EPISODE 17: DR. YASMINE MASON

Ivy Dai interviews Dr. Yasmine Mason (Dr. Yas) from Fermentation Farm about gut health and her journey in opening a retail store and adding in a cafe. Fermentation Farm makes its own homemade kombucha, bone broth and various sauerkrauts. The company also has its own sourdough starter and bakes its own bread. In the cafe, they serve produce grown on their own 2-acre farm in San Juan Capistrano.

EPISODE 16: SAKINA IBRAHIM INTERVIEWS IVY DAI

Sakina Ibrahim, Showgurls Podcast, is a Webby-award winning podcast host and author and was nominated for a NAACP Image Award. She takes the mic and interviews Walk-Ins Welcome host Ivy Dai as she shares her adventures as a chef and food writer in Orange County and the south of France. The two talk about the importance of preventing burnout, the hustle of being an entrepreneur and how purpose doesn’t leave you alone.

EPISODE 15: NAUSHAD HUDA

Ivy Dai interviews Naushad Huda, the founder of Grape Night. Grape Night brings the winery experience right to your doorstep at a local restaurant with winemakers pouring your favorite varietal. Huda talks about his favorite memories and what to expect at Grape Night.

EPISODE 14: STEPHANIE MORGAN

Ivy Dai interviews founder/owner of Seabirds Kitchen, Stephanie Morgan. Voted best vegan restaurant in LA by the LA Times, Seabirds celebrates its 13th anniversary next month. Morgan talks about quitting her finance job to open Seabirds, and being on the Food Network's Great Food Truck Race. She also shares how she balances work and family, and her philosophy behind plant-based cuisine.

EPISODE 13: RICH MEAD

Chef Rich Mead was at the forefront of the original farm-to-table concept and his restaurants Farmhouse at Rogers Gardens and Farmhouse at Descanso Gardens highlights local seasonal produce. Chef Mead makes weekly early morning trips to the Santa Monica Farmers Market. Farmhouse celebrates its 10th anniversary this year and will hold a charity tasting event.

EPISODE 12: JAMIE GWEN

Ivy Dai interviews celebrity chef Jamie Gwen. The Orange County local is the co-founder of Relish, a food, wine and spirits experience Oct 2-4 in Newport Beach and Costa Mesa. Gwen hosts a nationally syndicated radio show on food and appears on KTLA News. She talks about Relish as well as her adventures cooking with Emeril Lagasse and also at home with her husband and young son.

EPISODE 11: AMAR SANTANA

Ivy Dai interviews Amar Santana, the beloved Top Chef contestant with three restaurants in Southern California - Vaca in Los Angeles, Vaca in Costa Mesa and Broadway in Laguna Beach. Santana talks about his experience on Top Chef, his extensive travel and life with his family.

EPISODE 10: KENNY JACKSON

Ivy Dai sits down with Orange County local Kenny Jackson to talk about the opening of his soul food restaurant and live music venue LJ's Lounge. Named after his mother Linda Jean, LJ's in Costa Mesa is a testament to Kenny's family and his decades long career as a DJ. Working for Lexus in a corporate environment also helped hone his business savvy, precision and marketing know-how which transferred to the restaurant business.

EPISODE 9: DANIEL HOHNG

Ivy Dai interviews Daniel Hohng, Executive Chef of the Park Club member's club in Costa Mesa, CA. He is one of the most highly regarded chefs in the region - he opened Vaca with Amar Santana and was chef de cuisine at Asterid with Ray Garcia. He also worked at Spago and Crustacean. During the interview he also talks about his experience working overseas in Asia at Michelin-starred restaurants. His Korean and Californian inspired fine dining tasting menu has been profiled by Culture OC and lauded by the Los Angeles Times, among others.

EPISODE 8: ANNE MARIE PANORINGAN

Ivy Dai interviews James Beard Foundation judge and California Journalism Award winner Anne Marie Panoringan. She has written for Culture OC, LAist, Eater LA, Voice of OC and other publications. She shares how the Orange County dining landscape has changed in the last two decades, how she got her start in journalism, and three of her favorite restaurants in OC right now.

EPISODE 7: JO SITU

Ivy Dai interviews Laguna Beach local Jo Situ, who talks about her journey from environmental scientist turned artist turned chef. She is the former chef founder of Mo Mi Mei restaurant in Costa Mesa and her latest series of dinners called Eat Like An Artist exposes diners to California-inspired and market forward Chinese cuisine.

EPISODE 6: NEIL LIU

Ivy Dai interviews Strickland's Ice Cream franchise owner Neil Liu in Costa Mesa, California. The former C-suite executive compares his corporate life to being a small business owner and talks about creating iconic flavors and building a diverse community of ice cream lovers.