#267 – The Art of Cooking: Chef Papi’s Creative Process and Entrepreneurial Spirit (Re-Release) - Spun Today with Tony Ortiz

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:17):
What up? What up, folks? What's going on? Welcome to the sponsor Day podcast,
the podcast that is anchored in writing but unlimited in
scope. I'm your host, Tony Ortiz, and I appreciate you
listening. This is episode 146 of the podcast,
and in this episode, I have a very special treat for
you. I sit down and chop it up with the one and only

(00:39):
Stephen Rodriguez, aka chef Papi. He
is the creator of the famous Dominican Pizza, which has been featured in
many events all over the country and around the world. He's also
known for tons of other amazing dishes like his longanisa Mac and
cheese and a Philly cheesesteak whose cheese pull
caught the eye of the popular Instagram page devour

(01:00):
Power, which ultimately landed him at a food network
event. Listen in so you can hear all about that journey
and about his upbringing, his influences, his
experiences, and learn about the work ethic that has
gotten him to this point and the life lessons he has learned
along the way. This was a really fun and insightful

(01:22):
episode, me to record, and I am eager to
share it with you folks. So I'm gonna keep this intro as
short as possible. But I'd be remiss if I didn't
highlight and mention a few things, a few
takeaways from the episode. So aside from all the stuff that I
mentioned, there's also a lot of stories related to

(01:43):
work ethic and dedication and putting in the
work to chase down your dreams, which is something
that those of you that are listeners of the podcast know that I'm big
on. So that's something that definitely resonated with me. We wind up speaking
about parenting and our mutual experiences with that.
Although chef Papi is married with three kids, my wife and

(02:05):
I have one son and have our hands full with him. So
I can't even wrap my head around the concept of having three kids.
So kudos to him. And they also know that in
having kids, that's like an extra gear of motivation
that you have as a parent. And going after your dreams is that much more
important when you have children, especially doing it responsibly

(02:29):
because you want to one day be in a position to
allow your kids to be in a position to chase down their
dreams, just like our parents put us in a better position that they
were in to allow us to do what it is that we want to do.
To me, generation after generation, doing less and
less of the grueling I hate my job type

(02:51):
of work and more of I can't believe I get to
do what I love type of work should be the
goal, but again, realistically and
responsibly. So it's not to say that it's cool to be a
35 year old with no job that's five foot nothing and has
aspirations of being in the NBA. There's a very big difference between

(03:11):
that and responsibly providing for your family while
you also put in the extra work that it takes
to go after your dreams. Another important takeaway for me that
we speak about is some of Chef Papi's
successes as well as his failures, which I think is key and very
important to hear because you don't have the successes without the

(03:33):
failures. It's good and important to
have the balls to shoot your shot, but also be
ready to not score. Every single time. We touch on the type
of mentality that some folks have, which is that
of wanting instant gratification and
believing in overnight successes and thinking that

(03:56):
people that you see that are successful around you, you just see the success part,
but not all the years of hard work and failures
that come before that success. There's also, towards the very end of
the episode, an amazing story that chef
Papi shares with us. It's a story that I think is so
good, so inspirational,

(04:17):
so touching, so motivating that I want to
tell you guys about it right now and spoil it, but I
won't. So stick to the end so you guys can hear
that, and then I'll reflect on it a bit in the outro.
And lastly, before we get into the interview, not really
interview. It's a conversation. It's a free flowing conversation. So I don't really like to

(04:39):
label them as interviews. But before we get into it, you guys know what I
mean. I have another treat for you, which is
that this episode has video footage. You can
find footage of the video on the sponsor day YouTube channel,
which I will link to in the episode notes, and I hope you guys enjoy.
Now, there's good news and bad news about the video footage. The good

(05:01):
news is that it exists and you guys can check it
out. And I will ultimately chop it down from
the full interview to smaller, more digestible
clips that I'll share also on the YouTube channel and
on the Spun today Instagram page. So it's definitely a plus.
But the bad news with the video is that I

(05:23):
recorded it with my DSLR camera. And when
recording video with the DSLR camera, it records
in half hour intervals, which means that
every half hour, you're supposed to pause and reset the
camera and start recording again for another half hour. But instead of
stopping at the half hour mark. Since I was so into the conversation,

(05:46):
which I guess is ultimately a good thing, I didn't pause until about the
45 minutes mark. 40 45 minutes mark. So
although you will be able to hear
the entire interview, there's about a 15 minutes chunk in the
middle that does not have the video footage. So
that's definitely my bad. But as a way to make amends with you,

(06:08):
the folks that will be checking out the video instead of giving you
a blank screen within that 15 minutes window,
I dropped in some pictures of us during the interview, as well
as a bunch of photos of some
of chef Papi's signature dishes like the
dominican pizza and dominican sushi,

(06:30):
Mofongo de Camarone and a bunch of other good stuff. So it's
not a bad trade off, right? And last but not least, I want to give
a very special shout out and thank you
to aura which hosted this episode of the Spun today
podcast, Steven and Elaine. I appreciate you guys very much for that.
Elo, thanks for opening up and sticking around and allowing us to

(06:51):
record. And without further ado folks,
here is a very quick way that you can help support the show if you
so choose, and then we'll be jumping right into the interview.
I hope you guys enjoy it.
Another great way for you to help support the show and also take care
of your foundational health is by going to

(07:12):
spunte.com support and clicking on my
affiliate link for athletic greenshouse aka
ag one. One scoop of ag one in your water helps to
fill nutrient gaps, promote gut health and support whole
body vitality. Just one serving delivers a comprehensive blend
of nine products, a multivitamin, minerals,

(07:35):
prebiotics, probiotics, adaptogens and more, all of
which work together for the strongest foundation for better health. I personally take
ag one and really appreciate the peace of mind of knowing that my foundational
health bases are covered even when I know I'm not eating as healthily
as I should be. Also, by using my affiliate
link@sponsay.com support, you will get one

(07:57):
free year of vitamin D three as well as five
ag one travel packs absolutely for free. Again, go
to spunte.com support and click on the banner
for ag one.
Alright folks, we have a treat today on the Spun Today
podcast. Chef Steven Rodriguez,

(08:18):
aka Chef Papi, aka the
creator designer of the delicious,
famous dominican pizza, which I want to get into by the way, the origins
of a little bit later. But first off, just want to say
thank you. Appreciate you doing this. I'm happy to be here, man I
can talk, so I'm in my waters.

(08:41):
Awesome. So, like, I was telling you before, I wanted
to have you on, primarily
because, like, I follow you on Instagram. I've had your food a bunch of times
at Kaova. Delicious home run every time. Thank you.
And something that I could tell from, at least from the outside looking
in, I can see, like, the passion that you put

(09:02):
into, like, what you do. And, like, there's, like,
creativity to it. Also, like, I like Mac and cheese and know
there's a specific video, the, like, longanisa Mac and cheese.
Yeah. Every time I see that video, bro, I'm like,
my mouth waters. Like, it's awesome. And, like, I
appreciate that type of passion. Like, whenever somebody puts passion

(09:24):
into anything that it is that they're into, like, it, like, draws me to
that. And that's why I wanted to have you on, hear a little bit about
your story, how you got started, what got you into cooking, like, your
influences, like, the whole nine. Wow.
So I kind of. So I'm obviously,
I'm dominican, and I come from a very dominican

(09:46):
family that was very, very reserved. Like, they
would go to church every Sunday. They were, like, we were, like, on lockdown growing
up, you know what I'm saying? Like, these, like, my parents are the type of
people, like, they would watch the 06:00 news, 11:00
news.
The world was like. It was, like, like, dangerous, you know?

(10:09):
So, um, you were born here or in do. I was actually born here. I
was born in Queens, but I'm, like, very dominican. Like, you know, I
will go to doctor, like, every year as a kid. Like, summer
vacation. Like, I. My mom is from Harvard, so we would spend most of
our time there. And with pops from. If you remember,
he's from. He's from. He's from Campo San Jose.

(10:31):
He's just like, really. They're just really, you know, that. That real.
They're like, not city people. Yeah, I'm saying that's how my. My mom's from
Bonao. A campo from Bona. My father's from Campo
Moca, so, yeah, I'm with you on that. So our people, you know, they.
They come from a very special place, which is very beautiful.
My. The best memories of my childhood

(10:54):
is literally just spending time in Jarabako. And, you know, we
would visit my grandmother, like,
elsewhere. You know, we had family, like, basically everywhere. And. And I
grew up in a. Like, I remember, like, we were gonna have
chicken for lunch, and I remember, like, see,
watching my grandfather, like, grab a chicken by the neck and, like,

(11:16):
yo, this is the one we're eating, you know? You know, so, like,
I grew up on that real criollo dominican stuff,
flavor, you know, and all my uncles, they all had labeled
egg ass and stuff here, like, so I grew up in that. In that
ambience, you know, my dad had a restaurant when I was, like, in high school,
and that was, like, really when it all started for me. Like, I

(11:39):
might drive here. Actually, I drove right in front of that place, which is
so weird because the gps never takes me here through there.
And I drove right in front of that place. La Florida Paraiso is
on myrtle and Cornelia. Nice. That used to belong to my dad, like, over
15 years ago, and. And that's where I, like, learned. That's why I made my
first mofongo, you know, saying that's where I learned how to, like, make my first,

(12:00):
like, anything. And I was just always. My
parents have always been very people, like, very, you
know, very hospitable people. Like, they love entertaining.
They, like, I. We've always had, like, huge
barbecues at my house growing up and stuff. So, like, just
making people feel comfortable has always been,

(12:22):
like, me, regardless what I've done
before, actually, like, just not giving a shit about what
people think about me and actually just becoming a chef and,
you know, living life on my own, dying.
Like, it wasn't until, like, I let go of
that and just, just really started doing this

(12:44):
that I learned that I was like, you know, I'm just.
I'm just being myself. I'm just, you know, me being a
chef, I'm just being me. I'm just literally doing what I enjoy doing.
You know, I love. I love people. I love people. I love watching people eat
and drink and feel good and enjoy when, you know, and enjoy what they're, what
they're consuming and then talk about it. Wow, this is amazing.

(13:07):
Shit. Makes me feel good. It must be, like, like,
empowering kind of also, right? More like reassuring. Like, you
know. You know, a lot of people, you know, they
either do stuff or they don't do stuff according to, like, how confident they are.
True. And, you know,
the only way for you to actually build, like, self confidence

(13:29):
is to actually be confident, you know, and. And. And
letting go of whatever fear it is that you have to just execute
something no matter how many times you. You fuck it up. Like,
the best things that I do, I've learned by, like,
failing a lot. Exactly. So, I mean, it's the only way

(13:49):
to. Is the only way to actually become confident in something is
to actually just go through the process. You know, people are afraid of the
process. You know, this is everywhere you go, you hear things,
people saying things like, oh, come to this seminar and
you'll just be flipping houses, like, overnight. Yeah. Like, and you
become a millionaire. Like, people like, oh, yeah, and they do that and they go

(14:11):
and they spend their money and, you know, there are people out there who
are doing amazing things and, you know, but there. Are
scammers out there despite more scammers then, of course.
And the system is all, like, flooded with
people who are just looking for a quick dollar and they don't think about
longevity and they don't think about being happy, you know, doing what they do.

(14:32):
So I'm just having fun, man. For me, for me, that's, that's a rule of
thumb, which is if something, it comes
along too easily, like, it's usually not the right way to go, exactly,
like, the path. And it's not necessarily that you have to seek out, you know,
the, the path that's hardest or anything like that. But I
feel for me personally that I want to earn whatever I get,

(14:55):
that I want to, like, go through a process if I want to learn podcasting
I started over five years ago, figured out all nooks and crannies.
I've been doing it consistently ever since. With writing, same thing. I put
out a couple books and, like, I learned the craft. I, like, read
and I listen to other writers and, like, I want to, like, dig into it
and I don't, I don't want to be like that overnight success that is not

(15:16):
going to know how to handle that success because you figure that out.
I believe, like, through going through the stages and going through the process and
the experience that you get from doing that, you know what I mean? And sometimes
in the process, you might find an opportunity to take a
shortcut and you actually go for it. And
whatever outcome comes out of that, it's still a lesson, whether it

(15:38):
worked out for you or did it and like, oh, you know, that it came
back and it stabbed me in the back or whatever. Like a lesson. Exactly.
That's just you actually, you know, moving forward. You know, I just,
I don't believe. I don't believe in quitting. You know, I have three kids, and
the one thing that I, like, I'm huge on is just like, no, like,
when they're, like, going through one of their, you know, one of their, like, little

(15:59):
tantrums that they can't figure something out and I'm like, you gotta stick to it.
You gotta relax. Yeah. Look at it. No, I'm not just
gonna do it. Look, you figure it out. You know,
there's a. There's a lot that I didn't get, you know, because of the
generational differences, you know, true,

(16:19):
between, you know, my parents, where they grew up and.
And how they grew up and. And the way they raised me and. And,
like, now, the era was 2020, the era we live in, and then
everything is handed self and how different things are. Like, you know, when
I was. When I was in high school, like,
it was like, yo, call me after 09:00, bro. Because, you know, the

(16:41):
minutes. The minutes of nights and weekends,
I. Pay for no text message. You know, it's like, it was either
that or, like, MySpace. Yeah, absolutely. So it's, like,
very different now. You know, like, my kids, bro, they'll take my phone, and then
they'll facetime me. My two year old knows how to facetime me. That's
so scary. Right? Yeah. My name, my son is one and a half,

(17:04):
a little more than one and a half. He's 19 months now. And he'll take
the phone, like, he knows how to press the YouTube app when there's a commercial.
He knows how to press skip. And I'm like, yo, and they make these devices,
like, so addictive. Gangster, bro. Yeah. You know what's interesting about
that? Do you know how, like, I read into the, like, the smallest
things, like, a one year old.

(17:25):
A two year old does not have 15 seconds
of patience to watch a commercial
before whatever they want to watch actually starts.
Wow, that says a lot, right? About, like, the way we live our lives. You
know what I'm saying? Everything's go, go, go. Like, I want. You want instant gratification
with, like, everything I'm saying. People are free to the process,

(17:47):
man. You know, there's no, like,
patience. There's no, like, you know, critical thinking
anymore. There's no questioning facts. You know, people just turn on the
tv or they go on Facebook or whatever, and they read the first thing they
see, and. And they don't even finish reading it. By the time they're, like,
going around, like, somebody tell that story to someone else and

(18:09):
they're fucking up that story, you know, and it's probably, like a
bullshit story. Start with, and it's just like, Jesus Christ. People
actually spend their time doing a lot of dumb shit, you know,
like. Something that's telling that what you said, which I think speaks to
our generation, like, in terms of, like, responsibility, because we're
like that bridge between our parents, which were probably like

(18:32):
od the other way and
strictly,
but we're the bridge between them and then the new generation that it's
like the exact opposite, that they want everything easy, everything now, and
we're like the in between that we have to try to give them a little
bit of our parents but also let them be a little bit of them,

(18:54):
you know what I mean? And kind of like find like a. Happy, like a
bunch of, like, just, um, just
failed parenting that wasn't really necessarily their
fall. Like, you know, I'm saying, like, sometimes, only better, sometimes you want to like
blame like your, your upbringing or whatever, but at the same time,
it's just like, you know, they're doing what they knew

(19:15):
best, you know what I'm saying? They're living by their instincts, you know,
they're trying to protect you or give you or set you
up for whatever. I mean, there are a lot of shitty parents, but there are
a lot of good parents that failed at parenting because
they just didn't know better, you know what I'm saying? And it's just like,
gotta come a break. Yeah, you know, I

(19:37):
just really just analyze things, like, okay, why am
I like this, you know, like what? You know, and just like go to the
root of it. And then if, you know, if, if there's someone you need to
have that conversation with, like, you know,
conversation and get on with your life, you know, I'm saying, like,
cuz, you know, time is running out. Look at Kobe Bryant, 41 years old. Just

(19:59):
when he's like beginning to like, enjoy his life. He worked his
ass off his entire life and then he just retired.
Like those. He just retired. Yeah, it hasn't been more than like how many
years he retired? My handful of years, I think 20.
1617. Yeah, he just retired, you know, and it's like,

(20:21):
shit, man, that's that. You do run. When I went, when I saw
that video of his helicopter going back, dude, when I actually
saw it go up in flames, dude, like, I felt
like someone kicked me in the chest. You, dude. Like, that was
honestly. And, and I've never like even been to a
basketball game to actually see him play. Like, you know, I admired him for

(20:44):
you, you know, he was such a great work ethic, dedication, amazing, you
know, like, he was 17 years old. I saw this video,
he was 17 years old, like talking to some high school kids and he was
just like, he's always been that amazing of a, you know, of a
person. And I saw a video, dude and that shit. I. My
stomach. My stomach hurt, bro. I. The episode I

(21:05):
did last week actually was dedicated strictly to Kobe because he was, like, my favorite
player. I saw him play once when he was on his, like,
final. Final season, and I saw him play at the Barclays,
and, like, I followed his career
afterwards. He started, like, a company called if anybody wants to listen to
episode 145. Like, I really got into, like, the details of it, but he started

(21:27):
a production company called Granity Studios. That was the
goal, was to teach children work ethic
and discipline through sports. He wanted to do that, like, mainly, like, for
his daughters. And he was the coach of his daughter's basketball team, which is where
they were on their way to his daughter's game
that day on the helicopter. And he put out, like,

(21:49):
three books, best selling books that were aimed
for children. He started a podcast called the punies. Like,
also, like, trying to, like, teach that. It was so sad.
Stephen, actually, the one that called me, he was like, yo, did you hear the
news about Kobe, like, when it happened? And I was fucking heartbroken. That
was the worst. So sad. But, yeah, it speaks to, like, you

(22:11):
said, do what you need to do while you're here and have the
conversations you need to have, and you don't want to look back on life
and. And just have it, like, full of regret,
right? Not at all, man. I mean, it's just not worth it.
You don't know when. When your time is, and you just don't
know. So tell me more about. You said your

(22:33):
dad's restaurant. That's when you first made the mofongo. Was that your first
time cooking? Because that's a question. That was. Yeah, that was really when I. When
I actually, like. Like, I actually fell in
love with, like, food. Tell me, was it just the
experience of, like, how old are you when you used to go. I mean, I
was a freshman in high school, so. Did you, like, work there at the school?

(22:55):
Yeah, I will every day. Every day? Well, not every day, but
on the weekends. And, like, every Tuesday,
I was, like, there, like, three or four days of the week, like, consistently.
And I was literally, like. I was never the type
of person, like, oh, this is my dad's restaurant. So I'm like,

(23:17):
if I had to clean the bathroom, I would clean the bathroom. Started,
like, literally peeling platinum, like, with two
mexican guys. I remember their names.
Raul. And the other guy was Roberto. Well, we were
convento. Nice. I still remember their names. I don't know where they
are in the world. Shout out to remember those

(23:39):
guys? You know, I learned how to, like, like, peel
platinum zen yuca and season meat and clean shrimp and. And.
And. And just do. Just prep work
in the kitchen. And so then, like, eventually.
So the way it worked was the kitchen was tiny. It was upstairs, and
the prep area was downstairs in the basement. So whenever these

(24:01):
guys needed anything, they would just yell,
like, we had to. Like, one of us would, like, go take it.
And I started being the guy. Like, whenever they were
asked for, like, I got it. And I would always take the stuff upstairs to
the kitchen because I just want. I like, I love the scene in there.

(24:22):
Like, whenever I would bring them something that they were missing, and it was, like,
during rush hour, and they're, like, yelling at each other and cursing
at each other, flames going up in the air, and it's just
plating stuff and ringing the bell and, like, get the. Shit out of, like, organized
chaos, right? Yeah, it was like, it was. I don't know what it
was about that I just loved it. Nice. So then.

(24:43):
Then every time I would make one of those
runs, I would, like, help out the dishwasher a little bit,
you. Know, do what you can. Try to stick around. The dishwasher was that the
place was so small, the dishwasher had, like, his own, like, little
stove, and the place used to sell so much rice and beans,
bro, that they literally had, like, a huge pot

(25:05):
of white rice and a huge pot of, like, yeah. Yellow rice
and a huge pot of moro and a huge pot of just beans
going the whole day. Damn. So, like, they would, like, bring one
down and, you know, bring it out to the front, and they would have
to put another one to get through the day. Like, that's
how it was. So busy. Was one of the busiest restaurants ever, and.

(25:28):
And so I was there, bro. You know, I'm saying, and I
learned how to, like, you know, make all that stuff, you know? And.
And he also was like. He had the little. I don't know. You call that.
We call it salamanca, but it's like those. This little, like, this little grill. You
know, the chinese people put the barbecue ribs and just float. This is the flame
on top. Yeah. So he had to go like a boy. The space

(25:50):
was so small. Like, he was just literally, like, they would just give him the.
The hot plates with the. With the fish or the steak or whatever that was
going in there, and he will pop it in there and just watch it and
give it to them at the temperature they needed it. Like, so he was washing
dishes, making all the rice and beans and doing that. So, like, multitasking. Like,
I was, like, you know, helping him out. And then eventually I moved,
like, a little to the left, and there was the grill, and I learned how

(26:13):
to just grill all types of steaks and stuff. And then I moved a little,
like, to the left, and I was, like, working on the line, like, actually,
like, sauteing shit. And, you know, it's
just. I just loved it. And I was, like, young. I was really young. And
I. So, you know, it was always, just always something I really
enjoyed. That's awesome. And tell me, so

(26:35):
you mentioned the buffalo before. Is that, like, one of your, like, go to things
or favorite things to make, or it's just like, you remember, like, that being specifically,
like, something that you just did, like, from scratch? Remember specifically that?
I was, like, literally, like, if you want to go to the root, like, that
was where, like, I learned how to, like, peel a platinum. I learned how to
make those Tony's. How to, like, like, what. What is a mofongo? Like,

(26:56):
how, you know, how. Well, what ingredients does it go with? Like, how
do you smash it? Why? You know, like, just the why of, like, all these
things. Like, wow, this is cool. I didn't know that you had to go through
this much trouble to prepare a meal, you know? Yeah. That there was, like, so
much detail underlying. Yeah. And there was, like, so many people behind it. Like, you
know, you just sit down at a restaurant and you order something and you have

(27:17):
no idea, like. Like, someone had to go pick this up
somewhere, deliver it to you. You know, you. Someone had to
receive it. Someone had to store it properly. Someone had to clean
it. They had to season it. They had to give it a little love. They
had to put it away, you know? Like, when you order, you know, they have
to do it right. The sauce has to be right. Like, all the prep that

(27:38):
goes, everything. There's so much to, like, you know, chicken
wing coming to your table as an appetizer that.
That, you know, it's just. It's amazing, and it's.
And stuff like that is, like, lost sometimes now, because
we're, like, we were speaking about before, just the culture of
getting everything, like, immediately, you know? I mean, and we don't, like, think about all

(28:01):
those steps, like, beforehand that it takes to. For something.
For this to be, like, in front of you. Like that. Yeah, a lot to
it, you know? And I just. So, I
mean. I mean, it doesn't really end there. Where'd you go from there? Like
what? Like, what were your next steps from there, like, in terms of, like, your
trajectory to, like, being a chef? Um, so

(28:23):
then after high school, I was actually. So, like I said, I grew up in
a family where I was, like, very reserved and stuff, so I tried to do
everything that I possibly could just to get out of the house and do shit,
you know? So I was actually, like, really into music. And I
was like, a bachata bro. Like, at a very young age, like, at that age,
like, also, like, working, like, at the restaurant and whatever.

(28:43):
Like, I was out, like, playing parties, like little gigs and
stuff, like, all these little dominican clubs, like, you
know, I was a queens boy, so we were all over the place, you know.
Do you remember, um, sidetracks or am. I.
Yeah, forget about it. Local. A couple of my boys back in the day, they

(29:05):
weren't. My boy Peter, he used to play Guida in a band.
My boy Noel used to play, say, wound up. I was like,
I never got into it, like, in terms of, like, playing initiative, but I would,
like, go, like, to support them to, like, all the gigs and stuff like that.
Those are the best parties. That was, like, the era of, like, I was doing.
Yeah, the blessed sacrifice. My aunt, that's by Aetna and, like,
chestnut around there. Yeah, my aunt used to live, like, up the block from there.

(29:29):
So I was really into that. I was really into that scene.
And, like, I did that for a very long
time. Then. Then, like, because my parents were very
religious. Like, I, you know, I was always. I would go to church every Sunday.
I started playing in the central Bronx. I don't know. You ever heard
of the central charismatic on the bronze? They used to do the

(29:50):
young people retreats and stuff. So I did the music ministry there for, like, a
year or two. So I was always, like, like, into music and
stuff. And was that. Was that
tough, by the way, like, being into late, like, you mentioning how your parents were,
like, strict and stuff like that, being into music or being into cooking, is that
something they were like, that's not cooking because they just. Saw that

(30:11):
as hard work, you know, like. But the music thing. Yeah, like,
growing up and then the music thing was, like, always,
like, so, like, you know, that. That thinking, you know, that,
that. It's just like, I'm totally against because that's bullshit. True. Because
I know for a fact that if I just, like, only did music, I

(30:32):
would. I would. I would seriously be doing something
real. Sure. Like, even. Even if I'm like,
let's say just doing sound
for someone or actually playing in, like,
Romeo's band or something, I would still be enjoying my life. And,
like, the same way that I'm absolutely. And you'd be like, in that world. I

(30:53):
would be doing what I love, you know what I'm saying? And that's the thing
that goes first. And if that goes for everyone, and no matter
what situation there are, there, like, that. That goes first. Like, whatever it is that
they're in. Okay, if you're not happy, you can't make anyone else happy.
That's it. That's the bottom line. Sure. I don't care
who you are or what you like. That's. If you. If you

(31:15):
have nothing to give, you can't give anyone shit. True.
And it's important to know, too. Like, there's not
only, like, the front man of the band or,
like, even the rest of the band, there's sound. There's engineers, mixers, a
lot of people behind the scenes. The boom holding, you know, people holding
the mics and the marketing. And, you know, there's a machine

(31:37):
behind every single band, every single. Anything that anybody's into music
wise or, you know, in any industry, movies or, the same way, there's, like, hundreds
of people, hundreds of different jobs that people could be into. You know, those
are the things that people don't. Don't. They just don't
really care for, like. And sometimes they don't know
it's to. Watch all the credits after a movie.

(32:00):
Is over and there's a shitload. And even if you. Even if you actually try
to read and most of them go so fast that you can't really, like, catch
everyone there before your brain is able to process, like, you know,
sitting there, like, jotting these names down. I like looking these people up to
see who they are. And I. Who's the. What does second grip mean? Like, what
is that? But that's like a career. And I'm sure that without

(32:21):
that person, that movie would not, you know. So
that's very interesting to me. Like, I go. I go deep with
a lot of shit because. And you find stuff like that out by, like we
were saying before going through the process, like, you won't know what that job is
unless you, like, try to be the front man of the band and find out
that, you know, maybe that's not your thing, but then you find out that, yeah,
maybe. You'Re not that good. And that's the thing is either. Like. Is either. Like,

(32:43):
I feel like our generation grew up with either two things. They either
thought they were like, fucking effing I on some shit and. And.
And, like, they just know you're not, and they find
and I hurt them. Hurt their ego so bad.
Yeah. That they just fucking know. No
upward spiral, just. That's it. They just continue to live their life, like,

(33:07):
a very mediocre life. And. Oh, is either that or the people
who just, like, like, had those parents were just like,
embrace. Embrace your kids creativity
or. Or their. Or their craziness. Like, one
time Instagram,
you know, just being clowns, bro. Like, and it's changed their life. The fucking

(33:29):
dominican pizza changed my life. It literally changed my life. Like, I was
in doing what I was doing a year ago, and. And now
is all because of a fucking platinum, but I've been peeling platinum for the past
15 years. Years. It started when you were, like, in high school. Exactly. With the
two mexican dudes. This is a. People like this,
you know, he's lucky. Like, I only have 32,000 followers on

(33:52):
instagram. That's nothing. That's nothing. That's a
lot. Nothing in the scale
of, like. Like, who do I look up to? Who. You know,
like, relatively speaking, who's really doing this shit? You know what I'm saying? Like, dude,
like, I still got to pay my bills and I still think about every time
I spend money and, you know, I do shit because, dude, I'm

(34:13):
raising a family. You know, I have to make the right decisions or
correct investments. Absolutely. It's not, like, just about you, like. Yeah,
of course. You know, so on the big scale,
you know, of things, it's like, you know,
I ain't shit, and I have the. The humility
to understand that, but. Because I know what. And I know where

(34:37):
I'm going, you know? Yeah. And I'm also very confident in that. And I
I'm a person that believes that if you believe that you
are meant to be, you know, in a certain
place or. Or, you know, the. You can. Or a certain
type of person or that you can accomplish something, that you can actually
do it if you go through the process and if you're willing. To put in

(34:59):
the work. And. Of course. But that's part of the process. Yeah, because you're in
the process and then, like, oh, shit, I got to do this myself.
Yeah, you got to do yourself. So if you do it, then you get to
the other side, and then you. Then you continue the process, and you keep
encountering these issues and these problems and. Which is all just
part of the growth and understanding, and it's like the people who are at the

(35:21):
top. They're at the top because they've been through the process. No shortcuts,
man. And if you're not willing to put in that work, then it's not for
you. Yes. And a lot of people that weeds. A lot of people out. A
lot of people have grown up rich and had all these opportunities
and have been given things and they have destroyed them because
they haven't gone through the process. It's not about what you have. True.

(35:41):
It's about what you're willing to do. And the only thing that you, that
determines what you're actually gonna get out of bed for is, like,
how you feel inside. You know what I'm saying? Absolutely.
It's, it's everything. Are you motivated or not?
Absolutely. There's a speaking to that. There's a quote that I really
like about somebody in that situation that's like born rich or

(36:03):
that has everything handed to them, which is
people like that are born on third base and they think that they hit a
triple. You know what I mean? So they have that, like, everything that comes with
hitting a triple, but they didn't earn it. You know what I mean? Exactly.
So I definitely want to get to the dominican pizza, but take me from.
So from high school, I was, that was like, I

(36:26):
was really into music. I was, I did that for a while. And
my dad had that restaurant for, I want to say maybe like eight years
or so. And maybe I was like, in my early twenties. He sold it
and he didn't. He started,
he was, he started, he bought this like, little
supermarket, Brooklyn. And

(36:48):
I was helping him run the store for a little while. And
eventually, like, you know, he's like, you know, he wants to retire and stuff. My
dad is like, my dad is not like a young dad. Like, he
had me like, my brother's eight years older than me. My
sister is like eleven years older than me. I'm the youngest.
Okay. So my dad, I think he's like. Probably like 70

(37:11):
already, so my dad's 79 now. He had me like, really late
also. Yeah, so, you know, we, you know, he's like,
oh, you know, we're retiring and stuff. And like, so I
basically was like, running that store for a while and
I got this idea of like, you know, really,

(37:31):
really, like, I saw the need for people who, like,
wanted food. You know, like, we had schools
in the area and like, lunchtime was, we had like a
little steam table. Like a little, little steam table, like 6ft, you
know, and we would sell out of like, rice and beans and, you know, we
were busy with the sandwiches, and it was small. We only had, like, one machine,

(37:53):
and blah, blah. And I was like, I saw a lot of potential in the
business to, like, really make this, like, a
spot. You know what I'm saying? So I did. And I.
And I just. I was
really into this show called bar rescue. I don't know. You ever saw it with
John Taffer? No, I haven't. That the one that, like,

(38:14):
the, like, he goes into, like, a shitty bar and, like, fixes it up? Yeah.
Renovate it in a couple days and train the staff line. They would really go
to the root of the problems of, like, the families that were running it or
whatever and, like, why they were failing and all this stuff. And it was, like,
mostly staged, but I. Have you ever seen the prophet? No,
but I. It's like, that's.

(38:35):
But in this guy was, like, very straightforward. Like, this is what it is.
You say you're walking by this problem every day. You're ignoring it. This is
what it is, you know, I'm saying, like, I don't want to hear it. He
hit the problem. Like, so, you know, I was, like. I was seeing all these,
like, loopholes and management, and then, like, just the way
that our parents, you know, spoke to people or

(38:56):
how they felt, it was, like, okay to address people
and, like, just, like, I just saw a lot of things that were just like,
this. This is wrong. This shouldn't be like, this. Like, so, you know,
I got a little leeway, a little, like, freedom to, like, run the business.
And we may. I made all the investments to,
like, make this happen. So, like, we expanded

(39:18):
the good of the deli and. And with
the steam table, like, maybe, like, three times the size. And so
we started doing. I started tapping into catering. Like, I built an app.
I built a website. Like, all of this costs a lot of money, honestly. But
I, like, I build an app. I build a website. Like, I
started. I. Like, I got an Uber eats. I got on grubhub,

(39:41):
and, like, I. And I was just catering to the. To the people that I
saw that I were actually started coming in the store. You saw a need, and
you wanted. To give the solution, you know,
juice. Like, fresh juices and, like, salads and stuff. And I'm like, no, but
we will. Like, I listen to the customer, and I made it happen. And,
you know, we started selling a bunch of, you know, salads and juice bars, and,

(40:03):
like, I literally tripled the sales of the business. Wow.
Like, I figured, like, oh, wow. This.
This is like. This is cool. I had an
idea. I put it in play. And. Yeah, I tried a lot of things before
it actually got to that point. Point. But I went through a whole process of,
like, trying things that weren't working out. I was, oh, maybe this may be

(40:24):
that. And eventually I figured it out by. Remember any. Do you remember
any of those? Like, something? Like, which one? One of those things that
you tried? Yeah, like. Like, for example, I got these
huge chalkboards. I got, like, I got personalized this
menu with really cool names, like, for sandwiches. And people are
like, what the fuck is that? Yeah, and, wow. Like, I must try this,

(40:47):
you know? And. And I put those chalkboards on the board on the
wall, and I just figured that just because those chalkboards were there, people were just
gonna come in and just order these things. Yeah. And they weren't true.
So those are the things. I was just like, why isn't this
working? Like you learned from it and then, you know. You know. All right, that
didn't work. Let me try this. Yeah, so it's like one of those simple things

(41:08):
that, you know, a lot of people just, like, you know, they would try something
and it was just. And it wouldn't work, and they'll just call it a day.
Like, I was just never having that shit. Like, okay, this didn't work. Something has
to work. True. Because, you know, if people go to Dunkin donuts every
day and grab coffee and no offense to anyone
or Dunkin donuts, I just don't like their coffee. Like, I think it's trash.

(41:29):
Yeah. So it's like, why would I. Like, why would I spend fucking
$3 on something that I just don't, like, spend
350 and go somewhere else? Or spend $0.75,
get the cart coffee and get that. Nah, bro. But some. Those.
Those stores be having the coffee sometimes, I'm saying. Or even
those little dominican stores in the Bronx was seventy five cents a dollar. You get

(41:51):
the best coffee you've ever had. You know, this is like, you
know, without the gimmick.
So the app and, like, that thing. Do you still
have that going on? I don't. I don't. I was basically.
So I was. The way that it was all organic. Like, I just
saw the need for what people wanted, and

(42:14):
I delivered it to them and I proved to myself that I was
capable of more. And
I was really into branding, and I was like, you know what? Like,
I have to brand this. Because these people, you know,
they're drawn to, like, brands. They're drawn to things that look, you know, like,
they're put together nicely. So

(42:37):
I was stuck, like, well, what am I gonna name this business? And my wife
at the time was like, well, my wife now, but at the time, my wife
was like, well, what do they call you at work? Like,
she was trying to help me figure out, like, what are we gonna brand this
thing? And I was like, they call me Poppy.
Like, and the reason why was because we're, like, in East New York. It

(42:58):
was like. Like, most of our customers
were black and Dominicans. Hey, Poppy. Poppy. Poppy. So, you
know, that's what they called us. All black people call us the mommy and
Poppy. Good morning, mommy. Like, you know, so, Poppy, don't put too much me
on myself. Is that the origins of Chef Poppy? Yeah, exactly.
So I was, oh, that's the name. So she's like, that's it right there. So.

(43:20):
Called it Poppy's grill. So that's what it was. It was, like, a buzz,
really. Like, it was doing really well. And then. And
then. And then I. From there, I went to
Kaova, and I was. I never changed my instagram
name. It was, like, NYC poppies, because I was the name poppies
girl. Okay. And I left it like that for a little while.

(43:42):
And, like, the. Like,
when I was doing the tasting for. For Kalaba,
I I had this dish that I had been working on
for a while, which is a dominican pizza. And actually, the first
dish. The first, like, run was actually, like, a huge
pie. Like, it was like, a real. Like, a large. Like, a large pie. Yeah,

(44:03):
yeah, like, you could grab a huge ass slices. And I just thought it was
very, like, unattractive, and, like, it wasn't. Like, it wasn't practical,
wasn't crunchy. Yeah, it was a more like a mango flavor, and
I didn't like it, and I just kept modifying it, modifying and modifying it.
And when I did their tasting, I literally. I was literally up the night before,
the entire night, just, like, perfecting everything that they were

(44:26):
gonna have, because it was pretty much, like, the way that I wound up there
was. I heard that they were selling the place. It was good. Turned out to
be a complete rumor. But I met Steven, the owner, and we hit it off,
and I told him about all my plans for the business, like, what I would
do if it were mine. And. And he was a yo, let's. Let's. Let's. Why
don't you just take over the kitchen, and. And we'll see where it takes us.

(44:46):
You know? I'm saying, I guess, nice relationship. And, you know, at the time, I
was like, okay. Like, I didn't.
Like, I didn't see anything wrong with. I was like, okay, let me take the
summer off. We'll start, like, in the fall, september, whatever, you know?
And I did this tasting for them. I was up the whole night before,
just, you know, perfecting everything, and I came up with this.
This dish that I had been modifying it, like, the whole summer,

(45:10):
and. And it was like an instant hit. Like,
everyone that tried it was like, oh, this is off the hook. I think you
got something. I can absolutely vouch for it. And actually, funny
story. Before I actually
open the menu, I call. I had
one of, like, my mentors, like, come in, chef coven. I don't

(45:31):
know if you've heard of him. I have. I have. I actually saw him on.
He was on a podcast recently. Earn your leisure
podcast with those guys. I saw the episode. It was dope. He's a very modest
guy, but he's. He's a rod and Jlo's personal chef.
He has a very long trajectory and
great reputation. And this guy,

(45:54):
he came. He was a mutual friend of someone, of one of
my wife's family members, and was, like, telling
her, like, yo, this guy, he's like,
I love this guy. She's like, yeah, I went to high school. That dude. Yeah,
I'm gonna go take him over. I was like, yeah, okay, whatever. And, yo, they
showed up there one day. Why? He tried, and I made the pizza for him,

(46:16):
and he was like, yo, you really have something here. That's all. And I meant,
like, so much to me. I can imagine. That's, like, so validating, you know, right.
Before, like, I, like, probably. Probably, like, two weeks before I
actually started, like, a kaoba, you
know, he gave me that. That little reassurance that I needed,
and that meant a lot to me because. That'S a big step, too, in and

(46:37):
of itself, right? Like, you going from were you doing before to, like, taking over
two different worlds? I was. It was more like my thing was, like,
catering, and I would cook in, like, large quantities,
and it was, like, a lot of, like, the masses and. Yeah, exactly. It was,
like a quick lunch spot. Like, yeah, we had really cool
signature dishes and the cheesiest, amazing things and

(46:58):
shit. But, like, um, you know, it was
different because this was, everything was just like an a la carte menu,
so I really had to, like, just, like,
compress all my ideas. Yeah. And the flavors that I
knew and the things that I was, like, used to working with and just bringing
them to, like, to, like, a more presentable

(47:20):
life. And, you know, we had a great year.
We had a great year. Absolutely. It was.
We had a lot of success there. Absolutely. With the menu and stuff.
Tell me, before you. Before you actually, when did you get the idea for
the dominican pizza? Because, like, you said, you started first, like, with the. With the
large pie, but before you even tried that large pie, like, where you just, like,

(47:43):
chilling one day, like, platinos pizza.
Platinos pizza. Let me mash them together.
Yeah, actually, I just. I
got, like. I was just bored of the fact that, like, we were
only making more fun God platinums. And
I felt like that we could make more cooler

(48:06):
shapes out of this. Thing and make it take a versatile. Because I saw the.
I saw the. How attracted people were to
the food porn on Instagram. Like, people would go nuts over
cheese and. And shit. That was, like, you
know, put together in a funny looking way, you know?
So. So I was like, no, we gotta.

(48:28):
We gotta do more with this. And I started doing those little mofongito cups,
which obviously wasn't something that new, but,
you know, the names that we gave our dishes were very
hilarious. Like, one day, I was basically
test. Testing recipes, and one of the employees
comes into the kitchen. He's a yes. How are. I was

(48:51):
like, that's it. That's the name. Lavanita. And I was like. I
became one of the dishes that, like, really put me on board.
What was it? It was like, these little more fungito cups. Like,
we made a mistake. Or shrimp or chicken, but
easy. And they had, like, this, like, really good, like, with the

(49:12):
sauces that we put on them, like, were made from scratch, and they were just
delicious. And, you know, people were just like, wow, this is amazing. And it was
like, that thing, you know, nice. And then from
there, just, like, you know, the pizza, it just. It came out of, like, all
this. All these trials and errors of, like, we have to, like, we gotta
put platinums on the map. You know what I'm saying? Why are. When I go

(49:33):
on instagram, how come I don't really see, like, like,
white Dominicans aren't really, like, on the map like, that, you know, like, with,
like, you know, why not? Like, why isn't there a live food
network yet? You know, there's so much. And I know someone
who's, like, working on that, and. And I don't want to say
much, but you're like, you have all my support, like, but

(49:55):
why isn't that. You know what? Like, come on, bro. Like, why we're not there
yet. You know, we should be there yet. You know, we should be there already.
And. And because latin food is amazing, bro. I do
cuban food and then peruvian food and colombian food and
mexican food and so. So many, bro. We
have good food, so many different. Flavors that are all like. Yes. You know,

(50:17):
like, we know we should be more. You know, we should
really. We gotta eat. It should be, like, more of a
staple. Yeah, let's represent ourselves, you know, more, you
know? So hold that thought 1 second.
All right, so we're back with a nice little refill. Cheers.
Cheers to you. Thank you, sir.

(50:39):
Um, so the vanitas. So from
that, and the dude in. In Kawa saying
quesa? Why not? No, that was actually at
Papi's grill. Oh, okay, okay, okay. Where they were born in the.
You know how we gave it that name and they would, like,
put us on the map and, you know, I just started

(51:02):
exploring more. It gave me the thing. It gave me, like, that. And the sandwiches
we made were just amazing. Like, I made these
amazing Philly cheesesteak sandwiches. Like, this freaking
amazing cheese sauce that got me to the food network, so. Really?
Yeah. So tell me what that was
like. Well, I was, like, really paying attention to what was going on with food

(51:24):
on Instagram, and I started working with this one of
my favorite foodie pages. Devour power. They. They were
coming to my spot and they were trying my food, and they were like, this
is amazing. It's very Instagram worthy. It's very attractive. And,
you know, they.
They really gave me, like, that social presence because they shouted

(51:46):
me out a few times and. And people started just
coming to the end, you know, that's when I discovered, like, wow. Like, you
know, Instagram, like, if influencer
marketing really works, and I was really, like, blown away by
that, and I just. I was just really, like, being. Really
becoming more comfortable with being myself. True. And

(52:09):
I went from, like, 600 followers to, like, like,
maybe like 14, 15,000 followers, like, in a year. Year.
Wow. And then, like. Like, that was just,
like, on the back of that. Yeah, that was just me doing, like, these crazy
looking sandwiches and. And stuff like that. And then when. Once I started, I
cowboy when I was like, I was probably, like, around 13,000

(52:30):
and, wow.
Like, I know I'm at 32 now. Like, that all happened, like, in
a year and a half. Yeah, that growth,
the dominican pizza was, like, a sensation. Like, people
were just like, holy shit, that's so cool. And it took me to do shows
in doctor. It took me to do shows

(52:53):
like, like, different parts of the country. I just
came from a trip from Paris and I.
Someone dm me like, oh, my God, I love your food. I live in
Paris. Like, I'm a chef at a restaurant. You should come here and
have my food. I was like, yo, amazing how instagram has literally
changed my life and the dominican pizza has literally changed my life.

(53:15):
It's just giving me opportunities to meet a bunch of people, like, connect
world. Yeah. And it's like the reaches and travel more and just
do more and, and, yeah, these,
so these influencers, they did an event with the New York City Wine and
Food festival in New York, and I was invited to
come and do my, like, famous philly cheesesteak sandwiches with the cheese sauce. And

(53:38):
so that night I was shouted out on the food network and I
did the New York City winning food festival, and which is. I have a
very interesting story about. Tell me. I'm gonna say it at the end
just as an example, just so people could take it, you
know, with them, you know, so whatever. Um, so
I went and, and so

(54:01):
that cheese sauce really, like, put me on the map as well. So, so it's
been the, it's been like the vanitas and the cheese sauce and dominican pizza and
just, and the Mac and cheese, and it's just always doing things that just
like, like, appeal to the eye, but it's also very.
Delicious and infused also with that dominican, like, culture. Yes,
exactly. And just always, you know, trying to just stay true to my roots and

(54:23):
stuff. And so, yeah, these
dishes have really, like, changed my life because, you know,
I wasn't able to do to host
private dinners in people's homes, like I do now, like, almost
regularly before then, you know, like, I
was always, like, the type of person, like, oh, have my in laws in and

(54:45):
make them a nice paella or something. And now I'm doing this shit, like, all
the time. Like, people call me, I do private dinners for them. I go to
their house and they celebrate, party, you know, whatever, to all types of
parties. And, you know, we do groups of 1015, 20 people and
we just, like, do like a nice ten course dinner and just. That's awesome.
And we get to know each other and we drink and we have fun and

(55:06):
it's like, I love my life. I love what I do. And if folks, if
folks actually want to reach out to you, like, for that, how do they do
that? I'm in the process of
building a website now. Just personalized for, like, chef
Poppy and all the things that
I. All the services that I do, but not right now.
I'm just. Everything is really just like Instagram and DM. Chef Poppy

(55:29):
NYC. It's at chef Poppy and Wash. Poppy.
Underscore NYC on Instagram. And it's just like, really, like,
right now. I do apologize beforehand. I have over
a hundred DM's in my request folder. I
have just can't keep up with. Like, hundreds of DM's. I have
hundreds of DM's. And every day I tackle

(55:51):
2030, 40, 50 DM's. And then the next day I have another hundred on top
of that. So it's like, it's hard to manage. But.
But, um. But, yeah, right now I will there. I
do have my email on my bio, so I.
Okay. And I also work with an agency called
Urban Latin media. They.

(56:14):
I have their contact information on my bio as well. And
you can book me through them. They help me book events because. Too much to
handle for me. Gotcha. So they had to, like, all the logistics. Yeah.
So they keep a calendar for me and then we do really cool events with
them as well. They represent a lot of really cool people. I love them. Check
them out. They have a lot of cool services. Everything from, like, you

(56:36):
know, design to locals to merge to everything
they told. They're like all one stop shop.
Yeah, so, yeah, so, so, yeah,
it was just like, going through the
process has put me in situations where I've met people who
have just given me a little push or giving me a little

(56:58):
reassurance as to that. Like, you know, what I'm actually doing is
the right thing, you know? Yeah. You know, so
encouraging, validating. Yeah. And I'm sure
you like, you network, it opens doors, you meet other people, and
it provides opportunities. That's amazing. So I'll tell you my
story about my first. Like,

(57:21):
I want to say, like, real event. Like, I've had tons of
events and tons of catering and weddings and you name it before
this day, but, you know, I'm like, holy shit, this is the Food
Network. Yeah. New York City wine and Food Festival. Like, this
is Fifth Avenue next to the Louis Vuitton store. Like,
this is big. Like, I'm a city boy. I love New York City. Like, new.

(57:44):
There's something about the skyline that just, like, it just turns me on.
I love, I love New York, bro. Like, New York just drives
no place like it. No. So
I had a, had a three man team that
day. And how'd you get there real quick, like, I like
not to get the devour. The devour. What was it? Devour power. There were

(58:06):
these influencers on a foodie, influencers on Instagram. So they were going
to the store, an event. They had a New York City one in food festival
event, and with the guy with that show, man versus
food, and they were like, they invited me to be one of
the featured chefs there. Gotcha. Okay. Blown away by that.
And that just came from you doing the Philistines at festival? Yeah. Just like,

(58:28):
they just enjoyed my food. They're like, oh, you need to be there. And I'm
so grateful for them and for that. For that opportunity. And
so. So this show did that day.
The show started, like, at probably 08:00 p.m. i had to be there by, like,
637 to set up. I worked that day at
Kahova. I opened lunch. Damn. I left early, but I

(58:50):
opened lunch. And, like, I was cutting it really close. I was playing with fire,
and I was trying to, like, do all my orders and also, like,
prep a few things that I needed for the show for that day.
I should have taken the day off. But I was about to say that.
Yeah, so I'm running super
late, and my team is running later than I am. So

(59:12):
we were a three man team, and I was the one that was gonna get
there first. And I was in my van with all the equipment and all
the food and all the prepped food. And
this was the second time that I
met Chef Kelvin. The second time. This is the second time, mind you, this
guy, I've, like, looked up to him and worshiped him for the shit he

(59:34):
does and his charisma and everything for, like, a long time before I
even thought about being on Instagram. And this is the
second time I met him. He calls me, and he's a, yo, chef, what's up,
man? I'm here, you know, because I had invited. I was
like, you should drop by. And he
was like, oh, he calls me. He's like,

(59:56):
dude, I'm here. And I'm, like, stuck on
the. On the midtown tunnel or something. Like, stupid
traffic. Damn. And I'm, like, an hour late. Yeah, of the
real Dominican. And I'm running super late. And I'm just
like, dude, I'm really
nervous. I'm really. I'm running really late. My team is running even more behind

(01:00:18):
than I am. I don't know how. I don't know how I'm just gonna even
bring this shit in. Like, this is Fifth Avenue. Like,
this is like, I was at the Tommy Hilfiger store on Fifth Avenue. Damn.
So, like, there's no standing zone. Like, I'm saying, I'm just,
like, completely, like, at this point, like, I'm just shitting my pants. Yeah, I don't
know what's going. I changed in the car that day. Like, I was literally,

(01:00:39):
like, in traffic pants. Yeah, well, I was in traffic,
and he's a chef. Don't worry about it. Look, I'm having a drink across
the street. Call me when you're five minutes away.
I called them when I was five minutes away. He's like, no worry, chef. We're
here. We're out in front waiting for you. Say, who said? Well, I'm
confused. I pull up in front of the store. This guy's outside. We're,

(01:01:02):
like, 30 people. Like, 30 volunteers that, like, people who are, like,
running the show. Like, running the actual show, people who are actually that part
of the event doing shit. And he's like, pulled them from their. Their
tasks, and they're like, yo, one of our chefs is here.
And he's like, yo, help, dude. He had literally,
I pulled up in front of the store, and he had enough people

(01:01:24):
outside to take everything I had in my van. My van
was completely loaded inside to my spot.
And he's a chef. Relax, breed. Take it
easy. His. This is your apron. This is your package. This
is where you're gonna be. Like, he had, like, checked in for me. Wow. He's
like, give me your keys. I'm gonna go park your car.

(01:01:45):
That is second time I met him. The first time I met him, he came
to Kaoba to try the pizza. Second time I met him, he's at one of
my most important shows ever. Like, at the be very, very
beginning of my career. That's insane, man. Saying, that's. So.
Dude, just go relax. I'm gonna park your car. He goes, he parks my
car. He. He comes back, and. And

(01:02:07):
we had a power issue. We couldn't get started, and he was, like, fucking
busting people around. Like, yo, we have our power shoe. Like, what's going on? Like,
this is, like, this shows about to start. Like, we're not ready to. Like, I
mean, he moved us or, like, he. He held us down. He, like, made
it happen. My finally showed up, and. And we had,
like, a line over a hundred people the entire night,

(01:02:29):
and we were on the. We got shouted out on the food network that day.
They posted us like, we were the main attraction at the New York City
for. And it was all thanks to him because he was literally, like, at the
foot of our table. I was so busy just making sandwiches,
bro, and making the cheese sauce, and people were just surrounding us, taking
pictures of the cheese pool, and I couldn't, like, even talk to

(01:02:50):
people again. And he was just the whole time like, yeah, this is my man,
Stephen. Whatever, bubble chef, papi, kaoba, blah,
blah. Like, he was just, like, really, like, he
champions. That's insane. You're shout out to
reason to do that. No fucking reason to do that.
And excuse me, I curse a lot,

(01:03:13):
but, you know, that. That said, like,
dude, that that was another event in my life that I would never forget because
I'm just like, this dude had no, no, no reason to do that.
Like, no rhyme or reason. He has such a busy
schedule. He had no reason to be there to
help me out. This was my fault. I was late. You know, I'm saying it

(01:03:35):
was my fault. Like, my team was late. Yeah, it was my. I see
it that way. Anything that has my name on it, it goes wrong. Even if
it was, like, it wasn't me that, you know, I'm saying, you're. Gonna hold yourself
responsible. I hold myself accountable for anything that has my name tied to it.
So. So I, you know, to me, I'm like,
you know, this is the second time I met the dude,

(01:03:57):
and it. Just said, he's going so above and beyond. Says so much
about, like, just like, you know,
what are we really doing? You know, I'm saying, what are. What are our
goals and. And what are we doing to, like, help other people?
Like, you know, there's a lot of people that believe in that. Like, you know,
if you just always do wealth, but to, you know, to other people,

(01:04:21):
someone will always have your back to, you know, saying, someone will always
have your back because, you know, essentially, that's what
life is for. Like, and right now is, like, I live my life for my
family. Like, yes, I enjoy what I do, but, like, everything
that I do, I think about, like, how this is gonna benefit
my. My kid, you know? Yeah. How is my kid gonna learn from this? How

(01:04:43):
is he gonna, you know, grow up with. And.
And I guess, like, I'm being a little selfish. Like, I'm trying to set up
a little shortcut for them. Like I said, no, this is. You don't have to
find out the absolute. The hardest way ever. But this is
what I went through. You know, and just, like, like, learn from my mistakes. Exactly.
I just feel like just sharing stories and experiences like, this

(01:05:06):
you know, this. I like, I love that you do this podcast
because you're sharing other people's stories with everyone
that listens to the podcast. And that's an amazing thing
because stories are reassuring
and processes are reassuring and experiences are reassuring,
and that's all we really need. We just need a little

(01:05:28):
reassurance. We just need to build a little confidence
to get over whatever it is that we're dealing with, whatever
shit we grew up with, whatever insecurities we have
to us or said to us, like, dude, that it's like, we
can't keep using this as an excuse to
not, you know, get into action. I'm a for not follow our

(01:05:49):
dreams. Let's move you absolutely. Just move. You
know, Dan, that. That's such a dope story, man. Appreciate you sharing that
with us. Thank you. Shout out to chef Colin. Absolutely, man. Not
writing your dick at all. Folks.
Check out. Check out that episode. I'll actually link to it in the episode notes
that Chef Calvin was on. I think I spoke about it in a previous podcast,

(01:06:11):
if I'm not mistaken, but just in case I didn't, it
was on the earn your leisure podcast, and it was a dope
episode, and you guys should definitely check it out. And
Chef Papi, appreciate you, man. Thank you very much for
doing this. If you want to. One last thing
that, which I think you touched on already, but that I want

(01:06:33):
to ask you is if you have, like, any advice or
words of encouragement, I guess, for like, an upcoming
chef or cook or anything like that, if you want to share it,
which I think, which honestly, I feel like this entire podcast has been, you know
what I mean? Like, people just knowing your story is that. But any last

(01:06:53):
words? No, I mean, it doesn't necessarily just have
to be a chef, you know, I just want to just
everyone in general, like,
just let go.
That's it. It's like the only way
you can truly be happy. Discover,

(01:07:16):
you know, that gut feeling that you're feeling, whether it's like, the right thing
for you or not, is to exercise it. You know, it's like,
find out there's something. There's something that you're tied to
that's not allowing you to let go. I mean, to move forward,
let go of that shit. Like, and you only, you know what it is. No
one can help you. No one could do the work for you. You can have,

(01:07:37):
like, how many books don't exist, how many podcasts don't
exist. Like, there's just. All the information is there is right in front of
you, the formula is given to you, literally,
but. But you gotta do the work. True.
And. And. And it's like, whatever it is that's holding you back
from doing the work. Figure out what that is and let go

(01:08:01):
of that. And. And. And be prepared. Like,
the world is not perfect. Be prepared to be
completely fucking ruined.
Take your losses. Take your I. Or at least
be prepared to know that people just want to shit
on you just because they have their own insecurities that

(01:08:23):
they haven't, like, let go of. They're projecting it on.
Yes. Yes. Yeah, dude. Like. Like, the.
The best things that I do or because I was come. I was yelled
at, I was scared into fucking making it right. You
know, I was. I was embarrassed into making it right. I
was hurt into making it right, you know? And

(01:08:45):
that's all part of the process. And you don't get that. You don't get that
in a book. You know, you could get that in a story. You can hear
my story all you want. It's never gonna do anything for you until
you start making your own story, you know? Absolutely. Well said,
chef. Thank you, brother. Thank you. Pleasure.

(01:09:06):
And that's the interview, folks. What you guys
think? I hope you guys had as good a time
listening to it as we did recording it. And tell me,
how dope was that chef Kelvin story?
My first impression when hearing it was that it was an example
of a good dude paying it forward. Like, someone in

(01:09:28):
his life or career probably
lended a helping hand to him in a time of need,
and this was his way of paying that back.
I don't know if that's true. Obviously, that was just, like, the impression that I
got initially when hearing the story. And
it's just so dope that somebody would go out of the way to do something

(01:09:49):
like that for someone that is relatively unknown to
them at that point. So shout out to chef Calvin for
real. And I'll link to the
episode of the earn your leisure podcast that I mentioned during the
episode that I saw Chef Calvin on. It's a really good
episode. And shout out to Rashad and Troy, which are the hosts

(01:10:11):
of the earn your Leisure podcast, which is a dope show that you guys should
check out. It's a business podcast, and they usually interview
entrepreneurs like Chef Kelvin or real estate investors
and folks from different businesses as well. So
definitely check them out. And I'll leave you guys with this. Something else that
the. That that story reminded me of is a

(01:10:33):
concept that I first learned of through Elliot Halls,
and it's a concept of there being three different types of people in the world.
It's something that resonated with me to the point that I have it in the
acknowledgement section, broken down in both of
my books. And the gist of it is that every person
that you encounter in life will fall into one of these

(01:10:56):
three categories. There are people that are mirrors, and
those are folks that will show you a
reflection of yourself, whether it be positive or
negative. So they'll reflect things back
to you, which are traits that if you look inward,
you realize are within you, and then you do what you will with

(01:11:18):
that information. Whether you decide to work on those negatives to
get rid of them, or work on those positives to
increase those positive attributes. So that type of
person in your life is a mirror. Then you have the second type of
person, which is a crystal ball. And these are
people that are in your life. And through

(01:11:40):
them, you can see what you could become.
And again, it could be positive or negative. For example, there's a
saying in the art that says el que and con
cojo ala cohea. And if you apply that to the people around
you, this crystal ball concept, you can hone in on
the folks in your life that are negative and bring you down, and that you'll

(01:12:01):
ultimately become by continuing to surround yourself with
them. And conversely, hone in on the folks
that are positive influences in your life and bring out the best in you
and are motivating and keep it pushing. And I. You will
do the same. Now, nobody's perfect, obviously, and most of us probably
have a combination of both of these different types of

(01:12:23):
folks, positive and negative, in our lives. But hopefully, you can
use that crystal ball concept to help
navigate those relationships wisely. And
lastly, the last type of person in this concept of
three different types of people in the world that the story
that Chef Boppi shared about chef Kelvin reminded me

(01:12:45):
of are angels. And these are folks that come
into your life for an undetermined amount of time,
whether it's like a long term relationship or
just a fleeting conversation that you have in passing with someone that
happens to give you some, like, dope direction or
advice. But in the time that these angels are in

(01:13:08):
your life, they do something incredible for you. And that could be anything
from being your doctor and putting you
on a medication that saves your life,
or someone that gives you the green light at
a job interview that changes the trajectory of your life.
Or it could be a spouse, a sibling, or as

(01:13:30):
I think was the case here, an angel can be someone that literally
shows up to a pivotal event in your life, hands you your
apron, parks your van, and champions your cause for the
ealing. And that's why I thought that was an amazing story
and one of my favorite takeaways from this episode. Chef
Papi, I want to say thank you once again for doing this. I hope you

(01:13:52):
enjoyed it as much as I did and you have an open invitation
to the podcast. We definitely have to run it back again sometime in the
future future. And thanks again to Stephen and Elaine for hosting us at
Outa. And thank you folks for listening to episode
146 of the podcast.
What's up folks? Tony here. I hope you're enjoying the Spun Today

(01:14:16):
podcast as much as I enjoy producing it for you. Here are a
few ways you can. Help support the show. You can support the Spun Today
podcast financially by going to spuntoday.com.
there you will find a couple different ways that you can do just that, some
of which will actually not even cost you a dime, such as
using my Amazon affiliate link. When you go to

(01:14:38):
sponsodate.com support, you'll see my affiliate
link to Amazon. Click on it and it will take you to Amazon's website
where you can do your shopping like normal. This will not cost you anything
extra, but Amazon will pay me for driving traffic to their
website. If you'd like to support the podcast more directly,
you can do so by becoming a patron@spuntoday.com.

(01:15:00):
support you'll also find my Patreon link. This is where
creators such as myself can be paid directly by patrons like
you. You can either make a one time donation or
schedule recurring donations if you so choose. There are also different tiers
of support and depending on which you decide to go with, you'll also receive some
perks and in return such as early access to content, free digital copies

(01:15:22):
of my books, free bookmarks, etcetera. That is, again,
by supporting via my Patreon link
available@sponsoday.com support similar to
Patreon, at that same location you'll also find my ko fi link as well
as my buy me a coffee link. They work very similar to
Patreon and there are different ways you can help support the show financially.

(01:15:43):
And last but certainly not least, you have the good old fashioned PayPal
donation button. Any which way that you choose to support is
greatly appreciated. It all helps me do more of what I love, which is writing
and podcasting. Again, go to spuntoday.com
support. You can also support the Spun today podcast
by rating and reviewing the show wherever it is that you're listening to

(01:16:06):
this episode, I'd really appreciate it because. It really does help.
Also, follow me on all socialsuntoday
on X, formally known as Twitter Puntoday, on
Instagram and today on YouTube, where
you'll not only find full length episodes of the podcast, but
also chopped up clips and additional content. And of

(01:16:28):
course, you can follow the Facebook page@facebook.com.
spun today another way you can help support the Spun Today
podcast and also upgrade that stale wardrobe of yours
is by going to spuntoday.com support and
clicking on the banner for Stitch fix. Once you do,
you'll enjoy a $25 discount to your first purchase. And the way

(01:16:51):
stitch fix works is pretty cool. I use it and I've never been disappointed. You'll
set up a profile. You'll put in all the sizes for your clothes
as well as all the different brands and types of clothes that you
like to wear. It's really simple and intuitive to set up. They'll show you pictures
and pretty much give you a thumbs up or thumbs down option on if you
would wear something or not. And you get to select all the brands that you

(01:17:13):
already are used to wearing. With this information, there are thousands
of passionate, trend setting stylists will
curate a stitch fix box for you. They'll send you five items
that you get to preview before they mail it to you, and you'll get to
select based on the image if you like it or nothing. If not, they'll replace
it with something else, and if so, they'll mail it to you absolutely for

(01:17:33):
free. You can try everything on and you have a few days to send everything
back or keep the stuff that you want to keep. Then you can use that
$25 credit that I mentioned towards your purchase of those
items again to freshen up your wardrobe and also support the sponsor
Day podcast. Go to sponsorday.com forward Slash support
and click on my affiliate link banner for Stitch fixed and

(01:17:56):
enjoy your $25 credit. Do you want to start your own
podcast? Have a great show idea that you want to get out into the masses
but don't know quite how to get it from your head out into the world?
Well, here's how. Use the podcast host
Libsyn, that's who I use to bring the Spun today podcast to
you, and now you can use them the same way using the

(01:18:17):
promo code Spun s p u n. You can open up your
lipsn account today and get two months of free
podcast hosting. Here's how it works. Once you
record your show, you upload it to your Lipson account where you can fill
in your episode notes, upload your podcast art, and
schedule when you want your episodes to release. Once you

(01:18:39):
do that, Lipsyn will take care of the rest. They'll distribute your show to
Spotify Apple podcasts, YouTube, and all the
other podcasters that you choose instantaneously and
seamlessly. Again, go to lipson.com and use the promo
code spun spun to get two months free,
or use the affiliate link that's in the episode notes. Again,

(01:19:02):
that's libsyn.com promo code spun. Take that
great podcast idea from out of your head and put it out into the
world. And as always, folks, substitute the
mysticism with hard work and start taking steps. In the general
direction of your dreams. Thanks for listening.

(01:19:34):
I love you, Aiden. I love you, Daddy.
I love you, Grayson. I love you, Daddy.
Damn.

All Episodes

#267 – The Art of Cooking: Chef Papi’s Creative Process and Entrepreneurial Spirit (Re-Release)

Episode Transcript

Popular Podcasts

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

Stuff You Should Know

Dateline NBC

.css-15opob5{left:0;position:absolute;top:0.8rem;} All Episodes

.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}#267 – The Art of Cooking: Chef Papi’s Creative Process and Entrepreneurial Spirit (Re-Release)