What makes a great coffee shop truly great? What is a founder thinking when they open a single café in the West Village - one that blossoms into 20+ across New York City? How do atmosphere & staff training shape the way we feel the moment we walk through the door? And how do founders know - sometimes in that Malcolm Gladwell Blink way - when a location or idea “just feels right”?

In this episode, we sit down with Jonathan Rubinstein, Founder & CEO of Joe Coffee, and Amaris Gutierrez-Ray, the company’s VP of Coffee and Roasting. Together, we explore the motivations behind launching Joe Coffee in 2003, the wise and heartfelt decisions that allowed the shops - and their respective communities - to endure through COVID, the principles behind ethically sourcing great coffee, and the cultural debate around caffeine.

What is an actor thinking right before the camera begins recording? How does acting in drama differ from acting in comedy? What goes through their mind as they win their first Oscar - and second, third, fourth, and fifth!? In this episode, we speak with Vache Tovmasyan, an actor, stand up comic, and founder of numerous comedy shows. Most recently, he played the role of Garnik in the pom d'or film festival winning and five-time Oscar-winning film Anora, bringing his talents to an international stage.

Who is Gen Z? How did they make it through COVID & Remote Learning? Where do they see themselves in the future after such a unique adolescence? In this two-episode segment, we're speaking to a diverse array of students recently graduating from the renowned Brooklyn Technical High School.

Episode 12 [Part I]:

Luca Granelli (Industrial Design at University of Cincinnati)

Susana Sharp (Engineering at Brown University)

Grace Chen (Political Science at Fordham University [my alma mater])

Episode 13 [Part II]:

Nufisa Patwary (Computer Engineering at Stony Brook University)

Demyan Kruglov (Mechanical Engineering and Design at Northeastern University)

Gadin Aggarwal (Business at Carnegie Melon)