I’m Blogging Again

I’ll thank my mom on this one. She gave me a call yesterday and asked me on the spot what I did [then] today. I froze and said nothing. Obviously a bit awkward. But after the call, I put together a list of what I did in the past 24 hours

Recently if you follow me on social media (@extravirginguy) you’ll see videos posted. YouTube is my best performing platform for some reason - here’s my top performing video of April: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/FwJ2eZekayc. Feel free to binge my content to get a sense on how everything has progressed since April 1st (more on that below).

Why I am blogging again

Simply put: my days recording and editing food content have so many weird and fascinating stories and just like the olive oil days, these stories deserve a place to live.

Below is high level summary covering something unique about each video I’ve released in the past month. All these videos are posted to @extravirginguy on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube

• First video Pad See Ew —> the people in the restaurant made me wear a hat in the kitchen and it was cut but when I put it on, just started hysterically laughing. I mean the hat looks absolutely ridiculous but somehow fit the vibe small little Thai Restaurant

• Chicken Tandoori: The cook was angry at me the whole shoot for a reason I still do not understand. I almost hit restaurant depot with the owner of the restaurant to buy the chicken but decided against it lol

• Andrea’s Chicken: the first shoot I had to reject food and drink items because I was served so much and got too full

• Chicken Chili Momo / Goat Thali: These are tough because I’m not into fried food but the restaurant wanted to showcase it. I will likely always have these existential moments of “do I want to promote unhealthy foods?” The Goat Thali was way more up my alley though people around me seamed to like the visuals of the dumplings.

• Espresso at Think Coffee: 0 prep for this video. I just had my camera and asked the guys if I can film as they do it. I visited that place 3-4 times before filming

• NYC Bagel: Another place I visited 5-6 times before meeting Frank who was the nicest most accommodating guy. That basement had character. HOT

• Branzino / Octopus: the restaurant owner treats you with hugs which I find to be very familial. I initially made an instagram story for the restaurant and was able to get them to agree to a content shoot for a couple of their star dishes. I wish the footage came out a bit better but onto the next one… right?

• Phil’s Pizza: I first met Anthony in September of 2024. I honestly was quite nervous (which is rare for me these days) and opted to buy a slice of pizza as an excuse to start a conversation. I meant to throw away the pizza but instead chowed it down in about 3 bites. The rest is history. He’s a great guy - don’t let his social media bits convince you otherwise

• Coffee Roasting: The most embarrassing part was not knowing how to exit after the shoot, and I interrupted the roaster who literally clicked the exit button and got me out of there.

• Shakshouka: small little Turkish Cafe next door to me. The owner is a good guy but kept saying “a few weeks” for when we can shoot. I was pitching a longer form video on how shakshouka is made from scratch. But instead I decided to not wait a few weeks. I went into the restaurant super hungry after the coffee roasting shoot and ordered Shakshouka and decided on the spot to just capture the final prep. Worked.

One big takeaway from my month of filming in Brooklyn: use location to your advantage. Why focus filming in the West Village if you have the advantage of passing by the same restaurants every day around you in Williamsburg?

One thought about restaurants: I spent a ton of time in kitchens this past month. If you own a restaurant, can you just try to keep your kitchen organized and clean? Attention to detail matters.

I’m excited to continue to take you along for the ride.

-Jack