Ep079 - SUNDAY DINNER WITH STRECH

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Chris Whonsetler talks with Indianapolis community builder Dwayne “Stretch” Thalley about “commensality” — how eating together builds community and makes tough conversations easier by encouraging people to listen. Stretch shares his journey from Los Angeles to Indianapolis, his work connecting diverse networks, and how events like Sunday Dinner at Tinker Street and his earlier Breaking Bread dinners intentionally bring strangers together over food. They recap standout meals at Tinker Street (including a Black History Month chef collaboration, a shiitake custard tasting, and Sunday Dinner’s chicken-and-waffles pairing), discuss the need for respectful disagreement and safe spaces, and discuss why food lowers defenses and improves listening.

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Strech: We red. 

Chris: Red is bad in business, isn't it? 

Strech: Yeah. If you're into red. Yeah. 

Chris: Oh yeah. 

Strech: We're we're. It's good in a recording though. It's 

Chris: the good kind of red here 

Strech: with, with a video. 

Chris: Alright. I'm glad you're here. Thank you so much. 

Strech: Absolutely. Thanks for having me. I love these opportunities.

Chris: All right. Welcome back to Okayest Cook Podcast. I'm your host, Chris Whonsetler, coming at you from this studio today with a really, really cool guest. I, you all have heard me talking about our, our keyword. Our pillar, one of our pillars, commensality. It is, it's not a word I made up despite what Andy might refer to with his, some of his comments.

It is a weird word that not a lot of people have heard about when, when I started the show. I basically, I wanted a word that meant just the act of getting together, eating together, just community mixed with food. So I Googled it and it spit out ality and I fell in love. So that is kind of the heart and soul of, of what we are doing here at Okayest Cook.

Yep. Podcast. It's all about food. As you might be aware. It's about cooking food. It's about eating food. But more importantly than that, it's about people. It's about community. It's about bringing people together and sharing food. And when I met my guest here, Mr. Dwayne Stretch, I haven't introduced you yet.

It's been awkward. But I met you at a podcast lab that you threw basically how to do this with, with a bunch of really cool people. And right from the beginning. I just could see, I could sense just from the way you act, the way you presented yourself, just you are a man of the people. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: You thrive on bringing people together.

Yep. It brings you joy, it's brings you life. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: And then you went through the Sunday dinner, which is, I mean, how, how would you explain that? And it's like, I mean, it's, it's a recording. Yeah. So you recorded 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: But we had dinner. You brought a bunch of people to a phenomenal restaurant. Tinker Street. 

Strech: Yep.

Chris: I'm speaking, I'm speaking for you here. 

Strech: Yeah, so Sunday dinner was a concept that we came up with with Tinker Street Jordan Ivory and Shep Tyler. And it was just a way to bring the community in, into in together. Over food. Yes. And, and, and conversation. It's very important to have a common ground when you don't have common backgrounds.

Chris: Yes. 

Strech: You know, so, and food is a way that kind of levels the playing field for a lot of conversations and getting people to feel more comfortable sitting with each other and having those kind of, community, political, social related conversations about things. You, you can open up a lot of doors and feel comfortable doing it over food.

Usually 

Chris: yes. 

Strech: Because we all agree that it, it goes down to, it tastes good, it feels good, you know, so it's, it's, it is just a really it's a really easy way to bring a lot of people together. 

Chris: Yes, absolutely. I'm getting ahead of myself. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: Can we introduce you properly? Sure. Tell, tell us just like Sure.

Like two little sense. Give, give us your bio. 

Strech: Okay. So I'm name is the Two Minute Bio is Stretch Thalley. I like to call myself a community activist, but what I am is a person who likes to build networks and bring people together. Yeah. That, that's just what I like to do. It's important to me because I'm not from Indiana.

I'm from Los Angeles, California, and I. Came here to start a family, and for many years it was hard for me to feel accepted in this, in this community, in this state, really, and. Over, over time, I allowed myself to explore the city and I, and I found Indianapolis, the community of Indianapolis, the Circle City, and what I found was a really rich community of art and food and just a vibrant culture.

Yes. You know, and, and it was something that I was missing and I think that. Community is very important to me. And, and, and what I found was we all define community different. So, so my way of, my way of defining community is me being a part of a large group of people in the same area, trying to make sure that everybody has the same opportunities, the same equity, and the same level of safeness.

In that area. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: So, you know, some people might define it as, I live in this area, this is my house. I take care of my family. That is my community there. I'm just in the community. But to me, community is more of an extension of family, so, mm-hmm. The lot, a lot of things that I do. It's, it's, it's kind of bringing people to that.

Chris: Yeah, dude, I love that. I love that you just said that little bit about family. Mm-hmm. Being community. 'cause honestly, I've, I've, I've been feeling a little, I don't wanna say lost 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: But. I be, me and my wife were married for, gosh, almost a decade. Okay. Before we had kids. Yep. And in that decade, you know, I was down here a lot.

I was just, you know, I was doing all the things. Doing all the things. Yep. You know, with my wife, you know, just with work, all the things. Yep. And then we had kids and everything changed. And my life went from like a social community, you know, with, you know, my work and our friends and all this and that to just.

Being stuck at home. Yep. And it was a weird combination of. It, we had our first kid, like right at COVID. Yeah. So it was like, that happened with our first kid. Yeah. So like, everything changed for me, for everyone else. And I'm just now kind of like rediscovering what community outside of my house is looking like.

So like I'm a feeling a little socially awkward Yeah. At 

Strech: times. Yeah. As you should 

Chris: because I'm only used to talking to, to three year olds and five year olds and 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: And so yeah, we're, we're getting back out into the community and it feels great and I love that. And like I met you guys at that podcast lab.

Yep. And that Sunday dinner, I met so many really rad people there. 

Strech: Yeah. Cool. 

Chris: And again, it's just me kind of rediscovering, you know, what. Life outside of the, the family circle looks like, and it's not, I'm not trying to say that, like I'm trying to escape the family circle. No. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: But if you have kids, you, you get it.

Definitely. Like you need to escape the kids from time to time. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: And I don't know where I was going with that rant, but it just like you kind of spoke into me. Yeah. Like in my, my current situation. Yeah. Kind of where I'm heading and what I'm experiencing currently. 

Strech: Well, I think it's important when you have that feeling that you have.

To be intentional about being out in the community that you live in. That's, that's how that community becomes family because you become familiar. And I think when it comes to a lot of the aspects of community, it could be better if people more intentional about being present. And that means, yeah, that could go from our local representatives to law enforcement, to just pedestrians in the city.

Just being visible. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: Makes other people feel more comfortable around you, and then you start to learn more by just being out in the community. 

Chris: Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah, absolutely. Love it. Well, let's, let's bring this back to food. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: And I skipped our notable meal segment. Have you eaten anything really cool lately?

Strech: So, so, we just talked about Tinker Street. 

Chris: Yes. 

Strech: And 

Chris: we're, we're gonna talk a lot about Tinker Street today. 

Strech: Spoiler alert. They, you know, they're, they're very well connected in the city, and they, and they have their hands in a lot of things and I'm, I'm really impressed with how they are very intentional about that.

Chris: Yes. 

Strech: But recently I was at a. A Black History Month dinner. It was like, it, it was like February 2nd. Mm-hmm. So it was starting off Black History Month and they had I think it was six black chefs doing each course. It was a six course meal. And they just had, man, they had greens, they had oxtails, they had mac and cheese, they had, man, it was just, they always do it right?

Yes. And you know, they had the right chefs and I was just super. Impressed by the presentation, by the meal, and you know, Jordan and I actually sat, sat next to Chef Tyler in the audience. Oh, that's 

Chris: awesome. 

Strech: I think maybe they didn't want a white guy cooking on black history, 

Chris: but just to get the inside scoop from him, like as the meal's coming out, 

Strech: that would be awesome.

And watching him eat and taste and, critique and, you know, talk about how good it was. It was very impressive. Yeah. You know, 

Chris: he, he's built a really cool team and I love hearing him talk about his coworkers. Yeah. And the people. He knows his community there. Mm-hmm. The chef community. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: Do you recall who, who was cooking?

I'm assuming Aye 

Strech: chef. I remember chef Michael Bergen was cooking Dyke Michaels, yeah. Ish. She's the pastry chef at Tinker. She made a she made a sweet potato pie. 

Chris: Mm. 

Strech: And some ice cream. I'm trying to think anybody else that I remember the names of them. Just, just Aisha. 

Chris: Like you gotta come to Indy and have some of her food.

Strech: Oh, her, 

Chris: her. What's she made for your Sunday dinner? Oh, yes. We're getting ahead of schedule here. We'll talk about that later. We'll talk. Okay. Come back. Come back. Flag that. Yeah. But 

Strech: I mean, was, she was six wonderful chefs, man. That's awesome. And you know, I was really, I was really impressed with everything that they did.

Yeah, 

Chris: yeah. That's right. Yeah. Some of my favorite. Food events here in town have been those collaborations between Yeah, multiple restaurants. 

Strech: Yep. Yep. You know, you know, Yusef, yeah. Brine. Yeah. So he epicurean. I think what had something to do with this dinner as well. Okay. So I think that they're the ones that kind of brought the chefs together 

Chris: Yeah.

Strech: And they hosted it at Tinker Street. Is is That's awesome. Is what I think, you know? Yeah. 

Chris: It wouldn't surprise me. They're, they're always pushing those, those events and they're, they've got their fingers in everything. Mm-hmm. And in a phenomenal way. 

Strech: Yeah. And I 

Chris: wanna support 'em every way I can. So, 

Strech: and I, and I really love the, the restaurant community, how they come together like that.

Yes. It, it's, it's really amazing to see. Yeah. Community work like that. 

Chris: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I thought my meal was gonna be the segue into the rest of the, the conversation here, but, but you, you hit it outta the park. I also had a phenomenal meal, and I'm gonna say tinker. I, I think I'm allowed to talk about this.

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: I went to one of their tasting Oh, their menu tastings Oh, wow. The other day. And I had probably the, oh gosh. I, I hesitate to say this, but like top five things I've ever eaten. 

Strech: Wow. 

Chris: Like, I'm dead serious. It, it was that amazing. And I'm gonna, 

Strech: before you continue, can I just say that I'm super jealous of that though?

Yeah. I've never been invited to a tinker. Oh, no. Tasting like that. 

Chris: We'll get you, we'll get you, you gave me a plus one and my wife couldn't find a sitter. She knows all the high schoolers. So next time. Yeah, next time. If we can't find the sitter, yeah, you'll be there. But I'm gonna butcher. What was happening in this dish?

Okay.

Strech: It's something that's gonna be on the 

Chris: menu? I believe so. Okay. I mean, everybody that that talked about it raved about it. 

Strech: Okay. 

Chris: So I'm pretty sure it's gonna be, at least for this month, it'll be there. Yeah. Yeah. But it was a bowl of custard, but shiitake custard. So savory. Sweet. It had a. Oh gosh.

Curses of the creative. Here it's, I can see it, but I can't say it. Saf Saffron is saffron. The the little red spices that come off Saff, the, or 

Strech: saffron. Is that, is that what it is? The red stuff? 

Chris: I think so. 

Strech: I, I couldn't tell you what Saffron 

Chris: tell correct me. Chef Tyler. Correct me. It's not Tyler's dish too.

It's one of his sous chef's dish, I believe. Oh, okay. I wanna say a saffron simple syrup. 

Strech: Mm-hmm. 

Chris: So this really elegant, simple syrup on top of the shiitake custard. It had a line of caviar. Oh. It ticked every single box. Oh, it added some crunchy stuff on it too. Some, yeah. And I don't know what the crunchy stuff was, I forget, but it was just, it was heaven, heaven in a bowl.

And it was, I mean, it looked phenomenal. It tasted phenomenal. Again, the Sweet Savory combo. Yeah. It had the salty combo. It had like just the right amount of simple syrup. Hey, just, and, and like the, the velvety custard texture plus the crispy texture. Like, like I'm telling you, if you do not go try the shiitake custard, you are missing out on one of the best things.

Strech: I'm gonna 

Chris: try the Indianapolis food scene has to offer right now. 

Strech: Wow. 

Chris: It I'll, yeah. Top five. Easy, easy, top five things in my entire life. I will be back for more of that custard. And it blew my mind. 

Strech: Yeah, 

Chris: it blew my mind. And, well, I'm gonna 

Strech: try it. 

Chris: Yes. But just, yeah. Awesome food things here happening in Indianapolis.

And on that note, I'm gonna circle back to what you did with Tinker Street. So your Sunday dinner. 

Strech: Mm-hmm. 

Chris: That was, so I went to the second. Yep. Sunday dinner you've done, you've, you've only done two so far, right? 

Strech: We've only done two. 

Chris: Yeah. Yep. Okay. And I really hope there's more coming. Yeah. Because it was dynamite, right?

It was so much fun. 

Strech: Right? 

Chris: Well, a, just the fact it's at Tinker. Mm-hmm. I love them. I love what they're doing. B it was super awesome just to see some behind the scenes mm-hmm. From what you're doing. 

Strech: Yep. Yep. 

Chris: And then tying the community in. I went without. My wife. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: It was just me showing up randomly. It was a last second ordeal.

Strech: Yep. Yep. 

Chris: I was like, Jordan, can you get me into this? I need to be there. And he, of course, Jordan found a way. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: And he put me at a table with three other people that I had no idea who they were. 

Strech: Right. 

Chris: One of 'em I recognized through another client I have. Okay. It's like we, we, we've literally worked together.

I, I took his headshot. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: But I'd never like sat and talked to him. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: And again, cursed the creative. I'm really sorry I'm blanking on all of their names, but it was, yeah, it was a couple across from us. Yeah. And then it was just another random guy Yeah. Sitting next to me. Yep. But just very different walks of life.

Very different. You know, the, the age gap was very different and just we had the most beautiful conversations about. All of it 

Strech: Good. 

Chris: You know, just the food, kind of what we're doing, our families, and just, it was so cool. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: And then the food. Yeah. Gosh, the food was amazing. Everything about that. I have not gone like three days without thinking about that chicken and waffle combo.

Was it Tyler that did that one? Yeah. 

Strech: Tyler does the chicken and waffle man. And it, it phenomenal. Like people don't understand his fried chicken. It's just one of the best fried chickens I've ever had in my life. 

Chris: Yes, yes. I know I've talked about on the show before, but it was, gosh, it was an orange waffle 

Strech: Yep.

Chris: With just fried chicken. Yep. And an agave buffalo sauce. Yep. And it just. That's probably in my top five as well. Like, I'll be honest, like it's that 

Strech: it 

Chris: was 

Strech: phenomenal. Yeah. 

Chris: Good. 

Strech: It was phenomenal. 

Chris: Again, just, I've never had an orange waffle, like 

Strech: Right, right. 

Chris: And plus you put the chicken again. Sweet, savory.

I'm, I'm all, all about that right now. 

Yep. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: So, 

Strech: and, and don't forget that we had, we had drinks there that Jason Faus made for that event as well. Yeah, yeah. So it, it's just like. When you put phenomenal food and amazing drinks together around people who are being at an event intentionally to promote community, you're gonna have some good conversations at those tables.

Yes. And the way that Jordan and this. Staff seat people is for that to happen too. So 

Chris: yeah. It's beautiful. 

Strech: Yeah, just, just knowing that everything is just working on all cylinders like that, it's gonna, it's gonna be a success, 

Chris: you know? Yeah. Yeah. I don't know what Jordan has going on in his head, but like, somehow he knows.

Yeah. Who needs to sit by each other. 

Strech: Right. Right. 

Chris: At that event, again, he sitting me at a phenomenal table mm-hmm. At the tasting event again. It was flying solo. Yeah. He sent me at a phenomenal table. Right, right. With some awesome conversations. Yep. He's, he's, yeah. He's got a gift for just 

Strech: Yeah. They know what they're doing.

Chris: Matchmaking. 

Strech: Yep. Yep. 

Chris: In a, you know, friendly sense. 

Strech: Yep, yep. 

Chris: But again, I can't stop raving about the food. The very first course Yeah. Was a chicken wing. A chicken wing with, 

Strech: yeah. 

Chris: Champagne. Was it? Champagne? 

Strech: Yeah. Because Jason Faus said that the best pairing is chicken wing. Fried chicken with 

Chris: Yeah.

Strech: Champagne. 

Chris: Yes. And I knew, like, I've always known that like pairings are a thing. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Especially food and beverage. But until I had that specific meal 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Like I don't think it clicked. Right. Like how powerful. 

Strech: Right. 

Chris: A good, not just a good pairing, but like the perfect pairing. 

Strech: Right. 

Chris: Food drink. Yeah.

Again, the bubbles, the grease and the fat from the chicken. It, 

Strech: everything 

Chris: rocked worked. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: So, well, yeah. So well, 

Strech: yeah. 

Chris: Well, can you, can you talk a little bit more about what inspired that? I know you've, you've touched on it a little bit already, but I wanna talk about the first event you did. The one I didn't attend.

Mm-hmm. But I heard about it. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: And tell me about the menu for that one. 

Strech: So the menu for that one, we had. That one was more inspired by literally like my, my own Sunday dinners. Yes. At home with my family. 

Chris: Yes. 

Strech: And Tyler made, Tyler made fried chicken and he made greens on that one. We also had

what was it? Oh, my mom has a dessert and it's like a secret recipe, but. You know, we told Tyler he knocked it out the park. It, it was great. How 

Chris: much arm twisting did that take? 

Strech: It didn't take any, my, my, my mom, she, it is not a, it's not like a big deal or anything. It Okay. But it's just like one of those things that if you don't know about it, then, you know.

Chris: Okay. Yeah. 

Strech: I'll tell you on here too. What it's, it's a very simple dessert, but it's delicious, you know. Jason faus made. He made like Capri Suns. Okay. And, and he actually put 'em in a pouch. No. So when, when you came, that was the first drink you got was an adult Capri Sun. Oh my word. Man, I'm trying, I'm, I'm drawing a blank on the, the rest of the menu.

But we have five courses. That meal, yeah, that meal. And 

Chris: what's, it's the lesson about the food I was trying to get at, but like where the, the source, the inspiration came from. 

Strech: Oh, the inspiration. So, lemme tell you. Beautiful. So it's a beautiful story because Yusef Brine. Put me and Jordan together. He, he actually said that we needed to meet each other and I didn't know Jordan, and we, we had communicated via text message and Instagram did messaging.

Mm-hmm. 

Strech: But I saw him at Rev. And me and Jordan had a conversation and we set up a, a, a meeting to, to sit and talk and see how we could work together. 

Chris: Yusef also has that gift of 

Strech: Yeah, he knows just knowing who needs, needs, needs to be in touch. He know who needs to be in touch with each other, and he has a, he has a great gift with that as well.

But the, but the, but the chemistry between Jordan and I was, was, was pretty dope. And we figured, like we were talking, like, you know, what can we do? And something, somehow we came up with this idea of having like a, a Sunday dinner and it being like soul food related and recording a podcast or something like a podcast during it so that we have conversation, we have people interested in listening to what we're talking about and bringing food and community together over a conversation, you know, and.

It just, it just, I mean, it just worked out. Yeah. And you know, the, to me, I think the first, the first one we had Liv Tyler Liv from the Pacers. 

Chris: Okay. 

Strech: And who was the guest at yours? 

Chris: It was the, 

Strech: oh, it was Carol. It 

Chris: was 

Strech: Yusuf and Carol Howard. Yeah. Rev, yeah. Carol Howard and Yusuf. At that one, but we, we just wanted to bring people that are of the community doing things in the community and have them talk about the, the importance of food in their life and how it also brought them together as well.

Hmm. So, yeah. That's how, that's how it came up, man. And, and I, and I just really love the idea because I, I do a lot of food related events and I'm not even, I wouldn't consider myself a foodie, but you know, I'm, you 

Chris: can't say that now, come 

Strech: I, but I am a foodie, you know? Yeah. I mean, I love food. I am particular about food and the community, the restaurant community is, is a very, a huge one in Indianapolis. And, and, and, and being, being recognized in that community does help when you do what I do. 

Chris: Yeah. Yeah. So, I mean, not being a foodie, again, we've kind of alluded to this, but like why, why dinner? Like over just hanging out, you know, on couches. Yeah. You know, well, it could have been like, like a con.

As I'm saying it out loud, like it makes perfect sense. Like, like yeah. I mean, food is the place to sit and talk. 

Strech: Yeah. Food is 

Chris: like, 

Strech: and so, so before I did before I did Sunday dinners, I did, I did a thing called Breaking Bread. Mm-hmm. So it was a, it was a networking event and I did with Alison from Gallery Pastry.

So we would then, I would invite 20 to 25 people to one of the gallery locations and. I would and have intentional networking events where I would invite people from all different backgrounds and the goal was to eat dinner and have a meeting with somebody that was there like, like you were there. Not to just meet people and say hi.

In exchange Instagrams, before you left, you had to have a contact and you had to have something planned to where you were gonna talk and have another, coffee with somebody from that event. That's so, so it wasn't just like, it wasn't just like you were going there, have a good meal, get out and, you know, go home.

Mm-hmm. And say, I met this cool person like you. You had a lunch, just homework. Yeah. You had a lunch planned or you had dinner planned. Yeah. For the next time you would see one of these people at this meeting. And I think a lot of, a lot of things came about from the breaking breads. Yeah. And I wanna bring breaking bread back too.

Chris: Yeah. Do it. 

Strech: Yeah. I'd 

Chris: be there. 

Strech: Yeah. Yep. 

Chris: Yeah. Well, get, let's get back to the menu from that first. Yep. Yep. Sunday dinner. Just the fact that it was like the food you grew up with. 

Strech: Mm-hmm. 

Chris: Did you talk to people about, like, how that was received? 

Strech: I mean, again, it's, it's gonna be hard for Tyler. And Tinker Street to not knock something out the park.

Yeah. Yeah. They, everything that they do. I've never had a meal that was bad at Tinker Street, so, so that meal was what was talked about probably the most, you know, every course on that, on that menu. And I, again, I just am drawing a blank from what was on the menu all the way. Mm-hmm. But everything was good.

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: You know, and all the way from the first course, which was a salad, and then all down to my mom's dessert. It was, it was just very good. Yeah. It was very good. 

Chris: What was the dessert? 

Strech: So the dessert was 

Chris: is that the secret recipe? The dessert? 

Strech: Yeah. Okay. Yeah. I'll tell you, I'll tell you what it is. And it's, it's, it's not even a name for the dessert.

Okay. But, but in but on the menu, I love it stretches mom's secret, secret recipe, but it's okay. So, so you get a like, like an aluminum cake pan, and on the bottom you have a strawberry jello. 

Chris: Okay. 

Strech: No, no, no. Is it strawberry gel in the bottom? Yeah, strawberry jello. 

Chris: That's a secret. He doesn't even know what it is.

Strech: Strawberry. You start with strawberry jellos with strawberries in it, and then the next layer is pound cake. 

Chris: Oh, Jesus. 

Strech: So the next layer, you put pound cake, and then the next layer after that, you put bananas on top. And then on top of that, you put a whipped cream on top of that. And then you put graham crackers on top of it.

Oh, 

Chris: geez. 

Strech: Alright, so it's just like layered. Yes. See, I'm picturing how I would do it. Yeah. 

Chris: But I can also picture how Tyler would do it. 

Strech: He, Tyler did it perfect. 

Chris: Okay. 

Strech: Tyler did it. He did it perfect. 

Chris: He didn't like, like jazz it up too, too hard. Or like the tinker 

Strech: twist. Nah, it man. No. It, it was, it was perfect.

He did it just right. 

Chris: Oh, solid dude. I love it. Well, again, just the fact you're bringing, you know, family, like you're, you're bringing your history, your food memories. Yeah. You know, you're bringing that to, to us. Yeah. I mean, there's some cultural differences between you and me. There's a hundred percent some regional differences.

You know, growing up West coast, growing up Central Indiana. Yep. I've never lived anywhere else, but you've, oh, wow. You've lived in at least. Three different states. Mm-hmm. So it's like you've, you've seen, you've lived and experienced it more of the, the us Yep. And like that has a big impact on Well, a just your sense of community.

Yeah. Because I mean. I imagine a lot changed from Yes, sir. The West coast to mm-hmm. Here in the Midwest. Yep. And then just again, your, your food memories. I love that you're sharing that. Just your, it's your history. It's what you, you grew up. Did you, like, did you talk about some of that in that first, that first conversation?

Just kinda like, like what the food means to you? 

Strech: Yeah. So, so what we talked about in the first one is we, we really talked about those conversations that we would have over dinner and the importance of bringing. That event to life to be like Sunday dinner. Yeah. Because, you know, we, we weren't have like a, right now, the climate that we're living in, it's hard to have conversations with people who see things differently than you.

Chris: Yes. 

Strech: So what dinner does is you kind of bring people with different backgrounds and then you just start a conversation and, and it's, and, and it's kind of something that like. When you eat, you have to stop talking. Yeah. So that someone else can, you know, forces you to listen. It forces you to listen. You know, so we were 

Chris: tinker.

You can't stop eating. 

Strech: No, you, you're eating the whole time. You know? So, but it, but it was just important for me to just tell people and it wasn't, and it wasn't a very, it wasn't a very hard hitting conversation that first one, but it was just our way of saying. We're being intentional about getting different people in this room, sitting down and enjoying something together.

Mm-hmm. That's how you start. Anything. We can have a, a good time without worrying about what's going on around us, but long as we know that we can start fresh and be cool with each other in this situation, we, we know that we can move forward. Amicably. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: Going, going forward. Yeah. 

Chris: So are you saying that we need to have like food at the White House when they're 

Strech: talking about 

Chris: all this stuff?

I'm 

Strech: sure they do. It just ain't seasoned or nothing. It's just they probably have mac and cheese from the box. 

Chris: I'm thinking more about, hey, like we need to sit and listen. 

Strech: Right? Right. 

Chris: Send Tinker to the White House. Oh, 

Strech: it'll be, it'll be different then. Yeah. They need to, they definitely need to go up there.

Chris: Yeah, 

Strech: for sure. 

Chris: Yeah. Well, I, I agree. Like we all, we all need to listen better. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: And, and again, there's no better place to listen than when you're just shoving your face full of delicious Yep. Food items, you're happy. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: You got that dopamine kick from the food, the delicious food. Mm-hmm. You know, again, the food history is, is it's beautiful for me to hear and understand.

I love Yep. I love all of that. 

Strech: Yep. Having the chefs, having the chef. Talk about their dishes and where they come from is one of the best things about those kind of dinners to me. 

Chris: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So these, these are. They're not events that you invite specific people to. It's kind of, it's wide open.

Strech: It's wide open. Yeah. But we do send special invites out to have certain people in the audience. 

Chris: Yeah. Yeah. 'cause I'm, I'm, I, I'm curious, like, how, how was that community formed? I mean, that's just, that's just your presence here in town. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: You didn't mention your podcast yet, did you? 

Strech: I did 

not. 

Chris: Did you talk about 

Strech: mm-hmm.

Chris: He's got a podcast, a really awesome podcast like you talk to. Everybody. 

Strech: Yeah, 

Chris: everybody who's got a cool story here in town. Yeah. So I imagine like a lot of that community that you've built 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Is centered around just your guests and the conversations you're having with them. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Because it is like one of the most diverse crowds of people I've ever seen.

Absolutely. I mean, all walks of life we're there and it was so cool. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: And I'm just trying to think like, how do we do more of that here in the city? 

Strech: Yeah, 

Chris: because we can't multiply you, unfortunately. Like if we can't have just two or three of the stretches running around town doing these Sunday dinners.

Yeah. North side, south side. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: But how do we, how do we make this your Sunday dinners? Like how do we multiply that concept and just get people together, get different groups of people together just to talk about 

Strech: We just have to, here, here's what I 

Chris: think. 

Strech: Just to keep doing. Yeah. We just have to keep doing it.

My podcast and I'll just speak on it for a, a second Yes. Is 

Chris: more than a second. 

Strech: So, so, so Follow d Money is the podcast. And the reason why my podcast started was because I was able to have difficult conversations with people and have them be able to receive the way that I say something in a way that wasn't feeling attacking or anything like that.

And. A lot of people from Los Angeles always ask me like, what are you still doing in Indiana? Why do you stay? You know, and, and the people on my podcast are the reason why I stay in Indiana. 

Chris: Hmm. 

Strech: I look for people because they're 

Chris: all locals, 

Strech: they're all local, all Indiana. I don't Indianapolis people. I, I try to stay away from getting people outside of Indiana or Indianapolis just because I want to build this community because I'm in it.

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: You know, so. So having someone's story who is a national name or something will be great for the podcast, but it's not for the, it's not, doesn't help the mission of the podcast. You know, my mission is to tell the stories of people doing dope shit in the city of Indiana. Yeah. I mean in Indianapolis, you know?

So, I have all walks of life on my podcast and. That helps when I'm trying to do something like a Sunday dinner or a breaking bread because people recognize that, and I reach so many different audiences because of my guests that, you know, people start to listen to what I'm doing because. That they know that I'll talk to anybody.

Speaker 3: Mm-hmm. 

Strech: Yeah. And, and, and at, and the thing is, right, like right now, I'll take the opportunity to say I want more people who don't actually think like me to be, to be on my podcast. And it's not for a sense of like, for a lack of me reaching out to that, but a lot of people just don't feel comfortable saying how they really feel and it be recorded and, and talk to somebody like myself.

So it's not because. I don't want them on, it's because I haven't found the right person to accept my invite. 

Chris: Hmm. Just do it, 

Strech: please. Yeah. If you're 

Chris: listening to this. Yeah. 

Strech: Just, yeah, because I'm not trying to just do it. I'm not trying to attack anybody. 

Chris: Nah. 

Strech: Ever 

Chris: What's, I mean, that's, that's what makes. Good community.

Good community is the fact that there is diversity. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: The fact there are different ways of thinking. Mm-hmm. The fact that we're not just all the same thing. Doing the same thing. Yep. Thinking the same thing. Like that's a river. We need like, something, you know, bigger and better than that. 

Strech: You gotta, you gotta learn different ways of seeing things because if you are only doing it your way, it's, it's gonna play out.

The only thing in, in life that we can be sure of is change. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: That's the only thing that's constant a hundred percent in life is change. And with with with the same perspective, how are you gonna change it? I need to listen to why somebody thinks completely di different than me, and hopefully they know how to tell me how they got to that conclusion so that I can see what is wrong with what I'm thinking.

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: You know? 

Chris: Yeah. And again, talking to a boy who has never lived outside of Indiana, I mean. We, us Midwesterners, you know, we've got our own way of thinking and doing things. Yeah. 

Strech: Right. 

Chris: You know, a boy who grew up in LA you know, has a different way of Yep. Doing and thinking things. Yep. And again, just circling back to food, 'cause that's where my stomach's at right now.

It's just like if I threw a Sunday dinner, I'm just trying to think like, I don't even know what I would've done for that recipe, but like yeah, it would not have looked like that. 

Strech: Right. 

Chris: And there's something beautiful again, just kind of getting. I don't wanna say getting outside of your comfort zone, but getting outside of what you're used to.

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Kind of, you know, get outta the bubble, try something different. Yeah. You know, colored greens are still not something that I think of. Yeah. Regularly. Like when I'm planning a menu or planning a dinner, but Right. Every time I've had 'em, it's just blown my, 

Strech: they've been 

Chris: phenomenal socks off. 

Strech: Yeah. Yeah.

Chris: Especially when, and 

Strech: it's weird, 

Chris: Tyler, you know, Aisha did it 

Strech: a lot of people, so I know a lot of white people that don't. Know about collard greens, but when they have 'em, they love them, but it's, but it's nothing that they're, they'll ever really try to attempt or, you know, it's just, it's just like a very cultural thing.

But I do know, you know, a lot of white people that are around, black people want to do the greens, you know, that could, because that's almost like a, like a rite of passage almost. Mm-hmm. Like, they'll have, they'll cook greens and say, you know, if, if they accept this, then, you know, like, I know what I'm doing.

You know, and that's another thing that food does, like. If you have an event and, and you host it and you have soul food on the menu, they're gonna be like, oh, what, what, what? You know about that? You know? But that means that you've inserted yourself somewhere where black people have accepted you. And that's, that's, that's the community part and food part that brings people together.

Like you could just show like, I'm being very intentional about how I present to you guys. I'm not trying to make what I'm comfortable with. I'm trying to make what you're comfortable with in a way that you will accept it. 

Chris: Well, it's gonna open more doors for those beautiful conversations, correct. 

Strech: Yeah.

Chris: If, you know, I, if your guard is let down 'cause I at least attempted 

Strech: Yep, yep. 

Chris: To make something from your childhood. 

Strech: Yep, yep. 

Chris: You know, whether it's soul food or Cajun food or, 

Strech: yep. That's how the relationship with Tyler and I started with it started with a conversation about him and, and he was talking about butter pecan ice cream.

Chris: Ooh. 

Strech: You know, and he had, it's my 

Chris: dad's 

Strech: favorite. So, so, so we're sitting at a table and he's telling me like, do you know the history of butter pecan ice cream? And I was like, no, but I know it's my dad's favorite. You know, but it had this. Really rich history and, you know, it, it was, it was a lot of strife and turmoil behind it.

Okay. A lot of black history. And, and, and the reason for it being not pure vanilla, they had to add stuff to it because they didn't want black people just having vanilla ice cream or something like that. Mm-hmm. But Tyler knew that, and to me, I was just like. Wow. 

Chris: I've never heard that history, 

Strech: right? No, I, I've never heard it either, but he said it at the first breaking bread, I mean, at the first Sunday dinner as well.

Okay. He told that he told that story. 'cause I asked him to, because I was just in shock that he knew that, and, you know, so it, it just made that relationship a little bit more. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: Tough. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: Yeah. Yeah. 

Chris: Yeah. I love that. That's super cool. Mm-hmm. So take the food away. What do you, what do you think these conversations are looking like?

Is it gonna change? I mean, like, trying to do those Sunday dinners mm-hmm. Just sitting on the couch, just sitting, standing around. Like, does, I mean, how I'm, I guess I'm trying to say like, how, like how does food elevate or disarm people? 

Strech: It definitely disarms 'em. I think what food does it, it it adds a calming sense and it gives you a distraction.

You know, I, I've, I've recently heard that in Japanese culture there's a thing called ma where in in relationships, if they're about to argue, they're told to take three to seven minutes of just sitting, not looking at each other, not doing anything, and just sit with their thoughts. And then after that, three to seven minutes.

They resume their conversation and usually their bodies, their their ice, their, whatever they're angry about is, is calmed. You know, and I think that food has that kind of same reaction a hundred percent with people. You know what I mean? So if you can eat and you can sit there and think and have, have your thoughts, and then you, you're listening, then you can formulate your thoughts better than just trying to.

Talk through somebody while they're talking. 

Speaker 3: Yeah, 

Strech: kind of like a podcast. I have to listen to you and then I give you a response. When we're talking about things that we're passionate about outside of a studio or a restaurant, we really just want people to know how we feel about something. We don't care about what you're saying.

You say something that I don't like, and then I already want to tell you what I don't like about it. Mm-hmm. Not let you finish what you're saying. So I think what food does is allow that person to get that thought out. Yeah. And you can, you can finish that thought and then I can say, oh, okay. I, I, I hear you and I understand how you got there, and this is how I feel about it, and this is why I feel this way.

Mm-hmm. And then one of us might say, man, I never heard it that way. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: You know, I never, hopefully, I never thought that it could, I could come to this conclusion, but thank you for explaining it that way. 

Chris: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. I mean, so I'm, I'm talking to Sierra. Sierra, 

Strech: yep. 

Chris: Sierra Knuckles.

Strech: Sierra 

Chris: Knuckles, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yes, yes. Another tinker. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: And to be honest, I don't know how these episodes are gonna play out. Yeah. I don't know if you're first or, I don't know if she's first. Okay. But food insecurity 

Strech: Oh, 

Chris: Is gonna be the heart and soul of that 

Strech: dang 

Chris: conversation if, has that like entered your, your, your thought process at all with, with these conversations and you know, planning, planning these events?

Just, you know, maybe where the event is hosted. 

I know it's tough 'cause Tinker is such a big partner, like they've got their kitchen. 

Strech: Yeah, yeah, 

Chris: yeah. It's gonna be tough to pull off a Tinker meal 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Out somewhere else, 

Strech: right? Right. Well, you know, they do. I don't know if you've ever been to Patrick's conversation and conversation with 

Chris: I've seen him.

Yeah, 

Strech: I haven't, but, but Tinker go to one yet. They go to, I think it's called Draft, and then Tinker. Makes a meal there and they have the conversation with the, with the guest that Patrick is talking to. And it is, you know, doing these events, it's a lot of planning involved. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: And, and you want to be you, you want to be mindful of everybody mm-hmm.

That you could affect, you know, so, like with food insecurity and, and things like that, I've. I've, I've there was a, there was a event called Baby Got Brunch. I don't know if you've ever heard of that. Yeah. Yeah. They, they used to donate to one of the charities that deal with food insecurity and, and that, and that was my first introduction to what it really was, you know?

So, moving forward, I always want, I always want to be mindful of who I'm affecting and mm-hmm. How I can help. Different groups of people whenever I do anything though, so. Yeah. 

Chris: Yeah. It's, well, you, you've just got me thinking along that realm again, because the conversation's coming up. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: It's, I'm, I'm, I'm having trouble trying to formulate how to say it, but it's just, it's, I didn't grow, grow up with food insecurity.

Yeah. So it's, it's, it's honestly never been like at the forefront of my thoughts. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: Until coming back down here and getting more connected with the food scene. Yeah. And you know, hearing people like Sierra talk. Yeah. And it's just kind of, it's kind of mind numbing if your mind opening and numbing to like, again, just getting outside of your bubble.

Yeah. And just seeing, 

Strech: yeah. 

Chris: How other people are experiencing life and what they're struggling with or succeeding with. And 

Strech: that's the crazy part, man. Like you could be working next to somebody and you don't know what they're going through, like their children. Might only eat sandwiches with mayonnaise on it.

You don't know. You know, and that's all they can afford if they've got mayonnaise. Yeah. You know, but, but they're working right next to you, you know, and then you wonder why people act a a certain way. You wonder why people's demeanor is different than yours. You wonder why people treat you differently, but you don't go back and see what they're dealing with in their real world.

Yeah. You know, and food insecurity. Especially when it comes to children is, is something that's very hard to deal with when you realize how bad it is. 

Speaker 3: Yeah. 

Strech: You know, and then you got, you know, your government is taking away free meals for children. So you know, they already, a lot of communities are already having problems feeding their own children and then you take away resources that they had to, that they looked forward to, and you wonder why people are upset with.

Today's political climate. 

Chris: Yeah, 

Strech: but I, I mean, I don't know. I don't, I don't, I just don't see how you argue some things. Mm-hmm. Some things aren't an argument to me. Some things that you should just, you should just be taken care of. Like yeah. Make this happen and then figure out a way to make it happen.

Chris: Well, especially with something so vital as food. Yeah. I mean, we can go a week without food or, yeah. I don't know, but like. Even on days where I don't have a good breakfast, like I can feel it. So I can't imagine. Right. 

Strech: Going days and weeks. 

Chris: Days and weeks. Yeah. Without a decent meal. Or maybe just one wheel.

Yeah, one meal. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: It's just, I mean, it, it impacts again, it, and I don't wanna dip into the, the food situation at schools and Right. And whatnot. 

Strech: Right. But it's a thing though. 

Chris: It's a thing. 

Strech: I mean, you don't have to dive into it because it's in our face all the time. You know? They take away things like that.

And then you have. People who can't give their children a real meal any day of the week, like you're just giving them food and that's not a meal. We all, we know that. Yeah. I deal with restaurants, so I know the difference between having food and having a meal, you know? Yeah. So when you, the, the only meal that they're gonna get is at school and it's taken away.

That's mean. That's crazy. 

Chris: Well, yeah. Well, again, think about the community that's being built. Yeah. You know, with your peers and if you're sitting there watching your friend eat and you don't have anything to eat, I mean, what's that? What's that doing and saying, and it's just, it's planting a seed that's just not gonna grow 

Strech: Yep.

Chris: Into anything productive. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: At a young age. All right. All right. All right. We go. Going on that tangent there. There's some beautiful work being done at a longer table, so yeah, follow along with them listeners. If you aren't aware beautiful food. School food conversations happening there. Okay. With Martha and, 

Strech: okay.

Chris: Patou Foundation. Formally yeah. Longer tables. Doing some beautiful work there. 

Strech: Nice. 

Chris: As far as people and food go, so 

Strech: a longer table? 

Chris: Yes. 

Strech: Alright. 

Chris: Yes. Check them out. I'm 

Strech: gonna check them out. 

Chris: What so when is Sunday dinner number three? Are there other talks? 

Strech: You know, we haven't, yeah, we haven't, we haven't planned.

I just. Talked with Jordan at the, the last dinner. I'm gonna light 

Chris: that fire 

Strech: because I'm gonna go. I just talked to him and, and he was like, man, we have to have a conversation and talk about it. But, you know, again, busy, busy. Everybody's busy. You know, I'm in the middle of recording now. I travel a lot and you know, tinkers always doing their thing.

Plus we all have Rev coming up planning for that. But we'll, we'll get it done. What's, 

Chris: what's one more event? 

Strech: Yeah. What's one more? But, but me, honestly, I really want to do it when the weather is like, nice. Ooh. Do an 

Chris: outside one. 

Strech: Yeah, like an outside one would be dope. He, he even talked about doing one at Friedlands.

But. An out, like a, like an outdoor, like in a park, freelance would 

Chris: be awesome. Yeah. 

Strech: I love what 

Chris: they're doing over there. 

Strech: Yeah. Yeah. And yeah, I just, I kind of just have this vision of it being really nice and not cold, 

Chris: just not 10 degrees outside. 

Strech: Yeah. I don't want to get bundled up. I want to, yeah. Wear shorts in the tank top or something, you know?

Let's do it. Have like a, like a. Family picnic Sunday dinner. Yes. You know, that's, that's another, that's another thing. 

Chris: If I can help with the planning and the production there. Absolutely, absolutely. I'll, I'll do it. Absolutely. Because it's gonna, it's gotta happen now. 

Strech: Absolutely. You're 

Chris: planting that seed.

It's gotta happen. 

Strech: I'm also doing, I'm also planning my breaking breads again too though. Yes. So hopefully working downtown with restaurants with that as well. 

Chris: Yeah. Yeah. 

Strech: Yep. Follow. 

Chris: Follow 

Strech: D Money. How about follow 

Chris: follow d money? Yes. All the, all the links are gonna be below. Yeah. Okay. Definitely listen to the show.

Like he's got some cool conversations Yeah. As you've heard. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: And just it's, it's, it's beautiful to think of again, it's just, I keep going back to get outside your bubble. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: You gotta. You know, politically and just relationships and families and works. Yeah. And like get out that bubble. 

Strech: Yeah. Yeah. 

Chris: And just see what everyone else is doing.

Experience somebody else's shoes and 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Start with their food. 

Strech: Yeah. Yeah. 

Chris: Go to one of these rad events and just eat something different and weird and 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Freaking delicious. 

Strech: Yeah. If you, if you realize that you don't know everything, you'll, you'll really start to appreciate people who think differently than you.

Chris: Yeah. Yeah. 

Strech: Because you, 

Chris: well, admitting we don't know everything and. 

Strech: Yeah. Once you know that, once you figure that out and then you, and then you realize that if you surround yourself with people who think exactly like you all the time, you're never gonna learn anything. Yes. That you know that. That was probably one of the biggest moments of growth for me.

It was realizing that I can't surround myself with people who think like me. Or who see the world like me who have experienced the same things as me because I need, 

Chris: it's not exciting. Like if, if I'm having this conversation and I'm just like, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Like I, yeah, I totally agree. 

Strech: Yeah, I agree with that.

Yeah. You're like, no, like I really want to know that you think differently or you disagree with how I feel, and why do you disagree? Yeah. You know, that's my next question. Why? Why do you feel that way? How did you come to that conclusion? And then I'm like, dang, I, you know, I never really experienced it that way, but you know, now that is my new way of learning 

Chris: Yes.

Strech: Is a whole nother perspective. 

Chris: Mm-hmm. We need good, good productive conflict. 

Strech: Yeah. Yeah. 

Chris: And conflict's the wrong word, I think because that's got such negative connotations, but like we need. We need to disagree. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: Respectfully. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: To, to generate that learning and that 

Strech: growth. It takes a lot of maturity to have those type of communications though.

Those, those convers take two people, they're 

Chris: hard, they're hard conversations. 

Strech: They're very hard conversations and. The way that it started with me was I became a safe place for people to express how they felt, and they knew that they wouldn't feel ashamed or attacked after they heard my answer. 

Chris: I'm gonna repeat that.

You, we haven't known each other all that long, but you are a safe place. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Like, I don't know. I feel it. I sense it. I hear it when you talk, just the people you've, you've had on. Yeah. It's just. I agree with that. Yeah, a hundred percent. Like you are a safe place and I love that. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: That's why we need to clone you.

Strech: I love, I it too. Yeah. I throw you around the city. I love it. I love it too because I think that we, I have so many friends that are good people, but they have not experienced certain things that they are asking questions about, and, and a lot of times they're afraid of the question. Hmm. They're not afraid of the answer.

They're afraid to ask the question and be because they might be labeled. Mm-hmm. You know, and I'm never gonna label. You can hop in my DM and ask me, you know, why do you not like that? Or, what made you upset about that? Why do you say this about this person? And I'll tell you the answer without you being like, oh, like, I'm not gonna be like, oh, you're racist.

That's not what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna tell you why I feel that way, and, and. You're gonna go back and think, or you're gonna tell me back, like, well, I don't think that's racist because of this. You know? And I'm gonna say, all right, cool. You know, but I'm not gonna, I'm not gonna beat you down for it. 

Speaker 3: Yeah.

Strech: You know, and, and I think that that's, that's why my platform took off is because I was already that before I started it. 

Chris: Yeah. Yeah. I like that. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Be respectful. Learn. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Be willing to learn. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: Be willing to hear a opinion that's not your own. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: I love it. So, closing out here, unfortunately this time is flown by there.

There's a weird trend that I've been noticing online with food. 

Strech: Oh. 

Chris: And so I grew up with the, the Andrew Zimmer, the Anthony Bourdain. They're out in the world. They're traveling. Oh gosh, what's the other one? Man versus food. 

Strech: Oh yeah. 

Chris: It's just people going out in the community, experiencing food, experiencing different cultures.

Yep. Physically experiencing it, like just sitting down at a table. It's commensality. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: The trend I'm seeing now with all these food. Bloggers, food influencers as they go inside, they get their takeout and they sit in their car. 

Strech: Yep. Keith Lee is, 

Chris: and they eat by themselves in their car. 

Strech: You heard Keith Lee?

Chris: I don't know him. 

Strech: Yeah, he's like a big black one. Like he's the biggest black food influencer in my opinion. But he does that so he'll go into a restaurant taste of food and then like go and give them money or something. 

Chris: Okay. I love that. Yeah. I'm gonna look em up for sure. Yeah. 

Strech: Keith Lee. 

Chris: But it's, I guess what's bothering me is the fact that.

They're alone in their car and they're just sitting in the car, and the only thing I can see is like they're just, maybe they're embarrassed to film in public or it's the reaction that they don't want to get. I don't know. But it's how, how do we stop that is what I'm trying to say. 

Strech: Well, 

Chris: how do we, how do we start sitting down sharing meal?

I don't think 

Strech: you wanna stop that 

Chris: with people. 

Strech: I don't think you wanna stop that. Okay. So I'm gonna tell you what I think that is. I think that is people. Critiquing food. So a lot of those people, when they go in, they tell you about their experience getting the food. Mm-hmm. Like, they'll say, you know, it was a nice place, this, you know, this cute little old lady gave me my food.

They, they'll, they'll tell you that. So they'll tell you if they were received. Well, they'll tell you if nobody showed up or anything like that. But I think what they are doing is trying to take the atmosphere away from the restaurant and make it about the food. Yeah. Because a lot of people are going.

Two restaurants because they want an experience, but these people are food critics. You know what I mean? So 

Chris: we'll put food kitter, food critics in air quotes for 

Strech: sure. Bare, bare, bare minimum. Yeah. The food needs to be good where you go. Yeah. Yeah. Bare minimum. So taking it out to your car takes away from everything else.

So are you going to go to this restaurant to eat this phenomenal food, or are you gonna go to this restaurant? And have good music, beautiful bartenders and waitresses, and have shit food like it, it just depends on what, what, what you want them to do. What 

Chris: do you go, what are you going for? 

Strech: What are you going for?

Chris: I suppose all of that stems from. Me being anti takeout. 

Strech: Oh, 

Chris: okay. I just don't like, I don't like going to get my food, putting it in my truck, driving home 

Strech: because 

Chris: it's 

Strech: not the same, 

Chris: it's 

Strech: not 

Chris: as fresh. It's, it's not experience. It's not fresh. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: All my burgers are soggy when I do that. And it fries stinks, are horrible.

Strech: When you do 

Chris: that. It stinks. It's cold. It stinks. I want the food to be piping hot and I wanna sit down and I wanna experience the venue. Yeah. I want to see my server. Yeah. I want to hopefully see the chef. Yeah. I want to just ex, I want to experience. And when I say the food, the restaurant, I want the whole experience.

So 

Strech: you want the traveling foodie guide? 

Chris: I want it to come back. Yes. And Andrews er just did a, a, a comment about that. He's like, why, why did travel food die? And he thinks it's gonna come back. I really hope it comes back. But basically what I'm trying to say is like, I don't want, I don't wanna eat alone.

And when I see people eating alone in their cars, it kind of breaks my heart a little bit because it's not. Just about the food. It shouldn't be just about the food. I mean, when I go to Mezo, like I don't wanna just get there beautiful food and just eat it alone in my car. Like 

Strech: yeah, 

Chris: I want to talk to them.

Yeah. I want to hear their stories and, 

Strech: but I think, but I think, and I'm just gonna use Keith Lee as an example. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: I think he's doing that to promote people eating at the restaurant. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: That, that's just what I think. Yeah. And I'm not, I'm not discrediting how you feel about it, but I, I really think because what, what he does.

After he critiques these foods, the restaurants blow up. 

Chris: That's awesome. 

Strech: Like, I mean, literally they take off or they don't, because you know, if he gives it a bad review, I'm sure it sucks for them. But I mean, he'll go to a place that is literally dead and he takes the food and, and, and I think that's the aspect that he's trying to do.

Like a place where nobody's eating and you go in, take the food out, there's already nobody in there. 

Chris: Mm-hmm. 

Strech: So you take it out. And you tell people that this food is phenomenal and now people are going there to eat because you don't want to go in there and critique food that they know that you're critiquing because now they're gonna give you their best food.

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: They're gonna, they have an opportunity hundred to show out for you. 

Chris: I guess if I show up with my camera, I'm gonna be be 

Strech: treated different so then the next person doesn't get that treatment. 

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: You know, so in your car you're getting what they give everybody. Yeah. You know, so that aspect. Just changes the, the, the traveling food aspect from it.

Like, you see a person, I'm sitting next to you and I'm sitting here and they're bringing me all these dishes and I'm, I got my cameras out and they're just like, sir, here's the, you know, they, they glammed it up and everything and you're eating the same thing. Looks, I see 

Chris: that. I see 

Strech: that it looks totally different.

Chris: Yeah. 

Strech: You know, so when you go in and they don't know who you are. You take the food out, you're really critiquing what they do every day, all day. Yeah. You know, and, and that, and I think that I can only speak for Keith Lee 'cause I watch him. That's what he does. Mm-hmm. That's why he does it. He doesn't want a i a special experience.

Chris: Yeah, 

Strech: yeah. 

Chris: Let's just find somewhere else to do it. That's not your, not your driver's seat. 

Strech: There's a prettier background we can use. Find a picnic table some way or just 

Chris: thanks for explaining that. 

Strech: Absolutely, absolutely. 

Chris: Again, we need that, that, that different brain to, to think through it all. 

Strech: Exactly.

That, 

Chris: that 

Strech: was an example of it. 

Chris: It makes sense now, but you can still not do it. You a car. Well, dude, on that note, I have loved this. I would love a part two. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: And a Sunday dinner. Three. Pay attention. Follow follow d money. 

Strech: Yeah, 

Chris: follow the 

Strech: money. 

Chris: Come to Indianapolis. If you're not a local, come to Indianapolis.

When you hear about Sunday dinner, three. A hundred percent come when you hear about the Sunday picnic. 

Strech: Yeah, because that's Sunday. Sunday family picnic. 

Chris: Yes. 

Strech: Yeah. That'll be dope. I, I really want to do that. Oh my 

Chris: gosh, yes. 

Strech: Maybe get a bunch of restaurants involved. Yes, yes, yes. Make make it a little me festival or something that'd stop talking 

Chris: about this.

You're getting me excited. 

Strech: But that's the thing about having a platform, man. We can have these ideas and make 'em come to life and Yes. You know. I mean, just thinking of that right now sounds like a really good spring thing. 

Chris: Yes. 

Strech: It 

Chris: got me excited. I excited. Where can people find you? It's, it's just, it's Follow D Money.

Strech: Follow D Money. Do follow d.com. Follow d money.com. And then my social is Thie boy. My last name is Thie and boy, so that's just me on Instagram. And i'm, I'm, I'm always active on the socials and stuff. Yes. So, and I answer You aren't 

Chris: around the city. 

Strech: I'm around the city, bro. I'm a man of, I'm a man about town.

Chris: Yes, a hundred percent. 

Strech: But yeah, I'm, I'm pretty active. Yeah. My dm, I'm, I'm a answer it. I'm a reply, so, 

Chris: yes. Well, thank you for what you're doing. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: It's just like, again, I love the conversations. I love what you're doing, so Right. If three or four more followers can keep you doing it. I appreciate it.

Let's keep you doing it. Whatever we can do. Yeah, I 

Strech: appreciate that. 

Chris: Keep pumping out those episodes. 

Strech: Absolutely. 

Chris: Keep the talk going again, just keep being a safe place. 

Strech: Yep. 

Chris: That is beautiful. And we need more of that. 

Yeah. 

Chris: Teach others how to be a safe place. 

Strech: Yeah. 

Chris: So 

Strech: yeah, that, I mean, I think that's a, that's the one of the biggest thing is showing other people how to be a safe place.

Chris: Yes. 

Strech: Yes. Yeah. That's how the community grows. 

Chris: Yes, yes. Well, dude, you've already like expanded my community tenfold. Just 

Strech: That's what's up, man. 

Chris: Finding cool people at the podcast lab. Yeah. Finding cool people at your Sunday dinner. So I 

Strech: love that. 

Chris: It's beautiful. Good man. Just keep, keep it going. Whatever we can do, just keep it going.

Thanks for having me. Yes. Thank you so much. 

Speaker 3: Absolutely.

I appreciate man, dude, thank.