1 00:00:02,279 --> 00:00:05,720 Speaker 1: If you thought four hours a day, minutes a week 2 00:00:05,880 --> 00:00:09,280 Speaker 1: was enough, I think again. He's the last remnants of 3 00:00:09,280 --> 00:00:12,920 Speaker 1: the old republic, a sole fashion of fairness. He treats 4 00:00:12,960 --> 00:00:15,800 Speaker 1: crackheads in the ghetto cutter the same as the rich 5 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:20,240 Speaker 1: pill poppers in the penthouse, to clearinghouse of hot takes, 6 00:00:20,320 --> 00:00:24,120 Speaker 1: break free for something special. The Fifth Hour with Ben 7 00:00:24,160 --> 00:00:28,840 Speaker 1: Maller starts right now that it does in the air 8 00:00:29,720 --> 00:00:34,240 Speaker 1: everywheres we loviate the weekend away, even on a Friday 9 00:00:34,360 --> 00:00:38,920 Speaker 1: Friday Friday, as we kick off the weekend festivities here 10 00:00:38,960 --> 00:00:42,400 Speaker 1: because four hours a night are not enough. Eight days 11 00:00:42,520 --> 00:00:45,239 Speaker 1: a week, eight days a week. Broadcasting live and in 12 00:00:45,320 --> 00:00:48,880 Speaker 1: stereo were available from the newly Voice My Voice, Sound 13 00:00:48,920 --> 00:00:52,720 Speaker 1: Good Mallard podcast studio Deep in the north Woods. Deep 14 00:00:52,760 --> 00:00:55,320 Speaker 1: in the north Woods. Of course, the Fifth Hour a 15 00:00:55,480 --> 00:00:59,440 Speaker 1: spinoff of the Overnight Show. And since I was away 16 00:00:59,480 --> 00:01:02,279 Speaker 1: from my host quite a bit this week because of 17 00:01:02,320 --> 00:01:04,840 Speaker 1: some moving, we'll have more on that on the Saturday podcast. 18 00:01:06,400 --> 00:01:09,000 Speaker 1: We have to make up for it on the weekend 19 00:01:09,040 --> 00:01:11,560 Speaker 1: here with the Fifth Hour. The show must go on, 20 00:01:12,200 --> 00:01:15,080 Speaker 1: as we like to say in the air, everywhere. The 21 00:01:15,240 --> 00:01:19,559 Speaker 1: vast power of podcasting, and you've obviously found the show. 22 00:01:19,600 --> 00:01:21,920 Speaker 1: We thank you for that. Man, that's cool that you've 23 00:01:21,959 --> 00:01:25,120 Speaker 1: downloaded it and remember sharing his caring. So if you 24 00:01:25,160 --> 00:01:27,000 Speaker 1: like the podcast and you know somebody that might like 25 00:01:27,080 --> 00:01:28,920 Speaker 1: it or hate it, for that matter, as long as 26 00:01:28,920 --> 00:01:31,080 Speaker 1: they listen, we get credit. That's all we care about, 27 00:01:31,480 --> 00:01:33,160 Speaker 1: just to direct them to the podcast. We are joined 28 00:01:33,160 --> 00:01:35,440 Speaker 1: again another weekend in a row. Here I was, there's 29 00:01:35,440 --> 00:01:38,240 Speaker 1: a two or three in a row now David Gascott 30 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:52,920 Speaker 1: making gallon vancing across the wide open state of California, 31 00:01:52,920 --> 00:01:54,280 Speaker 1: at least for a short period of time. But I 32 00:01:54,360 --> 00:01:57,960 Speaker 1: have found my way home into the studio and uh, 33 00:01:58,080 --> 00:02:00,640 Speaker 1: and here I am. So we'll get more into it 34 00:02:00,680 --> 00:02:03,120 Speaker 1: in future podcast. But people said, well, when you're going 35 00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:05,360 Speaker 1: back to the studio, what's going on? And well, you know, 36 00:02:05,920 --> 00:02:08,200 Speaker 1: l a man, they keep shutting stuff down. I don't 37 00:02:08,240 --> 00:02:10,880 Speaker 1: have to worry about that. I I'm good on that. 38 00:02:11,040 --> 00:02:12,880 Speaker 1: I think this will be going on for years. I 39 00:02:12,919 --> 00:02:16,760 Speaker 1: don't have to worry about about going back in at 40 00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:20,679 Speaker 1: all at all. So uh, anyway, listen, this is not 41 00:02:20,720 --> 00:02:23,240 Speaker 1: about us. We'll get into all that stuff in future podcast. 42 00:02:23,320 --> 00:02:26,040 Speaker 1: But I'm excited, you know. I I like to dabble 43 00:02:26,120 --> 00:02:28,160 Speaker 1: in the kitchen as you know, I guess, and I 44 00:02:28,200 --> 00:02:30,600 Speaker 1: send you pictures of my creations with a few days 45 00:02:30,680 --> 00:02:33,600 Speaker 1: I eat occasionally when we eat, and I will send 46 00:02:33,639 --> 00:02:36,239 Speaker 1: you my mallard pie that I make rather painful to 47 00:02:36,320 --> 00:02:37,480 Speaker 1: look at. I don't know if you want to call 48 00:02:37,520 --> 00:02:40,040 Speaker 1: it dabble, you know, like dabble means like it's a 49 00:02:40,040 --> 00:02:44,680 Speaker 1: little tapped dressing. Listen. I have I have ripped off 50 00:02:44,760 --> 00:02:50,200 Speaker 1: many YouTube recipes, you know, mimicking other things. But I 51 00:02:50,840 --> 00:02:53,000 Speaker 1: I do like to cook, and my wife actually has 52 00:02:53,040 --> 00:02:55,520 Speaker 1: helped me. I when I was a bachelor. I got 53 00:02:55,639 --> 00:02:59,440 Speaker 1: married almost ten years ago, and before then I knew nothing. 54 00:03:00,160 --> 00:03:02,760 Speaker 1: My idea of cooking was a hungry man one pound, 55 00:03:03,080 --> 00:03:06,120 Speaker 1: one pound dinner, a TV dinner. I was very good 56 00:03:06,120 --> 00:03:08,200 Speaker 1: at making that. I could make the frozen pizza. I 57 00:03:08,320 --> 00:03:11,080 Speaker 1: knew that I could even heat up some frozen French 58 00:03:11,120 --> 00:03:14,080 Speaker 1: fries in the like you know, on the oven whatever. 59 00:03:14,080 --> 00:03:15,400 Speaker 1: I knew how to do that, but that was about it. 60 00:03:15,480 --> 00:03:17,600 Speaker 1: That was the extent of my cooking. So I'm very 61 00:03:17,880 --> 00:03:21,200 Speaker 1: very proud of myself, humble bragg, but I'm not anywhere 62 00:03:21,240 --> 00:03:25,239 Speaker 1: near the level of a professional professional chef. And we 63 00:03:25,440 --> 00:03:28,680 Speaker 1: have one eight and the guy's on TV as well, Uh, 64 00:03:28,800 --> 00:03:31,959 Speaker 1: he's owns a bunch of restaurants, a pizza restaurant, a 65 00:03:32,160 --> 00:03:35,320 Speaker 1: very popular seafood restaurant, and you've seen him on the 66 00:03:35,440 --> 00:03:39,040 Speaker 1: Food Network. He's been a judge on a number of 67 00:03:39,080 --> 00:03:42,640 Speaker 1: these cooking shows over the last almost a decade. I 68 00:03:42,720 --> 00:03:45,760 Speaker 1: guess he's been on. So I'm excited. So we should 69 00:03:45,880 --> 00:03:48,760 Speaker 1: without further Adoe, David, let's give it up now for 70 00:03:48,960 --> 00:03:53,720 Speaker 1: the chef. And his name is Andrew Gruel and he 71 00:03:53,880 --> 00:03:56,360 Speaker 1: joins us now in the fifth hour with Ben Maller 72 00:03:56,480 --> 00:03:59,720 Speaker 1: and David gascoont and Andrew, we welcome you in. And 73 00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:03,800 Speaker 1: so I guess we'll start with this. Was this always 74 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:07,080 Speaker 1: your plan to to be a television cheffer? Is this 75 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:12,160 Speaker 1: something that you stumbled into? Stumbled into it like I 76 00:04:12,240 --> 00:04:14,400 Speaker 1: do it with everything else in my life. So how 77 00:04:14,440 --> 00:04:16,360 Speaker 1: did how did it happen? I mean you were obviously 78 00:04:16,560 --> 00:04:19,599 Speaker 1: you're you're professional, You're doing it. And did did somebody 79 00:04:19,680 --> 00:04:21,640 Speaker 1: contact you? Did you? Did you end up in the 80 00:04:21,680 --> 00:04:23,560 Speaker 1: wrong place or the right place at the right time? 81 00:04:23,600 --> 00:04:25,840 Speaker 1: How did it happen? Uh? You know, I've always been 82 00:04:25,880 --> 00:04:29,200 Speaker 1: pretty outspoken about what I do and how I do it. 83 00:04:29,440 --> 00:04:32,799 Speaker 1: And I had opened a restaurant out in New Hampshire, Gosh, 84 00:04:32,960 --> 00:04:36,200 Speaker 1: in the early two thousand's, and there was a local 85 00:04:36,400 --> 00:04:41,200 Speaker 1: radio studio there. It probably broadcast to maybe hundred homes, 86 00:04:42,760 --> 00:04:45,599 Speaker 1: and I started a little a little radio show called 87 00:04:45,680 --> 00:04:49,800 Speaker 1: Cooking with Gruel, right, so a play on the old porridge. 88 00:04:50,440 --> 00:04:54,119 Speaker 1: And I loved just talking and getting to know people 89 00:04:54,279 --> 00:04:57,960 Speaker 1: through the radio. And then was simultaneously there was a 90 00:04:58,040 --> 00:05:00,880 Speaker 1: new PBS show called The Endless East that had come out, 91 00:05:00,960 --> 00:05:04,040 Speaker 1: and they were trying to highlight and promote restaurants that 92 00:05:04,120 --> 00:05:07,040 Speaker 1: were serving a lot of local, sustainable fair This was 93 00:05:07,400 --> 00:05:10,360 Speaker 1: once again kind of way before the farm to table stuff. 94 00:05:10,480 --> 00:05:12,640 Speaker 1: So given the fact that I had a little bit, 95 00:05:13,040 --> 00:05:16,960 Speaker 1: a little bit a skeach of media experienced by virtue 96 00:05:16,960 --> 00:05:19,720 Speaker 1: of the radio show, they threw me into this episode 97 00:05:20,040 --> 00:05:23,039 Speaker 1: and I got to shoot uh this TV show with PBS, 98 00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:25,360 Speaker 1: and then from there it was the bite Um. I 99 00:05:25,480 --> 00:05:27,600 Speaker 1: really enjoyed it. And then that far laid into a 100 00:05:27,680 --> 00:05:31,080 Speaker 1: few more opportunities and then ultimately caught the eye of 101 00:05:31,839 --> 00:05:34,160 Speaker 1: Food Network back when I started my food truck in 102 00:05:34,240 --> 00:05:37,880 Speaker 1: two thousand eleven. So that's the the short history, if 103 00:05:37,920 --> 00:05:41,640 Speaker 1: you will. Nice and so now as a radio guy, Andrew, 104 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:44,680 Speaker 1: I love that you did a radio I guess you've 105 00:05:44,680 --> 00:05:47,919 Speaker 1: still done some up until now, also on the radio. 106 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:51,440 Speaker 1: But how difficult is it because cooking is such a 107 00:05:51,600 --> 00:05:54,039 Speaker 1: visual thing and and you know, you're talking about your 108 00:05:54,120 --> 00:05:57,600 Speaker 1: senses and you can't obviously radio. We have the audio, 109 00:05:57,680 --> 00:05:59,720 Speaker 1: that's all we have. So how difficult is it to 110 00:05:59,760 --> 00:06:03,520 Speaker 1: train in late what you do and talk about the 111 00:06:03,960 --> 00:06:09,400 Speaker 1: restaurants on the radio? Great question. Incredibly difficult. And it's 112 00:06:09,480 --> 00:06:11,680 Speaker 1: not as simple as just posting a photo up on 113 00:06:11,760 --> 00:06:14,640 Speaker 1: Instagram that says it all right. There's a way you 114 00:06:14,760 --> 00:06:17,119 Speaker 1: have to describe the fact that the sauces are dripping 115 00:06:17,160 --> 00:06:20,000 Speaker 1: down your arm, and you've got to use chewy words 116 00:06:20,120 --> 00:06:23,240 Speaker 1: quite literally to get people to salivate. And we got 117 00:06:23,320 --> 00:06:25,600 Speaker 1: into a lot of technique, right, But then that also 118 00:06:25,680 --> 00:06:29,279 Speaker 1: borders into this boring curse of knowledge where it's like, okay, 119 00:06:29,360 --> 00:06:32,280 Speaker 1: that's great, turn the oven to three fifty blah blah blah. 120 00:06:32,600 --> 00:06:34,920 Speaker 1: I mean you almost have to describe the oven, right, 121 00:06:34,920 --> 00:06:37,680 Speaker 1: You've got to bring the listener into the oven, which 122 00:06:37,720 --> 00:06:41,560 Speaker 1: could be quite dangerous. Frankly, Yeah, yeah, no, no, no, 123 00:06:41,720 --> 00:06:45,280 Speaker 1: for sure, yeah absolutely, And but I went done right. 124 00:06:45,320 --> 00:06:47,120 Speaker 1: I mean anything in radio, when it's done right, people 125 00:06:47,120 --> 00:06:48,800 Speaker 1: obviously want to want to hear, But it was this 126 00:06:48,960 --> 00:06:51,160 Speaker 1: always when you were a kid, like a little Andrew 127 00:06:51,320 --> 00:06:54,279 Speaker 1: growing up, Little Andrew grow did you always imagine you'd 128 00:06:54,320 --> 00:06:58,200 Speaker 1: be in the kitchen cooking professionally or you know, is 129 00:06:58,240 --> 00:07:01,320 Speaker 1: this something that came a little bit later? No, well, 130 00:07:01,400 --> 00:07:04,680 Speaker 1: great question, and to thie topics together. So I used 131 00:07:04,720 --> 00:07:07,640 Speaker 1: to skip school when I was in second, third, fourth grade. 132 00:07:07,680 --> 00:07:10,280 Speaker 1: I don't recall it all kind of merges together to 133 00:07:10,480 --> 00:07:14,400 Speaker 1: stay home and watch these old school cooking shows. That 134 00:07:14,520 --> 00:07:17,400 Speaker 1: was like this weird addiction of mine, yon Kin Cook, 135 00:07:17,760 --> 00:07:22,600 Speaker 1: Julia Child, Jacques po pen Um. There was some mingti right, 136 00:07:22,800 --> 00:07:25,520 Speaker 1: he had started some of his PBS shows. There was 137 00:07:25,600 --> 00:07:28,640 Speaker 1: no Food Network back then. It was just those old 138 00:07:28,760 --> 00:07:33,040 Speaker 1: school dump and stir cooking shows where you're watching somebody 139 00:07:33,360 --> 00:07:36,120 Speaker 1: trust a chicken and rub all of these herbs all 140 00:07:36,200 --> 00:07:38,000 Speaker 1: over it. That as a kid, you have absolutely no 141 00:07:38,120 --> 00:07:39,840 Speaker 1: idea what any of it it is, but it's it's 142 00:07:39,920 --> 00:07:43,480 Speaker 1: mollo fluous, it's beautiful, it looks delicious. Um. And then 143 00:07:43,560 --> 00:07:46,000 Speaker 1: I would sneak into the kitchen and try and do 144 00:07:46,160 --> 00:07:47,840 Speaker 1: some of this. My mom and dad were at work. 145 00:07:47,920 --> 00:07:50,560 Speaker 1: I was really a latchkey child, and you know, they'd 146 00:07:50,600 --> 00:07:53,520 Speaker 1: come home and there was granola and chocolate wall to 147 00:07:53,600 --> 00:07:55,680 Speaker 1: wall and burnt grilled cheese all over the place, and 148 00:07:55,720 --> 00:07:57,680 Speaker 1: I was still pretending to be sick. So that's how 149 00:07:57,720 --> 00:07:59,800 Speaker 1: it started, and I fell in love with those shows, 150 00:08:00,240 --> 00:08:03,240 Speaker 1: which still to me, Um, you know, that's that's where 151 00:08:03,280 --> 00:08:05,880 Speaker 1: it all started. It's it's I will watch any of 152 00:08:05,960 --> 00:08:08,560 Speaker 1: those dumping stir cooking shows nowadays over any of the 153 00:08:08,640 --> 00:08:12,400 Speaker 1: kind of crazy American Ninja Warrior meets Chopped meets uh, 154 00:08:13,240 --> 00:08:17,760 Speaker 1: you know, Real World road Rules on Food Network. Yeah, no, no, 155 00:08:17,960 --> 00:08:20,880 Speaker 1: total I I you know, I went around the same age. 156 00:08:20,880 --> 00:08:22,160 Speaker 1: I think I'm a little older than you, but I 157 00:08:22,480 --> 00:08:24,920 Speaker 1: watched Julia Child. I don't remember the other ones. I 158 00:08:24,960 --> 00:08:26,800 Speaker 1: remember watching Julia Child and she had one of the 159 00:08:26,880 --> 00:08:30,480 Speaker 1: great quotes which I think is just perfect for for 160 00:08:30,600 --> 00:08:33,040 Speaker 1: what you do and just cooking in generously. She said 161 00:08:33,160 --> 00:08:37,160 Speaker 1: everything can have drama if done right, even a pancake. 162 00:08:37,720 --> 00:08:40,839 Speaker 1: And uh, it's just to me, that's the perfect quote there. 163 00:08:40,960 --> 00:08:45,079 Speaker 1: But you're right, the difference between those PBS cooking shows 164 00:08:45,160 --> 00:08:47,079 Speaker 1: like Julia Child the other ones you mentioned there and 165 00:08:47,320 --> 00:08:52,000 Speaker 1: today you got like, as you said, Ninja's the cooking Ninja, 166 00:08:52,520 --> 00:08:55,319 Speaker 1: and uh, you know, is there any end? What is 167 00:08:55,400 --> 00:08:58,280 Speaker 1: the next layer? Andrew is someone that's done television and 168 00:08:58,400 --> 00:09:01,320 Speaker 1: worked in that business. There, how far can we push 169 00:09:01,400 --> 00:09:05,200 Speaker 1: the envelope? Yeah, you know, and we of course see 170 00:09:05,360 --> 00:09:10,000 Speaker 1: a lot of the same formats being cut cop you know, rinse, wash, repeat, 171 00:09:10,040 --> 00:09:12,280 Speaker 1: whatever you want to call it, cut, copy paste, you know, 172 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:14,000 Speaker 1: there's always a little bit of a tweak, but these 173 00:09:14,040 --> 00:09:17,319 Speaker 1: formats work right, and television is obviously a business. So 174 00:09:17,760 --> 00:09:20,200 Speaker 1: if you can kind of fit these formats into a budget, 175 00:09:20,480 --> 00:09:22,120 Speaker 1: tweak one thing and do it. That's why I think 176 00:09:22,160 --> 00:09:24,520 Speaker 1: we start to see a lot of the same format 177 00:09:24,640 --> 00:09:28,400 Speaker 1: TV shows and then they just keep getting amplified episode 178 00:09:28,440 --> 00:09:31,880 Speaker 1: by episode or series by series by adding like yeah, 179 00:09:32,240 --> 00:09:34,840 Speaker 1: an obstacle course, or the floor is made of lava 180 00:09:35,040 --> 00:09:37,839 Speaker 1: and you've got to cook a tureen. Um. But what 181 00:09:37,920 --> 00:09:41,760 Speaker 1: I'm what I'm loving right now across the media landscape, 182 00:09:41,800 --> 00:09:44,760 Speaker 1: if you will, is this digital world where people are 183 00:09:45,120 --> 00:09:48,959 Speaker 1: producing their own content across platforms like YouTube and all 184 00:09:49,040 --> 00:09:52,000 Speaker 1: these you know, kind of new digital avenues, and it's 185 00:09:52,200 --> 00:09:56,719 Speaker 1: very very uh personal, right, So you don't have to 186 00:09:56,840 --> 00:09:58,599 Speaker 1: bring in a big budget and you don't have to 187 00:09:58,679 --> 00:10:01,120 Speaker 1: get all these producers to sign off on it because 188 00:10:01,160 --> 00:10:03,439 Speaker 1: a lot of what we saw in food TV it 189 00:10:03,559 --> 00:10:07,079 Speaker 1: was incredibly produced, and where it merges with this reality 190 00:10:07,240 --> 00:10:10,960 Speaker 1: TV format in so much as like we're all competing 191 00:10:11,040 --> 00:10:13,840 Speaker 1: for this hundred thousand dollar prize. You know, I judged 192 00:10:13,840 --> 00:10:15,439 Speaker 1: a lot of those shows, and I'm not trying to 193 00:10:15,520 --> 00:10:18,040 Speaker 1: reveal any secrets that we don't know about, but a 194 00:10:18,120 --> 00:10:20,360 Speaker 1: lot of them are produced. I'm not saying fake, but 195 00:10:20,520 --> 00:10:24,040 Speaker 1: produced takes away that spark, that charisma, that love, the magic. 196 00:10:24,520 --> 00:10:26,800 Speaker 1: So now we're seeing that in these digital formats where 197 00:10:26,840 --> 00:10:29,439 Speaker 1: it's just food, but it's done so in this like 198 00:10:29,960 --> 00:10:36,079 Speaker 1: really really really uh um, you know, high focus on 199 00:10:36,320 --> 00:10:40,120 Speaker 1: the actual ingredients and the sizzle in the pan and 200 00:10:40,240 --> 00:10:43,240 Speaker 1: the fire, the smoke, the flame, all those visceral things 201 00:10:43,280 --> 00:10:45,280 Speaker 1: that make us d rules. So that's so cool, and 202 00:10:45,360 --> 00:10:47,640 Speaker 1: I love I love the fact that that world has 203 00:10:47,679 --> 00:10:50,720 Speaker 1: really been blown up, especially through the pandemic when everyone's 204 00:10:50,760 --> 00:10:52,439 Speaker 1: been sitting at home watching a lot of it. Be 205 00:10:52,559 --> 00:10:54,960 Speaker 1: sure to catch live editions of The Ben Maller Show 206 00:10:55,000 --> 00:10:58,199 Speaker 1: weekdays at two a m. Eastern eleven pm Pacific on 207 00:10:58,360 --> 00:11:01,880 Speaker 1: Fox Sports Radio. And I heard radio app Yeah, and 208 00:11:02,080 --> 00:11:03,760 Speaker 1: and what you're talking about of course, and you know 209 00:11:03,880 --> 00:11:06,200 Speaker 1: this from working. Uh, you know the front lines there 210 00:11:06,240 --> 00:11:08,440 Speaker 1: on TV is the rule of drama, right, you always 211 00:11:08,480 --> 00:11:15,080 Speaker 1: have to create some kind of uh artificial drama competition, UM, 212 00:11:15,480 --> 00:11:18,960 Speaker 1: make it, try to make it unpredictable. But as you said, 213 00:11:18,960 --> 00:11:20,800 Speaker 1: a lot of it is is preticularly. I remember one 214 00:11:20,840 --> 00:11:22,880 Speaker 1: time Andrew I was driving I lived in Hollywood and 215 00:11:22,920 --> 00:11:25,079 Speaker 1: I was driving to work and it's one of the 216 00:11:25,160 --> 00:11:29,480 Speaker 1: early modern reality shows, and they were filming this couple 217 00:11:30,400 --> 00:11:33,120 Speaker 1: walking across the street and apparently didn't get the right angle. 218 00:11:33,440 --> 00:11:36,520 Speaker 1: I'm at the red light, right, I'm I'm there, And 219 00:11:36,679 --> 00:11:38,439 Speaker 1: they had to go back and do it again so 220 00:11:38,520 --> 00:11:40,800 Speaker 1: they get the right angle. Then the whole time I'm 221 00:11:40,840 --> 00:11:42,400 Speaker 1: watching this, I'm like, wait a minute, that's supposed to 222 00:11:42,440 --> 00:11:44,599 Speaker 1: be just people walking on the street. But the but 223 00:11:45,040 --> 00:11:47,719 Speaker 1: but so be it. And uh And as far as 224 00:11:48,040 --> 00:11:50,800 Speaker 1: you know your your business, you're you known, we know 225 00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:53,599 Speaker 1: you because you've done the television stuff. But you have 226 00:11:53,800 --> 00:11:56,400 Speaker 1: a bunch of restaurants right in Orange County. From what 227 00:11:56,480 --> 00:11:59,200 Speaker 1: I was reading online, as I understand it, like you're 228 00:11:59,480 --> 00:12:01,760 Speaker 1: very hand on your You're not just a TV guy 229 00:12:01,840 --> 00:12:04,079 Speaker 1: that's just on the side, right, Your main gig is 230 00:12:04,320 --> 00:12:09,080 Speaker 1: running and operating and overseeing restaurants. Is that accur Yeah? 231 00:12:10,080 --> 00:12:13,760 Speaker 1: So I I uh, I went independent, if you will. 232 00:12:14,160 --> 00:12:16,559 Speaker 1: Back in two thousand eleven, I started a food truck 233 00:12:17,120 --> 00:12:19,439 Speaker 1: called slap Fish Fish so fresh and it will slap you. 234 00:12:19,840 --> 00:12:21,839 Speaker 1: And and it was, you know, through and all my 235 00:12:21,960 --> 00:12:24,560 Speaker 1: money leveraged everything out on credit cards, went from one 236 00:12:24,640 --> 00:12:26,960 Speaker 1: to four food trucks, and then we rolled that into 237 00:12:27,000 --> 00:12:30,120 Speaker 1: our first brick and mortar about ten months later. Uh. 238 00:12:30,320 --> 00:12:32,199 Speaker 1: And then from there it was just kind of my 239 00:12:32,280 --> 00:12:34,920 Speaker 1: wife and I growing this. Now we've got we've got 240 00:12:35,000 --> 00:12:37,240 Speaker 1: twenty seven slot Fish locations and then we've got a 241 00:12:37,320 --> 00:12:40,719 Speaker 1: few other concepts. H all based still out of out 242 00:12:40,760 --> 00:12:44,360 Speaker 1: of southern California, Orange County, but the slot Fish has grown. 243 00:12:44,440 --> 00:12:47,280 Speaker 1: We took a shotgun approach, so we've got franchise locations 244 00:12:47,600 --> 00:12:53,199 Speaker 1: actually throughout the United States, from Florida, Georgia, the DMV area, Indiana, Albuquerque. 245 00:12:53,360 --> 00:12:55,679 Speaker 1: I mean, we really just it's like you closed your 246 00:12:55,720 --> 00:12:58,280 Speaker 1: eyes and through darts at a board and okay, we'll 247 00:12:58,320 --> 00:13:02,240 Speaker 1: open a slot fish there. Andrew, Andrew, I need to 248 00:13:02,280 --> 00:13:05,839 Speaker 1: break up this bromance real quick between you and just 249 00:13:07,120 --> 00:13:09,360 Speaker 1: just one of these moments, I I gotta be, I 250 00:13:09,400 --> 00:13:12,000 Speaker 1: gotta be perfectly transparent with you too, Andrew on this 251 00:13:12,160 --> 00:13:16,000 Speaker 1: because I have I have watched, I have seen, and 252 00:13:16,080 --> 00:13:18,959 Speaker 1: I have enjoyed the food porn that you display on 253 00:13:19,080 --> 00:13:22,840 Speaker 1: Twitter thoroughly. And when I told Ben that I wanted 254 00:13:22,840 --> 00:13:25,719 Speaker 1: to have you on our podcast, it was like it 255 00:13:25,880 --> 00:13:27,319 Speaker 1: was like a knife in the side of him. And 256 00:13:27,360 --> 00:13:32,600 Speaker 1: the reason why is because Ben typically fasts Monday through Friday. 257 00:13:32,880 --> 00:13:36,920 Speaker 1: This is true, not the whole week. So the fact 258 00:13:37,040 --> 00:13:39,920 Speaker 1: that I am showing him content of yours while he's 259 00:13:40,000 --> 00:13:46,040 Speaker 1: fasting just makes it that much more special. Um, well, 260 00:13:46,120 --> 00:13:49,400 Speaker 1: he's my he's my target audience. Then people say to me, 261 00:13:49,480 --> 00:13:52,360 Speaker 1: They're like, do you eat all this? You're promoting obesity, 262 00:13:52,400 --> 00:13:55,960 Speaker 1: And I said, no, I am true food porn. I'm 263 00:13:56,040 --> 00:14:00,960 Speaker 1: here to provide the you know, the intangible, drew worthy 264 00:14:01,040 --> 00:14:03,679 Speaker 1: food that people can't eat so they'll look at it instead. 265 00:14:03,800 --> 00:14:05,679 Speaker 1: So if you look at it from that perspective, I mean, 266 00:14:05,720 --> 00:14:08,240 Speaker 1: we should be working together. Oh no, no, Andrew, let 267 00:14:08,280 --> 00:14:10,559 Speaker 1: me tell you, Like I I I usually I was 268 00:14:10,720 --> 00:14:13,000 Speaker 1: very obese and I lost a lot of weight and 269 00:14:13,040 --> 00:14:14,720 Speaker 1: to keep it off, I don't eat a lot during 270 00:14:14,760 --> 00:14:17,080 Speaker 1: the week, So that's my But I love food. I mean, 271 00:14:17,160 --> 00:14:18,640 Speaker 1: if it was up to me, I would eat all 272 00:14:18,720 --> 00:14:21,400 Speaker 1: of that. And I mean, I'm looking, uh, the thing 273 00:14:21,480 --> 00:14:23,440 Speaker 1: you had pinned to the top of your your Twitter 274 00:14:23,560 --> 00:14:27,320 Speaker 1: page there that pizza. My holy crap. I feel like 275 00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:29,600 Speaker 1: I can taste it just in the photo there that 276 00:14:29,760 --> 00:14:32,360 Speaker 1: you you have of of the pie. My god. So 277 00:14:32,960 --> 00:14:35,280 Speaker 1: that's my yeah. But David does bust my balls all 278 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:38,240 Speaker 1: the time because he knows. Unfortunately, I made the mistake, Andrew, 279 00:14:38,280 --> 00:14:41,120 Speaker 1: of telling him like when I don't eat the days 280 00:14:41,160 --> 00:14:43,720 Speaker 1: I don't eat, and then he sends me those days, 281 00:14:43,800 --> 00:14:47,280 Speaker 1: will send me like a lot of your stuff photos 282 00:14:47,360 --> 00:14:51,600 Speaker 1: of food, and it just drives me nuts. I'll tone 283 00:14:51,600 --> 00:14:57,040 Speaker 1: it down. I've got some amazing glasses of water they 284 00:14:57,160 --> 00:15:00,680 Speaker 1: photographed really well. Well, I'm glad you brought that up 285 00:15:00,680 --> 00:15:03,120 Speaker 1: in terms of toning it down, because Andrew, I have 286 00:15:03,360 --> 00:15:07,560 Speaker 1: a personal and professional question for you, and this goes 287 00:15:07,560 --> 00:15:09,960 Speaker 1: along the lines of what you're doing right now and 288 00:15:10,360 --> 00:15:13,520 Speaker 1: what you you do on social media. So walk me 289 00:15:13,600 --> 00:15:16,160 Speaker 1: through this. If you were to buy let's just say, 290 00:15:16,440 --> 00:15:20,160 Speaker 1: a a Tomahawks steak and you call and you call 291 00:15:20,240 --> 00:15:24,000 Speaker 1: it quote the original protein bar, would you let that 292 00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:28,240 Speaker 1: original protein bar marinate for a day or two, or 293 00:15:28,400 --> 00:15:32,080 Speaker 1: a year or two, and I'll wait for your answer. Well, 294 00:15:32,320 --> 00:15:36,080 Speaker 1: so I don't marinate meat. Um. I always just use 295 00:15:36,120 --> 00:15:39,520 Speaker 1: salt on meat. I do a dry brine, especially red meat, um, 296 00:15:39,760 --> 00:15:42,280 Speaker 1: but but even lamb and chicken for that matter. I 297 00:15:42,480 --> 00:15:45,360 Speaker 1: usually if I do marinate, it's only for an hour 298 00:15:45,520 --> 00:15:47,520 Speaker 1: before and then I do what I call like a 299 00:15:47,600 --> 00:15:50,640 Speaker 1: post marinader a post glaze. So the key is the 300 00:15:50,760 --> 00:15:52,920 Speaker 1: salting of the meat. Right, you can do that for 301 00:15:53,040 --> 00:15:56,120 Speaker 1: twenty four hours, because what's happening is is that you're 302 00:15:56,160 --> 00:15:59,640 Speaker 1: drawing the moisture out of the meat, which is actually amplifying. 303 00:15:59,720 --> 00:16:02,640 Speaker 1: It's almost as if you're putting a dry age on 304 00:16:02,800 --> 00:16:05,840 Speaker 1: fast forward plus your tenderizing, because then the osmosis the 305 00:16:05,880 --> 00:16:08,360 Speaker 1: salt will go back into the meat. So you get 306 00:16:08,400 --> 00:16:12,160 Speaker 1: this really succulent and beef your flavor of meat out 307 00:16:12,200 --> 00:16:14,760 Speaker 1: of that particular cut. Now does that mean that you'll 308 00:16:14,800 --> 00:16:18,440 Speaker 1: ever add pepper or there spices when you apply salt 309 00:16:18,520 --> 00:16:20,920 Speaker 1: or do you wait until after after you've done cooking 310 00:16:20,960 --> 00:16:24,640 Speaker 1: it meat? Personally, I don't, only because I find that 311 00:16:24,720 --> 00:16:26,480 Speaker 1: it gets a little bit bitter as it cooks, and 312 00:16:26,520 --> 00:16:29,000 Speaker 1: I like that fruity flavor of pepper. I know you 313 00:16:29,040 --> 00:16:31,880 Speaker 1: don't necessarily think fruity in terms of peppercorns, but freshly 314 00:16:31,960 --> 00:16:35,840 Speaker 1: ground peppercorns are somewhat sweet um and and you know, 315 00:16:36,080 --> 00:16:39,480 Speaker 1: and bitter and and uh spicy to the palate. And 316 00:16:39,560 --> 00:16:42,240 Speaker 1: you get all those beautiful aromas and those natural oils 317 00:16:42,280 --> 00:16:44,880 Speaker 1: out of the peppercorn right when you crack it fresh 318 00:16:45,120 --> 00:16:46,880 Speaker 1: at the end on top of the meat, and then 319 00:16:46,960 --> 00:16:49,920 Speaker 1: it just marinates and mixes in as the meats, you know, 320 00:16:50,040 --> 00:16:53,920 Speaker 1: kind of just sitting there hot and steamy, those beautiful 321 00:16:54,000 --> 00:16:56,280 Speaker 1: beef juices in the carmelization of the meat on the 322 00:16:56,360 --> 00:16:59,840 Speaker 1: exterior with the peppercorn perfection. So that sounds great. And 323 00:17:00,000 --> 00:17:02,200 Speaker 1: I don't know if you can encourage my friend Ben 324 00:17:02,280 --> 00:17:04,840 Speaker 1: here over to do this, But I had bought him 325 00:17:05,080 --> 00:17:08,080 Speaker 1: a Tomahawks steak a few days ago. Actually I bought 326 00:17:08,160 --> 00:17:10,360 Speaker 1: him a Tomahawks steak a year and a half ago, 327 00:17:10,600 --> 00:17:15,560 Speaker 1: and it's still in his freezer. I Andrew, I tried, Man, No, No, 328 00:17:15,680 --> 00:17:18,120 Speaker 1: it's it's like a time machine, Andrew. Like it'll come 329 00:17:18,160 --> 00:17:21,320 Speaker 1: out and then I'll defrost it and then it'll be 330 00:17:22,080 --> 00:17:24,399 Speaker 1: pretty good, like the way I could you understand, Andrew, 331 00:17:24,640 --> 00:17:27,359 Speaker 1: Like when it comes to meat, I am my My 332 00:17:27,520 --> 00:17:30,480 Speaker 1: brother loves to eat meat like kind of raw where 333 00:17:30,480 --> 00:17:32,119 Speaker 1: it's kind of like blood coming out of it. But 334 00:17:32,200 --> 00:17:34,879 Speaker 1: I'm the opposite. So for me, I feel like I 335 00:17:35,119 --> 00:17:38,520 Speaker 1: have an opportunity here Andrew too. When I take it out, 336 00:17:38,640 --> 00:17:42,200 Speaker 1: it won't be bad for my my taste, is what 337 00:17:42,320 --> 00:17:46,080 Speaker 1: I'm saying. I like stuff well done, that's fine, and look, 338 00:17:46,119 --> 00:17:48,159 Speaker 1: freezing isn't a bad thing. And I recommend too, is 339 00:17:48,240 --> 00:17:50,200 Speaker 1: is that don't even let it bought, just go right 340 00:17:50,359 --> 00:17:52,880 Speaker 1: onto the deep frost button in the microwave and then 341 00:17:52,960 --> 00:17:56,200 Speaker 1: that way you're cooking it and deep frosting the time 342 00:17:57,600 --> 00:18:00,760 Speaker 1: I can multitest. See that's you guys stock No, No, 343 00:18:00,880 --> 00:18:04,600 Speaker 1: that's from a professional table. I think that's a professional. Okay, 344 00:18:05,359 --> 00:18:08,960 Speaker 1: how many restaurants you said? They're all over the country, right, 345 00:18:09,000 --> 00:18:11,840 Speaker 1: so how many do you you own? Per se or 346 00:18:12,080 --> 00:18:17,159 Speaker 1: your name is on about thirty? That's a ton of restaurants. 347 00:18:17,240 --> 00:18:20,159 Speaker 1: That's a massive amount of restaurants. Does that? Does that 348 00:18:20,280 --> 00:18:22,119 Speaker 1: blow your mind when you think about that, that you 349 00:18:22,280 --> 00:18:25,320 Speaker 1: started something that has thirty you know, thirty something locations, 350 00:18:25,359 --> 00:18:28,320 Speaker 1: that's crazy. I still spend most of my time in 351 00:18:28,400 --> 00:18:30,320 Speaker 1: the dishpit or online, so I don't even think I've 352 00:18:30,359 --> 00:18:33,119 Speaker 1: taken the opportunity to step outside of that arena and 353 00:18:33,200 --> 00:18:36,320 Speaker 1: an assess where where we're at. So I don't want 354 00:18:36,320 --> 00:18:39,200 Speaker 1: it to go to my head. Let's not talk about it, Okay, 355 00:18:39,280 --> 00:18:42,560 Speaker 1: we will. How about this though, Andrew, since you're not 356 00:18:42,840 --> 00:18:46,720 Speaker 1: from from California, but it sounds like you're well traveled. 357 00:18:47,040 --> 00:18:49,359 Speaker 1: What do you take from from other parts of this 358 00:18:49,480 --> 00:18:53,960 Speaker 1: country or maybe even internationally and try to infuse into 359 00:18:54,040 --> 00:18:58,160 Speaker 1: your into your restaurants, into your style of cooking. That's 360 00:18:58,200 --> 00:19:00,240 Speaker 1: a great question. And that's been the coolest thing about 361 00:19:00,280 --> 00:19:03,680 Speaker 1: growing through franchising the way that we have that it's 362 00:19:03,720 --> 00:19:06,520 Speaker 1: forced us into really getting into each one of these 363 00:19:06,600 --> 00:19:10,520 Speaker 1: markets like Salt Lake City, Utah, or Indianapolis or um, 364 00:19:10,680 --> 00:19:13,600 Speaker 1: you know, Albuquerque, New Mexico, and to learn what types 365 00:19:13,640 --> 00:19:17,440 Speaker 1: of flavors and sauces and different kind of nuanced bite 366 00:19:17,680 --> 00:19:20,400 Speaker 1: they use in those markets and then introduce them into 367 00:19:20,440 --> 00:19:23,479 Speaker 1: our food. So if you use, for example, Albuquerque, right 368 00:19:23,720 --> 00:19:26,840 Speaker 1: hash green chilies, everything has to have green chilies on it, 369 00:19:27,000 --> 00:19:29,159 Speaker 1: especially the hash green chili which has grown there in 370 00:19:29,240 --> 00:19:32,119 Speaker 1: Hash New Mexico, which is just this incredibly through the 371 00:19:32,280 --> 00:19:36,119 Speaker 1: er spicy or green chili that's somewhat smoky I mean, 372 00:19:36,160 --> 00:19:39,160 Speaker 1: it's unbelievable. So on all of our dishes, we offer 373 00:19:39,240 --> 00:19:41,720 Speaker 1: these roasted green chilies. We do a chowder fry, so 374 00:19:41,800 --> 00:19:44,919 Speaker 1: the natural cut fries smothered with scratch made clam chowder, 375 00:19:45,160 --> 00:19:48,160 Speaker 1: double smoke bacon, and then we add that roasted green 376 00:19:48,280 --> 00:19:51,520 Speaker 1: chili on top, and it's just unbelievable. Um. So that's 377 00:19:51,560 --> 00:19:53,760 Speaker 1: the fun part about being in all these different markets. 378 00:19:53,960 --> 00:19:56,520 Speaker 1: Have you taken your acts let's just say, down to 379 00:19:56,720 --> 00:20:01,440 Speaker 1: like sec territory or to a call venue for for tailgating? 380 00:20:02,560 --> 00:20:04,639 Speaker 1: Oh god, I would absolutely love too. It seems like 381 00:20:04,840 --> 00:20:07,720 Speaker 1: that there's a demographic there that loves loves my Twitter 382 00:20:07,800 --> 00:20:10,560 Speaker 1: and I'm missing out on that community. We do have 383 00:20:10,640 --> 00:20:13,760 Speaker 1: a location in Pooler, Georgia, and one in Hilton Head, 384 00:20:13,800 --> 00:20:16,399 Speaker 1: which is you know, down in the South Carolina area, 385 00:20:16,440 --> 00:20:22,040 Speaker 1: and one one in Orlando right outside of UCF, and uh, 386 00:20:22,359 --> 00:20:24,879 Speaker 1: you know, we we we should definitely take all of 387 00:20:24,960 --> 00:20:27,640 Speaker 1: that on on the road itself. I think we're ready. 388 00:20:28,200 --> 00:20:29,840 Speaker 1: I think, well, it's one of those things that Ben 389 00:20:29,920 --> 00:20:31,680 Speaker 1: and I had talked about. Ben was flirting with the 390 00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:34,520 Speaker 1: idea of doing like cooking with Ben during this whole 391 00:20:34,680 --> 00:20:38,120 Speaker 1: pandemic and having his his wife videotape him and put 392 00:20:38,160 --> 00:20:41,040 Speaker 1: it on YouTube. Um, we produce a lot of stuff 393 00:20:41,080 --> 00:20:43,359 Speaker 1: on our own for gambling purposes. So I say, like, 394 00:20:43,440 --> 00:20:46,320 Speaker 1: we should combine these sports and the cooking, like the 395 00:20:46,359 --> 00:20:48,280 Speaker 1: expertise from one side of the aisle to the other 396 00:20:48,480 --> 00:20:51,280 Speaker 1: and uh and take this act on the road. Man, 397 00:20:51,359 --> 00:20:53,800 Speaker 1: I think that would be quite enjoyable for everybody involved. 398 00:20:55,840 --> 00:20:59,440 Speaker 1: Down And I'm actually not just down, I'm double down. Nice. 399 00:20:59,600 --> 00:21:01,919 Speaker 1: See you can wait. Wait, we can get like circus 400 00:21:02,000 --> 00:21:04,399 Speaker 1: animals and I think that's been banned. I think they 401 00:21:04,480 --> 00:21:07,240 Speaker 1: banned no animals anymore. But we can like a dog 402 00:21:07,400 --> 00:21:11,040 Speaker 1: and pony show. We could do that right traveling? Yeah, yeah, 403 00:21:11,280 --> 00:21:13,600 Speaker 1: you know there's gonna be somebody encouraging us to cook 404 00:21:13,680 --> 00:21:18,200 Speaker 1: one of the animals, so we probably shouldn't do that. Yeah, Andrew, 405 00:21:18,200 --> 00:21:20,160 Speaker 1: how do you cook an elephant? What's the proper way 406 00:21:20,200 --> 00:21:23,040 Speaker 1: to cooking? I can tell you how to eat it 407 00:21:24,040 --> 00:21:28,400 Speaker 1: at a time you Andrew, what is your favorite time 408 00:21:28,440 --> 00:21:31,399 Speaker 1: of the day. I guess in terms of eating breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert. Like, 409 00:21:31,520 --> 00:21:33,480 Speaker 1: what if if you had to pick something to live 410 00:21:33,520 --> 00:21:36,720 Speaker 1: off of, what would it be. I love breakfast meals, 411 00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:39,680 Speaker 1: but I typically eat them at night. Uh. I just 412 00:21:39,840 --> 00:21:43,240 Speaker 1: I've never been able to become a huge breakfast guy 413 00:21:43,280 --> 00:21:45,560 Speaker 1: because I'm up and I'm going. I got four kids, right, 414 00:21:45,600 --> 00:21:48,280 Speaker 1: a lot of coffee, just move, move, move, trying to 415 00:21:48,320 --> 00:21:51,359 Speaker 1: get the kids conditioned to eat more breakfast. Uh. But 416 00:21:51,600 --> 00:21:54,080 Speaker 1: I'm also a sandwich guy, right, so you know, I'll 417 00:21:54,080 --> 00:21:56,200 Speaker 1: have a sandwich for breakfast or a sandwich for dinner. 418 00:21:56,240 --> 00:21:59,760 Speaker 1: So it almost feels like lunches every meal of the day. Nice. Well, 419 00:21:59,800 --> 00:22:03,360 Speaker 1: I know that that Ben gets these shots, especially over 420 00:22:03,359 --> 00:22:07,400 Speaker 1: the last eighteen months, about it, like stay in your lane. 421 00:22:08,000 --> 00:22:10,200 Speaker 1: I know what social media you're You're a firecracker, like 422 00:22:10,280 --> 00:22:12,840 Speaker 1: you have your profession what you tweet about, but you 423 00:22:12,920 --> 00:22:15,280 Speaker 1: also also have other things outside of that. In this 424 00:22:15,520 --> 00:22:20,560 Speaker 1: political warlike state that we're in right now, do people 425 00:22:20,600 --> 00:22:23,480 Speaker 1: ever attack you and say, hey, Chef Andrews, stay in 426 00:22:23,560 --> 00:22:27,720 Speaker 1: the kitchen. Oh that's all I get, right, so much 427 00:22:27,800 --> 00:22:30,760 Speaker 1: stick to food. You know, um, as if, as if, 428 00:22:30,960 --> 00:22:32,800 Speaker 1: as if I'm not allowed to have opinions. And you 429 00:22:32,880 --> 00:22:35,639 Speaker 1: know what's hilarious about that is my response is always 430 00:22:35,680 --> 00:22:37,840 Speaker 1: the same. I've got to I've got to pull up 431 00:22:37,920 --> 00:22:42,600 Speaker 1: social media every Sunday morning and read everybody's crappy food blogs, right, 432 00:22:43,119 --> 00:22:45,880 Speaker 1: and but but but I'm not allowed to say anything 433 00:22:45,960 --> 00:22:47,800 Speaker 1: and I'm not allowed to have an opinion outside of 434 00:22:47,960 --> 00:22:50,560 Speaker 1: my own profession. Come on, right, If that's the case, 435 00:22:50,640 --> 00:22:52,359 Speaker 1: then I don't want to see anybody trying to make 436 00:22:52,400 --> 00:22:56,359 Speaker 1: a product in on you know, Thanksgiving that ends up 437 00:22:56,440 --> 00:22:58,960 Speaker 1: shooting out of somebody's turkey prior onto the roof of 438 00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:02,960 Speaker 1: the neighboring house. Too much of that. But but but Andrew, 439 00:23:02,960 --> 00:23:05,320 Speaker 1: I mean, I credit you because you're you know, you 440 00:23:05,359 --> 00:23:07,040 Speaker 1: have a lot on the line, the thirty restaurants and 441 00:23:07,040 --> 00:23:09,159 Speaker 1: all that. I do a radio show, and I do 442 00:23:09,320 --> 00:23:11,639 Speaker 1: a sports show, right, which you think is like the 443 00:23:11,720 --> 00:23:15,040 Speaker 1: most benign thing. We talked about sports, But people get 444 00:23:15,200 --> 00:23:19,760 Speaker 1: so upset. The tribalism is insane. And and how have 445 00:23:19,920 --> 00:23:23,400 Speaker 1: you been able to to avoid the Obviously you take 446 00:23:23,440 --> 00:23:25,760 Speaker 1: some online flak on social media, but have you been 447 00:23:25,760 --> 00:23:28,119 Speaker 1: able to avoid a lot of stuff outside of that 448 00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:32,080 Speaker 1: realm Um? Well, I'm never able to avoid it. They've 449 00:23:32,119 --> 00:23:35,000 Speaker 1: come hard for me on many occasions, um, only to 450 00:23:35,119 --> 00:23:37,440 Speaker 1: be disappointed that what they were coming after me for 451 00:23:37,680 --> 00:23:39,920 Speaker 1: wasn't the truth. You see. And that's the problem nowadays, 452 00:23:40,040 --> 00:23:43,160 Speaker 1: is that that truth is so ambiguous and facts don't 453 00:23:43,240 --> 00:23:45,600 Speaker 1: necessarily matter. And I know that's a cliche, but I'll 454 00:23:45,640 --> 00:23:49,000 Speaker 1: use one example. Right, I was talking about the labor 455 00:23:49,080 --> 00:23:51,680 Speaker 1: issues that we're having in the industry, and my my 456 00:23:51,960 --> 00:23:55,240 Speaker 1: perspective on it wasn't that people weren't working because they 457 00:23:55,280 --> 00:23:58,520 Speaker 1: were lazy. My perspective was that people were scared to 458 00:23:58,560 --> 00:24:01,119 Speaker 1: come back to work in many situ nations, and or 459 00:24:01,560 --> 00:24:03,920 Speaker 1: they didn't have the proper childcare. I mean, that's something 460 00:24:04,000 --> 00:24:06,720 Speaker 1: we deal with, is a working you know, working parents 461 00:24:06,800 --> 00:24:09,800 Speaker 1: for kids, is that we don't have school for the kids, right, 462 00:24:09,920 --> 00:24:11,760 Speaker 1: so we either bring the kids with us everywhere, and 463 00:24:11,800 --> 00:24:14,040 Speaker 1: a lot of my team members had to make decisions, well, 464 00:24:14,040 --> 00:24:17,440 Speaker 1: I'm gonna stay home and watch the kids versus going 465 00:24:17,520 --> 00:24:19,560 Speaker 1: to work making the money but then paying someone to 466 00:24:19,600 --> 00:24:21,240 Speaker 1: watch the kids. And it's the net zero. And I 467 00:24:21,280 --> 00:24:23,399 Speaker 1: didn't even get to watch my kids, right, so they 468 00:24:23,440 --> 00:24:26,200 Speaker 1: take the unemployment benefits. Nothing wrong with that. So I 469 00:24:26,320 --> 00:24:28,240 Speaker 1: brought that up and I kind of was just laying 470 00:24:28,240 --> 00:24:32,200 Speaker 1: out my ideas and I got completely attacked by just 471 00:24:32,400 --> 00:24:35,200 Speaker 1: this whole wing of Twitter that I wasn't even aware existed. 472 00:24:35,400 --> 00:24:39,080 Speaker 1: I mean, death threats, um pay your employees more. We're 473 00:24:39,080 --> 00:24:41,959 Speaker 1: gonna we're gonna unionize you, this and that, and there 474 00:24:42,080 --> 00:24:44,160 Speaker 1: was some blue checks and some elites who said, yeah, 475 00:24:44,400 --> 00:24:46,040 Speaker 1: i'd love your you to open your books and show 476 00:24:46,080 --> 00:24:48,320 Speaker 1: me what you actually pay your employees. Live to see 477 00:24:48,320 --> 00:24:50,200 Speaker 1: you pay your employees of living ways, I said, good, 478 00:24:50,280 --> 00:24:53,040 Speaker 1: let's do it. Open the books. We're paying our entry 479 00:24:53,160 --> 00:24:57,520 Speaker 1: level workers an hour. I pay more than most businesses. 480 00:24:57,840 --> 00:25:00,560 Speaker 1: I don't take much for myself, right Like, it's oh, 481 00:25:00,720 --> 00:25:03,199 Speaker 1: that's been the reason I started the business. And they 482 00:25:03,240 --> 00:25:04,560 Speaker 1: looked at it and they were like, oh, wow, you 483 00:25:04,600 --> 00:25:06,800 Speaker 1: actually pay way above a living widge. Okay, you're not 484 00:25:06,920 --> 00:25:09,080 Speaker 1: the guy we need to target, but still we don't 485 00:25:09,119 --> 00:25:11,960 Speaker 1: like you, right Like. The point being is is that 486 00:25:12,119 --> 00:25:14,720 Speaker 1: I'm supporting the same people that are coming after me. 487 00:25:15,040 --> 00:25:17,159 Speaker 1: But nobody wants to hear that because perhaps the way 488 00:25:17,200 --> 00:25:19,200 Speaker 1: in which I said it or the commentator in which 489 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:23,639 Speaker 1: I spoke with wasn't up their liking, so they attacked me. 490 00:25:24,080 --> 00:25:26,960 Speaker 1: It's such a crazy world. Um, And my wife gets 491 00:25:27,040 --> 00:25:28,480 Speaker 1: mad at me, She's like, why do you even fight 492 00:25:28,560 --> 00:25:30,280 Speaker 1: back on it? I'm like, I fight back because I'm 493 00:25:30,280 --> 00:25:32,960 Speaker 1: passionate and I actually agree with some of their message too. 494 00:25:33,400 --> 00:25:35,080 Speaker 1: They're just being jerks about it and we can all 495 00:25:35,119 --> 00:25:39,760 Speaker 1: kind of find a meeting ground in the middle nuts nuts, Yeah, no, 496 00:25:40,400 --> 00:25:42,720 Speaker 1: it is. I mean we I was. We talked about 497 00:25:42,720 --> 00:25:45,760 Speaker 1: this a lot when the political stuff that's been going 498 00:25:45,840 --> 00:25:47,840 Speaker 1: over the last couple of years. But when I was 499 00:25:47,880 --> 00:25:50,280 Speaker 1: growing up, and again you were around my age, my 500 00:25:50,880 --> 00:25:55,160 Speaker 1: my mom was a liberal, my dad conservative, and at dinner, 501 00:25:55,840 --> 00:25:57,880 Speaker 1: like whatever the issues that they were, they would duke 502 00:25:57,960 --> 00:26:00,560 Speaker 1: it out and then they know, hug it out afterwards. 503 00:26:00,600 --> 00:26:03,360 Speaker 1: But with with social media, it's like, no, you you're 504 00:26:03,400 --> 00:26:06,359 Speaker 1: only on one team. You cannot there's no way that 505 00:26:06,520 --> 00:26:09,600 Speaker 1: you can have a belief that is against that. If 506 00:26:09,640 --> 00:26:11,680 Speaker 1: you think the other way, you're some kind of lunatic. 507 00:26:11,840 --> 00:26:13,760 Speaker 1: Like I don't know when this happened, Andrew, and I 508 00:26:13,800 --> 00:26:15,920 Speaker 1: don't know how to get back from that. But we're 509 00:26:15,960 --> 00:26:18,360 Speaker 1: in a pretty dark place right now when it comes 510 00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:21,600 Speaker 1: to the political conversation and the any ideas on how 511 00:26:21,640 --> 00:26:25,120 Speaker 1: we can get back to what it used to be Like, yeah, well, 512 00:26:25,160 --> 00:26:27,879 Speaker 1: so what I always say is food is the great unifier, right, 513 00:26:28,040 --> 00:26:30,760 Speaker 1: And one thing that I've noticed with my social channels 514 00:26:30,840 --> 00:26:33,320 Speaker 1: is that I bring together people of so many different 515 00:26:33,359 --> 00:26:36,440 Speaker 1: opinions and look at the end of the day. Social 516 00:26:36,520 --> 00:26:39,520 Speaker 1: media also amplifies this division. It's so funny, Like I 517 00:26:39,640 --> 00:26:41,399 Speaker 1: posted a picture of a file at the other day, 518 00:26:41,400 --> 00:26:43,040 Speaker 1: and I said, I could just post a picture of 519 00:26:43,080 --> 00:26:44,600 Speaker 1: a file at and no matter what, it's going to 520 00:26:44,640 --> 00:26:47,639 Speaker 1: start an argument. The first comment was, first of all, 521 00:26:47,720 --> 00:26:52,720 Speaker 1: that's a speak, right, It's like it's it's it's no 522 00:26:52,840 --> 00:26:56,520 Speaker 1: matter what it is, but it's fun when it's food. Um. So, 523 00:26:56,880 --> 00:26:59,040 Speaker 1: I've always been talking about how if I can use 524 00:26:59,119 --> 00:27:01,200 Speaker 1: food as a mean by which I can bring people 525 00:27:01,240 --> 00:27:04,159 Speaker 1: together so that they realize, hey, you know, maybe we're 526 00:27:04,200 --> 00:27:06,359 Speaker 1: not so different, or we can at least break bread 527 00:27:06,480 --> 00:27:10,840 Speaker 1: literally and figuratively and disagree but still enjoy food together. Uh. 528 00:27:11,200 --> 00:27:13,040 Speaker 1: You know. And if there's a way that that platform 529 00:27:13,160 --> 00:27:18,119 Speaker 1: can parlay into some more formalized content, then I'll try 530 00:27:18,160 --> 00:27:21,520 Speaker 1: and do so. But as you know, selfishly, I'm promoting 531 00:27:21,600 --> 00:27:25,639 Speaker 1: that food is the great unifiers. True. What's what's the 532 00:27:25,760 --> 00:27:29,600 Speaker 1: ultimate goal with you having all these restaurants across across 533 00:27:29,640 --> 00:27:32,000 Speaker 1: the United States? Like, what's the next chapter for you? 534 00:27:32,080 --> 00:27:33,560 Speaker 1: Are you looking down the road at all? Are you 535 00:27:33,640 --> 00:27:37,000 Speaker 1: looking just right now with what's in front of you? Yeah, 536 00:27:37,040 --> 00:27:39,239 Speaker 1: it's short term for me. Um, you know, I'd love 537 00:27:39,320 --> 00:27:41,320 Speaker 1: to continue growing the restaurants, and I would love to 538 00:27:41,359 --> 00:27:44,280 Speaker 1: be able to continue to create really good jobs where 539 00:27:44,320 --> 00:27:46,720 Speaker 1: people can be respected and paid well. As I mentioned, 540 00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:49,320 Speaker 1: where food can be just simple and what it's meant 541 00:27:49,359 --> 00:27:53,119 Speaker 1: to be and not overly intellectualized. A great space, you know. 542 00:27:53,200 --> 00:27:55,000 Speaker 1: I call it the quality of fine dining at the 543 00:27:55,040 --> 00:27:58,200 Speaker 1: cost and convenience of faster food. In all of our restaurants, 544 00:27:58,240 --> 00:28:01,240 Speaker 1: we support a lot of fishermen and sustainable producers, so 545 00:28:01,680 --> 00:28:04,520 Speaker 1: we feel like this is a great means by which 546 00:28:04,600 --> 00:28:07,080 Speaker 1: we can kind of loop in so many different elements 547 00:28:07,119 --> 00:28:09,680 Speaker 1: of society and different communities. But for me, I also 548 00:28:09,720 --> 00:28:12,480 Speaker 1: want to create a nonprofit where we where we have 549 00:28:12,680 --> 00:28:17,199 Speaker 1: restaurants and food trucks that give people second opportunities through food, um, 550 00:28:17,320 --> 00:28:20,199 Speaker 1: whether they're ex cons or you know, juvenile delinquents who 551 00:28:20,720 --> 00:28:23,400 Speaker 1: didn't necessarily have a foundation upon which they could learn 552 00:28:23,440 --> 00:28:27,600 Speaker 1: the basic principles of you know, you know, treating thy 553 00:28:27,640 --> 00:28:30,440 Speaker 1: neighbor well or just you know, sense of urgency. Some 554 00:28:30,560 --> 00:28:33,280 Speaker 1: of these real simple principles that are lost and I 555 00:28:33,359 --> 00:28:35,159 Speaker 1: think that you can find them in the kitchen. And 556 00:28:35,280 --> 00:28:38,760 Speaker 1: that's been something that's been paramount to us as business owners. Anyway, 557 00:28:38,840 --> 00:28:40,920 Speaker 1: and the people that we've brought through our systems who 558 00:28:40,960 --> 00:28:43,240 Speaker 1: have then gone on to do amazing things and to 559 00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:45,959 Speaker 1: just kind of take that a step further, and hey, 560 00:28:46,000 --> 00:28:48,520 Speaker 1: if there's politics in there somewhere along the way, you know, 561 00:28:48,640 --> 00:28:51,320 Speaker 1: so be it not really get canceled. Where do you 562 00:28:51,480 --> 00:28:53,920 Speaker 1: where do you sit in this whole sports world? Like 563 00:28:54,000 --> 00:28:56,680 Speaker 1: do you ever take do you ever take these trucks 564 00:28:56,720 --> 00:29:00,200 Speaker 1: to two venues? Like whether big or small? We've like 565 00:29:00,280 --> 00:29:03,520 Speaker 1: being here in California. One element that we have is 566 00:29:03,560 --> 00:29:06,040 Speaker 1: obviously the professional teams, but we have a boatload of 567 00:29:06,120 --> 00:29:08,600 Speaker 1: minor league teams. So all these all these minor league 568 00:29:08,600 --> 00:29:12,280 Speaker 1: teams for baseball or basketball or hockey or basketball will have, um, 569 00:29:13,040 --> 00:29:14,960 Speaker 1: you know, they'll have like their little vendors that will 570 00:29:15,040 --> 00:29:17,120 Speaker 1: come in and out. They have their beer gardens, things 571 00:29:17,160 --> 00:29:20,240 Speaker 1: of that nature, and they usually have some pretty awesome 572 00:29:21,200 --> 00:29:23,560 Speaker 1: lines of food that are are rolled on out. Like 573 00:29:23,680 --> 00:29:27,520 Speaker 1: do you ever do that for for college? Professional anything 574 00:29:27,560 --> 00:29:30,080 Speaker 1: like that? We need to do more of it. We 575 00:29:30,200 --> 00:29:32,600 Speaker 1: used to have it when they reopened the Ram Stadium 576 00:29:32,640 --> 00:29:35,479 Speaker 1: and it was they were sorry at the Coliseum when 577 00:29:35,520 --> 00:29:38,480 Speaker 1: the Rams were playing there and USC we had a 578 00:29:38,560 --> 00:29:42,240 Speaker 1: container on the concourse slat fish. Um, and that was 579 00:29:42,320 --> 00:29:44,800 Speaker 1: really cool. We loved that. Uh And we've tried to 580 00:29:44,840 --> 00:29:47,320 Speaker 1: get involved in different ways. We just need to keep 581 00:29:47,400 --> 00:29:50,360 Speaker 1: kind of pushing that angle. Yeah. And one of the 582 00:29:50,480 --> 00:29:53,640 Speaker 1: more controversial positions Andrew, that you took on social media 583 00:29:53,800 --> 00:29:59,640 Speaker 1: was the anti pineapple on this one. You took a 584 00:29:59,680 --> 00:30:02,920 Speaker 1: lot of low back on that pineapple. Now, I I 585 00:30:03,200 --> 00:30:05,960 Speaker 1: can go, I don't usually get pineapple my pizza, full disclosure, 586 00:30:06,120 --> 00:30:09,560 Speaker 1: but I have a friend that loves pineapple on pizza. So, 587 00:30:09,680 --> 00:30:12,480 Speaker 1: as a professional in the restaurant industry, what do you 588 00:30:12,600 --> 00:30:17,360 Speaker 1: say to the pro pineapple contingent that are listening to this? Well? 589 00:30:17,440 --> 00:30:20,600 Speaker 1: Number one, UM, order your own individual pie, because when 590 00:30:20,640 --> 00:30:22,640 Speaker 1: you say give it and give it to me half pineapple, 591 00:30:22,680 --> 00:30:25,640 Speaker 1: all you're doing is just urinating pineapple all over the 592 00:30:25,880 --> 00:30:30,640 Speaker 1: entire pizza, which is uh so first and foremost. Um. 593 00:30:31,280 --> 00:30:34,040 Speaker 1: Then Then what I would also say is that the 594 00:30:34,120 --> 00:30:36,360 Speaker 1: pro pineapple crowd, you know, they just kind of need to, 595 00:30:36,600 --> 00:30:38,720 Speaker 1: uh you know, question some of the decisions as they 596 00:30:38,800 --> 00:30:43,120 Speaker 1: make in life. It's that simple. Well, you said, there's 597 00:30:43,160 --> 00:30:47,920 Speaker 1: a was it pineapple drip? What is that? So my 598 00:30:48,040 --> 00:30:51,760 Speaker 1: pizza joint called Big Palm, uh not to be confused 599 00:30:51,800 --> 00:30:56,680 Speaker 1: with big perm or I guess big farmer. Now I um, 600 00:30:56,960 --> 00:30:59,120 Speaker 1: I say no pineapple allowed. Now you can bring your 601 00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:01,200 Speaker 1: own pineapple you want. I don't want to, you know, 602 00:31:01,400 --> 00:31:03,000 Speaker 1: I don't want to be too much of a tyrant. 603 00:31:03,360 --> 00:31:06,280 Speaker 1: But the way in which I have tried to compromise 604 00:31:06,360 --> 00:31:09,200 Speaker 1: with the pro pineapple pizza crowds by creating a hot 605 00:31:09,280 --> 00:31:12,400 Speaker 1: sauce fermenting pineapples and adding chilies to it. And it's 606 00:31:12,440 --> 00:31:15,760 Speaker 1: called our pineapple drip. So you get that wonderful flavor 607 00:31:15,840 --> 00:31:19,680 Speaker 1: of pineapple and the and the spice from a chili. Uh, 608 00:31:19,920 --> 00:31:21,880 Speaker 1: just in the form of a hot sauce on your pizza. 609 00:31:22,040 --> 00:31:27,000 Speaker 1: So it's it's my olive branch to the other side. Nice. 610 00:31:27,120 --> 00:31:29,920 Speaker 1: Now I this the pizza. I'm looking at a bunch 611 00:31:29,920 --> 00:31:33,880 Speaker 1: of photos again, the pizza photos here. So where I'm 612 00:31:33,920 --> 00:31:36,479 Speaker 1: in Soca? We're in Soca. Where is this place? Look? 613 00:31:36,520 --> 00:31:38,200 Speaker 1: I gotta go eat. I gotta go there at some 614 00:31:38,280 --> 00:31:43,240 Speaker 1: point here. Where's your So that isn't tusted Tustin, California? Okay, 615 00:31:43,560 --> 00:31:46,600 Speaker 1: all right, Like, uh, that's not you know. I grew 616 00:31:46,720 --> 00:31:48,920 Speaker 1: up in Irvine, so I know that. Yeah right next 617 00:31:48,920 --> 00:31:51,000 Speaker 1: to Irvine. Yeah, yeah, you know where those big flight 618 00:31:51,200 --> 00:31:54,720 Speaker 1: buildings are over by the uh not by the spectrum, 619 00:31:54,720 --> 00:31:58,240 Speaker 1: but they're the old airplane hangars, Yes, the old the 620 00:31:58,320 --> 00:32:02,480 Speaker 1: old Tusting Marine base over there. Yeah, exactly exactly. So 621 00:32:02,600 --> 00:32:04,800 Speaker 1: they redeveloped an area in there, and they put in 622 00:32:04,840 --> 00:32:06,400 Speaker 1: a bunch of offices and then they put in a 623 00:32:06,440 --> 00:32:08,400 Speaker 1: food hall right in the center. It's called the Mets Hall. 624 00:32:08,720 --> 00:32:10,600 Speaker 1: And we've got the pizza joint in there. We've got 625 00:32:10,680 --> 00:32:13,480 Speaker 1: a slap fish in there as well. Nice all right, Yeah, 626 00:32:13,520 --> 00:32:15,120 Speaker 1: I know, I'm very familiar with that. In fact, when 627 00:32:15,120 --> 00:32:16,800 Speaker 1: I was a kid, we used to go on the 628 00:32:17,080 --> 00:32:19,200 Speaker 1: the open house at the marine base and we used 629 00:32:19,200 --> 00:32:21,560 Speaker 1: to why I was back in the old days. We 630 00:32:21,600 --> 00:32:24,320 Speaker 1: could walk through the tanks and stuff like the plant. 631 00:32:24,400 --> 00:32:27,280 Speaker 1: They didn't care because it was whatever. But yeah, that's awesome. 632 00:32:27,320 --> 00:32:33,040 Speaker 1: I know. It's a great area too. It's wonderful down there. Yeah, definitely, Yeah, Andrew, 633 00:32:33,080 --> 00:32:35,640 Speaker 1: I am looking at all this stuff, I got to 634 00:32:35,760 --> 00:32:40,440 Speaker 1: imagine that, you know, the the restaurant environments are obviously 635 00:32:40,480 --> 00:32:44,000 Speaker 1: all different. Food trucks obviously are assembled indoor outdoor, different 636 00:32:44,040 --> 00:32:47,600 Speaker 1: type of dynamic. But do you ever see yourself venturing 637 00:32:47,720 --> 00:32:51,080 Speaker 1: into like any of these four and five star hotels 638 00:32:51,120 --> 00:32:55,000 Speaker 1: that are in like let's say Vegas, Beverly Hills, New York. Like, 639 00:32:55,080 --> 00:32:57,160 Speaker 1: do you feel like there's a chance for you with 640 00:32:57,240 --> 00:32:58,920 Speaker 1: the food that you do present, that you could be 641 00:32:59,080 --> 00:33:01,920 Speaker 1: a like a disruptor if you will, like you take 642 00:33:02,000 --> 00:33:04,480 Speaker 1: away from all like the fine dining elements and give 643 00:33:04,560 --> 00:33:06,600 Speaker 1: people something a little bit different of a flavor, no 644 00:33:06,720 --> 00:33:10,680 Speaker 1: pun intended. I would absolutely love to. I mean, obviously, 645 00:33:11,120 --> 00:33:13,240 Speaker 1: you know there's a certain breed of chef that they're 646 00:33:13,280 --> 00:33:16,600 Speaker 1: looking at to bring in their very high class and 647 00:33:16,920 --> 00:33:21,320 Speaker 1: uh um speaks properly. I don't do that, but maybe 648 00:33:21,800 --> 00:33:26,320 Speaker 1: maybe one day they'll downgrade and bring me in nice. 649 00:33:26,440 --> 00:33:29,160 Speaker 1: And as far as just with the COVID stuff, which 650 00:33:29,240 --> 00:33:32,600 Speaker 1: is still still bouncing around here a lot come back. 651 00:33:32,680 --> 00:33:33,840 Speaker 1: You see it on the news all the time. So 652 00:33:34,120 --> 00:33:38,760 Speaker 1: as a restaurant tour like, what is what's the future 653 00:33:38,800 --> 00:33:41,440 Speaker 1: of the restaurant business? I mean, you know, this COVID 654 00:33:41,520 --> 00:33:43,200 Speaker 1: things will be around for a while and with certain 655 00:33:43,480 --> 00:33:45,840 Speaker 1: parts of the country a lot of restrictions and whatnot. 656 00:33:47,160 --> 00:33:51,320 Speaker 1: What's the future of restaurant design? Your your your thirty 657 00:33:51,400 --> 00:33:53,880 Speaker 1: restaurants you said there, you know, how how are you 658 00:33:53,960 --> 00:33:56,400 Speaker 1: going to handle this? Going forwardhen you open new restaurants, 659 00:33:56,480 --> 00:33:58,959 Speaker 1: is this a factor Do you just say eventually we'll 660 00:33:59,000 --> 00:34:03,040 Speaker 1: get back to normal. Yeah, pick up and delivery is huge. 661 00:34:03,160 --> 00:34:06,960 Speaker 1: I think that that whole system, the delivery system, needs 662 00:34:07,000 --> 00:34:10,080 Speaker 1: to change within the restaurant industry. And it is of course, 663 00:34:10,160 --> 00:34:12,640 Speaker 1: the third party delivery apps right now take so much 664 00:34:12,719 --> 00:34:15,960 Speaker 1: off the check it's just not feasible or financially sustainable 665 00:34:16,000 --> 00:34:19,120 Speaker 1: for most of these restaurants to use um. But I 666 00:34:19,239 --> 00:34:22,439 Speaker 1: think that overall, look that two things have happened. One, 667 00:34:22,840 --> 00:34:25,400 Speaker 1: you've seen a lot of restaurants that didn't make it 668 00:34:25,440 --> 00:34:27,160 Speaker 1: through the first part of the pandemic that have been 669 00:34:27,239 --> 00:34:29,320 Speaker 1: lost and forgotten about. Now that left a ton of 670 00:34:29,400 --> 00:34:32,040 Speaker 1: real estate for people to come in and swoop up 671 00:34:32,120 --> 00:34:35,120 Speaker 1: for pennies on the dollar, and that happened immediately right 672 00:34:35,239 --> 00:34:38,440 Speaker 1: And now those restaurants are facing failure because so many 673 00:34:38,480 --> 00:34:41,640 Speaker 1: people get in thinking oh, it's so cheap, not recognizing 674 00:34:41,680 --> 00:34:44,800 Speaker 1: they're also signing onto the lease and that the financial 675 00:34:44,880 --> 00:34:47,759 Speaker 1: barriers are always going to be there. So you saw 676 00:34:48,120 --> 00:34:51,200 Speaker 1: restaurants go under not open back up. Now you saw 677 00:34:51,280 --> 00:34:53,640 Speaker 1: other independents go in and take their spaces, or you 678 00:34:53,680 --> 00:34:56,000 Speaker 1: saw a lot of these large multi unit chains come 679 00:34:56,040 --> 00:34:58,080 Speaker 1: in and take the spaces and now they're redesigning and 680 00:34:58,200 --> 00:35:01,480 Speaker 1: redeveloping them. I haven't seen it, and this is more anecdotal, 681 00:35:01,520 --> 00:35:04,279 Speaker 1: but I what I what I've heard through a lot 682 00:35:04,320 --> 00:35:07,640 Speaker 1: of larger franchisees is you're seeing massive franchise growth in 683 00:35:07,719 --> 00:35:10,000 Speaker 1: the sense of these bigger you know, your Applebees of 684 00:35:10,040 --> 00:35:13,040 Speaker 1: the world that are taking out a lot of these spaces. 685 00:35:13,080 --> 00:35:14,800 Speaker 1: So I think we're gonna see a bit of a 686 00:35:14,880 --> 00:35:19,680 Speaker 1: customization or or lack thereof, and more of a commercialization 687 00:35:20,239 --> 00:35:23,560 Speaker 1: of restaurants across the landscape. But these ghost kitchens, right, 688 00:35:23,640 --> 00:35:26,440 Speaker 1: that's going to be the future too, are these offsite 689 00:35:26,680 --> 00:35:30,640 Speaker 1: virtual concepts that we're ordering off of our apps. Businesses 690 00:35:30,640 --> 00:35:33,040 Speaker 1: are learning that I don't need to go into a 691 00:35:33,120 --> 00:35:36,200 Speaker 1: three thousand square foot space and pay all this overhead 692 00:35:36,440 --> 00:35:38,520 Speaker 1: and all these entry fees when I can just take 693 00:35:38,520 --> 00:35:42,320 Speaker 1: a little commercial space rented, develop a couple of concepts, 694 00:35:42,400 --> 00:35:44,960 Speaker 1: have two cooks, and then have a delivery driver come 695 00:35:45,000 --> 00:35:48,120 Speaker 1: pick it up. Um with no dining room. Right, that's 696 00:35:48,160 --> 00:35:51,280 Speaker 1: going to be huge, especially in cities. Now the question 697 00:35:51,400 --> 00:35:54,640 Speaker 1: becomes who delivers it and what company is ultimately trying 698 00:35:54,640 --> 00:35:57,399 Speaker 1: and aggregate all of that revenue right now. The door 699 00:35:57,480 --> 00:35:59,160 Speaker 1: dashes of the world are trying to do so, but 700 00:35:59,239 --> 00:36:02,080 Speaker 1: I think there's major opportunity for small players to come 701 00:36:02,120 --> 00:36:04,880 Speaker 1: in and disrupt that space. So, uh, those are a 702 00:36:04,920 --> 00:36:07,239 Speaker 1: few opinions about where it's going. But we can only 703 00:36:07,320 --> 00:36:09,880 Speaker 1: hope that we don't see the lockdowns and the shutdowns 704 00:36:09,920 --> 00:36:12,840 Speaker 1: that we saw in the beginning of the pandemic, because 705 00:36:13,160 --> 00:36:15,480 Speaker 1: if you look at the data, what you'll see is 706 00:36:15,640 --> 00:36:18,080 Speaker 1: that it wasn't the restaurants in the retail that we're 707 00:36:18,160 --> 00:36:21,879 Speaker 1: perpetuating the spread. We were inherently trained to create safe 708 00:36:21,920 --> 00:36:25,040 Speaker 1: and sanitary environments that could take on a lot of 709 00:36:25,160 --> 00:36:28,960 Speaker 1: this these regulations and manage them properly and model the 710 00:36:29,080 --> 00:36:31,520 Speaker 1: right types of behavior through the pandemic. So we could 711 00:36:31,560 --> 00:36:33,960 Speaker 1: kind of have the best of both worlds, right safety 712 00:36:34,280 --> 00:36:38,040 Speaker 1: consideration for others, while simultaneously also allowing our economy to 713 00:36:38,120 --> 00:36:40,480 Speaker 1: do what it does best. Um, so hopefully that's the 714 00:36:40,560 --> 00:36:44,520 Speaker 1: approach if there are going to be subsequent shutdowns. Yeah, absolutely, Andrew. 715 00:36:44,560 --> 00:36:48,439 Speaker 1: Thanking you very informative, big fan, and I am gonna 716 00:36:48,440 --> 00:36:51,200 Speaker 1: know that pizza place your big part in tested. I 717 00:36:51,239 --> 00:36:53,000 Speaker 1: will get there at some point, So thank you, Andrew. 718 00:36:53,000 --> 00:36:55,680 Speaker 1: I appreciate it. Thanks for having me. It's an honor. 719 00:36:55,719 --> 00:36:58,480 Speaker 1: I appreciate it. Be sure to catch live editions of 720 00:36:58,560 --> 00:37:01,480 Speaker 1: The Ben Maller Show weekly sit two am Eastern eleven 721 00:37:01,560 --> 00:37:05,080 Speaker 1: pm Pacific, on Fox Sports Radio and the I Heart 722 00:37:05,200 --> 00:37:05,759 Speaker 1: Radio app