Pregaming

tell the stories that matter to us. All Right, Sophie, this is one of my favorite themes um that we've ever done because it reminds me of game day at your college. Yes, we're talking about pregaming, going out, getting ready to go out. I think the pre gaming is better than than the game time. Okay, I see a lot of grated cheese and some delicious turteen bread. Yeah, Turtine is my favorite bakery of all time. It's just it's so good. It's okay, we're gonna make a bold cheese.

So we're talking about pre gaming, which is a a term that I really learned from you. I did. Yeah, I mean I heard the word pre game, but I always thought of it was something else. So pre gaming is basically like you're you're going out getting ready to go out. You're getting ready to go out, so before you before you go to the big game, you go to the pre game. So but and and clearly sometimes it involves having a cocktailer two it does, okay, But I also think that like to pre game can be

a fun thing. But I think it's also good to plan it because otherwise your pre game could be the end game and then you don't get to the game, certainly don't make it to the post game. Oh I didn't know about the post game. But here's a post game. Okay, okay, Sophie, big time in me, all right. So basically, so there's a cup of grilled cheese. And the reason why I'm making grilled cheese is because grilled cheese is a fun

thing to make. It's delicious, and also it gives you like a little bit of sustenance before you start pre gaming, and it's not gonna like completely fill you up. You can have like a bite or two of a of a of a grilled cheese and you can like just make like little wedges of them and pass them around to your friends pre gaming with you. What do you think about that? That? You know what we do though, is we do case it is? Oh, that's actually a good one. Okay, what are you looking at? So I'm

going to read something? This is uh? I just googled pregame drinking. Here's what it says. Pre gaming, also known as pre drinking or preloading, is the process of getting drunk prior to going on socializing, typically done by college students and young adults in a matter as cost efficient as possible, with hard liquor and cheap beer consumed while in a group. Does that sound does that ring true to yourselfie? But like when you but when you google,

pre game is all kind of reading Urban Dictionary. No, like Thrillist has had a pregame the ten pregame Drinking Commandments. Okay, had a pregame as an adult tips on drinking before going out. That's also from Thrilliest. I didn't realize that pregaming was was was all about finance? Like, well, it is an interesting point that they bring. I know because in pre game in the Urban Dictionary, it says invented

by college students. It means drinking before going out the party, mostly to prevent oneself from spreading too much on alcohol. So like, clearly like cost is a matter of of pregaming. What's so I'm gonna let you drive this one. So okay, okay, let let me just say this the reason why. And frankly, you didn't come up with this concept today. I came up with this one. And I came up with it because, well,

I want to know how I can pre game better. Okay, I'm always on the quest on how to pre game better. But my pregame is gonna be is gonna look a lot different than what yours might look like or did look like. But also, I had never really heard the term pre game until you became a freshman in college and then you literally would go to the I mean, college football was a big part of your school and every Saturday there was a game, and when there's a game, there's a pre game, a pre game. And that's how

I learned about it. So I thought it was it was actually, you know, it's part of college life. It's like, let's face it, you know, it's you know, you go to these you go to these games and tailgate pre game the whole thing, exactly right. So, so like, so does it always have to like involve plastic big jugs

of vodka? It does when you have no money, right, So it is fine, it is, but I also think it can also be a finance thing as a young adult to write, like, I don't want to drink any hard alcohol out of a plastic container anymore, but I know how to utilize my Costco membership. Well, um, and you get good deals on wine, liquor, you name it at Costco. Okay, I bought a car at Costco. But that's another story. I mean, that's an insane story, true story.

But that is also how we used to shop for alcohol, for not just alcohol but food drinks in college as well, because it is just cost efficient. And when I was a senior, I lived with eight other girls, and so it just made more sense to shop that way in general. Okay, So I mean, obviously we're having fun with the whole pregame idea. I mean, you're not a college student anymore. You're not a college student anymore. But I'm sure pregaming is never going to leave your life, right, So, so

it hasn't left mind either. And I'm a person who entertains for you know. I I entertained in my house, you know, because it's something I love to do and so there's always the question of like, is it dinner or is there something before dinner? It's before dinner. I know. What I'm saying is it's like, actually not necessarily, it depends what your night is looking like. Okay, let's hear it more about that. Well, you mean if you're going out to the clubs. You're going to the club if

you've got a birthday party, right, all right? So what I did? I put some butter on the on one side of it, Okay, and you actually some people use mayonnaise real cheese that actually works really well. So we have we have basically three different kinds of cheese here. We have some some cheddar or you can use monterey Jack, and then we have some Fontina cheese, which is kind of nutty. I love on Tina and I shredded this. And the key is not to put too much cheese, okay.

And then I'm gonna put some goat cheese because I know you're a goat cheese fan. Okay, So right now, the pieces of bread are open face, and you just sprinkled a bunch of cheese on both sides, and you're putting more goat cheese on top. I'm putting so that their open face the open face at them. This is a big grilled cheese. It is ginormous, Okay. And then I'm going to do something that a lot of people probably don't do it, which is like season it with

salt and pepper always. Yeah, but a lot of people don't do that, but we have to. And what is this little pan you have going here? This is a little cast iron, like a little bays like it's like it's actually a crepe pan. Oh, but you can hear the sizzle. What we're doing is we're gonna make We're gonna make the bottom side without the cheese on it, on both of them crusty. So right now, in this cast iron pan, I have the butter side down of

the bread and the top are the cheeses. So they're sort of side by side, so it looks like they're two open face sandwiches. But what we really want to do here is we want to make the we want to crusty wheel cheese. That's really key. Interesting. So just recently you had a birthday party for your girl, Whitney, Okay, which by the way, lasted more than two days. All Right, I just realized that, so like, do your pre game, the pre game, the pregame. I mean, has it work

or is it just one constant pregame. It's well, that's different, that's just one party. Let's actually talk about my birthday. That's a better example. Your birthday. My birthday, So I set up a silent disco on the beach for my friends. You know, I have to tell you something I had Phomo for that I wanted to be on the I told you could have. You did not invite me? Yes I did, Dad, Well you kind of didn't. But that's okay. Could have come. You could have come is a lot

different than Dad. I would love for you to come. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to leave you off of invite, left me off the silent disco invite for your birthday on the beach, and instead I just I don't know what I did. Watch Netflix. That's okay. Well, next year you can definitely come. All right, let's all right, let's get let's get back on track here. Okay, you talked about so your birthday, So what happened to your birthday?

But well, so we had a pregame before we went to the beach, because obviously you're also like not supposed to drink on the beach, and so what did that look like? It looks like going to a friend's house before at the moment. You know, spiked Seltzer's and are really popular. There's you know Topa Chico makes them. There's the brand him, Yeah, white Claw, White Claws. Yeah, it's yes, And that's what we drink a lot of as a pregame pregame drink. But that doesn't have a lot of

alcohol in it. It doesn't, so you gotta drink a lot of them. Okay, so kidding, all right, so now, but okay, so for instance, so that's the way you're pregaming these days, that's how we're pregaming a party, okay. But not every pregame now is necessarily at home. Like when you're in college, it's always at your apartment. There's nowhere else to go, right, But you know, you can go to a fun bar in pregame at a bar

for another for whatever you're going out to do. But usually a pregame is at home, which is you know, a good example is why we made that grilled cheese because you're you're at home still, you're trying to save money before you go out. So you obviously we would all love to go to dinner and buy amazing food and amazing drinks, but we're also young, and you know we're not. We're not spending a ton of money on food and drinks all the time, or would rather not.

And so being at home and having your costco alcohol and your grilled cheese ingredients are are a good way to go. Yeah. So I guess when I think about pregaming, because like I have a lot of dinner parties at my house and stuff like that, or we go at you know, we go out to dinner, and so my pre gaming has basically gotten down to, let's have a cocktail before we go out. A cocktail. A cocktail, Yeah, because I can't. I just can't do it anymore. I mean, I like, at some point I realized, like my pre

game so to speak. I didn't know they were pre games at the time. Now I know they were pregames. My pre games became my endgame because I was like, you know, a couple of cocktails and I was like, oh my god, I'm like I can't even go to dinner to go to sleep. I'm done. I'm done. So so now I'm a lot more careful and more and more thoughtful about it, and frankly, like I like making cocktails that are that are interesting and delicious as opposed to just like what's the cheapest thing I can drink?

I'm not doing that of course, So like you know, I mean, I've been unlike this the growny kick lately because because you know, I'm so obsessed with with Italy, everything Italy, so you know, the gronies and then the summertime sprits is and there's all kinds of sprits is that you can use. So so like you're you're drinking white claw, I'm drinking something. I'm drinking a soda called Keynoto. Do you know what that is? Oh? It's is the little like orangey brown soda that you haven't all the time,

but very good, Yes it is. It's actually it's an Italian style soda. It's I I tell people, it's like a sour orange flavor, you know, so it's tart, little fruity um. But I make sprits as we we actually make a sprits with that at a mouthie called the Roberto after me quietly and so like that has prosecco, and it has a Morrow in it, and it has Keynoteo in it. So like that's a fun pregame like sprits, you know, and you know, in the summertime, we drink a lot of rose. I mean that's not original. A

lot of people drinking rose. But you know, and like my business partner and best friend, Lawrence, who's we've been partners for thirty years and friends for thirty years, like, you know, well, we'll be at my house in the summer, like on on the weekend, and like at ten thirties, like you want some rose. I'm like, wait, what it's ten thirties, Like yeah, but you've been up a five

and a half exactly, you know who cares? Like right, So I'm like not really and then you know, sure enough, like at two a clock on them, I mean I'm exhausted exactly. The pre game, it was like, pregame lunch looks good, right, Okay, you just let's flip it over. Flipped it over. It's looking golden brown on the outside. Crispy Verry smells very buttery, does it? Yeah? You know why because there's butter buttery. So I'm gonna serve like a little jam with this. What do you think about that? Okay,

I'm down for that. Some blood orange marmalade, great blood oranges cheese. That sounds good. You ever had baconto your great cheeses? Yeah? I was actually gonna do that today. Or tomato. Yeah, sometimes I do like like a like a fried green tomato and bacon and cheese sandwich. My god, that sounds great. But this is just the pregame. This is just the pregame. This is the game. I think pregaming is a really fun like what somebody says, let's pregame. When I hear somebody say that now and like, oh,

that sounds like a really good time. Yeah, because it's fun because you get you also like you also play like drinking games and games, music. You're playing great music, You're looking cute. Is it is you even messed up your makeup yet? Is it? Is it while you're getting dressed or is it like you've already gotten dressed and now you're like at the pre game. It's usually you've already gotten dressed and you're at the pre game and

you pre game somebody's house. Yeah, yes, unless like it's just like for me, like a girl's night and we're going to like a concert or something, and it's like only girls, and like, you know, we're all getting ready together and and having like wine or you know, a mixed drink or something like that. But usually you're already dressed and ready to go. Yeah, it's a little preview of the night you scope about the scene. What does

your pregame look like? You mean today? Yeah, I mean as somebody who likes to entertain in my house, Uh, lots of cheese. I mean I usually make. I mean I have a lot of pressure on because if somebody comes over to my house for a dinner party, they're like, I can still keep it casual, but I also like I have to have something, something has to be thought out. So I always try to make like a house cocktail for the day. So it depends on like what the

day is. So it's like I have a lot of like you know, horse racing party, so like Kentucky Derby or Preakness or you know Belmont Steaks or whatever. It is, like they're always and those are easy things themes because Kentucky Derby is like a bourbon cocktail or some sort What did I make this year? Oh, I made Bourbon ginger cocktails, so it was like it was bourbon with I made fresh ginger syrup and then I had candy ginger and some fresh mint so it was like a

mint jewelup ginger e thing. So that was easy. And then you know, for Preakness, it's Baltimore and so like there's always some sort of crab situation happening. And and then you know for bell On steaks, it's usually I don't know, steaks. I don't know, I don't know, I don't even know because we usually go and when we usually usually eat steaks. But like I think like having having a house cocktail for the day, and it depends like it's the summer. Like people love spritzes. You know

that spritses have like blown up lately. They used to be like a wine sprits, so to speak, was like what your grandmother used to drink. Oh, Dame Dorothy, she was a big wine sprits chick, big time, like back in the day, Sophie, Like when I was a kid, so wine spritses and it was literally like wine, and I think it was like wine and club soda. It was that kind of sprits that doesn't sound good at all. Maybe I'm wrong, you know, but the spritses are more

sort of European, you know, it's a it's prosecco. I mean, apper All Sprits. The Apperall Sprits just has had such such a moment in the past few years. I don't love it as much as Capari because I like the bigger The Apperle is too sweet for me. But that's why I'm drinking that keynoto stuff. But that's sweet, isn't it. I found one that's less sweet by Sam Pellegrino that that one is a little bit less sweet, it's more tart. So I'm kind of digging on that, right. I like that.

Also it makes me feel like I'm Italian, which I'm not correct. So I'm literally I'm just living the movie in my life, Sophie. That's the way it works. But then I also have to have, like you know, in my pre game, so to speak. I have to have like orders or appetizers as well. So when people get to my house, I just can't feed them lunch or dinner, Like there has to be like something to go with their cocktail, right, That's true. Yeah, there's a lot of

pressure do you feel the pressure always? Really, that's so interesting to me. Actually, listen, It's the only thing I know how to do in life is cook. Okay, So like, if people are going to come to my house and I'm feeding them, I just want them to This is the only thought that I want them to have. Is that was good. It doesn't have to be anything more than that. But I don't want to be like I mean, he barely cooked anything. Like we got there and he

gave us like a club soda and some nuts. Okay. Wait, we've talked about the pregame though, and I mentioned the post game, Yes you did, So what is your post game looking like? Sleep my post I don't like postgame. Let me just tell you something. Okay. I used to have a rule, nothing good happens after two o'clock in the morning. You know what's funny is I've heard that

rule before, but yours is moved back lately. No, no, no, I feel like it's such a mom thing to for such a mom thing to say, like nothing good happens after midnight? Use it to I am there roll well, New York City is a four am situations No, I just listen. Here here's the problem. And it's just it's just it's just based on how my how I run my life. I wake up really early. I'm up at like six o'clock at least. I was going to say, that's almost late for you. Yeah, so like when it

rules at ten, ten thirty, eleven o'clock. Even though even if I'm out, I'm like, god, damn, am my tired. Like I'm not looking. I'm not looking for the fifteenth cocktail, you know, in some in some quiet bar somewhere. I just it doesn't I mean, look back in the day I used to go. I used to love going and dancing, Okay, when I was you know, obviously much younger, and I mean I still like doing it. I just I don't

get the opportunity anymore. And I could do that, but like just to continue what I'm doing all night, just by changing the venue, it doesn't interest me. So like I like early, like fun dinner, and then I'm done, unless unless we're going like full hog and we're going dancing at sunset. You know. Yeah, but my post game includes a cheeseburger or a case of dilla or something. Okay,

definitely pizza. That's why people call you from Joe's Pizza on Bleaker Street at two o'clock in the morning, because right, I always get that text. It's crazy. So pizza, burgers, fried chicken, chicken wings. This is that late night food that you want, Chinese food. Walk to walk, walk to walk. Remember I pointed that out when we were shooting the Flaylist. Oh my god, it's so good. I mean, who doesn't want to eat fried rice at two am? Noodles or you know what's Oh no, I just figured it out.

What we did did not mention the most important late night thing to eat post game? The post game. Okay, bacon, egg and cheese sandwich. Oh yeah, that's your thing. Go, that's your post game. But then the next morning I want to kill myself. But at the moment, there's nothing better in the world. It's fifteen Michelin stars. Mm hmm. It's not even on the pan anymore. It's still siss one. Okay, so I'm gonna serve. I bought this at you're at the farmer's market. It's blood orange marmalade um. But it

can be any kind of jam. It can be honey. You also which I like honey and cheese obviously, goes hand in hand. I found this in the farmer's mark. I didn't make this. See. The thing I like about this big bread is that you can cut up into small pieces and basically make a gold cheese. And like you don't want to overeat because you're probably gonna have dinner, right, so you just want something to like to kind of

go with your cocktail or something. How is it? It's hardly careful as a fancy grilled cheese crunch that fancy fancy. It's all about technique. I mean, and just use a few cheeses. It could be one cheese. It doesn't matter how you treat the bread. Alight digging it. Yeah, let's grab a drink, all right, Let's talk about liquor because this is really like it's a crazy phenomenon. Like every celebrity now is a tequila brand. Like what do you drink?

Like what's what? What are people drinking out there? Like what are your friends rinking? Is there a is there a certain spirit that's making pregame like the pregame is that? Like you have to have a bottle of mescal now in every pregame? Oh that see that's funny. Like I'm like one of my only friends. I'm like one of the only people in my crew that really is like die hard mescal fan. That happen, I don't know. It must be it must be from you. What Yeah? Really? Yeah?

I think so. Well, if you didn't reduced me to it, it's I like the smoky flavor because of you. That's like, I love it. I love a mescal paloma. So grape food juice and lime juice so good. Um. But okay, so I think we're drinking a lot of tequila right now. I have a friend who believes that Jin is about to have a big moment. I agree with that. You do. Let me ask you a question, okay, Yeah, Well, first of all, Gin is Jin is hard. Jin is tough. You gotta you gotta bring your A game to the

pregame for Jim. I mean because and I used to drink gin gimlets. You know what that is? Yeah, gin and lime juice. But I drink vodka gimblets. Yeah. Me and Jane motion drink vodka gimblets. We drink a lot of vodka gimlets at Gato this summer after I graduated college. Because I'm so sad you and Jane motion. Yes, that's like the best name. It's the best name. Jane Motion. Jane is always in motion constantly. So because I wanted to ask you about what about brown liquors like whiskey

and bourbon and stuff like that. I do like whiskey and bourbon. Would you consider rum a brown liquor if it's dark rum? I like? I like rum, yeah, because it's like like a rum. Punch. Punches have come back. Punches are making you come back. I need to get a punch bowl. I need to get a punch bole. Where can you buy them? That's a good Okay, this is a really good pregame situation. Make a punch, Make a punch for pre games. You know who does great punches?

Is this this really fun bar called law Discarga. I don't want to get it wrong. I think it's a Cuban bar in l A. What do the punch bowls look like like punch bowls? Well, I don't know what that looks like. What do you mean you normally looks like? Yes, it's okay, So it's a Cuban bar and they do like like punch bowls of like mohitos. It's so fun. So that's just the picture of mohitos in a bowl. Yeah, there's a difference between punches and you know, bulk cocktails. Yeah,

that's true. The Black Cat in Um in Silver Lake does they always have a five dollar punch every day and it's always something different and it's delicious. Is it fruit based? Um? Not always? But I mean I guess that's more of like a classic punch, right, having a fruit based Yeah, that is a good pregame idea. That idea. What okay, what should be our signature pregame punch? Well, I think of you have to remember, like I think of Hawaiian punch because it's so good. Yeah, so that's what.

But that's the whole point is that it's a fruit based cocktail. So I think it should be like I think it should be red in black fruits. Great, Ready, okay, here we go, blood, orange juice, oh my god, grapefruit juice, pint, grape fruit juice, crushed blackberries. Yes, and then what's the what's the spirit? Vodka? Rum? I think rum white rum, sure, because the dark rum is gonna get in the way all those berries, all those dark white rum. Wait, stay

with me, do we need pineapple? Juice in that too, Oh my god, yes, okay, okay, white rum, pineapple juice, fresh pineapple juice. That you that you juice extractor? Okay, so pineapple fresh pineapple juice. Blackberries also in the extractor blood orange juice, pink grape fruit juice. So it's like tart, sweet fruity and the blackberries rum. And then we need a little simple syrup fresh mint. Sure, that's it. Did you say the blackberries? Let's call it the Always Hungry Punch.

Always Hungry punch. That sounds great. We should make some of that. Let's get a punch bowl. Okay, Amazon, Yeah, I don't even know what they look like, well, bottoms up. Always Hungry is created by Bobby Flay and Sophie Flay. Our executive producer is Christopher Hasiotis. Always Hungry is produced, edited, and mixed by Jonathan hawks Dressler. Always Hungry is engineered

by Sophie Flay. For more podcast from My Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.