Hey Ya’ll!

I’m three days back from Jamaica and as much as I miss staring at the ocean every morning, it’s good to be back in Atlanta. This trip gave me all the stillness that I needed. There is so much beauty in stillness. But now, I’m ready to work.

• I spent most of the days before my birthday reading Rick Rubin’s new book The Creative Act. This book is incredible. I’m glad I bought a physical copy because it’s a book that I’ll read over and over again. For anyone that creates or anyone that wants to create, this book will guide you.

• Reading this book also helped me realize that the role that I play in food and beverage is that of a producer. I like to understand all the little pieces and see how they fit together. This simple thought unlocked so much creativity within me.

• This completely played out for me with this Holy Sip dinner. I’d decided that the chef at the villa would be the chef that I used for this dinner. I showed up and was met with a 21-year-old with lots of talent, but no appreciation for ingredients. Immediately, I knew that this dinner was more about him than it was about anything else.

• The morning of the dinner was outrageously window. After year dinner #2, I knew that wind is a very underestimated element when putting together an outdoor event. Nothing would stay on the table. I knew that this wind existed to point me in a different direction. As I sat in my favorite spot on the estate waiting for an answer, I picked my head up and there was this little covered path that somehow I hadn’t noticed before. I walked down into it and it was magical and the best part, there was no wind. However, after many attempts, it turned out to be too narrow to fit a table and chairs. Somehow I couldn’t let go of this tunnel being the answer. It was too perfect. Twenty minutes later I found out that there was a wider tunnel that was just as dreamy and even closer to the kitchen. Perfection. If you allow space for it, the answer will come. I normally don’t add photos, but there’s a photo of the table below.

• Despite this perfect setting, everything about this dinner felt wrong to me. A million things had gone wrong and I felt completely drained. However, after reading that Rick Rubin book I remembered that sometimes the creative act is enough. As the creator, your job is to put it into the world and let people receive it how they will.

• I’m finkle and einhorning doing more dinners/experiences outside of February in Jamaica. The last time I said this was in February 2020. I was really excited about it and then the world shut down a few days later. So I’m very hesitant to say this again. Instead…we’ll see.