Our Cool Column For Everybody

Hosting a successful game night is an art form that goes beyond simply choosing the best snacks and drinks. After over a decade of running monthly game nights—featuring everything from console games to fast-paced tabletop battles—I've learned that the little details around the playing area can make or break the entire experience. Sticky fingers on controllers, crumbs clogging keyboards, and the dreaded communal snack bowl crowding the table are just a few pitfalls to avoid.

Hosting a dinner party in Los Angeles—where the culinary inspiration flows as freely as the Pacific breeze—always excites me. Over the nine years I’ve hosted monthly dinner parties, I’ve learned that beyond the menu, the serving dishes themselves set a powerful tone. Today, I’ll share how I use a mix of clear glass serving pieces, ceramic platters , and wooden boards to create a collected, layered presentation that complements produce-first menus featuring season

Hosting game nights—whether it’s a console session, tabletop gathering, or a combination of both—means making lots of decisions about the food and drinks you offer. For over a decade, I’ve learned the hard way that salty snacks like chips and pretzels, though popular, can cause sticky controllers and crumb trails that ruin the experience for everyone. But what if some guests want to avoid salty foods entirely? How do you serve delicious, low-mess snacks that keep energy lev

Tomatoes and nectarines are a quintessential snapshot of summer in California. As a longtime farmer’s market enthusiast and former line cook, I’ve learned to plan my menus not by rigid recipes but around what looks best and freshest at the stand each Saturday. This produce-first planning philosophy ensures vibrant, thoughtful dishes that celebrate the bounty of the season. In this post, I’ll share which herbs pair beautifully with these summer gems, and how you can incor

In the evolving world of cannabis cuisine and beverage innovation, one question frequently arises among chefs, caterers, and beverage pros alike: do I really need to tell guests there is CBD in the food? As someone who’s spent over a decade testing oils, tinctures, and emulsions in real kitchens and zero-proof menus, I’m here to unpack the science, legal considerations, and—most important—the practical realities you need to know before deciding to disclose or not. Und

If you've ever tried to mix CBD tinctures into cold beverages, you probably noticed a frustrating problem: the oil separates, floats on top, and leaves you with a cloudy, uneven drink. So, what do you do? Enter lecithin, a natural emulsifier that can transform your CBD drink experience. But not all lecithins are created equal. In this post, we'll break down the differences between soy lecithin and sunflower lecithin for CBD drink mixing, why cannabinoids are notoriously tri