorce, how hypnosis plays into church services, male body image issues, and [00:01:00] Jeff's mushroom experiment in the crack shack.Y'all that right? There was a hoop and is totally worth sticking around to listen, to enjoy the show.De'Vannon: Jeff, thank you so damn much for coming on to the sex drugs and Jesus podcast.Today. I say that with my church finger up, like the ushers would have in church on a Sunday morning. It is so glad to have you. How are you doing my friend? Jeff: I'm doing fantastic. Thank you so much for having. De'Vannon: Well, of course, it's only the polite thing to do, and I am a Southern Belle. You know, you had me on your show and, and of course I would have you upon mine.I wouldn't dream of having it any other way. And I'm perfect. Now your show is called ramble by the river. And I want you to tell us where you came up with that name, [00:02:00] the flow of your show and why you were inspired to call it that. Jeff: All right. So yeah, first of all, thank you so much for having me on the show.It's been a pleasure already, and I think it's going to be a good episode. And I had you on my show last week, because as you mentioned, and it was really fun. So my show ramble by the river has been going out since January of 2021. And it started because I have a job where I spent very much of my time by myself, and I really enjoy connecting with people. It wasn't something I was getting in my day-to-day life and I started to miss it and I really just needed that connection.So I started trying to pursue different avenues of creativity, like. Just music was one of them. And just trying to find what was going to bring me some kind of satisfaction. And I've, I've been listening to podcasts pretty often since around 2015. And by pretty often, I mean like [00:03:00] every day for several hours, because I'm driving all the time and by myself, so you can really click in and engage to some content when it's just you and nothing else.And so, yeah, I ended up getting my favorite podcasts, which I'll shout them out right now, or the king of the staying with Brendan Shaw and Theo Vaughn at one that one's great. Feel Von is in general. Very good. He's got another one called this past weekend. He's a comedian from California. He's actually from Covington, Louisiana.So he's down there from where, from where you're at.He's let's see who else we get. Aubrey Marcus podcast is one that I like a lot. He's he's pretty cool. Joe Rogan obviously is like the godfather of podcasting, mark Marin, just, you know, the classics. And so I would basically felt like I built these relationships with these content creators who I already mostly knew through traditional media forms, like TV shows, movies, things like that, a lot of standup comedians.[00:04:00] And I just really started to like, the medium podcasting is different than anything else because it's long form. And I got so used to trying to communicate. Who I was through 140 characters or through a picture or through one Facebook post and especially in a climate of everybody, just bitching constantly about what other people post on social media.So I just felt very self-conscious because no matter what you post on those short form platforms, you're going to be misinterpreted by somebody. If it's worth even reading in the first place. If it's, if it's just boring as fuck in the first place, no one even cares. You're not even going to get any traction on it.And then if you're a little provocative to try to get a little bit more attention, then you're going to hurt somebody's feelings or piss somebody off, or create a disagreement with somebody. And it's just not a good way to communicate. It's not effective. It doesn't create that sense of community that we're all looking for and that we all need.It does actually quite the opposite. It [00:05:00] creates division and polarization and increases some of the tribalism that is causing havoc in our political system today. So I didn't want any part of that. And I really, I really have never liked social media. So it's, I mean, I like the idea of it. I liked it back in the very beginning days, like 2007, when it was like almost anonymous and it wasn't all talking to other platforms before Twitter and Facebook and Instagram all connected.It seemed better to me, but I digress. I didn't like those forms as a way to express who I am. And in this digital world, you have to do that. That's where we're living now. Especially during the pandemic, we are essentially living in a simulation. We're getting in, we're jacking into the system every day.We're going to work through our computers. We are living digital. And I wanted to do that in a form that could actually capture the most accurate representation of who I really am. [00:06:00] And I think that's podcasting because it's just a, it's a, it's a time capsule of your thoughts and opinions of that moment, because it's not always researched fully.It's not always supported with evidence. I like them to be ideally they will be, but a lot of the time it's just raw. It's emotional stuff. Just pouring out of you and anybody can do that once you open the tap and just try not to feel super vulnerable, it's, it's pretty therapeutic.So after that I was like, all right, I'm going to start a podcast. And Buddy who lived right down the road. I grew up with also named Jeff and I'm not, and hit him and me both kind of battle with depression. So it's something we've dealt with since like middle school. And we've been friends for a very, very long time and we both deal with it and we recognize that each other.So we've kind of talked with each other about it that entire time. And so [00:07:00] winter time, as most people who struggle with depression know winter time is the rough time. That's when stuff starts to get harder and you have to work a lot harder to stay. Just keep your head above water. It's dark, it's cold.It's wet. It's just like, it's a wet blanket on your soul, a Pacific Northwest winter. So we're like, let's start a podcast. Jeff and Jeff Inc. And which is like our pretend fake company that we started in fourth grade. So we started getting stuff together and he's a fishermen commercial fishermen. So pretty quickly he was, he was having to go work.And so I was out here building the studio and I did, I, the majority of it by myself, I painted this mural, I, which wraps all the way around the room. And I. Put in quite a few hours on the studio and it came together and I was like, well, [00:08:00] shit. Now I have a podcast studio. I better start a podcast. So I started workshopping names and I just keep a list in my phone.Every time I would think of one or something clever came up, I'd put it in the phone. And by the time I had around 50 names, I thought, okay, one of these has to work and I had a hell of a time picking because I wanted something that was memorable, but also kind of fit the style is just like, it's tough.So you, you also have a really good name by the way. I meant to compliment you on that. Yeah. So ramble by the river came from, I wanted to use the word ramble just cause I think it's a catchy word and I was like that song ramble and man, and I think it's the, all my brothers, I don't know. We'll get a copyright infringement if we sing it.But Yeah, from there, I buy a river, I tried it out and I liked the logos and I went with it. Plus I always kind of felt like this is my training wheels into the world of podcasting [00:09:00] because I, when I started, I didn't know how to podcast, I just started. And so I set a goal of accomplishing 50 interviews in the first year, and I needed a show to do that with, so that's how ramble by the river was born.De'Vannon: And so it is, I'm so glad that you gave birth to it. I bet you looked great when you were preggers.And so I I love everything that you said, and I, I feel like that even though like the guests that come on, a lot of our shows that may not have. Have like a, I want to be like a doctor, have some sort of acronym behind their name to necessarily justify their experience. I feel like that the guests experience is the most justifiable of all, because a person's lived experience to me, outweighs a PhD or an MD [00:10:00] or anything like that.And so for somebody to come on my show, I don't care if they have, you know, you know, a PhD or anything like that, they have to have had, you know, gone through something themselves, at least, you know, especially like from episode nine, moving forward, because that's when I took over, you know, production and recruiting and everything myself.And so because that's what I want to know about, you know, that's, my audience is trying to hear, you know, know, you know, which one did you go for? We need, we need to hear about that because people will. When they people feel like they can relate to a person, you know, then they will listen to them. And it's easy to relate to somebody who's been divorced.Who's been kicked out of church. Who've been slapped across the face, or who's had the whip of bitch ass at some point, you know, it check all Jeff: those boxes. De'Vannon: Right. And so, as opposed to somebody with a PhD, because less people [00:11:00] have PhDs than do, but Mo everybody has had a bad day, you know, or has gone through a terrible experience or has, you know, a little skeleton tap dancing in their closet.They may not want somebody to know about, you know, or hadn't learned exactly how to kill that bitch yet, or just let him out so he can just twirl for fuck's sake. And so that, and then I'll also like, like he referred to podcasts as a time capsule. I agree. I felt like every episode we record. When we write blogs books, we keep a website, you know, those things that write music and things like that, you know, those intangible electronic things will outlive us, you know?And so once we you know, as long as the earth remains, you know, these platforms are going to be here because there's so much money in it. And so much people doing it, you know? You know, so once we're all like dead and spirits floating around doing whatever the fuck [00:12:00] spirits do you know, this work will still be here.So in future generations, when people come along, who is going, going through the same shit, cause everything kind of seems to happen these generation over again, you know, then they'll still be able to hear what we have to say. And our voices will be heard. We are eternal until there is no more earth. And so to agree, that's a great reason to have started your podcast.And I'm glad that you have it. Jeff: Yeah. I mean, you could go to a Tupac concert in 2018 because they recorded his voice. They recorded his, his physical form and, and they're reproducing it digitally. That's that's exactly the same thing. It's just, we're trying to become immortal essentially. De'Vannon: And, and, you know, and I appreciate the transparency because, you know, you didn't go have your personal experiences, which we're about to get into some of those and go, you know, achieve your successes with that, and then go [00:13:00] run off and have your happy, successful life, you know, taking time to talk about that, to help somebody else.That's a huge thing because you know, like in the Bible, you know, Jesus heals those seven lepers, I think it was. And then most of them skipped off, you know, where joystick and seedsman what they had received, but only one came back to give things. And so to me, every episode, you know, you record is a way of giving thanks, you know, for the blessings that you have and everything like that.So I look at it as a project of gratitude. Jeff: That's so exactly what it is. I pray every time I do one of these things before I do it, but I just, I will know what to say. And if I don't know what to say, that it comes off at least as funny so that people can get some benefit out of it. But yeah, I think that a lot of what I do every day is, is practicing gratitude.I love my life and I didn't always love it. And so I appreciate the contrast. Okay. De'Vannon: Absolutely. And we're going to talk about [00:14:00] your your family gratitude list and stuff like that later on. So for now I want to get I want to get more into your history, like with the cherishes, you and I both have an interesting relationship with the church and.This concept of Christianity here in America. Now I know that you were kicked out for some things that happened. I want you to tell her story. Jeff: Yeah, happy to. So kicked out is probably a little bit strong of a term. I don't want to talk down on the church at all or anything, but essentially I had been teaching a Sunday school class for kids for a few years, and I don't want to my own horn, but I was fucking good at it.And so, you know, just showing up every Sunday, just kind of killing it as a Sunday school teacher, the kids love me. I really I was doing the Lord's work and. My marriage was not going great, which, you know, wasn't surprising to anybody, including the pastor who married us, [00:15:00] who subsequently asked me to please not teach Sunday school class anymore because I was getting divorced and he thought it was going to set a bad example for the kids.And I, I disagreed, I still disagree because that was like my church family. And it as even I tried so hard, I was, I was understanding and I just, it hurt my feelings. It really, it really kinda was just like thing, I guess. I, because I had thought that I was providing more value to the church family than just like sending an example of a, what a good marriage looks like.There are other facets of the human experience that I, that I felt like I was still doing. Okay. That one part of my life was falling apart. And I guess that was enough to make me not. Role model. I don't know. It wasn't, I, the justification for it was, was not really my concern. After that point, a lot of people were like, oh, you should have fought that or gone back, but it wasn't, I don't want to [00:16:00] do that.I don't want to force myself into any place. It's like this podcast, if you don't like it, turn it off. I don't care. I'm just trying to be me. But and I have stuff to share. So I that's, I was trying to do that and it didn't work out. So I haven't been back to that church since, but I heard, I hear good things about it.I know it's grown and I hope I wish them the best, but yeah, it was a sad, sad moment. I haven't really found a good church home since then. And that sucks. I like, I think the community is, is crucial and church, whether you're fully onboard with the faith aspects of it or not. It's a really good exercise in, in human connection.I think like even going to church that you don't traditionally follow the religion. It's it's. Interesting experience to put yourself through that. Cause they're weird. De'Vannon: Cause they're weird. Yeah. They're weird. Jeff: If you go into a church and you've never been to church before and they're speaking in tongues or, or they're wearing dresses [00:17:00] and given piece of price, I mean there's some baffling shit going on at church and I grew up with it.So I didn't realize how silly it seems to those who haven't been indoctrinated, but look at it through fresh eyes and you're like, okay, this is all equally baffling, every religion. So it's like, I don't know. I'm, I'm really not critical of people's faith because everybody's just searching for meaning and people find it in different places.De'Vannon: I'm sorry that happened to you, Jeff. And although you, you don't want to talk bad about your church. I will, they can eat a Dick and, and I would extend the middle finger to them. Jeff: That's not Christ-like De'Vannon: no, it isn't, but you know, I'm not a spirit and I'm not Jesus Christ. So I don't, I'm not being Christ like all the time.So I just stepped in the flesh for just a moment. Now I'm back out of the flesh. Jeff: And so I appreciate you sticking up for me. I De'Vannon: won't do it. [00:18:00] I know like, you know, you know, there are people out there who. You know, maybe they don't cuss as much as I do or they won't do, you know, things like what I just did with flipping off churches and what not.And I'm happy to do it for them, you know, because it just needs to be done sometimes. And you know, I'm aware of my spirituality and my power in Christ and the holy ghost and all that. And I'm also very grounded in the fact that I'm still a human and I just, you know, you know, every now and then, you know, a bitch's ass might need to get up and they might need to get flipped out.I flipped out out or something like that. And I'll pray about it later, you know, and then it'll be all right. And so, and I feel great. And so this is a huge thing that I want to take some time that to, to marinade here because. There's many people who've been kicked out of churches. We've only seen a few of the accounts on the news for various reasons.You say kicked out as a strong term. But like when [00:19:00] I was, when I was technically removed from ministry at Lakewood, because they found out that I was LGBTQ and therefore unfit to serve in the adult choir or around children anymore, you know, then nobody specifically said, don't come back to the church, but Jeff, you know, the feeling, once you throw somebody out of something that meant so much to them, like you said, I just wanted to come and share my gifts.You know, there was, you know, and now I can't do that here. You dislike it. It's like getting a divorce. It's like, it's like being married and getting a divorce, but then trying to stay in the same house. Jeff: Yes exactly. It's a De'Vannon: rejection, you know, you're not going to do that. Now. Now the church in their arrogance thinks that Y you, you, you probably can, if not, should just come on back and sit through a service, you know, like nothing's changed, but everything's changed because they made you look like a heretic, [00:20:00] you know, in bad and terrible.And they took one thing that they didn't like, and they let that overshadow all of the great and fabulous things that you had been doing, you know, nevermind your work ethic, consistency, qualifications. And actually, it seems like you were called by God to be doing this. As you said, you were damn good at it.Well, the only way that happens is if the Lord is with you, you know? And so, you know, in terms of like your effectiveness and actually reaching people and connecting, like, it sounds like you were, and so. Humans decided that you have reached a, a stumbling block in your life or at impasse or a rough spot.This is the priority. And this now defines you what fuck them, because they don't get to pick that. But see, this happens to a lot of people. And like you said, you never really found a good church again. You know, it was a [00:21:00] long, long road. Like, I don't know, 10, 15 fucking years before I found what I was comfortable.You know? And again, that sort of break up of is, is catastrophic to somebody, you know, in, in the, not only us, but also people, our friends who have watched us get kicked out of allies, both, both LGBTQ allies were even friends of straight people like yourself. Who've been kicked out. They go, it didn't happen to them, but they're like, look at what you did to my friend.I'm not fucking with churches either. You know? And so. What would you say to people who who have been kicked out of churches before removed from ministries, you know, in the, in the friends and allies of those who have watched this happen to people who they know are good people and could, could not understand why the church was being so antagonistic, Jeff: I would say to try to find God where you can.And like I said before, that does [00:22:00] not look the same to everybody. And God doesn't even mean the same thing to everybody. To me, God means one thing. But to my, like my mom, it means a completely different thing. And so I was raised very. I, I was hesitate when I say I was raised very religiously, but I was, my mom is a very religious woman and she believes completely in the doctrine of the Christian Church and not the Catholic church, which is like the old Christian Church, but like contemporary American Christian Church.And it's where I grew up in a, it was called well, let's see, it was a community church, but. Denominationally. It was kind of like an evangelical, so it was big and showy and the music was everything. And lots of speaking in tongues and it's, so I go back and forth on that. So because of that early exposure to that kind of culture, I am extremely hesitant [00:23:00] to get involved in any kind of group hypno, hypnosis, bullshit.Like everybody puts your hands up or everybody do that. I don't like any of it. I'll barely do the wave at a football game. Like you try to get me to do a chant with hand motions, fuck off. I'm not doing it. You're not hypnotizing me because I understand psychology. That's what's really going on is you're you're engaging in a map mass hypnosis.And so when you do that and you're bonding your consciousness with all the. People in the collective consciousness, under a banner of some kind of greater purpose, it's extremely powerful. And you open yourself up to all kinds of manipulation. And so it's just, that's not to say that every time those tools are used to open your operating system, that doesn't mean that every time that happens it's for malicious means, but it does mean that that's always a possibility.So I'm skeptical. And when they, you know, people are, I love to see people [00:24:00] praising God and worshiping and stuff, but when they bring out the basket of ribbons and the ladies are twirling them and, and your people are speaking in tongues and falling over and stuff, it, I start to really feel uncomfortable.So yeah, I don't know. I, I can appreciate spirituality. And at the same time, I understand that it has a lot of power to control and. Corrupt people. So I'm really skeptical of, of really, really highly emotional groups of people, I guess, is probably the best way to say it. On the other side of that my father was not a highly religious man.He tried really hard, but deep down, he's kind of a thug and kind of at times criminal and just, he was kind of an abused child and he led a very difficult life and he taught me the way of the world was to protect yourself and everybody's out to get you. You've got to learn how to fuck them before they fuck you.And [00:25:00] so I had this strange, just the juxtaposition of the turn, the other cheek mentality coming from my mom where, you know, put yourself last, be humble. The. Be humble, be the servant to the world. And then on my dad's side, it was like, take care of yourself, protect your family, get yours. Don't let somebody make you their bitch, just, you know, get out there and set yourself up for success as a human being.And so those are two very far points from each other on the whole spectrum of existence. And so I landed smack dab in the middle. So I feel like I'm kind of a unique perspective and it definitely shaped the way I see the church. And to get back to your question, but what, the way I would tell a person to handle that situation where they've, they've seen people in the church doing things that they shouldn't have done, or they, somebody they trusted let them down or they're.I mean, [00:26:00] there is always going to be those times because we're all human and we all make mistakes. And as much as we want to think of religious figures as above suspicion, they're fucking not. They're just humans too. And they get into flesh and they like titties and they liked sex and he liked drugs and they like all the same stuff we like.And they honestly, they like stuff. That's a little bit naughty, just like humans. Everybody's a human. So I really try to separate God from the church, from the people in the church, because I think all three of those are very separate and distinct things. So I would, I would just suggest that people look for God somewhere where he is, because he's not in every church.And he is in every, I mean, he's in everything. He is a, is a bad term, but God is everywhere. God is what holds the universe together. And that's what I believe in. I think that if you open your heart and look for God, you can find him in very unexpected. De'Vannon: I concur.[00:27:00] You don't necessarily need a physical building in order to communicate with the Lord.As the Bible says, in my understanding that he is as near as a very air that we breathe. And so there's no need to go searching about, you know, he's already there, it's a matter of your awareness and tapping into his presence. And then I agree, God is not in every church in the sense that his love is not necessarily being expressed there through the people in charge and running, things like that.So Jeff: some, you could feel it and in the building, you can feel it when you're there. Like you can tell when the, like, this group of people is United to help the world. And sometimes this group of people doesn't give a fuck about what's going on outside these walls. De'Vannon: Right in. So, and like, so y'all what Jeff was saying about like hypnosis and stuff like that has to do with.How overwhelming all the different practices and things like that can be from my study of [00:28:00] hypnosis and stuff like that. Basically when you have a whole lot of summit, when you have a whole lot of different shit going on your critical mind, which is only like 12% of the brain, like your subconscious mind is like 88% of it.It's like way more than what you might think. But when you overwhelm the critical mind, you know, you stop being so critical and then you just kind of start accepting a bunch of shit. So when you have the people speaking in tongues and twirling about in the music it's playing and you've already got a whole platform set up and the people are up there on stage.And so though, you're, they're already looking down at you and you're already looking up at them. You don't really have much of a, you know, a critical mind left by the, by the time all that is done. And like he's saying, you're in a state of what is known as hypnosis at that point, when your critical mind has been broken down enough for you to be on the receiving end of stuff, that.Otherwise be more critical of, sometimes it can be used good. And the places where the love of God actually. And sometimes it's not in [00:29:00] places where it isn't and perhaps they might use that to manipulate even all kinds of things, give given money, you know, especially stuff like that. You know, you just, you do have to be careful for, you know, in the falling out, falling out in the quote unquote Ms.Spirit shit. I've been in unfortunate situations before where they're happy. Who like literally tried to put their hand on people and make them lay on the ground. You know, stuff like look, the holy ghost is real. There is a version of that. That's actually authentic, but those free people, people are gifted like that.And the Lord is using them. Them don't even have to touch people. They're going to fall out like that. And the Lord is going to slay somebody in the spirit as it is called it. Ain't going to have to be forced. And then you're not going to have people like I've seen. Making people talk in tongues and telling them to do it, you know, and then dancing in the spirit and stuff like that is real too.But then you've got sister, Sarah who [00:30:00] every damn Sunday at 11 o'clock that she go up and down the aisle, you know, like clockwork, we not talking about that. Bitch has Jeff: got a word again.Of course De'Vannon: she has a fucking word. She always had a damn word.So the Sarah needs to go sit her ass down somewhere because this is Sarah is addicted, is addicted to church and doesn't realize it. And there's so much ego and pride tied up into all of the reasons whyY people. You know, fill the need to do these things. But community, like you said, is a huge part of it. We were going to seek a group of people, no matter what the bucket is, you know, and in your podcasts, I listened to you say how you, you don't have been kind of alone or in life and stuff like that. And yet, you know, now are who you talk, you know, more [00:31:00] about you know, like your connectedness you know, and stuff like that. You haven't, you know, you haven't always felt as so connected in life and your podcast. I was listening to you say how you used to push people away because you thought they would threaten your autonomy. And connected connectedness is so important. Now I hear the importance of it in the things that you say now yet you've experienced so much rejection in life.How have you managed to, to maintain your connection with people during the pandemic is what I'm curious about? Jeff: Well, I think primarily the pandemic especially kind of helped me to realize that prior the priority that needs to be placed on connection. Because like I said before, I was just spending a lot of time by myself and it wasn't fulfilling.And even when cool stuff happens or you see neat stuff or anything, that is like what we think of as a genuine. [00:32:00] Rich experience is just dramatically reduced by being alone. You don't, you don't, it's not the same. You don't form the same kind of memories when you're alone sharing it with another person is important or another group of people or whatever.But yeah, so the podcast really helped me because it gave me an excuse to not only invite somebody to my house, to just talk, but an excuse to ask real questions and to talk about something beyond the weather and which vaccine you got De'Vannon: and on your podcast, I thought it was very bold and very courageous of you to get into body image issues that you've had in the past.You know, a lot of men, especially men who identify as heterosexual, don't just go around, you know, talking about the way they feel about their body, you know? And so. I want you to walk us [00:33:00] through that. Cause you know, the, the issue that you had, you know, with your body, since you were a teen and the way you feel about your your dad bought now.Jeff: Yeah. So body image is, is a big thing for me and it always has been, it started with. When I was real young, I was very proud of my body because I was faster than most kids. I was a little bit bigger than most of the other kids taller. Like I liked, I liked my body a lot. It did well for me. And then around fourth grade, I put on some weight and started not loving my body so much.And at that point I really, it became kind of a, an unhealthy relationship between me and my body. And I, I would think a lot of negative thoughts and just regularly look in the mirror and just pick out all the stuff that I hated and that I would love to change. And I would fantasize about how great life would be if I could just be not quite as choppy or if my skin was a little bit better.[00:34:00] All those versions of me were so much happier and they were beloved by the world and all this things that are just fantasy and. When I hit, you know, later in high school, I started getting in pretty good shape and it, it happened through sports. I was always involved in sports throughout. And, but when you're younger, though, you can, you can be involved in sports and be athletic and still be kinda chubby.It's not that hard just because I didn't know anything about nutrition. And during those years I also developed some pretty unhealthy relationships to food, which I still struggle with. Now I'm a sugar junkie, like crazy. And it's something that I go to when I'm really stressed. Something that I go to when I'm feeling happy and I want to celebrate.It's just like, it's, it's, it's a weird thing because it's something that you do actually need to survive. It's food, but it's sugar in particular is not a, not a necessary ingredient. It's not iodine. Like you don't have to have it to live. So it's, and it's, I mean, that's [00:35:00] debatable, I guess, because of like the glucose, you need to fuel your cells, but you can do that.Ketosis, but that's a whole nother topic, but yeah. So as I got into my college years, I started getting in really, really good shape to where I was very much proud of my body. And from that point on, I really kind of was able to let go of the shame that I had kind of acquired and carried with me since childhood of just not loving myself, of just being afraid to let people see me with my flaws and everything.And I started realizing like, this is who I am. I don't need to sit there and fantasize about changing and wishing I was different because that's wasted energy. This that's, that's not who I am. This is who I am. So I got to love this. And now I really do. And I don't mind having a dad bod, I will, I will say I do wish it was a little bit tighter.I'll tight. I'd like to tighten up a bit, but it's hard to find the time I feel like lately I've been choosing between. Podcasting [00:36:00] family time working out and preparing healthy meals is like extra, but it's, it's hard. It's, there's just so many things to do so many ways to spend your time in this world, but it's definitely important to me.De'Vannon: Well, thank you for sharing that Jeff, you know, these bodies are not going to last forever anyway. And so, you know, I think working on your legacy, you know, with your podcast is spending time with your family, you know, you know, would come before that because you're already doing, you know, making sounds like making healthy meal choices, you know?And so as long as you know, your blood lab results and test results are good in terms of like, and you feel good, you know, in terms of like how everything looks and everything like that. Well, you know, are, you know, I like to. I like to, I really just view us, you know, you know, temporary physical beings. And so, you know, getting spiritually fit [00:37:00] to me is more important than getting physically fit.Now I do work out and I have a gym in my home and everything like that, but, you know, if it comes down to it on any given day you know, I'm going to skip the gym and do some sort of spiritual work instead, you know, if I don't have time because once I die and everything, if I have a six-pack or not, which I don't, but if I, if I did, you know, that ain't gonna, that ain't going to go with me, you know, until the spirit around, whereas my spiritual fitness will, you know, cause how we live in this.Tends to have an impact as I understand that on the next one. And so I agree. Jeff: I think that actually ties right in with the fact that it's all one being. So like, I feel my best personally, when I am physically fit and spiritually fit, but I have been doing the work on both ends. That's when I feel like I've kind of reached my pinnacle and that's a hard, that's a hard place to stay because it, you feel like you can just top all over any direction and it takes so much work just to maintain, [00:38:00] but that's a, that's probably like the peak is when you're, you're feeling good on, on both fronts.De'Vannon: Absolutely. And speaking of your. Of your family. I want you to tell us about how you do your family gratitude list. You know, coming from a history of sobriety and recovery out, that's where I was exposed to gratitude lists. When you recovering from various addictions, they tell you to focus on being thankful.You say Jeff, on your podcasts at what you put your attention into is where your energy goes. And so you try to focus on what you're thankful for and not just you, I believe y'all passed your gratitude list around every day or something like that. So tell us about your family gratitude lists. Jeff: Yeah, so yeah.Gratitude is. One of the most powerful tools for improving your own mental health is especially if you're feeling down or like you've been rejected by society or that you're not getting what's owed to you. It's really easy to fall into those traps, [00:39:00] essentially, a psychological traps that we set for ourselves that are designed to help us to propel ourselves into another stage of life, like in a traditional environment, it would be a good thing.It'd be advantageous for you to feel like maybe you were owed more because that'll lead you to pursue more. But in this world of abundance, that at least I am operating in. I know not everybody is as privileged as, as I have been, but it is really about. Looking towards the future. Do you want to see, and really along the way, being able to look around you and say like, maybe this isn't where I want to end up, but while I'm here, I can definitely appreciate the value in it.And so what my family does is we will send a text. We have a group text that's me and my kids and my wife, and one of us, whoever has the idea. First, we'll send a group text. It just says today, I'm grateful for blank, blank, blank, and give three things. And it [00:40:00] can be anything it can be today. I'm grateful for blue skies pros and you know, a newly paved road, like random stuff.And I'll try to do random stuff so that it gets my kids thinking. That you don't have to just be grateful for your X-Box and the new puppy. You can be grateful for mundane things, and that is almost more powerful sometimes because it helps us to remember that we're always blessed. We're always lucky to be here.It's it's probably the probability of us existing is so small that it's really incredible that we do. So you can be grateful for that. And the psychology behind grateful attitudes is really pronounced. Everybody can understand it kind of implicitly, but when you actually look at the research, it has a huge effect on overall subjective wellbeing, just to recognize the things you're grateful for.De'Vannon: I agree, and it just feels [00:41:00] better, you know, and we all want to feel good. And it's something that changes, you know, in the metaphysical and more. You know, progressive thinking, you know, you know, we talk about like vibrations and things like that. And you know, like how do you focus on negative stuff? And that lowers your vibrations and how this contended to close doors for you in life.Perhaps you won't receive as many blessings because of the negative energy that you can be putting out. You know, when you're focusing on, what's not working as opposed to what is working and gratitude lists helped to reorient us and to not. And be overwhelmed with the negativity because sometimes on bad stuff, does that happen, we can make a really big deal out of them not to take any importance out of it, but then we can make it such a big deal that we lose sight on the fact that there is still good stuff going on in.So I love what y'all are doing with the [00:42:00] gratitude with, because it'd be pretty, you know, hard to let that, for that to happen. When each and every day you reminding yourself of, of the life that you have in your life. Jeff: Yeah. And sometimes it's real work. So when things are going badly and kind of, you don't realize it all the time, but you almost like it.You almost want to let it play out. So if you're having a bad morning and you know, there was ice on your windshield and the car wouldn't start and, you know, there was traffic and all this stuff, you're just, you're in that I'm in a shitty mood zone. And then you get a message on your phone from your daughter that says today, I'm grateful for clean school bus.You know, puppy dogs and jolly ranchers it, you have to respond to that with love. You. Can't just be like, oh yeah, well, I'm grateful that I don't have to be that. I don't know. I'm, I'm grateful for the ravages of old age. So I don't have to endure this life much longer. You can't do that. You have to respond to it, love it.And then all of a sudden [00:43:00] bang you're back in that gratefulness mindset. So doing it on a daily basis, it's not always just, you know, fluffy, good feelings. It's sometimes it's actual work and that's the times when it's the most meaningful. De'Vannon: And you said it another way in your podcast when, and you tied it into like how somebody maybe offended you and you had a choice and they apologize to, you know, let it go and move on or to follow the negativity, which is what you were saying.Like, if you're having a bad day and somebody counters that with positivity or you. Take the positive path that they're offering you or somebody that's offended you the apology, or are you going to press for, with the negativity and you sent the pick of the choice, that's going to lead to the best result for you not to pick the choice it's going to make you feel the best just in the next few moments.And so can you speak to us how the D the temptation of the shortsightedness to, why would we want to use it? [00:44:00] And you, you kind of already said it, you know, sometimes we want to chase the negative. Why have we become addicted to it? Is it doesn't then it's a long, that is what we're more accustomed to than being positive.What's Jeff: the temptation. Well, I think on a few different levels, you can think about it. So have you ever heard of the Mo the marshmallow test? This is a study that they did. I mean, they've done it since the fifties, I think, but they take children who are notoriously poor at self-regulation. So they, they would love to prefer immediate gratification over.Prolonging gratification for an extended benefit. So in this test, they, they sit the kids down. The kids can be anywhere from, I don't know, three or four to 10, actually, it doesn't matter. You can do it with adults, but it wouldn't be as interesting. And they say, here you go. Here's one marshmallow. And they plop a marshmallow down on the table in front of them and they say, we're going to leave the room and we're going to be gone for just a couple of minutes.And when we come back, If you have been able, if you have left the [00:45:00] marshmallow here, we're going to give you two marshmallows. You're allowed to eat the marshmallow while we're gone. If you, if you eat it, then you don't get the second marshmallow. But if you can wait, we'll give you two. And then they, they leave the room and the kid is in there by themselves, looking at the marshmallow and they film the kid.And so you get to see them. Some of the kids will cover their eyes. Some of the kids will pick it up and stare at it. Some of the kids will like cover their mouth and just, they do all kinds of like physical behaviors to express this desire that they're having internally to eat that marshmallow. And so like very few of the kids are able to hold off for the whole five minutes and get a second marshmallow.And they have found that the ones that do the ones that are able to delay gratification, go on to have a lot more success as adults in later life. And so I think that that is that little phenomena right there. Extend what, what, how we think about ourselves? Because in that specific circumstance that you just mentioned, where [00:46:00] you've just gotten into a fight, say it's with your spouse or somebody who you're close to and you you're mad.You're like, you're all, you're in the flesh. You're mad. Your emotions are wild and you have a choice because, okay, let's say they've apologized and they're trying to resolve it. They're not mad anymore. But you were in, you were the one who was in the right. So you won the fight. So you feel like you kind of are justified in staying mad a little longer.Then you have that choice. Do I just let it resolve and get over it or do I, you know, punish them a little bit? Let, let them know that I'm still mad and you have to kind of zoom out from your own experience of that moment and realize like, what are the consequences of both of those decisions? What are the consequences of staying mad and punishing this person?Well, it's going to continue the fight. It could hurt them enough to where then they're going to feel like they need to come back at me. It's going to just continue conflict. And it's going to continue this feeling of discomfort that I have because anger is not a pleasant feeling. And [00:47:00] it's, it's something that you should want to get rid of.But for some reason we kind of like it. And so, or you can have the choice of humbling yourself and, you know, ending, ending the conflict. But that feeling is not great either, because then we have this weird thing of like, Discontinuity. If that's the right word where you, you almost, as a person, you want your consciousness to feel like we're making smooth transitions from feeling to feeling in moments a moment so that we, because that's how we narrativize our existence.And it doesn't feel right when you just cut off that anger and say like, I'm not going to engage in this. I'm moving on, forgive and forget done over. And so it's tough. And like, everybody is different. I'm pretty quick to forgive. Once I decide it's over, I'm just, I let it go, but that's not going to happen for everybody.And it takes some practices. De'Vannon: It does say practice and sometimes counseling. I used to be very vindictive like that. You know, somebody did meet something, especially, especially like significant other, oh, [00:48:00] hail now, you know, it was going to be some shit, you know, until I said it wasn't going to be some shit and that was going to be hell to pay.But you know what, that, that gives us power over people. You know, when we feel like we have, when they, when they've heard us and then they, then people that have heard us before and we may need additional healing and stuff like that. But over time and through, you know, counseling and, you know, studying hypnotherapy myself and everything, which you, a lot of things you say, come, come directly out of the hypnotherapy school that who, you know, that I not saying you learned it from them or, you know, but I'm saying the, the, the knowledge process, you know, intersects with mine, you know, on many different levels.And it's absolutely fascinating. Oh, the Jeff: psychology background. De'Vannon: Okay. That's why then probably because hitting the therapist worked with you know, some running hand in tandem with a psych psychology psychologist. Do you have a psychology degree? Jeff: Yeah, I do. I do. Yeah. I studied it for five years. [00:49:00] I took the long way around undergrad.I studied all kinds of stuff. I just really enjoyed college. And so it took me five years and got the psychology degree and didn't really have the ambition to pursue an academic career. It just seemed like a kind of a hard route.De'Vannon: Okay. That's good stuff, man. Okay, so let's switch gears so you can talk about drugs, some drugs, man. And and we're going to talk about, we're going to kind of close the shout with your mushroom experiment that you did and the crack shack that I really want to hear all the juicy details of. But since we're talking about drugs, I want to take a moment to talk about what's going on in Portland, since you reside, not far from that area, you know, they legalized, well, they decriminalized all drugs.They're like back in February, meaning that they won't throw you in jail for it. They're not saying it's a great idea, but they're saying you shouldn't go to jail for it. I [00:50:00] agree with that. Everybody seems to be doing well and doing happy, but I want to hear your thoughts on it, especially since you live right there.Jeff: Yeah, sure. So, well, first of all, the whole strategy of drug decriminalization, it gets a lot of press. And I think a lot of people don't fully understand it in context because it's, it's, people are very reactionary about it and it's very taboo and we have all, anyone in our generation has been brought up during the drug war.And so, I mean, we're at war, that's the enemy. We're not going to decriminalize the enemy, but it's, it's fallacy. The drugs are not entities, their tools and their chemical tools that do a very specific things. And it's okay to take advantage of those tools under the right circumstances, the problems come about when people are not educated or when people don't understand what they're doing, or they don't know the history of what they're dealing with or just, I mean, there are so many possible pitfalls, which are the [00:51:00] re, which is the reason why we need to have good education about the subject and the idea that we are.Millions of people. I don't know how many people, a lot of people in prison for these nonviolent drug offenses just baffles me because it seems like such a waste of money. I don't, I'm sure a quick Google would probably reveal the number, but it's gotta be a lot of money per day, per inmate. And when these people were just trying to do something that just made them feel a little less shitty, that seems like a bad system to me.And obviously there are potential threats to assist them that doesn't have criminal penalties for drug offenses, but I think it could be designed in a way that really helps society instead of hurts society and could save a lot of money. Really, my whole, my main motivation for like taking this opinion is fiscal.I think that the idea of, of housing that many people for something that. Just, we're not, they're not protecting and they're not protecting society from these people. They're [00:52:00] punishing these people for doing something that was only meant to affect them. Now that's just for individual users to say the same about cartels and people who are managing massive drug rings and you know, basically black market stuff.That's, that's different. And that's, that is criminal because it's spreading around to other people. And I don't know, I think regulating that would eliminate that problem and create a regulated industry. Much like has happened in the states where marijuana has been legalized. I used to have to get into the car with strangers to go buy weed.I sat the meat, scuzzy, dirty people in Walmart, parking lots, get in the car, go down the road, all of the stuff. I don't want to do that shit. Nobody should have to, especially not as a teenager, like the, this it's dangerous. And in the world we live in now. Young people don't have to do that. Obviously teenagers shouldn't be doing any drugs, period.That was a joke, but I was doing them when I was a teenager. I was making bad choices and it's because I didn't [00:53:00] have education about what I was getting into education would be a huge step towards creating a system that actually works. And I think the one that we are operating in now, doesn't because people are still getting high and not always in a safe environment and not always under safe circumstances.And I think there could be a lot more just benefits extracted from the system rather than nothing but drawbacks. De'Vannon: Yeah. I've gotten in the car with my fair share of scuzzy, dirty people to go get crack and meth and you know, and everything else. I thank God that I'm still alive because I mean, it was bad.I would just find any like random person, like in the hood. At some point you can, especially since I used to be a drug dealer and a heavy user, I could tell who's getting high and who isn't. So all you gotta do is go down the street and you. That bitch knows where to find some shit and they ain't got shit to do anyway.So all you gotta do. And every time they'll get that, just getting in the [00:54:00] car, I think one person, maybe one night didn't, but other than that, a hundred percent of the time. So I'm all for illegal legalization tax that if you will, I don't give a damn, we should all be able to go down the fucking drugs or us and just, which is what I used to call my drug business back in the day.And you know, and just get whatever the fuck you need and do go home and leave her. But those fuck alone, Jeff: but it should have labels on it. And we should be able to tell where it was made and we should be able to call somebody if it's bad, or we should be able to not worry about going to jail. If you overdose, like there should be a system in place to protect people.People are going to get high either way. De'Vannon: Yeah. It's not about to stop, you know, but that's just conservative. You know, politicized who politicize that, you know, in the beginning, in the beginning, whoever that president was, I think that that whole war on drugs thing to either get reelected or to stay in, to stay in power with some sort of political gain, it Jeff: was a lot about was [00:55:00] controlling black people and Mexicans, the government knew that.So at least with marijuana, marijuana was highly associated with like jazz musicians and Mexican laborers in the south. And the president at the time, I forget which president it was, but the director of the DEA, I believe was Harry Anslinger. And he was quoted as saying like, we are going to do this to control these minority populations.And then, so they launched this whole misinformation campaign called reefer madness and, you know, convince a lot of people have some really big myths about drugs that are still, you know, pretty persistent to this day. But there's a lot of, a lot of misinformation out there and it's intentional. De'Vannon: It is, but we're going to get the victory over that.I think so. Oh, so tell, tell us about your mushroom experiment back in the crack shack and tell us what the crack shack. Jeff: Sure. So [00:56:00] I grew up in a small town, had a very tight group of friends and just a few miles down from my house. My friend Ronnie lived, and there was a, they had old like garden shed out behind their house that we had converted into like a hangout.I w converted as a strong word. We put a couch in there and it was still just as dirty and gross as before, but we hate like decorated all the walls with Sharpies and stuff. It was, it was like, Exactly what you would picture for a group of high school boys hanging out and mostly just like smoking weed and drinking beer and laughing a lot.And so that was where I spent a lot of my evenings and, you know, junior, senior year of high school and we got pretty interested in drugs. So not only was that kind of like the place I did them. There's also where I went to learn about stuff. He had a computer with good internet access and not a whole lot of adult supervision, which is exactly what I was after.So we were on the Shrew, Marie and [00:57:00] Erowid and all these mushroom sites back in the early two thousands, just when the, the field of psychedelics was still very taboo and still really kind of underground completely there wasn't studies going on at Johns Hopkins at that time, like there is now. And so we're everything is, is amateur.The information is amateurish and you're never sure it's not coming out of universities. You're never sure what to trust. And so I really trusted. My friends more than I should have in my own instincts, more than I should have. So we live in a place where there's a very, very potent strain of psychedelic mushroom called as a residence is Salafi as a residence.And they were first documented around the time I was in high school by a guy named Paul Stamets. And he found that they have a much higher psilocybin content than their close relatives. So we were all pretty stoked about that. And we decided to try to find them and identify them. And we did, and [00:58:00] my friends had all tried them a couple of times already and I had yet, and I decided I was going to go for it.So I showed up ready to go and didn't really know what to expect, but I was just coming at it with an open mind. And my friend handed me one of those red solo cups, stuffed, just packed full of fresh philosophy as a residence, probably between 35 and 40 full mushrooms, which is a lot I don't I don't know how much your listeners are familiar with the dosage for mushrooms, but what's referred to as a heroic dose, we'll take you on the hero's journey.That's usually five grams of dried mushroom material. And again, each species is a little different, so it's not always the same, but this is much, much higher than that. And I had never done it before. So within 20 minutes, my whole body was. Humming, this weird warm feeling where it's like, almost like your [00:59:00] blood turns into a bunch of microscopic canaries.Like they're just fluttering about your veins and you're just feeling different than you've ever felt before. And from there you start to slide and you don't really stop for quite a while. I was listening to this band called built to spill, check them out if, if you're into that stuff. And I remember it because it was such a profound moment that stuck in my head that I've heard the song a few times since and this was again like 15 years ago.I still, it takes me right back to that moment. And I was listening to the, built to spill this song called. It's a good song and all the colors from the Sharpies on the wall with the music where like pulsating, almost like the walls were breathing and super colorful. And then like with the symbol crash at the end, and it's like fading out all the colors just like started running down the walls and bleeding together.And I was like, all right, I think they're working. And then I looked up at the ceiling and it was [01:00:00] covered with spiders and I was afraid of spiders, but for some reason I wasn't feeling real scared at the moment. And that's the last I remember of that section. I know there was probably so much more, but next thing I remember.Standing in the middle of the room and looking like everybody's laughing at me and I'm like standing in the middle of the room and I have no idea what's what's really going on. And I looked at the TV and my face was on a TV and my eyes were bright red. And I thought this was a hallucination, but what had happened was my friends were actually fucking with me and they had hooked up a video camera and put it on me and then connected it to the TV.This was probably super mean. And I sh I would never do this to anybody, but they, they were trying to freak me out and I, I, it worked so I, I was started freaking out a little bit. Yeah, that part was, was scary, but you know, not that big a deal because I was still somewhat connected to [01:01:00] reality. And shortly after that, I, I remember hearing people say, Like leading up to the trip.When you see a door, go through it. When you see a staircase, follow it, like just do whatever the trip wants and open yourself up to possibility. And because if you don't, you're going to have a bad trip. So I took that little too literally. And when I felt the urge to urinate, I was like, just go with it, bro.Do it. This is what the trip wants. It won't, you're not peeing yourself in real life, but I was, and I paid myself in the middle of the room and that's probably the comic relief of the whole story. Because I was there with like a girl that I had just started dating and like didn't really even know her well enough to see me in a Somewhat vegetive state.And she had to change me. She said it was to like trying to change the 200 pound baby. Like it was, it was, it was terrible. But so shortly after I was put into some [01:02:00] fresh clothes, I lost connection with my body completely. And I, I experienced what I refer to as ego death. I could not remember is not even the right word because there's, there was no memory warehouse available, period.My, I, it's not that I just didn't remember who I was. I didn't even know that I was a person. I was just a, an energy field and I was in open space and I was going through different dimensions where sometimes it was all black. Sometimes it was like every color and sound and. Experience I could ever fathom.And other times it was all white and blank and it was just like the deep, deep layers of consciousness of what it means to be alive and to be a human. And I saw nothing. I got deep enough to where I had gone through all of the, the astral plane, [01:03:00] where everything exists in a possibility. And I had penetrated out the other side of that and entered a realm of nothingness.And at that moment, I just, I couldn't believe how Careless. I had been to, to put myself here because at this moment, I didn't know if I was ever coming back. I had lost all concept of time. So it's moment to moment. Every moment is its own. And it's just, it's, it's impossible to put it into words that accurately describe the experience.It's it's, that's why so many people feel driven to pursue it, I think. But yeah, I just, I realized that everything we have is so, so precious and so rare in, in terms of, of all that there is, and can be this, this small shred of existence that we can actually touch and taste and experience and feel and live in, in three dimensions in time.And it's beautiful [01:04:00] and it is the most beautiful thing it's, it's like, it's everything. So I. I don't know, it's just, this is the ultimate knowledge that we're lucky to be here. Just permeated my whole being. And I felt very connected to God and to the universe. And at this point I didn't even care anymore that I wasn't sure if I was a human or a doorknob.I just didn't, it didn't matter. I was just lucky to be experiencing an experience. And so from there it slowly pull me back little by little one, one click at a time, two into, you know, three-dimensional reality and into my timeline. And I slowly learned again, who I was. I remember sitting there with my friend.And this is like eight hours after ingesting the mushrooms so long enough for them to have mostly worn off. But there, I was just kind of buttoned back up and he was like, quizzing me on objects in my life that I would definitely know, [01:05:00] like he was, I, I, for some reason, I remember him asking me about football a lot, cause I was playing football at the time and he was asking me like the different positions and what, what a football was.And I remember being really excited when I remember what football was, because I couldn't have done that a few minutes earlier. And so eventually I reassembled the collection of memories and experiences that I call Jeff Nesbit and got back to live in. De'Vannon: Could you have been, do people overdose on a mushroom that you haven't been stuck in that vegetative state?Jeff: Huh? I highly doubt it. I don't, I've never heard of that happening. And if I think about it, biologically, I think your body would just metabolize the chemicals and transfer them out. So it's in order to be stuck in that state, you would have to have continuous exposure to the chemical. De'Vannon: So there's though I was thinking more in terms of like [01:06:00] brain damage, you know, Jeff: I would not say like physical brain damage, like as if you hit your head or something, but I will say that people with a pre pre

I did three episodes about heroin - a few wrote to me asking if I was going to do more episodes "like that" not sure what people wanted-  this is more on the lines of what SMAK podcast would/will be like if I ever get the time needed to handle two podcasts - the Crack Shack is just what it sounds like - plus I ramble on about a few other select things-  just a brief intermission before getting back to true crime next week! Enjoy!!

The real stars of this episode are the ONE STARS. One Star Reviews, that is. This week the boys read a couple doozy reviewzies for a restaurant called “The Crack Shack”, and a donut place in Vegas with fantastic customer service. Plus, the boys learn Jonathan’s in-laws are big fans of the show. And, Leon’s kids stop by to reek havoc.

Touring as an indie musician often leads to playing unexpected spaces. When my band, Flat Planet, toured the US in the mid-90s, we played skate parks, backyards, public parks, recording studios, trailer parks, and one time we played in the middle of the desert, thirty miles from Las Vegas with nothing but a generator and a few lights. Adam Davis, co-host of this podcast, also played a ton of DIY spaces while touring with Link 80 in the late 90s and early 2000s. Of all venues he played, one of his all-time favorite spots was “The Crack Shack,” an abandoned house in Tuba City, which is a small city on the Navajo Nation Reservation in Arizona. The Crack Shack only lasted from 1999 till 2003, but it housed a raging punk scene that left an impact on Adam. Years later, Adam found one of the main Crack Shack promoters, Alex Begay, on MySpace. Alex not only promoted shows at The Crack Shack, but he played in the Tuba City punk band Downplay—at the time, the only punk band in town. The Ugly Kids at The Crack ShackOn this episode of In Defense of Ska, Adam and Alex reminisce on The Crack Shack days. And try to understand why oftentimes, it’s the punk rock venues in the least likely, most off-the-radar spots, that have the best scenes. Alex talks about The Crack Shack’s history, what lead to it being shut down, about the time he enjoyed Navajo Tacos with Vic Ruggeiro (Slackers), and we also discuss the time Glenn Danzig got socked in the face in Tuba City. That wasn’t at The Crack Shack though. If you enjoy this episode, give it a share. Also, sign up for my newsletter for posts and podcast episodes sent directly to your inbox Get on the email list at aaroncarnes.substack.com

This week we chatted with chef Richard Blais, whom you may recognize as both a contestant and a judge on Top Chef, and as a judge on Guy’s Grocery Games and MasterChef. Richard came by to talk about his newest restaurant, Ember & Rye, a steak house opening soon at the Park Hyatt Aviara Resort in Carlsbad. Richard got his start working at The French Laundry, Chez Panisse, and El Bulli, then opened several of his own restaurants in Atlanta. After moving to San Diego, he opened Juniper and Ivy in 2014 and followed that with The Crack Shack in Little Italy. At the time of our recording, Richard was staying at the Aviara, working out the last few details for Ember & Rye to open. Over the past year, Richard says he’s taken advantage of the new circumstances to give his fans a more authentic virtual experience. One project he developed was to move his “stand-up cooking” performances, which he used to spend the bulk of his time traveling to do live, into the intimate setting of his backyard. (Unfortunately, the backyard show is currently on hiatus after Richard received a cease and desist order. Listen to find out what happened!) Ember & Rye is set to open on March 18, as long as the public health orders don’t change. Richard describes this new restaurant as a “steak house of sorts,” which will serve the kind of food that he would want to eat every day. He says a restaurant’s true identity isn’t formed until 90 days after opening, so he’s looking forward to seeing what growth will happen after the launch. He’d been considering opening a steak house for a while, and spending more time at home, burning wood and grilling food in his backyard, helped him fine-tune the concept: Namely, backyard-style grilling with lots of different grills (Santa Maria style), techniques, and tools to cook dry-aged meat and fresh seafood. But why put in all the work to open another restaurant, especially now? For Richard, part of it is a matter of remembering what got him where he is today. He just loves restaurants, great food, and making people happy. He talked about his plan to incorporate golf-inspired art and decor from the ’60s and ’70s at Ember & Rye, as well as classic dishes from that era, like prime rib. He’ll be bringing back old cooking techniques and tools, like a flambadou used to heat up and drip melted fat over the meat, alongside his more well-known trademarks, like liquid nitrogen. In Hot Plates, San Diego’s favorite fishmonger has his own TV show! Tommy Gomes, who was at Catalina Offshore for 15 years, is starring in a new docuseries called The Fishmonger on the Outdoor Channel premiering March 1. Vista will get a new beer hall next month called Co-Lab, which will feature booths from different breweries, food vendors, and outdoor seating. California state senator Bill Dodd introduced SB 389, which would legalize takeout cocktails permanently if it passes. In Two People for Takeout / Two People for $50, Richard recommended Alborz, a Persian restaurant in Del Mar. He enjoys the skewered meats, koobideh (kebab made from ground beef), and saffron rice, and his favorite dish is the fesenjon (pomegranate and walnut stew). Troy’s pick was Awash Ethiopian Restaurant in North Park for tibs, a spicy beef tenderloin stew, and the vegetarian sides that come with injera flatbread. Marie’s pick was the Lebanese restaurant Amardeen in UTC for their beef and lamb shawarma, lentil soup, and homemade baklava. David recommended the pizza at The Friendly, which has two locations in North Park. Thank you for listening! As always, we want to hear from our listeners. Do you have a question for Troy? Need a recommendation for takeout? Is there a guest you want us to book on the show? Let us know! You can call us at 619-744-0535 and leave a voicemail, or if you’re too shy, you can email us at happyhalfhour@sdmag.com. See you next week!

What diet works? Is it okay to put an 8 year old on a diet? What is your house's name? What food gets you in the "mood?" Is a silent disco cool? What is the best MTV show? The Playhouse write name poems for their significant other. 

On this episode of our Scene in San Diego podcast, we talk about the newest project to hit San Diego’s hotel dining scene: Ember & Rye, a restaurant by “Top Chef” alum Richard Blais, at Park Hyatt Aviara in Carlsbad.Blais joins the conversation to talk about why the new restaurant is making him so nervous and how he’s prepping for the project. The Crack Shack and Juniper & Ivy alum always has a lot of eyes on him and, at the end of the day, he just wants to make good food and “make people happy.”Blais also chats about his life during the pandemic (there are hikes with the family, bread samples, TikTok videos) and how he’s just trying to keep a positive outlook, even in tough times.We’ll also recap the latest enforcement efforts by San Diego County public health officials to keep local eateries following the pandemic restrictions which, under the ongoing regional stay-at-home order, still means restaurants can only offer takeout and delivery, and no indoor or outdoor dining just yet.

We are hanging out with Rand Fishkin today, who previously co-founded the SEO company MOZ, and has most recently started a new venture with SparkToro. This tool is quickly becoming one of our favorite pieces of software to do a lot of research. It helps us figure out what content to create around specific topics, what topics resonate around audiences, and you can literally plug in your URL or social media channel and it will kick out all this research from a variety of platforms.    If you are running ads, you are probably noticing lately higher costs, fewer options, and lower conversions. We break a lot of that down from Rand’s perspective and you’ll see why it’s important to diversify from Facebook and Google if you are solely relying on those platforms. You’ll also hear us talk about what’s in store for the future with the way Google presents search results, and what you should be doing to rely less on links while building up your brand. After you listen, get some more advertising tips with Curt Maly and Tom Breeze.  “The primary goal is to get people to your website and your email list because that’s the one channel you always get to own and control.” - Rand Fishkin Some Topics We Discussed Include: Perspectives on the zero clicks search problem  Checking out the Crack Shack (it’s not what you think!) How to get honed in on a specific audience that will convert better What do cookies and strange pajamas have to do with advertising? Why getting people to like and share should be your secondary goal From chicken sandwiches in your email to ground beef in your advertising to al dente pasta on Youtube, we got you covered! Which ad networks are lacking in quality and which ones you should be using Predictions of what’s ahead in the way in which Google ranks your site and what you should be focusing on in the future Resources From Rand Fishkin: SparkToro Something is Rotten in Online Advertising Lost And Founder by Rand Fishkin References and Links Mentioned: MOZ SimilarWeb Buzzsumo Full Contact Clearbit The Butt Pajamas Will Follow You Forever HelloWoofy Are you ready to be EPIC with us?! Then grab our EGP Letter here! Did you know we have an awesome YouTube Channel?  Join the Facebook Community - be sure to hop in our Facebook group to chat with us, our other amazing guests that we’ve had on the show, and fellow entrepreneurs! This episode is sponsored by Easy Webinar - be sure to check out these special deals for our listeners. Unique Facebook Ad Strategies That Are Making People Rich - Curt Maly A Step-By-Step Guide To Profitable YouTube Advertising - Tom Breeze      

Josh is the COO of Savory Management/Restaurant Fund. Savory stands as one of the most experienced growth teams in the restaurant industry and is responsible for Swig, Mo' Bettahs, R&R BBQ, The Crack Shack, and Via 313 Pizza.

It’s part three of our Restaurantology series, and today we’re talking about the state of the mergers and acquisitions market during the COVID-19 crisis. Prior to the pandemic, Savory Fund’s portfolio included the fast casuals Mo’Bettahs, Swig, and R&R BBQ. But just this fall, Savory closed on controlling investments in The Crack Shack, based in Southern California, and Austin-based full-service brand Via 313 Pizzeria.In this session, Michael Rosen, founder of The Crack Shack; Brandon and Zane Hunt, the brothers and cofounders behind Via 313; and Savory Fund managing director Andrew Smith discuss how these emerging brands have managed to succeed during the COVID crisis, how they landed a deal in the middle of the pandemic, and what they were looking for in the ideal investment partner. For more info on Savory or to watch videos of these conversations, visit SavoryFund.com/RestaurantologySubscribe to QSR at QSRmagazine.com/subscribeQSR Magazine informationFacebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedInQSRmagazine.com Have feedback or interview suggestions? Email us at sam@qsrmagazine.com.

This week Shauna Smith takes us to business bootcamp. Three time Sego Award Winner aka top female entrepreneur, she does it all! Find out how she went from stay-at-home mom to business mogul. Trust us, after you hear her story you'll be ready to finally do THAT thing you've always dreamed of. Shauna got her start as a "Sandwich Artist" at Subway and today has generated more than $1.4 billion in food and beverage sales. Shauna is a wife, mother and the CEO of Savory Management. She supports Savory's five portfolio brands - R&R Barbeque, Mo'Bettah's, Swig, Crack Shack and Via 313. She started her career by building the well known restaurant chain, Kneaders Bakery & Cafe, and today has built more than 190 new restaurants in 8 states. Follow Shauna Savory Fund Website https://savory.mercatopartners.com/   SPONSORS Kiln. https://kiln.co/ https://www.instagram.com/kiln.co/?hl=en   FOLLOW US Follow Living Unscripted Podcast https://www.instagram.com/livingunscriptedpodcast/?hl=en Follow Caitlin https://www.instagram.com/caitlinhhansen/?hl=en Follow Brooke https://www.instagram.com/brooke_mangum/?hl=en Subscribe to our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYoaGeTb_LnJ-qKNRcWUeUA?sub_confirmation=1

Crack Shack gets some cash, more companies get into third-party delivery, and Chipotle is bringing back its popular carne asada.

Blais currently owns and operates Trail Blais, a forward-thinking culinary company that has consulted on, designed, and operated multiple popular eateries. He is a partner at San Diego’s acclaimed restaurant Juniper & Ivy and multiple locations of The Crack Shack, his rapidly expanding fried chicken and egg concept. Most recently, Trail Blais opened Yellowbelly, an island-inspired seafood restaurant, in St. Louis.Blais is the James Beard Award-nominated author of Try This at Home: Recipes from My Head to Your Plate, as well as his second cookbook, So Good. He frequently makes appearances on such hit Food Network shows as Guy’s Grocery Games, Next Food Network Star and Cooks vs. Cons, to name just a few. In addition, Blais hosts the hit hospitality industry podcast entitled “Starving for Attention” which provides an entertaining, behind-the-scenes look into the food industry, and has featured guests including Wylie Dufresne, Michael Voltaggio, Andrew Zimmern, Gail Simmons, Lou Diamond Phillips, and more.When not on set, in the kitchen or at home with his family, Blais may be found traveling cross country performing his live “stand up cooking” show to enthusiastic audiences nationwide.

On this episode of the I Heart Costa Mesa podcast: U.S. Marine, and former White House Intern, Grant Broggi, wants to whip all Costa Mesans into shape! Broggi is the founder and owner of The Strength Co. - a strength-training gym here, off Newport Blvd., based on the Starting Strength philosophy. We talk about Broggi's time in the military, the importance of fitness, why strength-training is for everyone, why you definitely need a standing desk - and, of course, our mutual love of Costa Mesa. You'll feel stronger just *listening* to this episode... check it out! Connect With The Strength Co.: Online: https://www.thestrength.co/ Instagram: @thestrengthco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thestrengthco/ On This Episode We Discuss:  100 Day Beachbody: https://www.beachbodychallenge.com/ Starting Strength: https://startingstrength.com/ Art of Jiu Jitsu: https://artofjiujitsu.com/ Varidesk Standing Desk: https://www.varidesk.com/ Super Pollo: http://superpollooc.com/ Crack Shack: https://www.crackshack.com/ Peets Coffee: https://www.peets.com/ Hi-Time Chili Cook Off: https://www.hitimewine.net/ Grant's Chili Recipe Video: https://youtu.be/YsgR4BQ1vOE Dick Church's: https://www.iheartcostamesa.com/eat/dick-churchs-restaurant/ Shaka Sauce: https://www.shakasauce.com/ Ali Baba Motel: https://ocweekly.com/why-ali-baba-motels-makeover-of-convenience-matters/ Thank You To Our Wonderful Podcast Sponsors: Music Factory School of Music Orange Coast College Please tell your friends about the podcast – and don't forget to leave your rating and review wherever you listen! Find Us On… Facebook: www.facebook.com/iheartcostamesa/ Join the Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/iheartcostamesa/ Instagram: @iheartcostamesa Twitter: @iheartcostamesa Shop the store! https://www.iheartcostamesa.com/shop/ Big thanks to everyone who helped make this podcast possible! Producer: Danny Thompson (danny@themusicfactoryoc.com) Intro / Outro Voiceover: Brian Kazarian Music: Eddie “DJ Kaboom” Iniestra  

On this episode of the I Heart Costa Mesa podcast, we catch up with our friend, Dean Tompkins, of Thunderking Coffee. Tompkins is always funny and engaging... and we're pretty convinced he's the guy who personally knows every single person in Costa Mesa! In this conversation, we discuss the latest happenings at his local coffee company, his love for his city and, *gulp*, the tricky issue of the newly-legalized cannabis industry. It's a conversation unlike any we've had on the podcast to date... don't miss it! Connect With Dean Tompkins and Thunderking Coffee: Online: thunderkingcoffee.com Instagram: @thunderkingcoffee Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Thunderkingbrewing/ On This Episode We Discuss:  B. Young Forever Photography: http://byoungforeverphotography.com/ Eastside Mini Mart: https://www.yelp.com/biz/eastside-mini-mart-costa-mesa Sports Nutrition Superstore: https://www.yelp.com/biz/sports-nutrition-superstore-costa-mesa Crack Shack: https://www.crackshack.com/location/costa-mesa/ The Hood Kitchen Space: https://www.thehoodkitchen.com/ Violent Gentlemen Hockey Club: https://violentgentlemen.com/apps/store-locator SOCIAL: https://www.socialrg.com/social-costa-mesa-costa-mesa Coffee Dose: https://www.coffeedose.cafe/ Magnolia Salon: http://magnoliasalonoc.com/ Snoopy House: https://www.costamesaca.gov/residents/annual-events/snoopy-house-holiday-display 99 Cents Only Store: https://99only.com/stores/costa-mesa-harbor-blvd-174 Winter Fest: https://winterfestoc.com/ OC Fair Hypnotist: https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/tn-dpt-me-hypnotist-20160722-story.html CAVA: https://order.cava.com/stores/86/menu Sushi 21 Express: https://www.sushi21express.com/ Wickid Candle: https://www.wickidcandle.com/ Fairview Park: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g32253-d6651288-Reviews-Fairview_Park-Costa_Mesa_California.html Fish Fry: https://cmnh-lions.com/fish-fry/ Twisted Brisket: https://twistedbrisket.com/ Costa Mesa Concerts In The Park: https://www.facebook.com/CostaMesaFoundation/ Thank You To Our Wonderful Podcast Sponsors: Music Factory School of Music Orange Coast College Triangle Square Please tell your friends about the podcast – and don't forget to leave your rating and review wherever you listen! Find Us On… Facebook: www.facebook.com/iheartcostamesa/ Join the Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/iheartcostamesa/ Instagram: @iheartcostamesa Twitter: @iheartcostamesa Shop the store! https://www.iheartcostamesa.com/shop/ Big thanks to everyone who helped make this podcast possible! Producer: Danny Thompson (danny@themusicfactoryoc.com) Intro / Outro Voiceover: Brian Kazarian Music: Eddie “DJ Kaboom” Iniestra  

Welcome North County! Cassidy can't remember what he did this weekend☺️. Chris traveled near and far - Harland Brewing at One Paseo, Crack Shack in Encinitas, and Liberty Station in Point Loma. Baseball playoffs are winding down, basketball and hockey are winding up, and a kid on Cass' team went 8 for 8. There's a new pumpkin patch in the mix this year! What are the advantages and disadvantages of buying a fixer vs a move in ready place? And seriously there was a horse running down Coast Highway. Cassidy tells all! If you haven’t already feel free to subscribe and share the pod.

On this first episode of a brand-new season of the podcast, we dive into the world of performing arts - here in the City of the Arts - with Jason Holland, VP of Community Engagement at Segerstrom Center for the Arts. Learn all about the upcoming theater season and more FREE, local events you can enjoy on the Argyros Plaza, here in Costa Mesa. Listen in, then check out all the fun stuff happening over at SCFTA this Fall! Connect with Segerstrom Center for the Arts: Online: https://www.scfta.org/ Instagram: @segerstromarts Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SCFTA/ Twitter: @segerstromarts On This Episode, We Discuss: OC Press Club: http://www.orangecountypressclub.com/ Triangle Square: https://www.go2triangle.com/ Orange Coast College: http://www.orangecoastcollege.edu Concerts In The Park: https://www.costamesafoundation.org/concerts South Coast Repertory: https://www.scr.org/ Argyros Plaza: https://www.scfta.org/Events/Plaza-Events-List.aspx Lions Fish Fry: https://cmnh-lions.com/fish-fry/bands-2019/ National Dance Day: https://www.scfta.org/events/2019/national-dance-day-free El Grito: https://www.scfta.org/events/2019/el-grito-free Group Pricing (10 or more): https://scfta.org/See-a-Show/Group-Services.aspx All Abilities Celebration: https://scfta.org/events/2018/all-abilities-celebration-free  La Bayadère: https://www.scfta.org/events/2019/mariinsky-ballet Miss Saigon: https://www.scfta.org/events/2019/miss-saigon Anastasia: https://www.scfta.org/events/2019/anastasia The Crack Shack: https://www.crackshack.com/location/costa-mesa/ Lions Park: https://www.travelcostamesa.com/play/recreation/parks/lions-park/ Fairview Park: https://www.travelcostamesa.com/play/recreation/parks/fairview-park/ OC Fair: https://ocfair.com/ Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce: http://www.costamesachamber.com/ Thank You To Our Wonderful Podcast Sponsors: Music Factory School of Music Orange Coast College Triangle Square Please tell your friends about the podcast – and don't forget to leave your rating and review wherever you listen! Find Us On… Facebook: www.facebook.com/iheartcostamesa/ Join the Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/iheartcostamesa/ Instagram: @iheartcostamesa Twitter: @iheartcostamesa Shop the store! https://www.iheartcostamesa.com/shop/ Big thanks to everyone who helped make this podcast possible! Producer: Danny Thompson (danny@themusicfactoryoc.com) Intro / Outro Voiceover: Brian Kazarian Music: Eddie “DJ Kaboom” Iniestra  

Las Vegas Weekly's female chef roundtable, Crack Shack with Richard Blais, inside Justin Kingsley Hall's fridge and more!

I'm back from another Las Vegas trip - my fifth of 2019 - it's time for another World Famous Jeff Does Vegas Trip Report! This time around, I've got a review of my newly renovated Flamingo Room at - you guessed it - The Flamingo as well as meals at Bootlegger Italian Bistro, Flights at Planet Hollywood, Trustworthy Brewing Co & BBQ at the Palazzo and Crack Shack at Park MGM.  I've also got a heads-up for anyone planning on taking sneaky Showgirl photos and some fashion "suggestions" for the guys.  

Host of Flip the Strip, Melinda Sheckells, discusses the latest news in entertainment, such as Matt Goss celebrating 10-years of being in Las Vegas. Melinda also talks about Def Leppard's residency and a new restaurant that is coming to the valley called the "Crack Shack."

On the first Summer Break episode of the year, the guys are live from Boston, Massachusetts, chatting about the bat-shit crazy Alex Proyas film, Knowing! This was the first night of the East Cage Tour and the show featured several talking points including: just how much does Nicolas Cage look like a scarecrow in this movie? Are these things angels, aliens or Scandinavian perverts? And what kind of person brags about a hot dog recipe? PLUS: Performed live, for one night only, We Hate Movies' latest parody single, "Crack Shack."Knowing stars Nicolas Cage, Chandler Canterbury, and Rose Byrne; directed by Alex Proyas.

AGs target resort fees, Crack Shack looks delicious, Plaza brings in comics, grasshoppers invade Las Vegas

Josh talks about Living in a Crack Shack, Writing Pages, and Being a Good Bitch !!

We’re on location at Petco Park and taped this episode at the recent Padres vs. Mariners game. This week’s special guest is Katie Jackson, vice president of marketing for the San Diego Padres. Katie has been with the Padres for 5 years and oversees all the brand partnerships at the ballpark. She talks about the Party in the Park series—a huge themed happy hour event during every Friday home game—and the drink specials you can get for $5. Her pick for Two People, $50, is The Crack Shack, and the staff liked Realm of the 52 Remedies and Bankers Hill Bar and Restaurant. In Hot Plates, we talked about the owners of Board & Brew and chef Alex Carballo opening Casero Taqueria in The Square in Bressi Ranch near Carlsbad. The Hotel Del is getting a new oceanfront restaurant in June, Serea, which is replacing 1500 Ocean and will be run by local chef JoJo Ruiz (the executive chef at Lionfish) and focus on sustainable seafood, letting guests pick their fresh catch of the day. Akira Back, a Michelin-starred chef with restaurants in Las Vegas, Seoul, Toronto and Singapore, is opening his first restaurant in San Diego, Lumi by Akira Back, in the Gaslamp. It will be a rooftop space on the corner of Fifth Avenue and J Street, and you can expect elevated sushi and sashimi. David’s 60 Second Beer Review this week is Tail & Tooth, a collaboration from Coronado Brewing and Belching Beaver—David enjoyed this hazy IPA, even though he confesses he’s normally not a fan of Belching Beaver’s beers (listen to find out why!) This week’s Hot Topic is about Instagram: Is the photography aesthetic made popular by the app and its influencers—like poses in front of pink walls, artfully arranged avocado toast—over? A recent article in The Atlantic says yes, but Troy has an interesting counterpoint.

Richard and Jazmin catch up with founder of Eggslut, star of The Burger Show and possible Guru Alvin Cailan at the Pebble Beach Food and Wine Event. Richard asks Alvin about getting outside his comfort zone with the growth of Eggslut, Alvin talks about his passion for the food trumping his reluctance for stardom with The Burger Show, and Alvin shares the reasons behind his three month rule for new employees.

Erik Hale is an interesting guy. Founder and Publisher of Locale Magazine - started right here, in Costa Mesa - he's taken his premiere lifestyle publication from xeroxes in a binder to multi-city trendsetter! He's got a great story - including his own "Jerry Maguire moment" - and so many local connections. It's been a wild ride full of courage, bootstrapping, and community support. Check out the podcast, then check out the latest Orange County issue of his beautiful Locale Magazine... still based here in Costa Mesa! Connect with Erik Hale: Instagram: @local_e Connect with Locale Magazine: Online: https://localemagazine.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LocaleMagazine/ Instagram: @localemagazine On this episode, we discuss so many local people and places! Common Room Roasters: https://commonroomroasters.com/ Keane Coffee: https://www.keancoffee.com/ Jerry Maguire Moment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7Iq6lOSoPM Surfer Erica Hosseini: @ericahosseini Almond Surfboards: https://almondsurfboards.com/ A Restaurant: https://www.arestaurantnb.com/ Warren Christopher Hardwood Floors: http://wchristopher.com/ Haute Cakes: http://www.hautecakes.cafe/ Gratitude: https://www.cafegratitude.com/#locations James Perse: https://www.jamesperse.com/ Crack Shack: https://www.crackshack.com/ Fermentation Farm: https://fermfarm.com/ Daydream Surf Shop: https://daydreamsurfshop.com/ Moon Goat Coffee: https://www.moongoat.com/ 2145 Pizza: http://www.2145eat.com/ Outpost Kitchen: https://www.outpostkitchen.com/ Where's The Party?: http://www.wheresthepartyoc.com/ The Cannery: https://cannerynewport.com/ The Quiet Woman: https://www.quietwoman.com/ Wahoo's Fish Tacos: https://www.wahoos.com/ TK Burger: https://www.tkburgers.com/ Vestal Watches: https://www.vestalwatch.com/ South Coast Plaza: http://www.southcoastplaza.com/ SOCO & The Mix: http://socoandtheocmix.com/ OC Museum of Arts: https://www.ocmaexpand.org/ Map of Locale Magazine Distribution: https://localemagazine.com/find-us-orange-county/ Social: https://www.socialcostamesa.com/ Eat Chow: https://www.eatchow.com/ Coffee Dose: https://www.coffeedosecm.com/ The Surfrider Foundation: https://www.surfrider.org/ I Heart Costa Mesa is sponsored by: Music Factory School of Music Mesa Water District Sign up for the free Water Efficient Landscape Workshop, Sunday May 4th at 8:30am at Mesa Water! Please tell your friends about the podcast – and don't forget to leave your rating and review wherever you listen! Find us on… Facebook: www.facebook.com/iheartcostamesa/ Join the Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/iheartcostamesa/ Instagram: @iheartcostamesa Twitter: @iheartcostamesa Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/iheartcostamesa Shop the store! https://www.iheartcostamesa.com/shop/ Big thanks to everyone who helped make this podcast possible! Producer: Danny Thompson (danny@themusicfactoryoc.com) Intro / Outro Voiceover: Brian Kazarian Music: Eddie “DJ Kaboom” Iniestra  

This week Richard meets up with Chef Eric Greenspan in the Crack Shack in Century City to share their love of the Beastie Boys, conceptualize a competitive cooking league, and Eric shares his journey into healthy living. Remember to join us at @starving4pod on Instagram!

On the September 11, 2018 episode of /Film Daily, /Film editor-in-chief Peter Sciretta is joined by managing editor Jacob Hall, senior writer Ben Pearson and writer Hoai-Tran Bui to talk about what they've been up to at the Water Cooler.   You can subscribe to /Film Daily on iTunes, Google Play, Overcast, Spotify and all the popular podcast apps (here is the RSS URL if you need it).   Opening Banter: Chris is away at the Toronto International Film Festival and Brad is sick.   At The Water Cooler: What we've been Doing:Peter went to the yearly Magic Castle swap meet and bought magic stuff. Jacob found time to visit Madness Games and Comics in Dallas and celebrated his third wedding anniversary. What we've been Reading:Hoai-Tran has been reading Pachinko by Min Jin Lee Jacob has dipped his toes into Doom Patrol What we've been Watching:Peter finally saw Spike Lee's Black Klansman and Paddington. He tried to watch Nicolas Cage in Mom and Dad, finished Ozark season 2 and started watching a spanish tv series called Money Heist on Netflix. He also saw a press screening of The Predator. Ben saw The Predator, started Ozark, and caught the season 13 premiere of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Jacob rewatched all of the Conjuring movies before he saw The Nun. Hoai-Tran finally saw Three Identical Strangers, has been rewatching and renewing her love for Doctor Who. What we've been Eating:Peter celebrated a friend's birthday at Michael Mina's Bourbon Steak and had a cheat day at the Crack Shack and regrets it. Ben ate one of the best meals of his life at Majordomo. Jacob ate suppli at Enoteca Vespaio and it's just the best. What we've been Playing:Jacob has been reading the Vampire: The Masquerade 5th edition book. Ben is still playing Marvel's Spider-Man All the other stuff you need to know: You can find more about all the stories we mentioned on today's show at slashfilm.com, and linked inside the show notes. /Film Daily is published every weekday, bringing you the most exciting news from the world of movies and television as well as deeper dives into the great features from slashfilm.com. You can subscribe to /Film Daily on iTunes, Google Play, Overcast, Spotify and all the popular podcast apps (RSS). Send your feedback, questions, comments and concerns to us at peter@slashfilm.com. Please leave your name and general geographic location in case we mention the e-mail on the air. Please rate and review the podcast on iTunes, tell your friends and spread the word! Thanks to Sam Hume for our logo.

On today’s Happy Half Hour, we’re talking about Simsim headed to Kearny Mesa, a new wine country-inspired restaurant in the Gaslamp, classic burgers coming to Barrio Logan, and new menu items at The Crack Shack and Mendocino Farms. We’re joined by Javier Plascencia, the prolific chef known for toggling both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border with his legion of Baja eateries (Misión19, Finca Altozano, etc.) and two former San Diego spots (Romesco and Bracero, R.I.P.). But good news! He’s spilling details about the upcoming restaurant he’s going to open in San Diego—and sharing details about guest chef-ing at the Hotel del’s California Clambake series on July 28. Our guest is Laura Johnson, co-founder of You & Yours Distilling Co., a gin and vodka distillery that opened last March in the East Village. She talks about how a vacation to Cuba got her interested in the spirits, why she cares about ingredient transparency, and how regulations are different for distillers versus winemakers and brewers. Plus, canned cocktails! They’re coming. We end with Two People/$50, including Prep Kitchen, Punch Bowl Social, Trust, and Yakyudori.

On this week's episode of the I Heart Costa Mesa Show, we talk about our first jobs, hiring and firing, local teens, the interview process, mentorship, employment in Costa Mesa, the power of a paycheck and giving back - with Executive Director of Youth Employment Service, Wendy Weeks. Youth Employment Service (YES) is a local non-profit that helps build up our city's teens and young adults with the skills and training they need to land their first jobs. YES needs volunteers to help conduct mock interviews and they also want to connect with local employers and donors, too. So listen in to learn more, then contact YES to get involved and help mentor Costa Mesa's next generation.  YES online: https://yesworks.org/ YES on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yesworksoc/ YES on Instagram: @yesworksoc YES on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/YESWorksOrg Post a job on the YES Job Board: https://yesworks.org/post-a-job/ Volunteer at YES: https://yesworks.org/get-involved/volunteer/ Donate to YES: https://yesworks.org/donate/ We talk about Youth Employment Service's involvement with the following local employers, donors and organizations:  https://www.mothersmarket.com/ https://www.dpr.com/ http://mastercraftresidential.com/ https://www.starbucks.com/ http://www.jambajuice.com/ https://www.papamurphys.com/ https://www.caferio.com/ https://ocfair.com/ http://thehoagfoundation.org/ In the Fast Final Five, Weeks brought up the following Costa Mesa restaurants, events and places:  The Crack Shack on 17th Street: https://www.crackshack.com/ We Olive at SOCO: http://weolive.com/costa-mesa/ Costa Mesa Summer Concerts In The Park: https://www.costamesafoundation.org/ The OC Fair: https://ocfair.com/ I Heart Costa Mesa is sponsored by: Music Factory School of Music The Orange County Market Place Please tell your friends about the podcast – and don't forget to leave your rating and review wherever you listen! Find us on… Facebook: www.facebook.com/iheartcostamesa/ Instagram: @iheartcostamesa Twitter: @iheartcostamesa Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/iheartcostamesa Big thanks to everyone who helped make this podcast possible! Producer: Danny Thompson (danny@themusicfactoryoc.com) Intro / Outro Voiceover: Brian Kazarian Music: Eddie “DJ Kaboom” Iniestra

On today’s show hosts Erin Chambers Smith and Troy Johnson along with producer Archana Ram are dishing out restaurant openings, like Calozzi’s Cheesesteaks, JuneShine kombucha bar, and The Crack Shack’s collaboration with Salt & Straw ice cream. In the guest seat is Valentina Di Pietro, co-owner of Little Italy restaurant staples Monello and Bencotto, which earned Troy’s pick for Best Italian in this year’s Best Restaurants issue. Valentina chats about her career evolution from working in public relations for Dolce & Gabbana to opening a restaurant in Little Italy before it was the buzzy neighborhood it is today. She gives us the scoop on the one dish everyone is going nuts for at her restaurants and the recipe her co-owner husband won’t share “until his death.” Plus, we’re gearing up for our big 100th episode, which we’ll be taping on Hornblower Cruise’s Sights & Sips Cocktail Cruise June 22. And we want you there! Enter here for a chance to win one of 10 pairs of tickets to join us on the bay.

I’ve just come back from the states, actually just on Sunday, when I was supposed to release an episode. I thought I’d release this little episode just to give you a taste of what I ate in the US and what I am going to do in Bali. The US was great and always feel a bit sad leaving a place that I like so much. It was my first time to Miami and I didn’t really like it too much, South Beach is where I stayed and it was a bad move on my part as it’s full of posers and the type of people that I’d never be seen dead with. New York was very cool, I ate some great food there and enjoyed Brooklyn for the first time. Los Angeles is my favourite city in the US for many reasons and reasons I’m not gonna list it now. Also, went to San Diego, which was great as Chris from Yellow Productions drove us around, one day around Orange County and the other day around San Diego. My wife and I also drove all the way down to Key West from South Beach. Key West is awesome. I love it. The drive was very nice also. And now I have my Bali trip coming up and I’m doing this holiday to test the theory that; Is having a holiday after a holiday a good thing or not needed, because you always hear of people that have had busy holiday’s like I have, sightseeing and walking many many kilometres/miles each day. My America trip was full on and we did 14 to 15kms per day of walking, so about 15,000 steps on average. All that fatty food I ate and I didn’t put on a kilogram. In Bali, I’ll be relaxing by a pool with my brothers and my sister-in-law and my wife Mandy, and just drinking a lot so I think in the 10 days that I’ll be in Indonesia I may put on more weight than what I did in the US. In America I really enjoyed a host of great food. I went to some pretty well known food establishments. I’m listing the places that made an impact on me, positive or negative. Here’s my take on the food I ate in USA. Timestamps: Intro to the show Los Angeles 6:17 Orange County and San Diego 18:12 New York 21:35 Miami and Key West 27:26 Bali info 30:45 Additional Information: Los Angeles Eggslut, 1611 Pacific Avenue, Los Angeles in Venice Beach Lemonade, 1661 Abbot Kinney Boulevard, Los Angeles Wexler’s Deli at Grand Central Market, 317 S Broadway, Los Angeles Sticky Rice at Grand Central Market, 317 S Broadway, Los Angeles Prawn Coastal at Grand Central Market, 317 S Broadway, Los Angeles Wurstküche Restaurant, 800 E 3rd St, Los Angeles In-N-Out, 9149 South Sepulveda Boulevard, Los Angeles The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co., 8732 S Sepulveda Blvd, Los Angeles The Original Farmers Market, 6333 W 3rd St, Los Angeles Orange County and San Diego Lucille’s Smokehouse Bar-B-Que, location unknown Crack Shack, 2266 Kettner Blvd, San Diego New York Shake Shack, Madison Ave & E 23rd St, New York Dominique Ansel Bakery, 189 Spring Street (between Sullivan and Thompson), New York Le Relais de L'Entrecote, 590 Lexington Avenue, New York Friedman’s Lunch at Chelsea Market, 75 9th Ave, New York Stella34 Trattoria, 151 W 34th St, New York Grimaldi’s, 656 6th Ave, New York Miami and Key West Taquiza, 1506 Collins Ave, Miami Beach Puerto Sagua Restaurant, 700 Collins Ave, Miami Beach Blue Heaven, 729 Thomas St, Key West Southernmost Beach Café, 1405 Duval St, Key West Follow Travelman Podcast: iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/travelman-podcast/id1281446908 SoundCloud: https://m.soundcloud.com/user-265082759 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/benthetravelman/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/travelmanpodcast/?hl=en Twitter: https://twitter.com/TravelmanPod Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/ben-dow/travelman-podcast Travelman Podcast Website: https://travelmanpodcast.wixsite.com/travelman (New website coming soon via www.travelmanpodcast.com)

On today's episode of All in the Industry, host Shari Bayer is joined by Richard Blais, who is perhaps best known for his win on Bravo's Top Chef All Stars. Richard is a restaurateur, currently of Juniper & Ivy and fast-casual fried chicken spot, Crack Shack, in San Diego; a James Beard nominated cookbook author; television personality, and most recently, he released his second cookbook, So Good, and launched a podcast called Starving for Attention. Tune in to hear about Richard's awesome career, plus, Shari's PR tip, Speed Round game, Industry News discussion, Solo Dining experience, and The Final Question. Follow us @allindustry. All in the Industry is powered by Simplecast

In today’s episode hosts Erin Chambers Smith and Troy Johnson, along with producer Archana Ram are talking about restaurant news, like two Hillcrest openings—Better Buzz Coffee and Copper Top Coffee & Donuts (Did you know donuts are the Instagram subject?). Plus Troy has the First Look on Bivouc Ciderworks in North Park and Little Italy’s Cloak & Petal. Today’s sponsor is Torrey Holistics, a city-approved medical marijuana facility in Sorrento Valley. Christine Bordenave, the company’s director of purchasing and compliance, joins us to explain the different between THC and CBD, how they’re capping dosage in edibles, and the launch of childproof packsaging. (You can also read all about San Diego’s huge leap into the cannabis industry in our February issue.) Joining us in the guest seat is Richard Blais, Top Chef All-Star, chef-partner of Juniper & Ivy and The Crack Shack, podcaster at Starving for Attention, cookbook author of So Good—the list goes on. He tells us why he moved to San Diego, how he got to star in a cat food commercial, and what it’s like to work with Troy on Guy’s Grocery Games. In Hot Topics, we discuss dining trends for 2018. Less dinner Instagramming, more chilled red wine. We end with Two People/$50, including Village North, and Richard’s two picks, the Sea Señorita at Crack Shack and­—wait for it—the shredded beef from Trader Joe’s. Subscribe to the Happy Half Hour on iTunes or Google Play, or listen below.

I made a bet with Ben Vaught, my de facto West Coast little brother, prior to the season. After every podcast I put up, he asked when he could be on it. So I told him, not thinking he would actually accomplish this until perhaps Manhattan, that he could be on the podcast when he qualified. Well, it took him one event to do so. Ben, also known as Uncle Ben or Benny Boo Boo or Crack Shack, rolled through the Huntington Beach qualifier, stunning four-time Olympian Reid Priddy and Canadian Olympian Chaim Schalk in the final round. He cried a little. Hell, I was damn near tears, too. So here is our conversation. We'll cover: - His experience qualifying on the AVP as a 20-year-old. - What it's like being in the players' tent for the first time. - The number of training opportunities it has since opened up. - Ben's progression through the years, and how he got so damn good so fast. - Beating Olympians - Playing Jake Gibb and Taylor Crabb Enjoy, and welcome back to the Paper Courts Podcast!

On today’s Happy Half Hour, hosts Erin Chambers Smith, Troy Johnson, and producer Archana Ram chat local dining news, including Tacos el Gordo and Tacos el Franc opening downtown, the closing of Del Mar’s Mia Francesca, Lot 8 debuting in Mission Valley, and a grown-up take on Chuck E. Cheese coming to North Park. Plus, pssst: La Jolla may be getting a Crack Shack! Today’s special guest is Catalina Offshore Products’ fishmonger Tommy Gomes, a native San Diegan with deep roots in the city’s tuna fishing scene. He tells us about his history, how to cook fish via his YouTube channel, and Catalina’s new line of canned tuna. We’re also discussing the San Diego chef who’s making waves at a Noma pop-up in Tulum, Mexico and Pinterest’s “Shazam for food” app. We end the show with recommendations for Two People/$50, including Volare.