No. 19 — Main character energy, chain restaurants, and happy tabletops
What’s on the menu for 7/7/23
We love a short week!!! I hope you all had a nice holiday break — I spent mine watching the entirety of Love Island UK season 9 (which is a LOT of episodes.) I’m now slipping phrases like “cheeky chap” and “on job” into conversations and I actually said “it is what it is” in earnest yesterday, so I’m starting to scare myself.
Creative suggestion: For better or for worse, I have a Carrie Bradshaw-like narration running in my head at all times (Apparently some people don’t talk to themselves? I can’t fathom.) I’ve definitely got some main character energy that I am very aware of and try to balance with like, showing my friends I love them and checking in on my family, but it’s there, and I blame it on the invention of the iPod.
I think anyone who was 13-ish in the mid-2000s can remember the feeling of pressing your forehead against the window of your mom’s car while listening to something angsty through your headphones (most likely connected to either a walkman or an off-brand MP3 player.) I have a distinct memory of playing The Ataris’ “Boys of Summer” on my way home from school one afternoon, passing by the house where my crush lived and thinking, extremely literally, “I’m driving by your house, though I know you’re not home.” (He was at soccer practice.)
I haven’t totally grown out of this, and although these days my music taste is a little less whiny and I wouldn’t necessarily describe myself as “wistful”, I still feel like I’m in a movie when a song lines up with whatever I’m feeling. I’ve started using music to get myself in a zone while I’m thinking about the direction of a project (sort of a musical moodboard?) and it’s been really helpful — Herb Alpert’s Ladyfingers and HNNY’s Sunday are on the playlist I made when I worked on my own branding and they both feel exactly like what I was after (at least to me.)
This week’s suggestion is to make a playlist for a specific purpose, like for a long car ride or for a meal you’re cooking tonight. It can be more experiential, like, to play when you are doing something, or more representative of a particular aesthetic or a feeling. It seems obvious — most of us here are from the era of burnt CDs, after all — but try doing it with a really clear application in mind and see what it does for you! I’m going on an evening walk in a few hours and, to give you an example, I made this playlist to soundtrack my inner monologue.
Personal recommendation: Have you come across the newsletter Ruined Table yet? It’s a new Substack dedicated to throwing dinner parties and it’s already so clever and fun. The first few posts have been chain restaurant themed, complete with fast food wine pairings and a recipe for a Sonic-inspired cherry limeade gimlet…you’ll love it. Start here and enjoy.
Person to know: Alyssa Zack, aka Sasa Studio. I went to Barra Santos in Cypress Park a few weeks ago (and again twice since) and fell in love with the painting hanging in their tiny dining area. It turns out it’s by painter and designer Alyssa Zack, who also did Barra Santos’ branding (along with other LA staples, like Found Oyster.)
Alyssa’s tabletop paintings are so joyful and just feel like summer — bowls of tomatoes and glasses of wine on striped tablecloths are “a bit of me”, as the Love Islanders would say.
I’m saving up for an Alyssa Zack original but she sells beautiful canvas prints of her work on her website and they’re really affordable! Give her a follow on Instagram here and check out the rest of her work here.
Before I sign off, I wanted to mention that this month I’ll be donating a portion of paid subscriber proceeds to Immigrant Defenders Law Center, Southern California’s largest deportation defense nonprofit. The IDLC offers legal defense, education, and connection to social services to detained and non-detained immigrants to the US. Click the button below to upgrade your subscription if you haven’t already — paid subscribers get weekly newsletters, access to giveaways, Side Order round ups, and more!
Have a great weekend!
x
Ali
This was such a lovely Friday read! Will be making niche playlists alll weekend 🎧
Thank you for sharing Alyssa's work! It is so playful and cinematographic. She knows how to direct a scene and food is a magnet for us all! Love her work, I will definitely share her art on my letter :)
Thank you for the fresh curated recommendations.