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Speaker 1: What's up. It's way up at Angela Yee. I'm Angela

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Speaker 1: Yee And I didn't do this just for the food.

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Speaker 1: But Chef JJ Johnson is here with us today. What's up,

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Speaker 1: Chef JJ Johnson? What I call you? Chef JJ Johnson? Chef?

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Speaker 2: What do you can just call me J? We're not

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Speaker 2: in the kitchen?

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Speaker 1: Okay, all right, but you do have some food for

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Speaker 1: me from your restaurant.

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Speaker 2: I do have some food food from my restaurant.

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Speaker 1: Field Trip O, Field Trip, Sorry, Field Trip.

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Speaker 2: Yes, it's all good.

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Speaker 3: We have a location in Harlem Rock Center and one

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Speaker 3: Upper West Side in front of Columbia University.

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Speaker 1: And the goal is for this to be all over, right.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, The goal is for it to grow, you know,

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Speaker 3: for people to get affordable food and neighborhoods that look

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Speaker 3: like ours or working class neighborhoods. I'm fortunate to be

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Speaker 3: up to three locations and constantly keep trying to grow.

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Speaker 1: That is a big deal too, because, let me tell

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Speaker 1: you something, having one coffee shop myself, it is definitely

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Speaker 1: just even dealing with like making sure that you're hiring

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Speaker 1: the right employees that they actually want incentives to stay too,

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Speaker 1: because I feel like people have a lot of options

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Speaker 1: right now.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, people do have a lot of options.

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Speaker 3: I think the industry, the food industry is changing and

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Speaker 3: people want to be in a safe space.

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Speaker 2: People want to be known.

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Speaker 3: Their voices heard, and I think we do that really well.

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Speaker 3: I try to hire the best possible person all the time,

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Speaker 3: and I'm just looking for good people, like we could

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Speaker 3: train you right, and we have.

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Speaker 2: I mean, our.

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Speaker 3: Retention rate is really good. We have I think ninety

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Speaker 3: three percent of our employers has still been there. And

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Speaker 3: we promote you, like, if you work for me, I'm

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Speaker 3: looking for you to get promoted. So I will big

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Speaker 3: chout out to Shay Shae's one of my longest employees.

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Speaker 2: She was a porter when she started.

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Speaker 3: Now she's a team lead and the next time we

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Speaker 3: open a location, she will probably be the manager of

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Speaker 3: that location.

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Speaker 1: That's amazing. We love that. I was talking to you

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Speaker 1: about the movie Hunger that I was just watching, and

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Speaker 1: I was like, because on there it was like, look chefs.

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Speaker 1: It makes it look like they the head chef has

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Speaker 1: no sense of humor. You know, they're you're not allowed

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Speaker 1: to do certain things. And it was a well oiled machine,

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Speaker 1: but it also felt super stressful. But you're saying that's

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Speaker 1: old school.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, I think the industry is just It is stressful

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Speaker 3: because we are at the hands of the people and

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Speaker 3: you are looking for your food. So we try to

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Speaker 3: get it to be an oil machine. But all that

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Speaker 3: raw raw rah not treating people, right, that's the old industry.

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Speaker 3: We're not We are trying not to be like that anymore.

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Speaker 3: And I know my kitchens, we're not doing that.

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Speaker 1: And field trip. One thing about field Trip, it all

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Speaker 1: starts with the rice, right.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, I brought your bowl here today. This is our

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Speaker 3: famous fried chicken bowl. It's marinated in like fifteen spices.

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Speaker 3: It comes to Carolina gold rice freshly milled from South Carolina,

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Speaker 3: and then it comes with our sticky barbecue sauce.

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Speaker 1: Let's take a look.

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Speaker 2: Let's see.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, it was.

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Speaker 3: Delivered and then also has our famous our walk collar

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Speaker 3: greens inside.

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Speaker 1: Oh my gosh, I'm excited. Can you calm down over here?

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Speaker 1: Why you got your prayer? Hands up?

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Speaker 2: I got I'm gonna get some food.

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Speaker 1: Don't worry. JJ bought food for everybody. He got the

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Speaker 1: prayer of hands, don't right. We feed people up here too, right,

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Speaker 1: It's not just about us, but I want to talk

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Speaker 1: about I washed you on Good Morning America. One thing

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Speaker 1: I did not realize is that you're supposed to ask

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Speaker 1: salt after the rice is cooked. This whole time, I

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Speaker 1: always put my rice, my salt in the rice while

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Speaker 1: it's cooking. Really, yeah, I didn't know.

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Speaker 3: Well, yeah, if you put the salt in the rice

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Speaker 3: after it's cooked, the rice will cook quicker, and it

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Speaker 3: will cook evenly and the grains will burst.

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Speaker 1: Okay, now you.

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Speaker 2: Told me you grew up in a Chinese restaurant.

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Speaker 1: Right, Well not, and no, I did not grow up.

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Speaker 1: I have family members who have owned Chinese restaurants. So

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Speaker 1: growing up, like at the holidays, it was always a

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Speaker 1: lot of it was a lot of pork fried rice

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Speaker 1: and I don't eat pork, so I could only eat

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Speaker 1: white rice. They would always have one little pot of

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Speaker 1: white rice that was just for me because I was

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Speaker 1: the only one.

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Speaker 2: Who It was probably the best white rice ever.

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Speaker 1: Yeah. I like a sticky, sticky white rice and nice

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Speaker 1: and fluffy. And I love that you said carolina because

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Speaker 1: my mom always used carolina.

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Speaker 2: Well that's what's up.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, growing up, and I remember having to use Uncle Ben's.

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Speaker 2: No, let's not come on you know.

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Speaker 1: But there was when I was in college. I'm not

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Speaker 1: gonna lie the Uncle Ben's converted rice. It just doesn't

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Speaker 1: hit the same. It's like super separate. And remember the

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Speaker 1: boil in a bag rice.

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Speaker 2: We're trying to move away from the.

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Speaker 1: You do have this book. The reason we're talking about

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Speaker 1: rice so much because not only does field trip start

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Speaker 1: with the rice bowl, but you have this book, The

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Speaker 1: Simple Art of Rice. Yes, that has some really amazing recipes, right,

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Speaker 1: and rice is kind of a staple for me, And

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Speaker 1: so I want to talk about the health benefits of

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Speaker 1: rice and what type of rice we should be eating

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Speaker 1: because we always hear people say, if you're trying to

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Speaker 1: lose weight or you want to do better, rice doesn't

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Speaker 1: have nutritional value. White rice, they say, always doesn't have

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Speaker 1: nutritional value. Now for you, I'm going to get your

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Speaker 1: thoughts on that because I always try to eat brown rice.

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Speaker 1: My favorite rice is black rice, me too, right, Okay, good?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, it has vitain b amino acids is grown black

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Speaker 3: m hm than everything else. And to serve black you

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Speaker 3: can't do nothing to it. So I tell anybody that

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Speaker 3: has diabetes out there, or familyms with diabetes, they just

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Speaker 3: put start putting.

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Speaker 2: Black rice into their diet.

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Speaker 1: Okay.

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Speaker 2: So I love black rice, all.

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Speaker 1: Right, So talk to me about what they say about

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Speaker 1: rice and how white rice is supposedly not good for

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Speaker 1: you and it has no health benefits. I just want

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Speaker 1: to know, because I'm a person who always thinks about

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Speaker 1: health too.

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Speaker 3: I mean, rice rice is amazing. I call it like

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Speaker 3: the miracle ingredient. It makes your dinner's easier, does all

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Speaker 3: those things from the health side. I think the reason

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Speaker 3: there's a lot that the reason why media beats up

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Speaker 3: rice is because it was a cash crop for America

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Speaker 3: and we used to grow it, okay, and when we

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Speaker 3: stop growing it, people couldn't grow rice the same way.

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Speaker 3: So the rice that started to come on the market

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Speaker 3: was this par boiled enriched rice crane that isn't good

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Speaker 3: for us, okay, And that's what most of us absorb. Now,

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Speaker 3: I think we have access to better supermarkets, we have

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Speaker 3: access to more knowledge, and there's different types of rice

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Speaker 3: on the shelf. Maybe where you live, you might be

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Speaker 3: able to chance to get to a farmer's market where

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Speaker 3: you might be able to get freshly milled rice. So

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Speaker 3: white rice, I don't think there's anything that you know,

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Speaker 3: brown rice versus white rice. I think they all have

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Speaker 3: their own benefits. Brown rice is a whole grain. White

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Speaker 3: rice just doesn't have as much nutritional value as the

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Speaker 3: brown rice does because the brand and the germ is

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Speaker 3: taken off. I can get really geeky about this stuff.

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Speaker 1: No, this is interesting to me. And the forbidden black

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Speaker 1: rice forbidding black rice.

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Speaker 3: But you know forbidding black rice. The reason why it

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Speaker 3: is forbidding black rice is that emperors in China you

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Speaker 3: said black rice, and then people started dying rice because

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Speaker 3: they wanted to be an emperor. I mean I would

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Speaker 3: have died rice too, tried to be an emperor. But

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Speaker 3: I think rice has a lot of value. One a

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Speaker 3: guy that I work out with from time to time,

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Speaker 3: dude named Joe Holder, says that the best rice you

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Speaker 3: should eat is you should steam your rice. When it's done,

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Speaker 3: let it sit there, come back from the gym. That

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Speaker 3: rice that starts to stick together, that you love that

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Speaker 3: that rice starch is actually good for you to take

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Speaker 3: to build muscle when you come out of the Okay, so,

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Speaker 3: but you know everything is good in moderation, right.

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Speaker 1: We don't want to just eat rice all day like.

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Speaker 3: No, but I talk about that, and I talk about

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Speaker 3: that in the cookbook The Simple Art of Rice, and

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Speaker 3: I break down thirty different rice grains that you can

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Speaker 3: add into to your cabinet. But if you can't get them,

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Speaker 3: you can have rice with lentils and chickpeas. You can

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Speaker 3: have rice for breakfast. You can make rice crapes, you

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Speaker 3: can make rote. There's many different things that I take

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Speaker 3: you on a journey with and also to make your

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Speaker 3: kitchen a lot simpler so that if you're working parent,

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Speaker 3: you can cook for a.

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Speaker 2: Couple of days in a week.

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Speaker 1: Now, let's talk about your background, because you have Caribbean roots. Yes,

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Speaker 1: so I would assume that you grew up with a

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Speaker 1: lot of rice like I did grow.

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Speaker 2: With a lot of rice. Yeah.

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Speaker 3: My mom is Puerto Rican in Beision. My grandfather's from Barbados,

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Speaker 3: my grandmother's from Puerto Rico. My dad's African American. Okay,

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Speaker 3: I didn't really find out like I was raised as

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Speaker 3: a black boy. But the table, my porter gran grandmother

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Speaker 3: set the table as a young kid and had everything

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Speaker 3: from like a soapoud or rice, chicken, rice and beans

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Speaker 3: to sankolcho to many different flavor and then when you

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Speaker 3: come to my grandmother's house in Harlem, she would have

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Speaker 3: you know, red beans and rice. She would have you know,

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Speaker 3: white rice with Vanetta sausages chopped up in it.

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Speaker 2: So rice was always at the table and it was

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Speaker 2: very delicious.

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Speaker 3: I did get to a point in my in my

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Speaker 3: my mom's gonna get my mom back.

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Speaker 2: I like this one.

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Speaker 3: But I did get to a point in my life

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Speaker 3: where I didn't like rice. Going back to like that

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Speaker 3: box rice. My mom as a as a working mom,

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Speaker 3: was cooking box right, box rice, and the television was

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Speaker 3: telling everybody that was the quickest thing to do.

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Speaker 1: I was doing that too, and I was like, Mom.

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Speaker 2: Like, it's mushy, it's undercooked. What is going on here?

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Speaker 1: And you said, that's because she told you want to

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Speaker 1: be a chef. That's why. Yeah, you cared about it

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Speaker 1: so much. You know what was the best invention? And

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Speaker 1: you address this in the book to the rice cooker,

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Speaker 1: Because some people really can't cook rice like at all.

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Speaker 1: I've had people who they burned as you know, they

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Speaker 1: burned the pot or it's always like either you got

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Speaker 1: to add my word, or you put too much water

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Speaker 1: and it gets really mushy and So the rice cooker

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Speaker 1: for me in college, I was a lifesaver because you

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Speaker 1: could also just put it in your dorm room.

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Speaker 2: Well, you had the rice cooker in collars.

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Speaker 1: I did.

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Speaker 3: They're saying like, that's the number one thing and kids

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Speaker 3: dorms right now is a rice car Okay they were, No,

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Speaker 3: you were heading your time on that one.

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Speaker 1: I definitely had a rice cooker, perfect rice every single time.

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Speaker 1: All you gotta do is pour the weather in, push

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Speaker 1: it down, and poop it pops up when it's ready.

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Speaker 2: The rice cooker is a new there's a new toaster, yep.

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Speaker 1: Absolutely. What about adding butter?

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Speaker 2: Oh why not?

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Speaker 1: Okay? Just making sure because I like that? And coconut milk.

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Speaker 2: Why does do it?

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Speaker 1: Okay? That's I think coconut milk? And I also like

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Speaker 1: pumpkin rice.

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Speaker 2: Who's pumpkin rice? Walk me through that.

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Speaker 1: Shout out to my girl Melissa and nogrill. So every

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Speaker 1: time I go there, I always get the curry chicken

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Speaker 1: with pumpkin rice.

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Speaker 2: I like this. Yeah, and they just fold some pumpkin like.

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Speaker 1: I don't know how they make it, I can't say,

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Speaker 1: but it's delicious.

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Speaker 2: We're gonna have to pull up there to the grill.

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Speaker 1: Yes, you would absolutely love that. So you also have

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Speaker 1: in here librarian Joeloff.

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Speaker 2: Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. Why why are we going to

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Speaker 2: Why are you gonna do this to me?

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Speaker 1: So now why Liberian Jolof Because you know, everybody says

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Speaker 1: they have the best joel Off, right.

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Speaker 2: Everybody just said that.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, So so for you, you would like, let me go

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Speaker 1: off the beaten path of what you would expect in

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Speaker 1: this cookbook.

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Speaker 2: I think Liberian food is on the rise.

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Speaker 1: I don't think I've ever had Liberian food.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, I was putting onto Liberian food like two three

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Speaker 3: years ago and I had Liberian Joel Off, and I

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Speaker 3: thought it was amazing.

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Speaker 2: It reminded me of jumbalaya, okay, and it's like a

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Speaker 2: little bit more sticky. It has seafood and meat inside.

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Speaker 3: It's kind of like the kitchen sink kind of joelaf Like,

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Speaker 3: you have your chicken wings, you have your beef, if

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Speaker 3: you have your seafood. It's a complete meal. I think

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Speaker 3: if you're trying to show off, you get throw it

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Speaker 3: in the middle of the table for your friends or

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Speaker 3: family and it's gonna be popping. But I also wanted

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Speaker 3: to I also wanted to highlight something else because I'm

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Speaker 3: always into debates about Ghana and Joeloff and Nigerian Joeloff, and.

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Speaker 1: They get very heated discussions online about who has Okay.

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Speaker 3: Trip has joelf is Ghana and joel Off because I

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Speaker 3: cooked in Ghana, so that's the joel Off I know

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Speaker 3: how to make. But I felt in the book it

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Speaker 3: was it's exciting to highlight another another African country that

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Speaker 3: cooked Joeloff because they all do it.

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Speaker 2: And I believe that Joelof is.

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Speaker 3: The connected tissue between US and West Africa, like it

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Speaker 3: keeps us wanting to go back there and learn more

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Speaker 3: about it. Like when you go to if anybody tells

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Speaker 3: you go to Nigeria, they're like, yo, you got to

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Speaker 3: get Jolof first thing.

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Speaker 1: They definitely do. And let's talk about your whole process

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Speaker 1: to where you got to today, right because you knew

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Speaker 1: from when you were young that this is what you

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Speaker 1: wanted to do.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, I was seven years old.

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Speaker 1: Seven years old? How did you know that at such

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Speaker 1: a young age.

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Speaker 2: I think about it every day. I have no idea.

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Speaker 3: Watching commercial for Culinary Suit of America, I tell my

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Speaker 3: parents that's where I was going to go to school.

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Speaker 2: They thought I was talking trash. Right, That's where I

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Speaker 2: wound up going.

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Speaker 1: You stayed on that path this whole time I did.

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Speaker 3: There was a couple of times I wanted to get

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Speaker 3: off the path, and my dad was like, listen, your

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Speaker 3: mom didn't want you to go to culinary school.

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Speaker 2: I fought for you to go.

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Speaker 1: It's not cheap.

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Speaker 3: It's not cheap at all. You better figure this out

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Speaker 3: and you better push through. And I'm happy I had

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Speaker 3: him in my corner through college, telling me that I

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Speaker 3: needed to stay there and it will work yourself out

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Speaker 3: because it was hard.

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Speaker 2: I was worst person in cooking.

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Speaker 1: Why were you the worst person?

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Speaker 3: Because I came from a household that cooked flavor and

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Speaker 3: added spice and all these things to the kitchen.

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Speaker 2: Was very straightforward and technique.

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Speaker 1: Because I was a good cooking at something creative, I

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Speaker 1: would think they would like the flavor and the.

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Speaker 3: I think it's they want to teach you the foundation,

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Speaker 3: and then once you get into the world, it's like, Okay,

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Speaker 3: you can add your own flavor to it. But the

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Speaker 3: process for me, and I think a lot of other

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Speaker 3: students of color at the Color Student America or any culinary school,

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Speaker 3: is like, well, hold on, my grandma said to do

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Speaker 3: it like this, and it was it was delicious. While

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Speaker 3: all of a sudden, would I do it like this

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Speaker 3: and it tastes worse than my grandmother's. Right, So, but

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Speaker 3: then you realize, like, okay, you're teaching me the perfect

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Speaker 3: way how to make roasted chicken. Now I'm adding the

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Speaker 3: things I learned from childhood or from for my family

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Speaker 3: or my travels, and then I got the perfect roasted

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Speaker 3: chicken with all the flavor. And then nobody can cook

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Speaker 3: better than us.

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Speaker 1: So after that, right, so you're in school, how does

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Speaker 1: this whole process work? Because I know there's a lot

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Speaker 1: of people who feel like, oh I could be a chef.

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Speaker 1: I could do this, but it's definitely not easy. So

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Speaker 1: you were trained in how to do things the way

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Speaker 1: that is the standard, the gold standard, and then you're

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Speaker 1: able to add your twist. How hard was it for

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Speaker 1: you to get a job after graduating?

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Speaker 3: It wasn't hard for me to get a job after

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Speaker 3: I graduated. I did my internship in New York City.

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Speaker 3: I tried back a grill.

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Speaker 1: I went back and had a nice internship.

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Speaker 2: It was great. It was in his prime, right, like

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Speaker 2: a thousand covers a night.

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Speaker 1: It was wild, okay.

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Speaker 3: And then I grew up in I grew up in Pennsylvania, Pocono's.

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Speaker 3: I went back and worked at a place called Skytop Lodge.

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Speaker 3: But I promised my parents I would get my bachelor's.

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Speaker 3: So I went to see In Hall but I hated it.

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Speaker 1: Okay, my parents live in Southurrey. Okay, so Seeing Hall

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Speaker 1: is right there. Nice place, yeah, beautiful place. But you

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Speaker 1: got your bachelor's And what.

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Speaker 2: I didn't, I didn't. You just left, Okay, I said,

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Speaker 2: this isn't for me. So another waste of money.

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Speaker 1: But what a great investment in your parents. He did

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Speaker 1: his Look, you never know, if you wouldn't have done

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Speaker 1: all those things, you might not be sitting right where

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Speaker 1: you are.

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Speaker 2: Today, right Yeah.

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Speaker 3: And then so then I went back to Clary to America,

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Speaker 3: got my bachelor's degree in like culinary science or culinary arts.

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Speaker 3: And my first job was at Wegmans and the management

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Speaker 3: training program. And I literally was like that kid that.

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Speaker 2: Was like, I can't believe it's my first job.

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Speaker 3: I went to culinary sclaim working at Wegmans, and it

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Speaker 3: was the only place I was ever fired. I literally

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Speaker 3: put my two weeks two week notice in he was like,

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Speaker 3: Chef's like, am I not not accepted to He wouldn't

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Speaker 3: take my notice. He's like, today's your last day. So

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Speaker 3: it was mutual, like he wasn't feeling me and I

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Speaker 3: wasn't feeling him. But I looked back and I'm like, Wow,

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Speaker 3: Wegmans definitely knows what they're doing.

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Speaker 2: Maybe I should have stayed there a little longer.

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Speaker 3: And then I worked at a restaurant called Jane, which

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Speaker 3: was on West House in between Thompson LaGuardia.

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Speaker 1: Is that like the Jane Hotel?

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Speaker 2: No, it was Jane.

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Speaker 3: He was known for his Joki brunch on weekends, French tow.

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Speaker 3: It was like really busy place. They opened up the Smith.

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Speaker 3: I helped them open up the Smith. And then when

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Speaker 3: I left there, I worked at a restaurant that was

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Speaker 3: really toxic, and I went to Corporate America. So I

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Speaker 3: worked at Morgan Stanley Executive dining Room on the forty

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Speaker 3: first floor and changing the menu every day. I never

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Speaker 3: knew that a place like that existed, but I missed it.

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Speaker 3: I missed the private sector and I couldn't get a job.

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Speaker 3: I was like applying for jobs and I was like

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Speaker 3: I just kept getting sue chef jobs, sous chef jobs.

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Speaker 3: I'm like, Oh, I have all this experience, why can't

381
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Speaker 3: I get a chef the cuisine? Why can't I get

382
00:15:33,760 --> 00:15:36,360
Speaker 3: an executive chef job? So I went on a cooking

383
00:15:36,360 --> 00:15:39,840
Speaker 3: show called Rocko's Dinner Party, and I won this show,

384
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Speaker 3: and I got a call from a gentleman named Alexander

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Speaker 3: Small who opened up this restaurant called cecil and mentally Parsons.

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Speaker 1: And that's where I first knew of you, from going

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Speaker 1: to Cecils.

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Speaker 2: And they might claim the fame.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, but that restaurant, by the way, is amazing, and

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Speaker 1: the food there was so good. And there's not like

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Speaker 1: there's a lot of restaurants I might go to just

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Speaker 1: for ambiance and vibe. But it had a great on

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Speaker 1: beionce vibe and the food was good.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, And we were cooking something like probably you could

395
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Speaker 3: relate to a right based off your background, but many

396
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Speaker 3: people never heard of like Afro Asian American cooking.

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Speaker 1: And it had the little it had a like a

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Speaker 1: performance what would you call it, speak Easy or jazz club.

399
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Speaker 1: Minton Club is right there.

400
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Speaker 2: So I worked there for about four years.

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Speaker 3: Before I worked there, I was cooking gone and worked

402
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Speaker 3: there for four years and then I left and I

403
00:16:29,120 --> 00:16:31,200
Speaker 3: was like, Okay, I worked really hard here, poured out

404
00:16:31,200 --> 00:16:33,440
Speaker 3: all my blood, sweat and tears. If I worked this

405
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Speaker 3: hard for myself, right, imagine.

406
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Speaker 2: Imagine what I could do.

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Speaker 1: But the restaurant business is a tough one keeping a

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Speaker 1: restaurant open. We always hear about that, as far as

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Speaker 1: like the rate of what's the rate of how many

410
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Speaker 1: restaurants percentage wise like end up not working.

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Speaker 2: We try not to think about it, listen, but.

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Speaker 1: It feels like you have I also feel like sometimes

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Speaker 1: it could be poor management too. I think it's a

414
00:16:54,240 --> 00:16:56,960
Speaker 1: lot like I think, and it's hard, just very hard

415
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Speaker 1: even knowing how to order the right amount of what

416
00:16:59,080 --> 00:17:01,160
Speaker 1: you need to order. It costs so much money to

417
00:17:01,160 --> 00:17:03,520
Speaker 1: get the right food, to have the best ingredients too. Right,

418
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Speaker 1: I saw you were talking about Chipotely and why Chipotlee

419
00:17:07,400 --> 00:17:09,440
Speaker 1: does well. They do very well because they talk about

420
00:17:09,440 --> 00:17:10,919
Speaker 1: fresh fresh like everything is.

421
00:17:10,920 --> 00:17:14,199
Speaker 3: They understand the supply chain, they talk about being super fresh.

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00:17:14,480 --> 00:17:16,679
Speaker 3: They give you a very consistent product every time you

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Speaker 3: walk through the door. I mean, that's the artist thing

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Speaker 3: with us now is like we have three locations. It's

425
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Speaker 3: like when you walk through field Trip where you get

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Speaker 3: the same fried chicken every locations.

427
00:17:24,119 --> 00:17:27,200
Speaker 2: See, we strive for that. But yeah, it's management.

428
00:17:27,200 --> 00:17:29,560
Speaker 3: It's a people business, like you got to keep people happy, right,

429
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Speaker 3: and that's a hard thing to do.

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Speaker 1: How are you about eating at people's houses? Like, when

431
00:17:34,040 --> 00:17:36,159
Speaker 1: other people are cooking for you? Is that hard for you?

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Speaker 2: Down?

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Speaker 3: For?

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Speaker 2: I love it. I cook for people all the time.

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00:17:38,600 --> 00:17:41,040
Speaker 3: The problem is when you're a chef and somebody else cooks,

436
00:17:41,040 --> 00:17:42,280
Speaker 3: they always invite you in the kitchen.

437
00:17:42,560 --> 00:17:43,560
Speaker 2: Hey, you'll come over here.

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Speaker 1: That's not what you can right now.

439
00:17:45,119 --> 00:17:46,760
Speaker 3: And the next thing you know, you're cutting limes or

440
00:17:46,880 --> 00:17:48,960
Speaker 3: lemons or your help because it's.

441
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Speaker 2: Just natural in you to help out, right.

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Speaker 3: But yeah, my friends always are My friends always are

443
00:17:53,920 --> 00:17:55,440
Speaker 3: scared to invite me to the house when they're cooking.

444
00:17:55,440 --> 00:17:57,240
Speaker 3: They're like, uh, you're going to bring the field trip

445
00:17:57,320 --> 00:17:58,560
Speaker 3: or you're going to come over with some food.

446
00:17:58,760 --> 00:18:00,760
Speaker 1: Just space some food with too, right. So, and you

447
00:18:00,800 --> 00:18:02,720
Speaker 1: do have a cooking show too, Let's not forget that.

448
00:18:02,720 --> 00:18:04,760
Speaker 1: That's on Kleo TV. So let's talk about that for

449
00:18:04,800 --> 00:18:05,160
Speaker 1: a second.

450
00:18:05,240 --> 00:18:07,040
Speaker 3: Yeah, you have a cooking show on Cleo TV called

451
00:18:07,160 --> 00:18:09,879
Speaker 3: Just Twit Chef JJ we're on our fifth season.

452
00:18:10,080 --> 00:18:12,720
Speaker 1: I be on this season. I already booked my time slots.

453
00:18:13,000 --> 00:18:14,800
Speaker 2: I can't wait. I can't wait to get you in

454
00:18:14,840 --> 00:18:15,320
Speaker 2: the kitchen.

455
00:18:15,400 --> 00:18:17,119
Speaker 1: My only contingency. I was like, can I bring my

456
00:18:17,200 --> 00:18:19,960
Speaker 1: coffee you know with me, so we can use my coffee?

457
00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:20,720
Speaker 2: And we got it.

458
00:18:20,840 --> 00:18:22,159
Speaker 1: Let's do it, okay, perfect.

459
00:18:22,200 --> 00:18:24,040
Speaker 2: I already know I'm cooking. You got my mind thinking

460
00:18:24,040 --> 00:18:24,960
Speaker 2: now what we're gonna do.

461
00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:28,000
Speaker 3: Some type of coffee road maybe maybe do a little

462
00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:29,080
Speaker 3: vinegarrette with the coffee.

463
00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:32,439
Speaker 1: So how so talk about the cooking show just for

464
00:18:32,480 --> 00:18:34,120
Speaker 1: a second here and like some people that have been

465
00:18:34,160 --> 00:18:36,760
Speaker 1: featured on the show and what made you decide to

466
00:18:36,760 --> 00:18:39,400
Speaker 1: do your own thing with that or how that happened.

467
00:18:39,680 --> 00:18:43,679
Speaker 3: Well, yeah, big shout out to Rochell Brown and Powerhouse Productions.

468
00:18:44,440 --> 00:18:47,359
Speaker 3: They came to me and said, hey, we have we

469
00:18:47,400 --> 00:18:50,560
Speaker 3: think you're great on camera. Nobody's really seen you before.

470
00:18:50,960 --> 00:18:53,160
Speaker 3: There's a new startup network coming out part of TV

471
00:18:53,240 --> 00:18:54,160
Speaker 3: one called Cleo TV.

472
00:18:54,680 --> 00:18:56,880
Speaker 2: We'd love for you to kick it off. And I

473
00:18:56,920 --> 00:18:57,639
Speaker 2: was like my dream.

474
00:18:57,760 --> 00:18:59,800
Speaker 3: I used to walk the I used to walk the

475
00:18:59,800 --> 00:19:02,159
Speaker 3: whole of high school telling people, oh, Man would be

476
00:19:02,160 --> 00:19:05,200
Speaker 3: better than Emerala Gas. Yeah, you're like, yeah, all right, man, whatever,

477
00:19:05,200 --> 00:19:08,320
Speaker 3: nobody's gonna be a chef. So to be on television.

478
00:19:09,600 --> 00:19:10,040
Speaker 2: Is a dream.

479
00:19:11,080 --> 00:19:13,360
Speaker 3: Uh And to get a network behind you that believes

480
00:19:13,359 --> 00:19:16,840
Speaker 3: in you and a production company is even better. So

481
00:19:17,640 --> 00:19:22,480
Speaker 3: you know, we've had Slim Thug, We've had y Andy

482
00:19:22,960 --> 00:19:23,720
Speaker 3: shout out to some thug.

483
00:19:23,760 --> 00:19:25,919
Speaker 1: He just put an album out to last week. He

484
00:19:25,920 --> 00:19:28,480
Speaker 1: has a song about a midlife crisis. Oh boy, he's

485
00:19:28,520 --> 00:19:29,040
Speaker 1: so funny.

486
00:19:29,119 --> 00:19:29,639
Speaker 2: Okay, he's a.

487
00:19:29,640 --> 00:19:33,119
Speaker 3: Big foodie, yeah he is. And we have some of

488
00:19:33,119 --> 00:19:37,240
Speaker 3: my friends, we have influencers. We're about to have you,

489
00:19:37,280 --> 00:19:39,560
Speaker 3: which is super exciting. But it's kitchen table talk. You

490
00:19:39,600 --> 00:19:43,159
Speaker 3: come on, We're kicking it and I'm cooking. It's like

491
00:19:43,160 --> 00:19:45,360
Speaker 3: you just said, like you're in my kitchen and I'm

492
00:19:45,400 --> 00:19:47,200
Speaker 3: just walking through you some things that you've probably never

493
00:19:47,200 --> 00:19:50,399
Speaker 3: seen on television before, on the on the food stations

494
00:19:50,400 --> 00:19:51,000
Speaker 3: that we watch.

495
00:19:51,800 --> 00:19:53,200
Speaker 1: You know what I want to ask you, as a chef,

496
00:19:53,280 --> 00:19:55,560
Speaker 1: does it bother you when people are like I don't

497
00:19:55,600 --> 00:19:57,399
Speaker 1: eat this? Can I substitute this? Because I know in

498
00:19:57,480 --> 00:20:00,640
Speaker 1: some restaurants it's like no substitutions, right, And chefs y'all

499
00:20:00,680 --> 00:20:02,920
Speaker 1: have this whole thing planned out, like this goes with this,

500
00:20:02,920 --> 00:20:05,679
Speaker 1: this balance is this, and so certain people may not

501
00:20:05,800 --> 00:20:08,199
Speaker 1: like sauces, or some people might be like before they

502
00:20:08,200 --> 00:20:09,879
Speaker 1: even taste the food, I need hot sauce, or I

503
00:20:09,920 --> 00:20:12,040
Speaker 1: need this, I need X, Y and Z. From your

504
00:20:12,080 --> 00:20:14,679
Speaker 1: point of view, how does that affect you? Or are

505
00:20:14,720 --> 00:20:16,960
Speaker 1: you just cool with everything? Or are you sometimes like

506
00:20:17,200 --> 00:20:20,400
Speaker 1: DJ's hate when you go and request songs sometimes? Are

507
00:20:20,400 --> 00:20:22,640
Speaker 1: you the type of chef that is like, all right,

508
00:20:22,680 --> 00:20:25,199
Speaker 1: like I put this together specifically for you to have

509
00:20:25,280 --> 00:20:26,880
Speaker 1: this flavor with this flavor.

510
00:20:26,920 --> 00:20:28,240
Speaker 2: Well, yeah, I mean you said it.

511
00:20:28,240 --> 00:20:31,280
Speaker 3: We're artists, right, So like when we're developing a dish,

512
00:20:31,280 --> 00:20:34,359
Speaker 3: we're trying to get you the maximum flavor point, Like

513
00:20:34,400 --> 00:20:37,600
Speaker 3: you can get some salty, some ommi, some sweetness, some crunch.

514
00:20:37,920 --> 00:20:39,840
Speaker 2: But that's how I think. So when you come in

515
00:20:39,840 --> 00:20:40,560
Speaker 2: and you're like, oh.

516
00:20:40,520 --> 00:20:44,960
Speaker 3: JJ, can I have no barbecue sauce, I'm like, oh sure, sure,

517
00:20:44,960 --> 00:20:47,399
Speaker 3: Why don't you just why don't you just taste it?

518
00:20:47,400 --> 00:20:49,919
Speaker 3: And if you don't like it, then I'd give you

519
00:20:50,000 --> 00:20:53,560
Speaker 3: without the barbecue sauce. But I do think it's one

520
00:20:53,600 --> 00:20:57,320
Speaker 3: thing to have an allergy all good, it's one thing

521
00:20:57,359 --> 00:20:58,840
Speaker 3: not to like things all good.

522
00:20:59,480 --> 00:21:00,920
Speaker 2: I just think like if you're going to go out

523
00:21:00,920 --> 00:21:02,840
Speaker 2: to eat, just try.

524
00:21:02,600 --> 00:21:04,840
Speaker 1: It, right, because I like don't eat anything, and it

525
00:21:04,920 --> 00:21:07,040
Speaker 1: kind of sucks because I don't eat seafood. I don't

526
00:21:07,080 --> 00:21:09,879
Speaker 1: eat red meat. I don't eat pork, and then I

527
00:21:10,400 --> 00:21:13,200
Speaker 1: don't like this. I don't know. Well, I stopped eating

528
00:21:13,240 --> 00:21:15,280
Speaker 1: red meat when I was seventeen years old. When I

529
00:21:15,280 --> 00:21:17,439
Speaker 1: started college, I just stopped eating it. I haven't had

530
00:21:17,440 --> 00:21:19,520
Speaker 1: ports since I was like a little Kid's cool. I

531
00:21:19,600 --> 00:21:22,000
Speaker 1: just don't eat pork, and then seafood. My mother never

532
00:21:22,160 --> 00:21:23,880
Speaker 1: ate seafood, so I never ate it growing up.

533
00:21:24,040 --> 00:21:24,719
Speaker 2: Have you tried it?

534
00:21:25,400 --> 00:21:27,600
Speaker 1: No. I ate a piece of fish by accident because

535
00:21:27,600 --> 00:21:29,680
Speaker 1: I thought it was chicken and almost but the taste

536
00:21:29,680 --> 00:21:31,679
Speaker 1: of it was so disgusting to me. I was at

537
00:21:31,720 --> 00:21:34,840
Speaker 1: a wedding and I spit it right back out, unfortunately.

538
00:21:35,080 --> 00:21:37,399
Speaker 1: But yeah, it's just something that I never ate growing up.

539
00:21:37,440 --> 00:21:39,720
Speaker 1: And then my goal is to one day be a vegetarian.

540
00:21:39,960 --> 00:21:42,359
Speaker 2: Well, I think big up to vegetarians. I think is

541
00:21:42,760 --> 00:21:43,320
Speaker 2: a great thing.

542
00:21:43,440 --> 00:21:46,520
Speaker 3: Yeah, No, I love it, Like I think even food

543
00:21:46,760 --> 00:21:50,000
Speaker 3: on menus. Now you'll see a lot more vegetable items

544
00:21:50,040 --> 00:21:52,960
Speaker 3: in restaurants than ever before. I think there's a place

545
00:21:53,000 --> 00:21:55,000
Speaker 3: on the menu for everything, like a chef supposed to

546
00:21:55,000 --> 00:21:57,240
Speaker 3: design a menu to try to fit as many people

547
00:21:57,280 --> 00:22:01,040
Speaker 3: as they can, right, and especially like you haven't eating

548
00:22:01,080 --> 00:22:03,080
Speaker 3: porks in seven or I mean I don't really. I

549
00:22:03,160 --> 00:22:04,560
Speaker 3: used to eat a lot of pork. I don't eat

550
00:22:04,560 --> 00:22:06,680
Speaker 3: that much pork anymore. Red meat, A lot of people

551
00:22:06,680 --> 00:22:08,159
Speaker 3: don't eat red meat. My aunt Geenie doesn't eat red

552
00:22:08,160 --> 00:22:10,679
Speaker 3: meat anymore. So when I'm cooking at home for my family,

553
00:22:10,800 --> 00:22:13,680
Speaker 3: I'm thinking about all those things. My wife doesn't eat pork.

554
00:22:13,680 --> 00:22:15,239
Speaker 3: There's no pork in our house. My aunt doesn't eat

555
00:22:15,240 --> 00:22:16,960
Speaker 3: red meat. So when I'm cooking for somebody at home,

556
00:22:17,440 --> 00:22:19,280
Speaker 3: I'm thinking about that the same way I think about

557
00:22:19,320 --> 00:22:22,240
Speaker 3: in the restaurant, Like we have tons of items for vegetarians,

558
00:22:22,280 --> 00:22:26,080
Speaker 3: we have tons of meat item, we have seafood, so

559
00:22:26,119 --> 00:22:27,280
Speaker 3: there's a place for all.

560
00:22:27,960 --> 00:22:30,480
Speaker 1: That's my Rice is a great common denominator because you

561
00:22:30,520 --> 00:22:32,119
Speaker 1: can add whatever, you know.

562
00:22:32,280 --> 00:22:33,160
Speaker 2: It's like the Swiss Army.

563
00:22:33,160 --> 00:22:36,159
Speaker 1: No, it is like vegetable fried rice. You know, you

564
00:22:36,200 --> 00:22:38,879
Speaker 1: can get pork fried rice, which my family loves. You

565
00:22:38,880 --> 00:22:40,720
Speaker 1: could do Joel loaf, you could do John Balaya, you

566
00:22:40,720 --> 00:22:41,280
Speaker 1: could do whatever.

567
00:22:41,440 --> 00:22:42,040
Speaker 2: You could do whatever.

568
00:22:42,119 --> 00:22:44,520
Speaker 3: Yeah, one and that's what I'm showing you a simple

569
00:22:44,560 --> 00:22:46,879
Speaker 3: art devices Like you could just turn a page and

570
00:22:46,960 --> 00:22:50,080
Speaker 3: make a simple white rice that you love, or you

571
00:22:50,119 --> 00:22:53,280
Speaker 3: can go to joelof or you could do a Middle

572
00:22:53,320 --> 00:22:54,840
Speaker 3: Eastern dish, or you could do gumbo.

573
00:22:55,000 --> 00:22:55,880
Speaker 2: You could build it up.

574
00:22:55,920 --> 00:22:59,160
Speaker 3: But it is something that helps you while you're cooking

575
00:22:59,240 --> 00:23:01,320
Speaker 3: at home, because you could do cook one pot of

576
00:23:01,400 --> 00:23:03,040
Speaker 3: rice that will last you three days and then you

577
00:23:03,080 --> 00:23:05,520
Speaker 3: can flavor it, hit it next day with butter or

578
00:23:05,600 --> 00:23:08,440
Speaker 3: chicken fat or whatever you want to do, and.

579
00:23:08,440 --> 00:23:10,400
Speaker 1: Put it in a walk. That fried rice is great

580
00:23:10,640 --> 00:23:12,320
Speaker 1: and it's best the leftover rice.

581
00:23:12,160 --> 00:23:14,640
Speaker 2: Were making fried rice when you come on Jesse's because okay, good.

582
00:23:14,680 --> 00:23:15,000
Speaker 1: I like that.

583
00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:16,240
Speaker 2: Because you say because.

584
00:23:16,000 --> 00:23:17,680
Speaker 3: You said fried rice a couple of times, I didn't

585
00:23:17,680 --> 00:23:19,600
Speaker 3: know if you were trying to hit like jj we

586
00:23:19,600 --> 00:23:22,080
Speaker 3: got to do the vegetable fried rice, so noted vegetable

587
00:23:22,119 --> 00:23:22,600
Speaker 3: fried rice.

588
00:23:22,800 --> 00:23:25,119
Speaker 1: What's a great first meal. Let's just say somebody is

589
00:23:25,480 --> 00:23:27,960
Speaker 1: having somebody over their house for the first time on

590
00:23:28,040 --> 00:23:29,919
Speaker 1: a date, and you know people always talk about like

591
00:23:30,000 --> 00:23:32,439
Speaker 1: that first meal, how to you know, get him or

592
00:23:32,440 --> 00:23:35,639
Speaker 1: her interested right? What would you say for somebody, this

593
00:23:35,760 --> 00:23:37,640
Speaker 1: is a great first meal that you can't mess up,

594
00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:40,080
Speaker 1: and that is pretty universal.

595
00:23:40,800 --> 00:23:41,640
Speaker 2: Back in the day.

596
00:23:42,760 --> 00:23:46,439
Speaker 1: Tacos, I feel like that's a spaghetti. That's like the

597
00:23:46,480 --> 00:23:48,000
Speaker 1: thing guys do, tacos and spaghetti.

598
00:23:48,080 --> 00:23:50,399
Speaker 3: I think like once somebody starts to cook for somebody

599
00:23:50,400 --> 00:23:53,159
Speaker 3: and they come over, it's like there's a sense of like, ooh,

600
00:23:53,520 --> 00:23:55,640
Speaker 3: I'm gonna stay here a little longer. Like they didn't

601
00:23:55,680 --> 00:23:58,199
Speaker 3: just order to take out, right, So just you just

602
00:23:58,280 --> 00:24:01,840
Speaker 3: cooking something, even if it's just like bone and spaghetti, or.

603
00:24:01,840 --> 00:24:04,520
Speaker 1: If it's you know, see that sounded fancy.

604
00:24:04,200 --> 00:24:06,640
Speaker 3: You know, or if it's just if it's roasted salmon

605
00:24:06,960 --> 00:24:09,760
Speaker 3: and you know, rice, from the simple art of like

606
00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:12,040
Speaker 3: it's whatever you do. But what I think is cool

607
00:24:12,960 --> 00:24:16,160
Speaker 3: is when you're talking to the person, you're asking them, Hey,

608
00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:17,440
Speaker 3: what's some of your favorite foods?

609
00:24:17,480 --> 00:24:19,040
Speaker 2: What do you like to eat when you go out?

610
00:24:19,359 --> 00:24:20,160
Speaker 2: Like get to know them.

611
00:24:20,160 --> 00:24:21,879
Speaker 3: So then when you do cook, it's like, oh, this

612
00:24:21,920 --> 00:24:25,280
Speaker 3: person listens, right. So like I make for my wife,

613
00:24:25,320 --> 00:24:27,320
Speaker 3: I do something simple when she's mad at me. I

614
00:24:27,440 --> 00:24:31,320
Speaker 3: do a Rabbi boning with some like little pe potatoes

615
00:24:31,320 --> 00:24:33,560
Speaker 3: that I boil with brown butter and parsley.

616
00:24:33,960 --> 00:24:36,399
Speaker 1: Okay, does she ever get mad on purpose? So she

617
00:24:36,400 --> 00:24:37,280
Speaker 1: can get her favorite meal.

618
00:24:37,600 --> 00:24:39,199
Speaker 3: Maybe I'm gonna have to talk to her on the

619
00:24:39,240 --> 00:24:42,720
Speaker 3: side now and find out. But yeah, I mean, you know,

620
00:24:42,800 --> 00:24:45,600
Speaker 3: I like, I think, I think cooking for somebody is uh,

621
00:24:46,240 --> 00:24:48,440
Speaker 3: it's a beautiful it's a beautiful intimate thing. And you

622
00:24:48,440 --> 00:24:49,800
Speaker 3: can set the room and get to pour a nice

623
00:24:49,800 --> 00:24:52,000
Speaker 3: glass of wine or you can shake a cocktail.

624
00:24:52,600 --> 00:24:54,560
Speaker 2: There's a way to it. It's a really way to

625
00:24:54,600 --> 00:24:55,120
Speaker 2: show off.

626
00:24:55,400 --> 00:24:57,679
Speaker 1: I like when people who normally don't cook will make

627
00:24:57,720 --> 00:24:59,720
Speaker 1: that effort to cook for you, you know, if they don't

628
00:24:59,760 --> 00:25:02,000
Speaker 1: cook the right and it may not Yeah, it may

629
00:25:02,040 --> 00:25:04,560
Speaker 1: not taste that good, but it's made with love, as

630
00:25:04,960 --> 00:25:06,919
Speaker 1: people like to say, it's made with love. Have you

631
00:25:06,960 --> 00:25:08,920
Speaker 1: ever had to tell somebody you didn't like their food?

632
00:25:08,920 --> 00:25:12,280
Speaker 1: And what is the way to do that? Like a

633
00:25:12,280 --> 00:25:13,719
Speaker 1: person or astant person.

634
00:25:14,880 --> 00:25:17,120
Speaker 3: I don't think I've ever told a person in their

635
00:25:17,160 --> 00:25:20,320
Speaker 3: house like that's I just you know, I'm not eating

636
00:25:20,320 --> 00:25:20,960
Speaker 3: that much anymore.

637
00:25:21,000 --> 00:25:23,920
Speaker 1: I think hide it in a napkin. You got to

638
00:25:23,960 --> 00:25:25,120
Speaker 1: hide the food in a napkin and.

639
00:25:25,240 --> 00:25:27,200
Speaker 2: Fold the paper plate. You know, you fold the paper plate.

640
00:25:27,040 --> 00:25:29,399
Speaker 3: In person, hold the paper plane in half and like

641
00:25:29,400 --> 00:25:30,879
Speaker 3: slide in the garage can and push it all the

642
00:25:30,880 --> 00:25:31,200
Speaker 3: way down.

643
00:25:31,280 --> 00:25:35,320
Speaker 1: Damn a paper plate. Yeah, you put the paper so

644
00:25:35,359 --> 00:25:36,880
Speaker 1: they're serving you at their house with a paper plan.

645
00:25:36,960 --> 00:25:38,040
Speaker 1: I don't know, it's not going to be.

646
00:25:41,400 --> 00:25:43,159
Speaker 3: People don't like to do dishes with a lot of

647
00:25:43,160 --> 00:25:46,440
Speaker 3: people over right, Okay, but if it's if it's intimate,

648
00:25:46,480 --> 00:25:48,880
Speaker 3: I hope I'm not getting served on a paper plate exactly.

649
00:25:49,000 --> 00:25:49,840
Speaker 1: So now you have to.

650
00:25:49,800 --> 00:25:51,840
Speaker 2: Be like, I don't know what I'm gonna do.

651
00:25:51,880 --> 00:25:54,880
Speaker 1: Then yeah, just for people and when okay, So now

652
00:25:54,920 --> 00:25:57,360
Speaker 1: for you as a restaurant owner, when people come out,

653
00:25:57,400 --> 00:25:59,760
Speaker 1: if they do, you take offense to because I don't

654
00:25:59,800 --> 00:26:02,800
Speaker 1: like sending food back if I don't, but it has

655
00:26:02,800 --> 00:26:05,320
Speaker 1: to be like a real reason that I'm sending it back, right,

656
00:26:05,640 --> 00:26:07,720
Speaker 1: How do you feel if somebody sends something back because

657
00:26:07,720 --> 00:26:09,720
Speaker 1: it's not what they anticipated, but it's exactly what it

658
00:26:09,800 --> 00:26:12,000
Speaker 1: said on the menu.

659
00:26:12,600 --> 00:26:14,879
Speaker 3: I'm only sending it back if it has to be

660
00:26:14,920 --> 00:26:16,800
Speaker 3: like really really bad, Like I sent up play of

661
00:26:16,840 --> 00:26:20,119
Speaker 3: food back recently at a like really well known restaurant

662
00:26:20,119 --> 00:26:23,280
Speaker 3: where the shrimp was bad, okay, and like once I

663
00:26:23,320 --> 00:26:23,840
Speaker 3: tasted it.

664
00:26:24,000 --> 00:26:27,160
Speaker 1: Like this is bad, I'd be saying like yeah, and.

665
00:26:27,160 --> 00:26:28,560
Speaker 3: I sent them back and I let them know they

666
00:26:28,600 --> 00:26:30,879
Speaker 3: apologize profusely. If they wanted to make me a new one,

667
00:26:30,880 --> 00:26:32,359
Speaker 3: I was like, no, I want to do something else.

668
00:26:34,000 --> 00:26:34,960
Speaker 2: And I think.

669
00:26:36,200 --> 00:26:42,800
Speaker 3: We at Field Trip listen to the people, and we

670
00:26:42,920 --> 00:26:45,760
Speaker 3: listen to what they're writing, and in the comments on

671
00:26:45,840 --> 00:26:48,280
Speaker 3: Google or on Yelp, we reach out to everybody, good

672
00:26:48,320 --> 00:26:51,280
Speaker 3: or bad. And I think it's like, if somebody's having

673
00:26:51,280 --> 00:26:53,520
Speaker 3: a bad experience, we might not win them over, they

674
00:26:53,600 --> 00:26:54,800
Speaker 3: might not hit us back, but we just want to

675
00:26:54,840 --> 00:26:57,720
Speaker 3: let them know like we care unless they say something wild, right,

676
00:26:59,640 --> 00:27:01,760
Speaker 3: But I don't really if I don't like something in

677
00:27:01,800 --> 00:27:03,639
Speaker 3: the restaurant, I just kind of keep it to myself

678
00:27:03,680 --> 00:27:04,240
Speaker 3: young JJ.

679
00:27:04,920 --> 00:27:07,639
Speaker 2: But it's definitely been like Yo, this is trash and

680
00:27:07,800 --> 00:27:12,400
Speaker 2: like whatever. But now I'm just like, it's a chef

681
00:27:12,440 --> 00:27:13,359
Speaker 2: critiquing a chef.

682
00:27:13,560 --> 00:27:16,320
Speaker 3: All chefs critique chefs, and we all will find a

683
00:27:16,359 --> 00:27:18,720
Speaker 3: flaw on something, so I think we try to keep

684
00:27:18,720 --> 00:27:19,719
Speaker 3: it real minimum. Now.

685
00:27:19,720 --> 00:27:21,200
Speaker 1: I also want to talk about the New York City

686
00:27:21,200 --> 00:27:23,320
Speaker 1: Wine and Food Festival because that's another place where we're

687
00:27:23,320 --> 00:27:24,600
Speaker 1: going to see each other coming up.

688
00:27:24,680 --> 00:27:25,400
Speaker 2: It's gonna be fun.

689
00:27:25,480 --> 00:27:27,479
Speaker 1: Yeah, So let's talk about what you have going on,

690
00:27:27,520 --> 00:27:31,119
Speaker 1: because it's the fiftieth anniversary of hip Hop and I

691
00:27:31,160 --> 00:27:33,240
Speaker 1: know I see is going to be there. I'll be there.

692
00:27:33,320 --> 00:27:35,000
Speaker 1: So what is happening at the New York City Wine

693
00:27:35,040 --> 00:27:37,719
Speaker 1: and Food Festival, Just so people know and people can

694
00:27:37,760 --> 00:27:38,960
Speaker 1: actually come to this right.

695
00:27:38,920 --> 00:27:40,719
Speaker 3: Yes, it comes to I think it's gonna be one

696
00:27:40,760 --> 00:27:42,399
Speaker 3: of the best events ever at New York City Food and.

697
00:27:42,400 --> 00:27:43,560
Speaker 2: Wine Festival all time.

698
00:27:45,080 --> 00:27:48,280
Speaker 3: The food theme of the event is the cookout. And

699
00:27:48,440 --> 00:27:49,800
Speaker 3: you know, what do you bring to the cookout?

700
00:27:50,280 --> 00:27:52,480
Speaker 2: That's the theme. That's what every chef was asked, what

701
00:27:52,680 --> 00:27:53,080
Speaker 2: you bringing?

702
00:27:53,840 --> 00:27:55,960
Speaker 1: What am I bringing to the cookout? I'm bringing some coffee.

703
00:27:56,080 --> 00:27:56,800
Speaker 2: Bring some coffee.

704
00:27:56,880 --> 00:27:59,240
Speaker 1: Nobody has coffee or the cookout, But I tell you what.

705
00:27:59,520 --> 00:27:59,800
Speaker 3: I like.

706
00:28:00,800 --> 00:28:01,680
Speaker 1: Grill vegetables.

707
00:28:01,720 --> 00:28:01,920
Speaker 3: That's it.

708
00:28:02,280 --> 00:28:04,720
Speaker 1: That's what I'm bringing. Just for other people who are vegetarians.

709
00:28:04,800 --> 00:28:06,479
Speaker 1: I love to put my corn on the cob on

710
00:28:06,480 --> 00:28:09,520
Speaker 1: the grill. I even like any type of like zucchini,

711
00:28:09,880 --> 00:28:11,400
Speaker 1: all of that stuff like on the grill.

712
00:28:11,480 --> 00:28:12,480
Speaker 2: I think it's delicious.

713
00:28:12,560 --> 00:28:15,639
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's a different type of vibe. I think no

714
00:28:15,720 --> 00:28:17,440
Speaker 1: food tastes better than food dis's on the grill.

715
00:28:17,560 --> 00:28:21,920
Speaker 3: I think I love zucchini, like zucchini come off the grill, basil, rice, wine,

716
00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:26,320
Speaker 3: vinegar just like that, some salt. Okay, delicious little tips here,

717
00:28:26,800 --> 00:28:29,000
Speaker 3: but yeah, at the cookout, everybody was asking every chef,

718
00:28:29,560 --> 00:28:31,280
Speaker 3: Like eighteen chefs were asked what would you bring to

719
00:28:31,280 --> 00:28:33,359
Speaker 3: the cookout? Only you're not allowed to bring to the

720
00:28:33,400 --> 00:28:35,239
Speaker 3: cookout as potato, salo or raisins in it.

721
00:28:35,280 --> 00:28:36,840
Speaker 1: Okay, No, absolutely not right.

722
00:28:37,520 --> 00:28:40,600
Speaker 3: And I hand selected all the chefs. They're all African

723
00:28:40,600 --> 00:28:41,880
Speaker 3: American chefs from New York City.

724
00:28:42,040 --> 00:28:42,360
Speaker 1: Nice.

725
00:28:43,360 --> 00:28:46,400
Speaker 3: Everybody's bringing something different. They'll be beef patties and cocoa bread.

726
00:28:47,560 --> 00:28:51,600
Speaker 3: They'll be pressing from Lures bringing his famous fried shrimp.

727
00:28:52,120 --> 00:28:55,640
Speaker 3: I'm doing Liberian joeloff Field Trip is doing pineapple black

728
00:28:55,680 --> 00:29:00,800
Speaker 3: fried rice and salmon. And I think the greatest thing

729
00:29:00,880 --> 00:29:03,160
Speaker 3: is at the cookout. There's always great music right right,

730
00:29:03,280 --> 00:29:05,400
Speaker 3: And there's no way to celebrate fifty years of hip

731
00:29:05,440 --> 00:29:08,400
Speaker 3: hop without being out the cookout because the food.

732
00:29:08,160 --> 00:29:10,360
Speaker 2: Represents the music, and I think it'd be very nostalgic.

733
00:29:10,560 --> 00:29:13,200
Speaker 1: Oh, I cannot wait for this so and I don't

734
00:29:13,200 --> 00:29:15,479
Speaker 1: feel like the Wine and Food Festival has ever done

735
00:29:15,520 --> 00:29:16,320
Speaker 1: anything like this before.

736
00:29:16,480 --> 00:29:18,280
Speaker 2: No, never done anything like it before. I worked with

737
00:29:18,600 --> 00:29:19,800
Speaker 2: I've been working with Lee Schrager.

738
00:29:20,600 --> 00:29:22,480
Speaker 3: He's been inviting me to the festival for many years,

739
00:29:22,960 --> 00:29:25,840
Speaker 3: but over the last two years I reached out to

740
00:29:25,920 --> 00:29:27,200
Speaker 3: him and was like, listen, we got to get.

741
00:29:27,080 --> 00:29:28,040
Speaker 2: A little bit more diverse.

742
00:29:28,960 --> 00:29:31,960
Speaker 3: There's more black chefs cooking at the high level owning

743
00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:33,080
Speaker 3: restaurants than ever.

744
00:29:33,480 --> 00:29:35,280
Speaker 2: Why are we not focused on them? Right?

745
00:29:35,400 --> 00:29:37,600
Speaker 3: And we did a small cookout event in South Beach

746
00:29:37,840 --> 00:29:40,240
Speaker 3: Food and Wine, which I hope you come to. Oh

747
00:29:40,520 --> 00:29:44,160
Speaker 3: and I got you and it was great, and it

748
00:29:44,200 --> 00:29:46,880
Speaker 3: was great, sold out quickly, and Li said, do you

749
00:29:46,920 --> 00:29:48,520
Speaker 3: want to do a really big event in New York?

750
00:29:48,920 --> 00:29:51,280
Speaker 3: So I think that the festival started to see that

751
00:29:52,120 --> 00:29:52,840
Speaker 3: black people want to.

752
00:29:52,800 --> 00:29:55,000
Speaker 1: Be at these events, absolutely, And.

753
00:29:54,880 --> 00:29:58,200
Speaker 3: The number one person buying food and wine right now

754
00:29:58,200 --> 00:30:00,280
Speaker 3: in the space is women, but as black women man.

755
00:30:00,960 --> 00:30:04,600
Speaker 3: So it's really tapping into that and celebrating it. And

756
00:30:04,680 --> 00:30:07,200
Speaker 3: I hope that will, you know, change the course of

757
00:30:07,240 --> 00:30:10,720
Speaker 3: how people are viewing food, how they're viewing restaurants, who

758
00:30:10,720 --> 00:30:12,719
Speaker 3: they're putting at the helm, all that stuff.

759
00:30:12,880 --> 00:30:15,960
Speaker 1: Even if I think about like Tatiana's in New York

760
00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:17,920
Speaker 1: and what a big deal that was when that opening,

761
00:30:18,000 --> 00:30:19,520
Speaker 1: how hard it is to get a reservation.

762
00:30:19,720 --> 00:30:21,320
Speaker 3: I don't know what Kwame's doing over there. How he's

763
00:30:21,320 --> 00:30:23,560
Speaker 3: got the books block like it's crazy to get in there.

764
00:30:23,640 --> 00:30:25,320
Speaker 1: My friends be hitting me up like can you get

765
00:30:25,320 --> 00:30:29,239
Speaker 1: me into I'm like, look, I don't want to, but

766
00:30:29,520 --> 00:30:31,600
Speaker 1: I mean, but that just goes to show you, you know,

767
00:30:31,800 --> 00:30:34,080
Speaker 1: just to see like the success that he's had in

768
00:30:34,120 --> 00:30:38,800
Speaker 1: opening that restaurant and the demand is definitely there even

769
00:30:38,800 --> 00:30:41,960
Speaker 1: for me to see, you know, more Caribbean restaurants opening,

770
00:30:42,000 --> 00:30:42,800
Speaker 1: that's a big deal.

771
00:30:43,040 --> 00:30:45,240
Speaker 2: I think there's a lot of Caribbean restaurants opening all

772
00:30:45,280 --> 00:30:45,880
Speaker 2: through Brooklyn.

773
00:30:45,920 --> 00:30:49,360
Speaker 1: Now, yeah, Brooklyn is definitely like anytime I need some

774
00:30:49,360 --> 00:30:51,320
Speaker 1: Caribbean food, I feel like Brooklyn is about gotta go.

775
00:30:51,400 --> 00:30:53,280
Speaker 3: Fends a lot of places just all around the country.

776
00:30:53,280 --> 00:30:55,800
Speaker 3: Like when I think about my fellow chefs like Mashama

777
00:30:55,840 --> 00:31:00,400
Speaker 3: Bailey in Savannah, Georgia, and a Nina Compton and in

778
00:31:00,520 --> 00:31:03,080
Speaker 3: New Orleans, I think when you go back to the

779
00:31:03,120 --> 00:31:07,240
Speaker 3: Secoil with Alexander and Dick Parsons, dead was the birth

780
00:31:07,320 --> 00:31:10,280
Speaker 3: when you look ten years Les's ten years ago birthed

781
00:31:10,680 --> 00:31:15,880
Speaker 3: a new movement of food alongside Marcus Samuelson to really

782
00:31:16,160 --> 00:31:19,440
Speaker 3: to really pave this way for people to feel confident

783
00:31:19,480 --> 00:31:21,520
Speaker 3: in us to cook. It's only gonna get better and

784
00:31:21,560 --> 00:31:22,160
Speaker 3: better and better.

785
00:31:22,440 --> 00:31:24,360
Speaker 1: And those are the restaurants I really love to support,

786
00:31:24,480 --> 00:31:26,520
Speaker 1: Like even to see Marcus Samuelson. I did something I

787
00:31:26,600 --> 00:31:29,480
Speaker 1: have in mari his restaurant, you know here in the city.

788
00:31:29,600 --> 00:31:32,320
Speaker 1: He has an all woman's staff running down there.

789
00:31:32,320 --> 00:31:34,840
Speaker 2: Anjust sees this year. Yeah, I'm in the team.

790
00:31:34,880 --> 00:31:36,960
Speaker 1: Oh good, well, this is gonna be a good time.

791
00:31:37,560 --> 00:31:39,040
Speaker 1: I'm looking forward to it. And you know what I'm

792
00:31:39,040 --> 00:31:40,840
Speaker 1: gonna do. I'm taking a field trip to Harlem.

793
00:31:40,920 --> 00:31:42,360
Speaker 2: Oh. I can't wait to have because.

794
00:31:42,320 --> 00:31:44,320
Speaker 1: The food is here. It's already the type of thing

795
00:31:44,360 --> 00:31:45,920
Speaker 1: that I like, you know, it's the vibe that I like.

796
00:31:46,080 --> 00:31:48,080
Speaker 1: But I want to make sure I actually come. We

797
00:31:48,120 --> 00:31:49,840
Speaker 1: would love to have make that fail too, because I

798
00:31:49,840 --> 00:31:53,160
Speaker 1: feel like I don't go to Harlem enough in Brooklyn, right, Yeah,

799
00:31:53,160 --> 00:31:54,800
Speaker 1: I live in Brooklyn and I don't get to Brooklyn enough.

800
00:31:54,800 --> 00:31:55,520
Speaker 2: So it's all good, all.

801
00:31:55,440 --> 00:31:57,320
Speaker 1: Right, guy, So we're gonna trade. I'm gonna bring you

802
00:31:57,360 --> 00:31:59,760
Speaker 1: guys to some of my favorite places and then we're

803
00:31:59,760 --> 00:32:01,560
Speaker 1: gonna all take a field trip up to field trip.

804
00:32:01,600 --> 00:32:02,160
Speaker 2: That would be great.

805
00:32:02,240 --> 00:32:04,720
Speaker 1: Is that a deal works for me? All right? So everybody,

806
00:32:04,800 --> 00:32:07,000
Speaker 1: just make sure y'all come out how can people get

807
00:32:07,000 --> 00:32:08,760
Speaker 1: tickets to go to the New York City Wine and

808
00:32:08,800 --> 00:32:11,160
Speaker 1: Food Festival because they are invited to the cookout?

809
00:32:11,200 --> 00:32:13,600
Speaker 2: Right, everybody listening invited to the cookout.

810
00:32:13,640 --> 00:32:15,280
Speaker 1: I love when people say, is this person invited to

811
00:32:15,320 --> 00:32:15,800
Speaker 1: the cookout?

812
00:32:17,480 --> 00:32:18,880
Speaker 2: You can even invite that person?

813
00:32:19,800 --> 00:32:22,000
Speaker 1: Yeah, but it was not invited, even except for if

814
00:32:22,040 --> 00:32:24,280
Speaker 1: you make potato salary raisins in it, you're not invited.

815
00:32:24,320 --> 00:32:26,000
Speaker 2: You're definitely not invite. Nobody's eve gonna let you in

816
00:32:26,040 --> 00:32:26,480
Speaker 2: through the door.

817
00:32:26,560 --> 00:32:29,760
Speaker 1: But you can go to NYC w FF dot org

818
00:32:30,040 --> 00:32:31,440
Speaker 1: and we'll all be there. And just so you know,

819
00:32:31,480 --> 00:32:33,920
Speaker 1: it's going to be DJ Cassidy, Reverend run iced Tea,

820
00:32:34,600 --> 00:32:36,880
Speaker 1: DJ Make They're actually going to also have cocktails. That's

821
00:32:36,880 --> 00:32:39,440
Speaker 1: important too, yes, right, because with great food you need

822
00:32:39,440 --> 00:32:43,080
Speaker 1: some great drinks. We can't sleep on that CARDI yeah,

823
00:32:43,160 --> 00:32:44,560
Speaker 1: and Bacardi owns patron.

824
00:32:44,360 --> 00:32:46,880
Speaker 2: So you'll still be patron. Okay, they'll be I think.

825
00:32:47,720 --> 00:32:50,560
Speaker 1: All right, we're into it, and that's all taking place Sunday,

826
00:32:50,600 --> 00:32:53,000
Speaker 1: October fifteenth, so let's make sure we do that. You're

827
00:32:53,040 --> 00:32:56,080
Speaker 1: also a James Beard Foundation Award winner.

828
00:32:55,800 --> 00:32:56,760
Speaker 2: Too, Yes, I am.

829
00:32:56,840 --> 00:32:59,120
Speaker 3: I wanted James Beard Award for my first cookbook Call

830
00:32:59,160 --> 00:33:01,400
Speaker 3: Between Harlem and Heaven, and I have that book.

831
00:33:01,440 --> 00:33:01,760
Speaker 2: Thank you.

832
00:33:01,800 --> 00:33:05,680
Speaker 3: I've been nominated eleven times from and then you got it.

833
00:33:05,960 --> 00:33:09,920
Speaker 3: Yeah so and then you know so that's honest, the Oscars,

834
00:33:09,960 --> 00:33:11,520
Speaker 3: the Grammys of the food space.

835
00:33:13,560 --> 00:33:16,560
Speaker 2: You know, I just keep dreaming. That's that's it. I

836
00:33:16,600 --> 00:33:17,600
Speaker 2: think that's what keeps me going.

837
00:33:17,920 --> 00:33:19,480
Speaker 1: All right, Well, I love it, but we cannot wait

838
00:33:19,480 --> 00:33:21,000
Speaker 1: to see everything else that you have going on. But

839
00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:22,800
Speaker 1: you've got a lot on your plate already. But the

840
00:33:22,800 --> 00:33:25,240
Speaker 1: one thing is this book, The Simple Art of Rice,

841
00:33:25,280 --> 00:33:27,240
Speaker 1: is available now. If you love rice like I do.

842
00:33:27,320 --> 00:33:30,000
Speaker 1: I feel a little better after our conversation, because you know,

843
00:33:30,000 --> 00:33:31,640
Speaker 1: people always try to make it sound like you're not

844
00:33:31,680 --> 00:33:33,960
Speaker 1: supposed to be in We got to talk to those people.

845
00:33:34,120 --> 00:33:36,600
Speaker 1: But that black forbidden rice. That is my thing too.

846
00:33:36,600 --> 00:33:38,680
Speaker 1: But I'm going to actually try some of these, some

847
00:33:38,720 --> 00:33:40,960
Speaker 1: of these recipes. I'm excited about you you do, No,

848
00:33:41,080 --> 00:33:43,200
Speaker 1: I will, because I've cooked rice all the time at

849
00:33:43,200 --> 00:33:45,320
Speaker 1: home and I actually have a walk. I love my way.

850
00:33:45,320 --> 00:33:46,600
Speaker 2: But you love the rice cooker, right.

851
00:33:46,640 --> 00:33:48,160
Speaker 3: So in the back of the book, there's this things

852
00:33:48,200 --> 00:33:51,560
Speaker 3: called the rice Packets, where you can put your spices

853
00:33:51,600 --> 00:33:53,360
Speaker 3: from your cupboard of cabinet.

854
00:33:53,760 --> 00:33:54,560
Speaker 2: Mix it in like a.

855
00:33:54,520 --> 00:33:57,080
Speaker 3: Freezer bag, look so good, and then throw it in

856
00:33:57,160 --> 00:33:59,560
Speaker 3: your Throw it in your rice cooker and you'll get

857
00:33:59,600 --> 00:34:04,000
Speaker 3: beautiful fluffy gitar rice or yellow rice or Indian rice

858
00:34:04,560 --> 00:34:05,840
Speaker 3: just for the everyday working person.

859
00:34:06,040 --> 00:34:08,279
Speaker 1: You'll have no idea how many recipes are in this

860
00:34:08,320 --> 00:34:10,920
Speaker 1: book with some rice, So I'm excited for this. And

861
00:34:11,760 --> 00:34:14,160
Speaker 1: also make sure you guys check out Field Trip and

862
00:34:14,320 --> 00:34:16,600
Speaker 1: also make sure you watch when I'm on Kleo TV

863
00:34:16,719 --> 00:34:20,560
Speaker 1: with Hoovers. Yes, just eat with chef JJ. Thank you

864
00:34:20,600 --> 00:34:21,719
Speaker 1: so much, thanks for having

865
00:34:21,760 --> 00:34:24,920
Speaker 2: Me way up