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In this episode of Check Please! the gals chat with the rising young chef putting Mexican-Japanese fusion on the map Chris Krinsky of Ramen Del Barrio. Chris shares how his unique upbringing in the resort hub of Mexico and his training in Japanese cuisine-focused kitchens shaped his culinary point of view, the challenges of running a restaurant at such a young age, and what’s next for RDB. To learn more about Chris and Ramen Del Barrio, follow on Instagram and watch their episode of Under Seasoned created by our very own host Mason Adams on Youtube. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

Have you ever tried one of those cotton candy grapes and thought “How on earth do they get this flavor in here?” The answer may surprise you. In this episode, we’re joined by CEO of The Grapery Jim Beagle, who comes from a lifelong background in agriculture and has answers to all our juicy grape questions. Jim shares how table grapes are grown, how they arrive at names like “tear drop” and “gum drop,” which varieties never made it to market, and the unlikely story of how cotton candy grapes took grocery stores by storm. The Grapery is a California-based grower behind many of America’s favorite grapes. Follow them and learn more here. Thanks for reading early girl! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of Check Please! we catch up with my dear friend Kelsey Small about the opening of his new restaurant Small’s Pizza, where the pizzas are actually quite large and extra crispy in a close approximation of New Haven’s signature style. Kelsey walks us through his storied culinary past, from growing up in Connecticut watching Emeril Lagasse to working at Franklin Barbecue and making an (alleged) appearance in Chef (2014), cooking for the HAIM sisters, and briefly starring in a Coca Cola commercial. He also came with an ice cream agenda and a PSA to all new restaurant owners. To keep up with Kelsey, follow Small’s Pizza on Instagram. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome back to our table, In this episode of Check Please! the lads chat with the sweet and original author behind Mayumu: Filipino American Desserts Remixed. Abi Balingit is a New York City-based baker with a James Beard Award under her belt and opinions on the Hailey Bieber smoothie, the complexities of monetizing your hobbies, the reliability of baking blogs, the NYC dining scene and the steak and fries of it all. Tune in to learn more about Abi’s baking journey and unique POV, and follow her @theduskykitchen to stay in the loop on new recipes and an exciting announcement for Filipino history month. Thanks for reading early girl! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

Happy Tuesday divas, In this new episode of Check Please! Bella and Mason chat with pastry chef, writer, and Cake Zine cofounder Tanya Bush. Get a peek behind the curtain and hear all about the writing process behind Tanya’s just-announced debut cookbook Will This Make You Happy, what to expect in Cake Zine Vol. 7 - Forbidden Fruit, where she would grab dessert in NYC when she’s not making it herself and how she’s dealt with some of her biggest kitchen flops and grown into a better pastry chef because of them. Preorder Tanya’s book here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/will-this-make-you-happy-stories-recipes-from-a-year-of-baking/f4edf93c58fbe170?ean=9781797227214&next=t& Thanks for reading early girl! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

Hello old friends, it’s been awhile. I’m pleased to announce the return of Check Please! I have a new co-host but the same old je ne sais quoi. Allow me to introduce you to Mason Adams, my friend and colleague. Mason is a film & production professional, a novice cook and a real freak. Naturally, he fits right in. In this episode, the two of us yap about the Anthony Bourdain biopic, Pamela Anderson’s new line of pickles, the problem with food taking over the world of product photography, and the time Mason accidentally turned off all the house lights at a Michelin-starred restaurant. Coming up, we’ll have a new guest from the culinary world on each episode. If you’ve followed me here, you probably know where to find me everywhere else. To keep up with Mason and his culinary shenanigans, follow Bless Thy Kitchen. Thanks for listening. Xoxo This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome back to Check Please! In this episode, we sat down with How Long Gone co-host, professional DJ, avid foodie and married man Jason Stewart to share our thoughts on matrimony. Is your wedding day among the most joyous and moving occasions of a lifetime? Absolutely. Will the months leading up to it ruin you emotionally, financially, physically, and psychologically to a point that feels nearly beyond recovery? Maybe, yes, but that’s just showbiz, baby! Take if from three people who have recently done it. We’re chatting about all our wedding details, the folly of the wedding industry, what’s next for wedding influencers, getting divorced and then married again, the time Bella got scammed out of a wedding dress, why wedding DJs have such an attitude problem, cake fails, keys to a happy marriage and how to pull it all off on the big day. Thanks for reading early girl! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

Is it too late to say happy New Year? We’re back with a new episode on all things trendy — bemoaning what’s out and predicting what’s in for 2025, featuring the expert opinions of our friends Daniel Emilio Soares, the mind behind NYC’s chicest party spreads and founder of Alimentari Flaneur, Savannah Eden Bradley, one of fashion Twitter’s most brilliant minds and editor-in-chief of Haloscope Mag, and Clue Perfumery founders and tastemakers Caleb Vanden Boom & Laura Oberwetter. We get a vibe check on the new year with our friend Camille Guerin (aka @p0lar0idprinc3ss), polaroid photographer, tarot enthusiast and LA-based foodie as she does a live reading for us, and we highlight some of our favorite media from the last year. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

Seasons greetings! We’re back with a new episode, and we’re chatting about holiday traditions, getting passive aggressive with your family, how to be good at gifting and the single greatest Christmas song of all time. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome back to Check Please! In this fantasy-themed episode, we chat about some of our earliest food memories — the fictional dishes we read about and watched on TV. We name some of very real dishes that feel made up, and dish on the YA fiction we were obsessed with in adolescence. Josh shares some of his favorite video game soundtracks, Bella introduces you to an independent perfumer who makes fragrances fit for fairies and water nymphs, and we watch that one really horny Robert Pattinson for Dior homme commercial. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

We are so back. And the seasons have changed since we last chatted. In this episode, we discuss all things autumn. We debate which apples are the best apples and whether pumpkin is under, over or correctly rated. We share our Thanksgiving takes and traditions, fight about whether Yo La Tengo is girl music or not, and talk about the time Josh catered a party that had gold-leaf covered suckling pig on the menu and Fiona Apple playing live piano. We even discover that they make Gilmore Girls towns in real life, that there really is apple cider in apple cider donuts and why Nico sings like that. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

In this week’s episode of Check Please! we chat about which foods have a certain sexy quality and whether aphrodisiacs are real or fake. We meditate on desire in all it’s forms, from the kind of yielding love it takes to make long term relationships work to the depths of depravity it can lead us to, as depicted in movies like Happiness (1998), Little Children (2006), and American Beauty (1999). We interpreted desire as a theme more literally in the musical arena, calling out some of our favorite tracks and artists of the same name, and shared a poem by Eileen Myles about wanting what you already have. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

It’s a beautiful Tuesday to assess your relationship with god! The theme for this episode of Check Please! was the word “holy,” and it sparked memories of cocktail weenies in coulis, cornflake casserole and the time my dad broke a $50 in the offering basket. It led us to revisit Bible verses featuring culinary anomalies, and analyze movies like First Reformed (2017) and Mermaids (1990) with heavy evangelical overtones. We also sat down with Audrey Robinovitz, the artist, writer, fragrance expert and recent Catholic convert about her relationship with religion, navigating the murky waters of ironic Catholicism online, and her favorite perfumes featuring notes like lilies, church incense and beeswax. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to another week of Check Please! In today’s episode on opulence, we speed rank (almost) every Real Housewife, and discuss examples of culinary luxuries throughout history, including everything from Pâté en Croûte to porpoise. We examined movies with monied overtones like Marie Antoinette (2006) and Eyes Wide Shut (1999), and had the opportunity to taste test and compare three caviars kindly provided by Petrossian — all of which were delicious, but one particularly sparkled. Thank you, as always, for listening. We’re excited to welcome a special guest next week — something to look forward to. Until then, Bella xx This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode on yearning, I open up about the deep anguish in my heart caused by the distance between me and my favorite slutty fast-food Mexican restaurant, Josh gets an education in Mitski lyrics, and we muse about why the gays are simply doing yearning better. We discuss Brokeback Mountain (2005), Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019), and reflect on excerpts from Ocean Vuong’s On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous and Richard Siken’s Crush. Thanks for listening. Until next week, Bella xx This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellacastillo.substack.com/subscribe