Blake Hoerres-General Manager-Joyland by Sean Brock

00:00Hey everybody, today we're talking about my good friend, Ben Ellsworth and GigPro. After years of spending too much time and money on useless staffing software, Ben Ellsworth knew something had to change. So out of necessity, GigPro was born. GigPro is the on-demand marketplace for hospitality staffing. They're changing the way people work and hire. You download the GigPro app today, you can get the help you need. GigPro has an exclusive promo offer for Nashville Restaurant Radio listeners. Sign up at go.gigpro.com forward slash N-R-R-B-I-Z. And make sure that you use that code. I want them to know that you came from Nashville Restaurant Radio. That again is go.gigpro.com forward slash N-R-R-B-I-Z. That code will get you your first gig for free, up to $200. Go check them out right now. You have heard me talk about SuperSource for the last two years.

01:01And in that time, Jason Ellis, I feel like he's taken over the city. It is hard for me to get a guest in here that doesn't use SuperSource. And I'm telling you, everybody loves him. When you mentioned Jason, they're like, oh my gosh, that guy's legitimate. Ask yourself this question. Do you feel that way about the person that provides you with your dish machine and chemicals? Because he's the real deal. And guess what? He's not gonna make you sign a five-year contract. He's never gonna say, well, you signed a contract, it's on you. He goes week to week. You never sign a contract. So he earns your business every single week. I loved it when we had Cam and Nickian from the Red Perch and they said, he's like one of our employees when he's in the building. He's that good. You should call him today. If you don't feel that way about your dish machine and chemical person, 770-337-1143 is how you get ahold of Jason. Or go to NashvilleRestaurantRadio.com, click the Sponsors tab. There's a special link on there that will give you special discounts for new customers.

02:03Call him now. Welcome to Nashville Restaurant Radio, the tastiest hour of talk in Music City. Now here's your host, Brandon Styll. Hello Music City and welcome to Nashville Restaurant Radio. My name is Brandon Styll and I am your host. Super pumped to be coming at you on a Monday. Yeah, spring break week, baby, let's go. This is typically a week that is a little bit slower for some of the restaurants on the outskirts of town. Downtown may be busy because three people coming into town for spring break.

03:05But this is a chance to grab a week that's a little slower and knock some projects out. We are all new today and we have Blake Harris, who is the general manager over at Joyland. I am joined on this interview with my co-host Jen Ichikawa, who is not gonna be here on the intro, but she is amazing and this episode was so much fun. You know, I say that on every episode because it is true. We have too much damn fun right here in this studio. And you know what, it was an interesting week. My birthday week this past week, birthday was on Tuesday. And I'm 43, so that's not, I'm not like I throw big birthday parties. We did have dinner at the Audrey. At Audrey, I think is what it's called, Sean Brock's new place and it was amazing. Man, the food was fantastic. They had a really amazing selection of zero proof beverages. And so after the meal, we met the general manager and he took us upstairs where June is gonna be made.

04:10And they have in research and development area, they have a podcast studio, they've got a library. But one of my favorite things that they had, and we're gonna talk about this on a show coming up, is that they have a wellness room for like employees or anybody that needs just like to take a few minutes and chill, it's got like shag carpet, there's a massage table in there, there's like yoga mats. You can like listen to a meditation, you can do it. If you need to like take five minutes, it's a mental health room. And I think that is so forward thinking and so intentional and I'm so in love with that idea. And I would love to see that at more places, people intentionally caring for their staff. I was blown away. Some of the things that they're doing, they have a machine that can extract alcohol from spirits. So like we had a couple of the zero proof and I had a non-alcoholic beer, but the zero proof drinks is like they extract alcohol from rum and then you keep the essence of the rum, they make a cocktail out of it. Unbelievable how my wife tastes. It tastes like this has alcoholic, no, there's none.

05:14You keep the essence of it, which I imagine for people in recovery it could be dangerous, but also I thought it was just super, super cool. I mean, you don't have to drink alcohol, it's really neat. I absolutely loved it. We had snow this week, which was absolutely insane. Just a massive storm Friday night that came in and out of the blue, I thought was just, I'm one of those people that love snow. So if you're not one of the people that loves snow, I'm sorry that you hated that and you're ready for spring to get on. I am too. Looks like we're gonna be in the 60s and 70s all week long. Couple, I think Tuesday's supposed to be cloudy, but Monday is gonna be a gorgeous day. Tuesday's cloudy, Wednesday and Thursday, I think we're expecting rain towards the end of the week. I'm not a meteorologist, but I wanna give you your update on weather for the week. So spring I think is on the way. Super excited to have spring on the way. And I just, I got some news today that I wanna share with you. Out of the world of Al Abrehe and Edgar Victoria, he has found a new home and you're gonna be able to get Al Abrehe at the Honey Tree Metery whenever you want.

06:25He's got a new residency at the Honey Tree Metery and I couldn't be more excited for him. Tacos, tacos, tacos. And he has a new page set up and it is gonna be at CDMX Tacos for all the taco content. Super excited for my friend Edgar Victoria and Al Abrehe at the Honey Tree Metery. So you can get to go see him very soon. Go follow Al Abrehe Nash on Instagram and his new taco page. And the Honey Tree Metery, right? Let's follow all of them and keep up to date with what our friends are doing. So today's interview with Blake Harris is gonna be, man, I think that it was so fun because at the end he said the thing that was like the most amazing. He said, I thought we were gonna talk about, he goes, I'm sorry, we talked about me the whole time. I thought we were gonna talk about Joy Land. And I was like, no, man, this show is about the people. Show is about the people in the industry. We did exactly our job today. His story was unique. He's an amazing guy and I was excited to share it.

07:27Some cool revelations happening today. Let's jump in. It's Monday. Have a wonderful week out there. Go kick some ass. You have the rest of the week to accomplish everything. Monday is my favorite day. Go get it. Have a great one. (*upbeat rock music*) Super excited today to welcome in Blake Harris, who is the general manager at Joy Land. What's going on, brother? How much man, how are you doing today? I'm good, except for the fact that we're inside and we finally have like a 75 degree day and I'm so ready for it. The past few days have been actually really nice, right? I didn't get out much yesterday, so it was kind of one of those things. I heard it's going to go back to winter soon though, for like a short bit. We're in what's known as Tennessee has, this is fall spring. And so we'll go back to it. Well, third winter will probably start next week and then we'll have real spring, late March.

08:31Have you lived in Nashville a long time? No, I've been here since September. And like, I mean, I grew up in the North and spent most of my life there. We were just talking a little bit. I did spend the past like five years between Savannah, Georgia and Charleston, South Carolina. So like getting some cold this winter and getting that like change in the seat, like actual change in the seasons. Charleston, Savannah, you get the bloom, which is great. Same as here, you get the pollen season. But like having that actual change in the colors and just being able to experience that again was something really nice and really special this past season. I know it's my favorite. I grew up in Florida. So like to me, this is all season. So I'm like, oh, we get seasons here. I love that because so many people tend to complain. You know, there's just, oh, it's this, it's that, it's this. But I think that perspective is one of the most special things because when you're somewhere that doesn't have those and you come here and you're like, the leaves are so pretty. Like, I like it when it snows. Like it's cool when it snows. Or I like it, it's not just an annoyance.

09:32Or God, this weather sucks, I can't wait for summer. Like really appreciating each season is something I do. I love each season. I think it's amazing. Well, Savannah and Charleston too, like Florida, like you kind of just have hot and less hot. Like you don't have- Absolutely. Yeah, you don't have like the real cold. And so here, I love clothing. And so I'm like, oh, I love that I get to cycle through clothing. Like I get to love this sweater for three weeks straight. And then we get to move on and yeah. What about you? Do you, do you, clothing, is that a big thing for you? No. I get that I'm, I asked the Bravo question. I appreciate certain aspects of it. And I'm, I do have, you know, my fair share of clothing that's not like everyday type stuff, but for everyday stuff, it's like definitely function over form. Thank you. Thank you. I'm a functional clothing wearer too. And some people will just say I'm old. He also though, changes his shoelaces to match each outfit. So like, let's call it speed of speed. You also appreciate- There's, like I said, there's those finer points, right?

10:34I like to be memorable. I think that there's those little things that match like my watch with my shoelace. Is that bad? Yes. I think it's attention to detail. It is. Thank you. See, I knew I liked this guy. Anytime he wears a tie though, I'm like, you look like a politician every single time of night. So Blake, you've been here since September. What is your, so far, what's your impression of Nashville? So, I mean, I've been coming up to visit for three or four years now, just like I had known a handful of people in town and it was kind of a place that in the back of my head was like, I'd like to get there at some point. And I came up for a visit last July and had some conversations with some of the other people in the group and we made things work out and it was time. So you got to visit before the pandemic. So you got to see Nashville like really, really alive. Absolutely. That's cool. I feel bad for people that moved here during and they don't know pre-pandemic, you know? Yeah. Although there's anticipation of what it could be like if you have a great time during the pandemic in the town.

11:36Yeah. Yeah, just to like have that kind of like. That's your baseline. If this is what it's like now. Only gonna get better. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. I could totally see that. So you're from Wisconsin? Is that your originally from Wisconsin? I'm looking right now, you have lots of tattoos. I do. How many tattoo, do you know how many tattoos you have? I don't. That's fantastic to me. I don't know, I don't have one tattoo and one of my favorite questions to ask people is like about their tattoos. Do they all have a meaning? All no. I mean, like some of them, you know, was kind of like obviously a place and a time kind of scenario where it was like, that's something that I'm really into right now or whatever it may have been. But like, for the most part, you know, I've bounced around to a lot of places in my life. I've moved throughout most of the country at this point. And like, it's kind of one of those things. I had an older gentleman that I was talking with at one point and he was like, I don't really understand the draw of it. And I was like, you know, in this particular situation, I looked around the room and I was like, well, see, you've got a bunch of artwork up on your walls, right?

12:37Like, this is just the artwork that I don't have to pack up and move when I decide to move. Yeah. I love it. I think it's fantastic. But I think, when did you get your first tattoo? How old were you? The day I turned 18, I got my first outline done. What is it? It's like an eagle and some pistons that are on my chest. Okay, an eagle and some pistons on your chest. At that point in time, you know. It's a pretty full strength first tattoo. Yeah. I mean, that's, don't jump it in the deep end. It was one, you know, like I got into at a relatively young, like had a very strong interest in like classic cars and motorcycles and stuff like that. So I kind of got in with a few people that were a little on the older side for my age range at that point in time. And like, yeah, it was something that was planned and I was ready to do it, but I was obviously waiting until it was legal. The day, yes. I was grounded on my 16th birthday because I drove the car before my 16th birthday. You had the discipline to wait. I love that. Are you a Brewers fan? Being, you know, born and raised in Wisconsin, like Brewers are kind of one of those ones that I've always had the soft spot for them.

13:40You know, I'm guessing probably the next one will be asking about the Packers. Like football was never really my thing. Well, you have a Brewers tattoo. Yes, that one stands out. You have a Brewers tattoo. What sport is that? That's the only one that's asking. What's that? What sport? A field hockey. Oh. It's a baseball team. Oh. The Milwaukee Brewers. Yeah, they're a professional baseball team. No, she's not a sports person thing. I got the field of dreams reference. No, I wasn't as Packers, but I guess. Yeah, and that's one like, I grew up playing hockey. So football was always kind of like a conflict of interest, I guess. Like being from Wisconsin, it's one of those things I definitely feel like I have to at least know how the Packers are doing or what's going on in the world with the Packers. But like- I don't think you do. No, it's because you're from- I guess it depends on the- Who I'm talking to. If it's sports related, I- Now on your right hand, is that a Sabre 2 Tiger? Yeah, it is. Is that a Nashville Predator thing? It's not, but- Oh man. Could be, you could change it. Being that I'm here, I could kind of just pass it off, huh?

14:41Yeah, well I got the Brewers and I got the Predators, it's a thing. So Wisconsin, when did you start cooking? Like what was your, was it the kitchen that you started in? I did start in the kitchen. I started, there was, see I was 21, maybe just 22 at the time and was, you know, at that age, you're in Wisconsin specifically, you're spending a lot of time at the bar and- But you're doing bikes and what were you like, what was your profession? You said you got 18, you were into like bikes and motorcycles and- Yeah, and I- In the garage? I, you know, kind of did my fair share of retail stuff just through high school and college, just to kind of have, you know, have some fun money and that kind of stuff. At the time, I was working at this industrial paint shop, which was kind of an interesting spin on things, but it was, you know, it's like at that point, like it went from just having the fun money to like, oh, I've got to make enough money to live. You know, so it was like, all right, cool. So this is something that I understand, you know, painting from- Good at it.

15:44Having that kind of like automotive background was helpful, like I get it, you know, I can run a spray gun and stuff like that. Sure. So it was like, all right- I have no idea how to do that. This makes sense, but you know, being in my early twenties and having a shift that starts at seven, six, sometimes even as early as like 4 a.m. in the summertime so you can beat the heat, like- Yeah. They didn't really work out so well together. So as I was kind of hanging out, I got to talk with a couple of guys in the kitchen and it was like, hey, I'm looking for a job. And they had just had somebody either not show up or quit that day and they were like, hey, we're looking for somebody to work. So it did, it just kind of started and that's- Since that day, have you done anything else? I've done, like very early on when I started working in kitchens, I was still like working at a bicycle repair shop in town and like doing a couple of other jobs on the side, but there was a small point when I was living in Boston, well, small by like three years, four years that I was living in Boston that I worked as a bike messenger.

16:47Cool. Because that was something that I also did when I was a lot younger and it just kind of, it was, there was a situation at the time, just needed a little break, was a little burnt out on the industry, was just kind of like, I'm gonna catch my breath a little bit and went back to doing that for a while. And aside from that, it was pretty much the entire time, just kitchens. Do you feel like you're always working? Yes. You seem like the kind of guy that like just hearing so far like the just, I'm always doing something. I'm never just not doing anything. If I'm not doing this, I'm doing that. You took a job as a bike messenger so that you could calm down. I think a job, it's like, I'm drinking beer so I can sober up. You know what I mean? Like, it's like that type of thing. Like we're just always, always working. Is that work ethic instilled in, is that just something you got from growing up? And your parents? That's, yeah, I feel like, you know, just parents were obviously like the major influence on that one, but just kind of like the, I feel like even the crowds that I got into, like the friends that I surrounded myself with, like everybody was just like super driven, super motivated. And like, it just, that was how we operated.

17:49Like even now when I'm, you know, as I'm trying to kind of transition into a more healthy mental space and everything like that, like time off is still kind of that weird gray area where it's like. Do you feel guilty when you have time off? Guilty, no. Like I do feel like I've gotten a little bit past that, but like it is the, I think the biggest thing that I've been having issues with is like trying to find outlets for my energy when there's not a specific task in front of me, like work. What do you do? Yeah. Which like I've picked up some hobbies and things like that and it's been, you know, that's, you know, I have been doing that. And especially now that like, you know, I live in Hermitage, so like having a lot of green space around me has definitely been nice. And like I get out with the dog and everything, there's a couple of state parks that are out just off the highway near me. So like getting out into the woods, that's something that I've always been into as well. Like.

18:50Man, I have a mountain heart right there. There's definitely, I have outlets these days. So it's, that's, that particular hurdle has done, like been surpassed, I feel like, but. Can we talk about what you do when you didn't have an outlet? Like you said that you're moving into a new space. Where were you? Well, historically, my time outside of work would have been spent with coworkers or other people in the industry at the bar. Okay. So I actually. It's a standard thing. It really is, especially in this industry, but I got sober a little over two and a half years ago. Congratulations. I didn't know that. Thank you. Cheers, man. Brandon is also sober and my husband is sober. So we're big. I'm a little, I'm like two years and a couple of months. Two years and four months, I think. Yeah, I'm like, I can't believe we didn't know that. Yeah, we, it's like, like I said, he's sober and then my husband just got sober last year. So it's. Very cool. Very present.

19:50Yeah, it really is. And like that's, that was also actually one of the big draws to Nashville is just from knowing a handful of people in the recovery community. Like Nashville's a pretty great recovery city. People are really supportive of it and they're not judgmental of it, which is big. That's actually, that kind of touches on like one of the main things that drew me to Nashville is like not only does everybody kind of have some sort of passion or some sort of thing, whether it's, you know, a side hustle or whether it's just a hobby or whatever it is. I used to drive Uber. Yeah. Like there's some, there's things that people are really really into and it seems like there's a ton of support in the community, regardless of what community you're in, in this and you can like feel it when you're here. And that's, that was one of the big things that initially was like, something's going to be right. Well, it's different too, because I think you, like if you manifest something, you look for something, you can usually find it, right? So I mean, Nashville, people come to Nashville. My favorite things was driving people in Uber. So that's just, I have to be doing something. And if I'm not sitting somewhere drinking or like, I gotta be moving, I gotta be going.

20:53I can't just sit and do nothing. And so I like to drive Uber Saturday and Sunday mornings, but you would pick people up on a Saturday morning coming to Nashville and they're like, woo, man, Nashville. We're going to get fucked up. It's going to be great. And they're just like pumped. Then you drive people Sunday or Sunday afternoon. They're like, just get me the hell out of here. Like this city has ruined me. And it's like, oh yeah, man, Nashville can chew you up and spit you out if you're looking for that. Absolutely. But if you're not and you choose who you hang out with, it's very supportive, I think. Yeah, there definitely is kind of, you very much get, I don't want to say both speeds I don't want to simplify it into just being those two categories, but like you get that range. Whereas, kind of like what we were just talking about, like when I was a messenger in Boston, the company that I was working for, we also did business in New York. So I'd go there a few days every month and do some work up there and, or yeah, well, I guess where we are, it's up there, but New York is a city that regardless of kind of where you get in, it's going to chew you up and spit you out.

22:03Oh yeah. Every time I see like New York on TV, I just go, God, that city is just insane. I love it. No, it is, it's. I love it, that's where I almost moved instead of here. I love it so much, but. Great place to visit. Yes. It's like Southern California. I'm originally from Southern California. Oh, on this episode, you're originally from Southern California. Originally, I was born in Southern California from Nashville. Stop. Anyhow, people's like, why would you leave? Like Orange County, like that's such a beautiful place. And I'm like, no, no, no. It's a great place when you go there for the four days that you're there, the week that you're there and you go to the beach every day and you go to Disneyland and you go to Knott's Berry Farm or you go to Big Bear and you go snowboarding and surfing in the same day, right? It's a whole thing. Like when you live there, you got to deal with all the bullshit. Plane today on traffic and all that stuff. Nashville's not like that though. Probably, I mean, mainly because you can't plan anything around the traffic because it's just there. It happens all the time now.

23:06People are getting swallowed up by potholes. Oh my gosh, my drive here on Hillsboro, wild. Yes. You said you're in Hermitage? Yeah. It's a cool part of town. It's nice. Like it's kind of getting to an age in my life where I don't need to be right in the middle of everything and you know, but it's, you know, I've got all of the conveniences that I need. You know, it's, there's enough things going on that are right there that I can access them if I need to. But at the same time, I'm close enough to, I said close enough to that green space where it's not like a special trip. Right. Have you ever been at like Percy Warner or Edwin Warner Parks? The parks I have not been to, I primarily have been going a little bit further east out to like the, I think it's Long Hunter and there's another one out closer to Lebanon. Those are the two that I usually go to, Cedars to Lebanon? Yes. But I know there is like, a lot of times I'll hit the, like the Donaldson end of the Greenway and kind of hit the trail out there just cause that one's, you know, a nice paved walking path.

24:16And I think there's a dog park right there, even though I don't get to that very often. What kind of dog do you have? I've got an American Bully. American Bully. Yep. So she's... Is that a pit bull or is that? They're, they are separate. Like they're aesthetically very much just like a large pit bull. Okay. They are classified into a number of different sizes, but they're, they've had like the prey drive and the fight aggression, essentially they've, they're bred to be companion animals as opposed to like hunter, you know, a hunt, you know, a working animal. So she's a 75 pound snuggle bug that obviously does look like a pit bull, but she's just a sweetheart. Bill Burr does the best bit. It's a, I don't know which album it's on, but the episode is called, the segment is called Hell Hound. He's on, he's out doing shows and his girlfriend adopts a pit bull. And he talks about coming in, this pit bull has now established himself in the house. I've been gone for a week and I'm walking in like, hey man, it's a great bit where he ends up talking about how much he absolutely loves the dog.

25:19Because one of the greatest things in the world, he goes walking down the street on the sidewalk with a pit bull, is people just get out of your way. It's amazing, there's a general fear of this dog. Do you get, is that like a true statement? Or do you hate that? I mean, it's, I guess whether or not I like it doesn't really make a difference, but it is, I feel like it's less prevalent where I'm at currently, because I am not, you know. There's not like a sidewalk, you're walking down green spaces. But like when I was in Charleston or when I was in Savannah, Savannah was a little bit different because it was small enough that you kind of know everybody. But like definitely in Charleston, it was just like, you would notice people crossing at the end of the block and that kind of stuff. And it's just like, guys, it's all good. Yeah, no, I'm the one who runs up to you. I'm like, I want to pet the dog. So get back to your culinary career because that's why we're here, right? This is Nashville Restaurant Radio. And we do a show every month where I have somebody who's in the industry come on and tell their story.

26:23To talk about sobriety. So it's funny. Oh, that's super cool. We just had Ben Ellsworth, who's the CEO of GigPro. Sure. And he was just on, he's five and a half years. So we're told his entire story, all the stuff. I did it and then we had Corey Coleman. So that's the thing that we do on this show. That's super cool. You didn't know that. I don't want to get super personal. It's not what we had you on here for today, but what a cool coincidence that it is a thing. So when did you, so you started when you were 21, 22 in Milwaukee or in? That was in Milwaukee. Wisconsin, it was in Milwaukee. And then you moved to Savannah, Charleston. And you get involved in the scene there, like walk me through your progression. Yeah, so I did, like grew up in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, which is about 45 minutes, 50 minutes north of Milwaukee. Moved to Milwaukee for round one of college. And it's that during that time that I got into restaurants and then went from the sports bar, full service kitchen that I started in, we had a window and a register right there in the kitchen kind of scenario to a little bit more elevated kind of finer dining, but like still kind of a neighborhood spot.

27:38And then at that point, it became apparent to me, I was like, you know, this is gonna be something that sticks around for a while. And I decided that I was gonna go to, I applied both to Johnson and Wales and to CIA for culinary school. Did you come up with that on your own? Did you have like a mentor, somebody that worked in that place? It was like, hey man, you got skills, you should do this for a while. Little bit of both, like the first chef that I worked for, like the first chef that I worked for, she was definitely very kind of formative in a lot of that, seeing where I could go with things in the industry. And then, yeah, my decision for school was more so to not only see kind of some other places, but also to like increase my marketability, right? Sure, yeah. So while I ended up actually going to Johnson and Wales in Providence, Rhode Island. While I was there, I worked at a handful of restaurants in town that were some of the more popular spots. And definitely that was like my biggest period of growth kind of early on in my career.

28:40So rolled with that, and then went back to Milwaukee for a little while, ended up in Indiana for a short period, running up, like helping a project there with a guy who's at the time is a good friend of mine, now is, you know, we're obviously much more distant, but still in contact. Yeah. Moved to Chicago for a little while shortly after that, and then back up to Boston. And when it was like, when I took my little hiatus and was doing the messenger work, I had reached out to a friend that I had actually hired when I was living in Providence, who I knew had worked at Husk in Nashville, here in Nashville. And was like, hey man, I think it's time for me to get back into kitchens and get out of Boston, you know, what's good. He's like, oh, we're actually about to open a Husk in Savannah. And I was like, let's make it happen. Yeah. So I went down and I worked, I stayed for a week with him and kind of checked the place out and things fit well and everything like that. So a month later, I packed up and moved.

29:42And that's how I got in with the group, with, you know, Sean and the culinary, the kind of the family that I'm with now, essentially. The team, the family. So I got two questions from that story. One is, what'd you learn in culinary school? Would you recommend culinary school to somebody? If I'm a 22, 23, whatever, however person I am, I identify that like working in kitchens. Was it beneficial for you? Did you learn, what did you learn? What's the best part about school? So it's a tough one to say one way or the other because it's like, I don't want to knock on culinary school and I don't want to push like, you know, you don't need a degree. Like some of the best chefs I know don't have degrees, right? Yeah. But no, like you said, it does not hurt. I think that I had the advantage of going in at 25, 26, like knowing what I wanted to do, having some experience in the industry. So I feel like having that on my side, I definitely was able to get more out of my schooling, you know, focus on areas that I knew I was, you know, I wanted to learn more about, but didn't necessarily have the access to it at the restaurant that I was working at at the time or whatever it is.

30:58I also didn't go into it with the idea of like, I'm going to go to school and then I'm going to graduate and then I'm going to be a chef, like right out the gates. Walk into the country club and be like, hey. You know, I do feel like that's, like kind of one of the big downsides of this. I mean, school across the board these days is like, everybody has this mentality of like, I'm going to go to school and then I'm going to get my dream job. It's like, well, that's kind of not how this works. Still going to have to work for us. Yeah. But I think you learn connections and you, there's a lot of- And that was one of the biggest things. It's like the chefs in the program and like just some of the handful of students that I did surround myself with that have gone on to do great things and be, you know, work at great restaurants. Like those, like you said, those connections were definitely the biggest thing that I got out of going to school. The education was great. Don't get me wrong. Like it was very much worth it. The mother sauces, you know, knife skills, what the different, what a julienne is, what a brunoise, you learn all these little things that are good to know, but if you had a really good teacher in a restaurant, they could potentially teach you that.

32:02Absolutely. Yeah. But yeah, the connections from that and, you know, having kind of that, you know, support system to fall back on, like that's a lot of part, like a lot of why I kind of bounced around as much as I have, because I had the opportunity to. The next, the bouncing around a lot, was that because you wanted to have different experiences? I mean, did people find you and say, hey, come move here. I want you for this job. Or were you kind of like, because for me, all my moving was like, hey, I'm going to get fired any day now. I have pushed every, I'm at the limit here. I'm going to go do something different and start over. So there was very much that, like, you know, obviously, as we kind of touched on recovery earlier, like, you know, there's only so many bridges you can burn before it's time to get the hell out of town, right? Yeah, I mean, you were going through your story. You're like, then I was in Chicago, then I was in Boston, then I was in here, then there. I was like, that's a lot of moving around. Yeah, I mean, it's.

33:03It's like state to state moving around. Like, I'm going to get the fuck out of here. It's not like I'm in Brentwood and I'm moving to Cool Springs. No, and there was, yeah, there was a few little, like, kind of bounce, a couple other spots in there too. But like, yes, there was that point where I was like, you know, am I doing this because I'm chasing something or am I doing this because I'm running from something? There you go. That would have been my question. Did you feel like you're chasing for running? There was definitely points of both, but at the same time, like, it was a lot of like, I knew kind of, you know, just from having knowledge of the industry and doing my own research or, you know, whatever, like following people and getting interested in somebody's style or somebody's kind of general concept or like their, I guess, overarching ethos of like how they handle their food or manage their team or whatever it may be. It's like, this is a person that I feel like has the skill set and the knowledge base that I want to be able to glean something from. So it was kind of that, it was that little bit of a, you know, I see this in that person and I want to be able to see that in myself.

34:06So I'm gonna try, I'm gonna try and get some of that. When did you transition to Ferna House? There's not really a very distinct line there. A lot of my history, like a lot of my culinary experience was in more open kitchens and also in establishments where like, you know, the farm spot that I was helping run in Indiana, like we were three people. So like, not only was I, not only was, exactly. So like, you know, there's a lot of that and like just having that kind of general, you know, especially having like a retail background, like having that kind of comfortable, like being comfortable with like interacting with people. Like there was always kind of that in my skill set. So coming to Joyland is really my kind of first official kind of non-kitchen management position. But at the same time, like, it's still very hybrid.

35:08I'm still, you know, in the kitchen more often than not. I have a follow-up. Go for it. When you started at Husk in Savannah, that's, you've been with that group since then, right? I have not. Oh, so you left and went away and then came back? Yes. Okay, I was gonna ask what the culture was like. Like when you walk in the door there, you've kind of been to a bunch of different places. Hey, I'm gonna move to Savannah. Walk in there and meeting those people. Are there core values you live by? Is there a feeling when you walk in the door, like, oh no, this is the way it is? And how do they articulate that? So, at that point in time, like I guess there were kind of, there was definitely that like kind of good feeling of there is the core values that I also share. So like there was that kind of mentality going in. But one of the main things is like, once you get into restaurants at that level, like there's like- No margin for error?

36:11It's not so much that it's not even a margin for error. It's that the people that are there are there because that's where they wanna be. It's not like they're just coming to work a job. The restaurant people. Exactly. And they're- They're okay telling their parents this is what we do. Yeah. And I'm not, this isn't my real job. I'm not looking for something else while I do this. This is it. And it was just like being surrounded by, you know, like that drive and that motivation. Like that was, I've had that through most of my career because I have kind of, like we talked about, like I just, I have kind of like chased those places and kind of went to the places that were appealing to me, which obviously aren't just appealing to me. They're gonna be appealing to others, right? Sure. But when you end up at a place, especially a place like Husk or, you know, any of the other kind of higher name, higher caliber places that I've been at, like when you have that draw of like people that wanna be there specifically to be at that place, then that's when you get into that, kind of those like happy feelings of like, all right, we're here for a common goal.

37:16Like, we're here to do this together. Like, let's make this work. Does it get competitive? I just mentioned we're all there for the same thing, but like, I'm a badass and I know I'm a badass. You are too, but you're, needs to be like this and this needs to be like that and. I feel like the competitiveness was a little more prevalent earlier in my career. Okay. More so, I'm trying to think how to put this, like mostly because maybe this is just my take on it, but like, I'd have a very healthy respect for like the hierarchy in a kitchen or like hierarchy in general, right? So like, you know, always having that respect for the person above you or whether it, even the people below you, just like knowing how to handle them on a daily basis or whatever it may be, but just kind of always, yeah, just kind of like that general aura of respect or like that general vibe of respect, like always having that be very prevalent, like there is probably still very much, it exists.

38:25I just kind of lately have been feeling it a little bit less cause it's not so much that, you know, I've been competitive. Let's see. The competitiveness like, yeah, it's, you know, I can. I think I know what you're saying. My question, my follow up to that is at Joyland, right? So while it's a Sean Brock restaurant, and while it's, I mean, there's a ton of respect there for that in itself, is it considered fast food? We are gonna take a quick break to hear a word from our sponsors. Are you a professional looking for a job here in Nashville? Maybe you're just looking for a gig. You need maybe a better work-life balance. Change the way you work. GIGPRO can provide the opportunity for higher pay, a flexible schedule, and hopefully connect you with the right fit for a long-term employment. Sign up now at go.gigpro.com forward slash pro.

39:28Once you sign up and complete your profile, you can earn $5 for each person you refer to the app. Go do it now. What Chefs Want has been serving the Nashville restaurant community for over 15 years. During that time, they've worked tirelessly to be, well, What Chefs Want. Seven-day deliveries, no fuel charges, 24-7 customer care, unparalleled availability, and they'll split almost everything they sell. If you're the kind of person that wants to see what's new when it comes in stock, you should follow them on their socials, at whatchefswant, and sign up to be a customer at whatchefswant.com. One of God's great gifts to this world was fresh baked bread. That's why Sharpies Bakery delivers six days a week to your restaurant, as they've been doing for 36 years. Aaron Mosso's family has been running Sharpies Bakery, locally owned and operated right here in Nashville, Tennessee, like I said, for 36 years.

40:32Go check him out at sharpies.com, that's C-H-A-R-P-I-E-R-S.com, or Sharpies Bakery on Instagram and Facebook. Give Aaron Mosso a call at 615-319-6453 to set up an appointment to talk about what fresh bread you'd like delivered to your restaurant today. My question, my follow-up to that is, at Joyland, right, so while it's a Sean Brock restaurant, and while it's, I mean, there's a ton of respect there for that in itself, it's, is it considered fast food? No, I mean, like, I mean, I don't, because it's a high level, I mean, the food is fantastic, and I mean, it's like the best in the world, but I mean, being the general manager there, like, are you getting different people that work there? Is it all people that wanna be in the restaurants? Because I know for a while when Husk, or when Joyland opened, they brought everyone from the Audrey, who was just there when we were right in the middle of a pandemic, and you had all these amazing chefs from everywhere who were coming in for the Audrey that are working at Joyland, like, you're getting some of the best chefs in the world cooking your food there.

41:42Is everybody that works there now there? Because I mean, managing that, being a general manager in that situation, with the way that the pool of people is right now to work, everybody's trying to find good people, we're all out there looking every day for good people. Are you, we've had this conversation, does Sean Brock have a problem hiring people? Because the name, people just wanna go there and work. So, I would say- A lot of questions there, sorry. Yeah, the, my staff at the moment is definitely a very diverse spread. There are, we've got a couple of kids in culinary school, we've got some people that it's just kinda like their one or two day a week job to fill their free time. There's, it's really all across the board, like some people that have never worked in restaurants before and figure it's a cool thing, because at the end of the day, yes, I mean, it is, for all intents and purposes, it's a fast food spot. We sling burgers- I don't wanna say that, I mean- Sling burgers and fried chicken and make milkshakes, but it's still, the ingredients we're sourcing are very high quality and everything like that, and there's a higher attention to detail than I think would typically be in your McDonald's or your Burger King or anything like that, but- Of course.

42:55And I think, yes, we do get that more diverse spread because I think obviously the barrier to entry is gonna be much lower, right? Which that was one of the draws for me to come do that is because at this point in my career, it was, it's like, do I wanna keep killing myself for the 1% every night that may or may not actually appreciate what goes into the meal that gets set down in front of them, or do I wanna, I've said it before a couple of times, but this is, I'm looking at this as kind of a way for me to be able to give back, so if it is those kids that do wanna find themselves in the restaurant industry and do wanna progress, I've done that, right? So if they wanna be able to learn from me or if I wanna push them to help grow within the company, that's the other cool thing, having those other outlets of Audrey and the Continental. You know, if they wanna come through Joyland for six months or a year, and then they kinda have ideas of getting into one of the other restaurants, that's something that we encourage in the group is, the ceiling is really only as high as the person that sets it.

44:08You can go wherever you want if you want it. I love fast casual. I think fast casual, which is how I would describe. I think it is. I did hear actually somebody, this is through the previous general manager, I did hear her mention that she was told one time somebody referred to it as destination fast food. Oh, sure, like in and out, kinda, right? And I was like, I get that, and I like it. My husband and I own a fast casual restaurant. We love fast casual, but I think, you know, in Nashville, I've been here almost about nine years, and I feel like industry-wide for a while, sit-down fancier, like, you know, white tablecloth places were kind of slowly going away. Like people weren't, there weren't that many of them opening in the city. People were kind of tired of them. And I think the pandemic changed that a little bit because then we were all isolated, and then we wanted to be, we all cooked for ourselves all the time, right? We had to like wash our groceries, remember, in season one. And anyway, and so then it came back, the world came back, and so now there is, I think that craving for like, let's be indulgent, like the roaring 20s in a way, right?

45:17Like, let's go to these fun places and these fancy places. And I think that allowed fast casual to stay sustainable through the pandemic, which was great because they were hit in a way that white tablecloth restaurants were not, right? Like white tablecloth, people weren't spending the money at white tablecloths. Whereas, like I can speak for our restaurant, they would still order that to go because that would have always been to go. Yeah, and I mean, for, I didn't come on until afterwards, but like, you know, the first, I think, year or so, Joyland was curbside or carry on only. Yeah, yeah, exactly. And it's easier to maintain that. Pulled up and they came out, sat on my hood and said, thank you. Same, I was actually, I was in Charleston at the time, but I was driving home to visit my folks January of last, what's that last? January of last year. And I stopped to see a buddy in Columbia. And I was like, you know what, I'm close enough. I'm gonna go a little bit out of the way. I'm close enough to you, gosh. No, I'm saying, he was. Oh, I guess that, yeah, you're obviously. I was on my way back to Savannah and that was kind of like the halfway point.

46:21Sure. Or, excuse me, Charleston, and that was the halfway point. So I spent the night at his place and then was like, you know, it's a little bit out of the way, but I'm gonna take the extra half hour or whatever it is going to town and I'm gonna get me some Joyland. Yeah, but I think the great, I think the great thing Fast Casual allowed during the pandemic that it did not allow for white tablecloth is, because we did our, everybody already had to go. Like you've never been to a Fast Casual place that didn't have a to-go option, whereas like a lot of nicer restaurants had to create that business. Exactly, and that's what I was just gonna say, is just being able to pivot to something that, pivot to a system that you've already got in place makes it, I mean, easier as kind of putting it lightly, but like, yes, it makes it. Right, but you didn't have to create a market that wasn't there. Exactly. And the fun thing about it is like, we did scale back our menu, right? But we also got to be really intentional about what was on it, which I think it allowed people to see Fast Casual in a different way that now people love again, which I think is so exciting, because now we've seen all of these, I think we're back in that time where like, yes, people wanna go out and be decadent and indulgent and go to the Audrey, or I work at Cork and Cow at night, which is like fancy fine dining too, and those are great, and I love them.

47:35But you also have Eastside Bon Me, and you've got Joyland, you've got these like fun lighter places too, and I think people just wanna have fun now. And so what I love about Joyland is your logo and like all your paper, like everything, it wants you to have fun, like you're clearly there to have fun. It's called Joyland. Right. It's in the name. Right. I mean, it's right there. I don't think I'm gonna go there and not have fun. But I love that it's- It's on brand. But I love that it's not black or white, you know what I mean? Like I love that it's this red, blue, yellow, and it's just, it is supposed to be fun, and I just, I'm so glad places like that exist, where it's like, we don't have to look, I don't know, because I feel like a lot of places now are just trying to be like clean lines all the time, and like really, like everything is wood, or natural, or whatever, and it's like, no, no, no, this is like, this is gonna be colorful, and fun, and different, and I like that. And I mean, kind of to the point that you were making too, is like, yes, there is still very much that market for going out and having that fancy sit-down dinner, but like, like you said, places like us, like East Side Bond Me, like any number of spots, there's less commitment when it comes to going to that place.

48:45I don't have to get dressed up, I don't have to spend two hours on dinner. Yeah, the stakes are, I can take my kids. Exactly, but I think just being able to, whether it is that going and pick something up and take it home, or eat it in the car, whether it's going in, and I can order, and sit down, and have a meal, and be in and out in 35, 40 minutes. Like, there's not that time commitment, there's not the, I mean, with all of us experiencing the burnout that we are, there's not that like, that mental buildup and commitment of like, like I said, getting dressed, or like making the plans, or like, it's like, hey, let's just go do this real quick. So is there freedom in that for you, after being in like high caliber kitchens for most of your career, is it just kind of nice to be like, okay, this is still high caliber ingredients and quality, but I literally work at Joyland. So there is, like that's, and that's kind of what I have been trying to push is like, you know, yes, you know, it's, like we said, it's a Sean Brock restaurant. So like, there is those standards, there is, you know, expectations that are set, but at the same time, like, our goal is to serve good food in a fun atmosphere.

49:50So like, at the end of the day, part of our job is to have fun. Yeah. So, and especially having that kind of open kitchen concept, like, you know, that's one thing that is like early on and, you know, hiring some of the cooks, it's like, I try to instill in them, especially with having that a lot of that. And my background is like, whether we like it or not, we're on display. Like, this is our stage. Yeah, so you're on stage. So like, you know, spin it to work for you in that regard. Like, if we're having a good time, if we're joking, if we're laughing, like, that's gonna convey to a guest experience in a way that isn't necessarily gonna happen in a restaurant where the kitchen is closed off. Yeah. So if we can work that to our advantage, then, you know, it's gonna make a better atmosphere for the staff, a better atmosphere for the guests. And at the end of the day, like I said, everybody's gonna have fun and enjoy themselves. And people wanna work there. That's why we're there. They'll want to be part of that, you know? Do you think that when there's an open kitchen, the people that are cooking the food get to see the actual guests?

50:54Do you think that there's more love that gets put into it? No, I'll phrase that because most kitchens, you work on a line, you're there, you're in a kitchen that's blocked off, you spin the plate into the window, and it's gone. An expo takes it, makes it pretty, puts it on a tray, and it disappears. You're already onto the next dish. You don't see where it goes. But when you're making something and you're putting it there and you're watching the people get it, and then where they go, is there a little more ownership of going, I wanna make this perfect because I see the people that are, I see the end user. I can only speak for myself in that regard, but for me, yes, 100%. Having that kind of direct line interaction with, like you said, from being there from start to finish, which start would be cooking and finish would be consumption, that would, having that, being able to see it the entire way, like there is, I find that very, very satisfying. Yeah, I imagine it would be too. And both of our restaurants are inside, my restaurants I'm at, are both inside kitchens, and I almost want to send out line cooks every day into the restaurant.

52:05I would say, hey, did you make that? Hey, go out and talk to this table and go talk to them about the dish you just made, when they love it. Like when you get a guest that says, I love this dish, find the guy that made it, send him out there, and have him talk to the table, let them explain to them why they thought the dish was great, just so that they can have this, oh, these are going to actual people, and they love what I just made, because it's hard to do that. Over and over, you just spin a dish in the window, it's just there, it's like, I want you to take pride in this. And how do you teach that? I send them out in the restaurant? I mean, I don't know, you have to either have it, I don't know, is it coachable? That's the one that I haven't really thought about, and now that I am kind of just like, briefly thinking about it, I don't know that it's. It's an interesting interview question going forward. Yeah, you know? Do you have that quality? Like, what, do you take that pride in this dish? In a sense, I feel like the majority of people are gonna have inherently a little bit of that in them, right? Yeah. Where, because like, kind of, we're set as humans to like, want to, you know, I don't want to say satisfy people, well, that's, yeah.

53:15You want to serve people. Yeah. People in our industry, people who do what we do. Exactly. We love to serve people. We want to serve. It makes us feel good. To be able to get, to be able to have that gratitude return to you, or having that, like, that little bit of feedback at the end, like that, you know, makes a ton of difference. Like, I was just listening to, I think it was the Human Rune Lab podcast about his segment about gratitude, and that was what he was talking about, is like, you know, a gratitude practice that where you sit down and, you know, think about all the things that you're grateful for is one thing. It's great, I mean, it's definitely a good habit to develop, but one where you get to receive gratitude is ultimately more changing and more effective in the process, in the grand scheme of things. And like, like you said, I think that, you know, whether that's a coachable thing or not, just being able to have somebody have that experience will, like, instill that kind of, like, good feeling and that emotional feedback in them, and then they'll, you know, want to kind of pursue that and continue that trend.

54:24Absolutely, I think it's one of the most special things that we have, people that, that's the thing that, when you were 21 years old and you start working in restaurants, that's the thing that draws us, is that everybody, you have a bunch of people that are like that, and you put them all together, and we buy each other, at the end of the night, we bought everybody drinks, you just, because that's what we wanted to continue serving, that's what we do, I wanted, I did this, I'm grateful that I got this money today to do this fun job, let's all go celebrate, let's all go party, and it just, it's like, the people often reckon, often say, it's like being on a pirate ship, because it's just kind of chaos everywhere, but we all get it done at the end of the day, and then we all drink a bunch of rum, and it's just crazy. I think it's an interesting, to get back to what you were saying before, like, just the level of stress and burnout that gets into play, and being a leader in a building, do you focus on that? Do you focus on people that are stressed out, and people that are burnout, and hey, let's not get there, what do you do in that situation?

55:28I mean, it's, I feel like more, like, I may be more in tune with it, just because of some of the progress that I've made in my own life in the past couple of years, but at the same time, it's always been something that's been very prevalent, you know, regardless of how you look at the industry, like, it's hard. It's there. You know, there's no way to candy coat it, what we do is hard. Yeah. But yes, like, being, I guess, being mindful of it, and being more kind of in tune with it, and having gone through it myself, if you see somebody getting to that point, the best you can do, I wouldn't say the best you can do, but yes, being able to just know that you're there, let them know that you're there to support them, that they're obviously not on their own, or anything like that, and just being able to think that it's, you know, leading from the rear, is kind of that kind of mindset of like, you know, I'm gonna obviously be pushing my team to progress and do, you know, everything to the best of their ability, but at the same time, not to the point where it's affecting their mental health.

56:37It's putting them kind of over that edge. So just kind of, yeah, I guess mindfulness and that balance is kind of the best way to just combat that. How do you think that, how do you think sobriety has helped you in that? Do you think that it has? Do you think that being sober has helped you recognize or be a better leader? Absolutely. You know, just being more present and more mindful, you know, like, that's two major pluses in and of themselves. And then just kind of like, you know, along with sobriety, like, you know, kind of one of the running, I don't wanna say a joke, but it is kind of one of those common themes of like, you know, everybody should experience this because like, it's not necessarily, yes, it's very much a program of recovery, but it's also a program of becoming a human or being a better human. And like, just having that kind of daily, like always doing the next right thing and always, you know, being, you know, always having those kind of sentiments in your own brain and, you know, even not bringing it from a recovery perspective into the workplace is beneficial to the overall mentality and culture of the team in every aspect.

57:53I look back on my drinking days and just, I talked about it in an episode, few episodes back when I told my story, but I didn't have the ability to have feelings. I was, when I grew up, my whole thing was, you're a man, be a man, suck it up, get in there, you work hard and at the end of the day, you get to have a beer. At the end of the day, you can get, you can wash all those feelings away and just get drunk and then you can start the next day, but be a man, be a man. And I guess I led that way as well and the restaurants was just like, look, I'll be here 90 hours a week, you should be here 90 hours a week, don't be a wuss, let's go. And it was just a, this drill sergeant kind of mentality and then when I stopped drinking, I didn't have a way to stop those feelings and then I started exploring them and I went, oh man, I've been doing this wrong the whole time. Like I'm adding, I'm adding to the toxic culture when I think I'm helping people increase their work ethic. I'm like, I'm driving mental health by treating people this way.

58:57And it was a huge like, oh my God, like flooded with emotions and feelings that just are constant all the time. But it helped me be a better, I think it helped me be a more understanding and empathic leader. Yes, and empathy is definitely the main thing there where it's, yes, that's 100% where it kind of, and that's what I brought up as well, like having that clarity and that mental presence and that mental presence, being there allows you to be more empathetic as a leader and like that's, when it comes right down to it, that's what I feel makes some of the best leaders is just that empathy and like, there is still obviously like that work ethic and that drive is still very important but when you can lead by example in that department instead of constantly having to push that down somebody's throat, it makes it a healthier turnaround in the long run. I love feelings.

59:57I talk, my husband getting sober has been so great because now he like wants to talk about feelings and like explore things and I'm like, I love this. I don't know if my wife likes her. I think she does, I think she does. She does. I'm still not the best at home. I'm still fighting, I still try. I mean, my husband's new, he's under a year, you know, so. Do you have a spouse, girlfriend, kids, anything along those lines? Just me and the dog. So you and the dog, you like to go hiking, do you have, do you do any canoeing or kayaking? There's a bunch of rivers around here, not yet. It is something that like, yeah, not, I haven't gotten into it here. It's your September, you never had a nice season yet. No, no, you're headed into it. Yeah, it is definitely something I've enjoyed in the past. I also just, you know, haven't really had, I guess the resources, you know, like I don't have a kayak or canoe, but like I know that there's rentals and everything like that. I live in the West, West Nashville, and we have the Harpeth River, that is a really great place.

01:01:04Tip of canoe, Foggy Bottom, Tennessee Canoe, but there's a big circle, it's like an eight mile circle. You just, they drop you off in the morning in a canoe or a kayak, and you just like lazy float around the most beautiful river. It's amazing. My favorite things to do in Nashville, and it's 18 minutes from downtown. One of my favorite things about Nashville is that 18, like less than 20 minutes away from downtown, I can be in the middle of a river, like in the country, floating down a river, looking at gar and snakes and all kinds of cool shit like that, and it just turns Jennifer off. She's like, they're snakes? Yeah, they're, yeah. No, and that was- No, I've actually done it. Okay. Surprising. Kind of touching on that again, but that was also one of the big draws for me kind of getting up here is like, you know, growing up in Wisconsin, spending most of my life in the North, like the woods is my place, you know. Granted, you know, the beach, having, you know, being right on Lake Michigan growing up, like there was always that, you know, let's go down to the beach in the summertime, whatever it is, but at the same time, like only having that option when I was in like Savannah or when I was in Charleston, everybody was like, so like, let's go out in the water, let's go down to the beach, and it's like, I want to go like find some mushrooms and check out the moss and like- Let's go forage.

01:02:20Go play with the leaves and I want shade. When I was getting sober, October 28th, 2019 was my sobriety date. You think four months, five months later, we started a pandemic. So I got to, I was just at home, you know. Nice, because I wasn't in a restaurant, like around all the stuff in my times, but I have woods in my backyards, all woods, and I built a trail that goes to my parents' house, and it's like seven feet wide, but I was out there every day, and I was just in the woods, bonfire, me, my kids, just out in the woods. It's magical, that's my special place too. Yeah, and it's like, there's, yeah, I mean, I'm not taking away from the beach by any stretch of the imagination, but like, yeah, the woods is, that's my spot. Yeah, we're gonna have to hang, man. We're gonna have to go- No, you guys have a lot of similar interests. I'm gonna take you to Percy Warner and go do the white trail or something fun.

01:03:21I'll take you to some new trails in West Nashville and introduce our dogs, it'll be a good time. There we go. Yeah. Well, all right, I, we're, we're, I don't know if you were gonna get deep like that. That was fun. Yeah, that was a good time. Good, man. What are we missing? Anything we're missing? What do you wanna talk about? You wanna promote Joyland a little bit? You wanna talk about what you're doing there? You got anything cool, anything special? At the moment, we're kind of putting the cool and special on hold for the, like a little while. Just kind of like everybody, let everybody chill out a little bit. Cause like this, this, this past handful of months have been, you know, with like the, the pop-ups, you know, whether it was the, the weekend pop-ups where we have somebody come in. You just didn't east side bond me. Yeah, that one was, that one was, they, they jammed out. Like they, we, we had some fun with that one. Your kisser one looked good too. Do you think- We've done a handful with kisser just cause like they're, they're out, they're kind of old husk alumni or Ryan is anyway. So like they've, they've, they've been friends for a long time.

01:04:24But yeah, I had the pop-ups that we did with them were always really fun. The sit down dinner- I think Chad Newton is the nicest person in the city. Okay. East side bombing Chad. I think he's like the nicest person I've ever met. Sorry to everybody I've met. I think he's my new favorite. But like the, you know, the sit down dinner or like the, the tasting menu dinner that we did with them and proper sake. And then we had the Tyler Brown one just recently. And there was, we did the late night pop-up with Zhao Bao who- What was the Tyler Brown? I saw a picture of Tyler holding up. I think, I think it was just holding up like a giving kitchen thing that the, the giving kitchen was here for Dine Nashville that week. Right. But what did you guys do with Tyler? Cause I've known Tyler for a long time and I haven't talked to him in a long time. So that was- Catch me up. I was actually out that day. I was under the weather. You took a day off, how dare you? No, I was- What's wrong with you? It's like, I was kind of death's door like. What is this band around your right arm? This is a, it's a whoop.

01:05:24So about eight months into me getting sober, I also wanted to start taking my physical health into a more positive direction. Okay. So like, it's, it's basically a track certain metrics. I think, you know, heart rate is obviously the kind of the primary one, but it does a couple of other minor ones that like, you know, over the course of the day it'll give me what my strain for the day is. And then my wick, it'll track everything while I sleep. And then it'll, when I wake up, it'll say like sleep was recorded and you know, give me like a recovery rating so that I can kind of balance out like, you know, when it does come to go to the gym or whatever it is, like I can say like, hey mate, you know maybe my body needs an extra day to recover and take an extra rest day or whatever it is and kind of base my trading off of the metrics that I get from it. I got to learn more about that. Cause kind of- You just sold them on it. Kind of similar to what you were saying is like, you know, I, I got sobered, let's see, May 22nd, 2019.

01:06:28So yeah, it'll be three years in May. But then, you know, came back, didn't go back to work right away cause I was still doing like outpatient treatment when I was, you know, after doing an inpatient program. And then- So you did the full, the full rehab? Yeah. Okay. Then, you know, after 45 days and then another eight weeks and then not going back to work right away, like I put on a few pounds. Yeah, that happened. Then there was the, the mass furloughs of March of that, you know, very short term, like very, very, very recently, you know, shortly after that whole thing. So like, you know, I ballooned up to about 245 pounds and- That's my goal weight. And I was like, I, I'm not, I'm not really feeling this anymore. So I got in touch with one of the guys that I used to work with who is now very prevalent in the world of fitness. And, you know, started getting, you know, programming and training guides through him, started being a lot more mindful with my diet and everything like that.

01:07:30And, you know, now I'm, I think 175 ish, so. Nice. Wow. That's amazing. So it's like, just having, you know, that going on, just that overall wellness, I guess, right? So like being a lot more mindful of my mental health and a lot more concerned, like paying more attention to whatever, what's going on with my body and just like, knowing when you need to say like, all right, it's time to ease up and like being okay with that, I guess is one of the big things. Do you meditate? I do. Is it the greatest thing in the world? It can be. It's definitely something I enjoy. It's definitely something that like, I wish I was a little more committed to. Me too. Like having a practice is great, but being consistent with that practice is definitely the hard part. It is. But as far as like things that are going on at Joyland, you know, like I said, we are kind of like pumping the brakes a little bit with, you know, I know June has, June is launching over at Audrey and there's the Nashville series of dinners that they're doing, so like everybody's kind of being pulled in other directions and at the end of the day, like Joyland is, you know, a fun and entertaining spot on its own and as much fun as it is to have all those other people come in, like it's also kind of time for us to focus inward and what we're doing and making sure that that's still on point as opposed to, you know, trying to go all these other different directions with things and.

01:08:58I can imagine as somebody who's a leader in the building, that's gotta feel good to go, okay, where there's no more storms, I imagine it's like, if you're a boat captain, all of those things are individual things that take you off course and now you're like, we got smooth sailing ahead for a little while, we can really focus on what we do in our own execution and let's get better every day. Exactly, and that's one of those things where it's, you know, now that we are in that kind of, that spot, it's being able to take the time to internally focus on the staff and, you know, building staff and, you know, whether it's retraining or changing some training or whatever it is and like adjusting some of our systems, like having that little moment to kind of step back and see that picture and take a breath a little bit is definitely something that's, that's my kind of like new excitement right now. I love it. Well, you wanna tell them what time it is? How old are you? 37. Okay, do you ever watch Jerry Springer, the Jerry Springer show?

01:10:00I'm quite familiar with Jerry Springer. What does he do at the end of the show? That's actually one that I'm not familiar with. Have you heard of Jerry's final thought? Do you know what I'm talking about when I say that? I do kind of, honestly, it's been. You proved your point, we're done. When was the last time he was relevant? So, okay, thank you for that. I'm gonna let you introduce it, go ahead. Okay, so do you want me to give him the background on? You can just introduce the final segment. If you do whatever you want, you got it. You can tell them whatever you want. Okay, well, the idea of Jerry's final thought is that you get to say whatever you'd like to say to anyone listening. You can sum up the episode or how you feel about Nashville or anything at all, truly anything. You can endorse a candidate for whatever, whatever you wanna say. You're taking us out. You're taking us out. Cool. Well, I mean, at the end of the day, I think this was a ton of fun. And we, similar to what the restaurants have done, we pivoted a little bit when we were here today.

01:11:03We came with the intention of talking about Joyland and kind of got a little bit of my own personal story instead, which at the end of the day, that's also a very big part of what I do in my daily life. So why not, right? But I think in the grand scheme of things, we did cover all of our bases and had a good conversation and I appreciate it being here. So thanks, guys. You're welcome. We loved having you. This was fun. Thank you. Absolutely. I never wanna talk about, I just wanna talk about you the whole time. Yeah. Just so you know. That was always my plan. All right. Sorry. All right. Blake Harris. Harris, yeah. The way it's spelled really throws you off. You know, going back to the dating ourselves kind of thing is like, it made identifying telemarketers very, very easy growing up. That's a good point. That's a good point. They'd always call, you know, cold call the house and be like, can I speak to Mr. Horezzi or you know, whatever it might have been.

01:12:08I don't know you. There's nobody here by that name. Yeah. My last name is S-T-Y-L-L and I get style a lot. It seems right, it's pronounced still. But I got a lot of, is Brandon style? And you're like, oh, no, no. He's not here. You can take that number off here. It's not his number anymore. Thank you. My last name is Ichikawa and that's a tough one here. I'm sure. Well, Blake, thank you so much for coming on National Restaurant Radio today. We got to do it again sometime, man. This was a lot of fun and we'll hang excited. Sounds good. Thanks for having me. Thanks, man. All right. Big thank you to Blake Harris for joining the show. That was a fun episode. I know I always say that. I always say like, that was a really fun episode but I mean it. It really was a lot of fun. And you can tell there we were, it was a beautiful day which was the week before last that we did this interview. So I hung on to it. It was, I had it for about a week before we had the snow and all the excitement.

01:13:11So we went through the third, the fall spring and then the third winter. And now we're going into the regular spring coming up this week. So this Friday, we were gonna have Frank Purera who is the chef and owner over at Culecino in Franklin. And then a week from today, we're gonna be speaking with Kayla Ellis and she is the beverage director for Okoo and the Oak Steakhouse. And she was just an absolute delight. There's some very practical stuff we talked about there. So if you are responsible for a drink menu or you just wanna know what's going on in the beverage world, she was very, very informative and helpful. And there's, you may get to hear some more of her. So there's some fun things in the works here at Nashville Restaurant Radio. Thank you Jen Ichikawa for joining us during that show. I'm Brandon Styll. Follow us on Instagram, JenIchikawa underscore NRR at Brandon underscore NRR at Nashville underscore restaurant underscore radio.

01:14:12And follow us on TikTok. I put all kinds of random videos out there and apparently you guys like them because it's doing well. Thank you guys for listening. Go make this week special and we hope that whatever you do, please be safe and considerate. Love you guys. Bye bye.