Latest / The Weekly Run / Did Free Stuff Break Our Brains? | #36
Transcript
- Jeff Perera: Welcome to the weekly run. I'm Jeff. Aaron: I'm Aaron Jeff Perera: And we're talking about what's out of Jeff's Bagel run. And this week, Aaron, we have, man, we were in the test kitchen a little bit this week, and there's a lot of hot stuff coming. I'm excited about that. We're gonna save that for a completely different podcast though. Cause Aaron: Big one, big podcast. Jeff Perera: I was crazy. Yesterday was crazy and it felt good. but I have a question for you. And Aaron: Yeah. Jeff Perera: I know a lot of times you have questions for me, but I have a question for you today. And Aaron: Ooh, all right. Jeff Perera: My question for you is did free stuff break our brains? Aaron: I don't know if that's as much a question for me as it is for the world. I mean, guess I can Jeff Perera: Ha ha. Aaron: take it on. That was very large scoped. But I don't know. I don't even know what you mean, Jeff. What do you mean? What free stuff? What free stuff are we talking about? Jeff Perera: Okay, so let's rewind a little bit and I'll put in some context. So that this week thanks. Aaron: That was great though, was a great hook. Just jump right in. Jeff Perera: This past weekend, Seven Brew Coffee introduced their I think they called it Seven Brew Do or something. I don't know. Essentially, if you bought a medium or a large drink at a Seven Brew, you got a squish. A little tiny cubicle squish And it's been reported all over social media. A couple of the local like news outlets picked up lines of cars in their drive-throughs for what ultimately is Aaron: to get this. Jeff Perera: like a like a three dollar squish that's not even branded that just to get it with your drink. And so it's a free squish. Aaron: It's not even branded. Jeff Perera: No free squish. Similar situation happened the weekend before with Swig. maybe it was two weekends before, Swig did a Squish giveaway. They had their little like they have like little they'll put like little Swedish fish sometimes in your drinks, I think. I don't know, they have like a theirs was a slightly more branded version of it, came in a little box, but medium or large drink, get a free squish. So has free stuff broken our brains Aaron: I think it has, but I would extend it maybe a little bit and say, I don't think it's much about the free aspect, although I think that's important piece of it and we should unpack that. But I think it's really, we're in a moment of maybe uniqueness but like, People like something that is unique. And a squish isn't unique, but getting the squish that you got for free as a drink, attachment, when you went to Seven Brews, that's unique. And I think that is the difference because, let give you a counter example. Not free, people go crazy about popcorn tubs. So Disney will release a new popcorn tub for $45 to put 60 cents of popcorn in, capitalism at its finest. But people will get in line. They're already in a park. They've already paid to get into this place and they're gonna pay for their popcorn, but they will wait in a line longer than the ride lines at some food kiosk to get the exclusive only gonna be here for two weeks. popcorn tub that's just gonna find the back of their shelves when they get home. But I think that's really it. It's like, okay, you gotta be at Disney and you gotta go to this park and you gotta go to this kiosk to get this thing. It's uniqueness. That's my take. Jeff Perera: I believe there's something to that. it's the social proof that you were there. Right? Like you, Aaron: Yes, it's a badge. Jeff Perera: it is, it's a badge. You wear it with pride. You were a part of this like moment. You were a part of a group. And you together did that. Right. And I think that like identity and that kind of proof component was there. I think social media now I mean 'cause like listen, I mean, you and I were old guys. We talk about this all the time. Like I've lined up for stuff before, but I didn't Aaron: yeah. Jeff Perera: post about being in line for it. Like I think that's the difference. Like, I mean, I stood in line for concert tickets back when you used to do that sort of thing and like I wasn't like taking pictures of myself and putting it on social media 'cause it didn't exist. So like you have this like identity and I probably would have. Yeah. Yeah, definitely. Aaron: You know you would have had it. Let's just be clear. That's availability speaking. That's not some sort of principled stance. Jeff Perera: I think it's just another layer to the component, right? You've got this like scarcity of an object, which we know scarcity works, it draws people in. And then you have the second component Aaron: Mm-hmm. Jeff Perera: of like being a part of a group and having this belonging with these people and identifying with folks who like popcorn buckets or squishes or whatever. And then the th icing on top of this cake is the social moment, right? You get the opportunity to show the world that you were a part of it. And that post creates more energy around it's like, I missed out. I feel like I need to be a part of it. And then hunt happens, right? Like you end up with like, I gotta get in line for the next one. I gotta be there. And so there is a bit Aaron: Yeah. Jeff Perera: of like a snowball effect. Aaron: Well, and to your point on sort of the, made this as you were describing it, but about the identity, I think that's an interesting concept when it comes to brands, which I mean, as all cases, you know, with regard to what we're talking about, but from a brand's perspective, that's really your customer showing that they want to identify with you as a brand because the moment is intrinsically linked to you. You know, I am a Disney person, so I have these tubs. I am a 7brews fan, so I waited to... That's the badge. The badge is proven to somebody I dig 7brews so much that I got the squishy. The squishy's irrelevant. It could be anything. But it's the badge. It's a manifestation of this proof that I'm a fan of this brand. And you can even play with that, right? Because it's like, all right, do you have like, they hand out stickers all the time, so I have stickers. I'm a fan of the brand. But are you the wait two hours? fan or do you remember when Starbucks released the special mugs and each Jeff Perera: Mm-hmm. Aaron: store only had like 30 of them or whatever and people were getting like people were waiting in line in front of a Starbucks at like four in the morning for for a 6 a.m. opening because the mugs were gone instantly and Jeff Perera: yeah. it yeah. Yeah. Aaron: again it's like so it tears it's like are you a fan are you a mega fan are you a 3 a.m. in the morning fan and so you get the stratification of of identity across it which is amazing that that brands can create this. Jeff Perera: Think it's brilliant marketing. creating these moments around something that allows brand identity and social proof to creep in is just brilliant marketing. so it got me thinking like, what what should we give away? you know, we come up with the best marketing ideas on this podcast. So, like, what's the thing, Aaron? Like, drop. Aaron: This is true. These are facts. Jeff Perera: Drop it. What is it? What do we what do we what's the giveaway? Aaron: Well, let's take an assessment. Let's, let's qualify where we sit today. So we have an amazing sticker program. I will give the marketing and especially the creative team just props for that. Our stickers are top notch. We do that monthly. So I know people look out for our stickers. So we're right on par with that. We've played with the bagel man toys, you know, like the little stuffies and stuff like that and the key chains. Those Jeff Perera: yeah, the the stuffies. Yeah, the little stuffies. Yep. Aaron: That has been a big winner. don't doubt for a second that if we had a squish, a running man squish that it would kill. That's just, you know, that's a big thing right now. But I will tell you for me, right? It'd just be very, Jeff Perera: That would be super fun. Okay, go ahead. What's yours? Aaron: no, I squish this, just park on that. Like a squish would be, just crush the bagel man and let him bounce back. It'd be great. Jeff Perera: You know, you s like I grew up in a world where those squish toys were called stress balls. Aaron: Yeah. Jeff Perera: And you would squeeze them and then they'd pop back to life. Aaron: Listen, they've rebranded them for eight-year-olds. What eight-year-old stress? What are you gonna be stressed about? They're squishes now. Rebranding. Jeff Perera: Dude. This is fair. All right. And what so what's what's what's your big idea? What's Aaron's big idea? Bring it. Aaron: So I'll admit, I don't have an idea yet. Maybe one will come out. But I want to name the fact that for me personally, I love the pins. So we don't do Jeff Perera: Mm. Aaron: many of them. It was sort of something we did a little earlier on and it's cooled off a little bit. But we produced really awesome enamel pins. I really like them and they, and for what it's worth for people that maybe you've never seen them, there are our primary mascot just in different configurations, holiday basketball for March madness, whatever. So a little cloud. Yeah. Again, Jeff Perera: My favorite is the Cupid version with the like the little arrow. Chevest. So good. Aaron: same, same zone as our stickers. So they're all, they're all just. money but I really like the pins. I like to think of a world. That's why I'm collecting them. I'm ahead of my time. I'm collecting from a world where these are... man, you have the 26 pin? Do have the 24 pin? Jeff Perera: Ha ha ha. Aaron: man, those are so hard to find now. So that's what I'm hoping for. I want to see JBR pin trading. Jeff Perera: Well and that kinda like part of a pin trading experience is not so much like the actual pin you get. Sure, there's some physical collateral there that you're trading or consuming or receiving, but like the giveaway is the product. Aaron: Experience, yeah, 100%. Jeff Perera: 'Cause yeah, you know, it's going and doing the thing. If you're pin trading, it's looking at someone else's someone else's collection and saying, I remember when I had my first one of those or I traded that this you it's like you have all these memories and emotions that come back to it. And food is uniquely built for that because I think we have all these memories associated and tied to food and I they're just I think it's it's really not so much about the giveaway, you know, the actual thing that you're giving away. The giveaway itself and the action of doing that is the product. Aaron: Completely. It's the journey. It's the time you waited in line. Or it's the time that something crazy happened and you went and did the normal order at the end of a day and the person's like, hey, I got one. Do you want it? And you're like, what? Really blow your mind. It's all Jeff Perera: Yeah. Aaron: those little moments that are just sort of imprinted on the object. Object being utterly Jeff Perera: So do you think Aaron: meaningless. Jeff Perera: cor yeah, absolutely. Do you think that these giveaway items and the freebies and stuff that, you know, like we do and other companies do, do you think that builds loyalty? Or do you think that just Aaron: 100 % Jeff Perera: you do, okay. Yeah. Yeah. I agree. Aaron: without question. Jeff Perera: I agree with you. I think it I think it builds loyalty. I think it starts not only does it build loyalty, but I think it builds brand lore and it creates more story around a a business, around an experience. Aaron: But we should talk about that because it's an interesting thing because branded merchandise is not new. Let's go back even further if we really want to talk about how old both of us are. I remember, you remember Kool-Aid cool points? Jeff Perera: Yes. Yes. Aaron: Yeah, yeah, you do. Cool A Cool Points were currency when I was a child. We used to snip those Jeff Perera: Mm-hmm. Aaron: things off the back of the boxes and then Jeff Perera: Yeah. Aaron: the packets, the mixed packets, and then you'd get the pre-made drinks in like a carton and you could get more points off those. All the UPCs collected so many of stuff. You trade them in and you get something worth, it's like Chuck E. Cheese, it's $6,000 worth of product. to get a $20 item. Jeff Perera: Yeah, you're getting like a carnival prize. Yeah. Aaron: Exactly, but it didn't matter it didn't matter because there's only one way to Jeff Perera: Mm-hmm. Aaron: get these things and it was all sort of a branded experience and then you know even going further back to like everything cigarette branded back in the day like most people's houses had like duffel bags and stuff like that because they would just give that away so branded merchandise is not is not new what I think is new though is that before it was just like what what everyday item can I stamp our logo on so you'll carry around our our our logo and you'll be a billboard for us t-shirts duffle bags you know whatever chachki items and I think that that's shifted now to being more like engaging and fun like a squish or like a sticker or you know it's like the it's I don't know it's the same thing they still still branding but it's not branding for the sake of like, I turn you as a person into a billboard for us? It's more, hey, here's a way for you to be in the club, right? Like only people that are into this will know what this even is. And I think that's a subtle shift, but it's a more engaging version. Jeff Perera: I think the shift is actually not so subtle. I would tell you that the best brands right now that have a merch program or that are actually selling this type of stuff that is a brand identifier are doing it without logos, are doing it without branding. It's just Aaron: I would agree. Jeff Perera: a it's just a cool something that you got in a place or from a brand that you resonate with, that you had an amazing experience with, and you're just happy to commemorate the moment. with the thing. And it doesn't even have to say the brand name on there. As a matter of fact, it's probably better if it doesn't, because then to your point, when you're wearing it or using it and walking around and you identify someone else, you're like, you're part of Aaron: Yes, Jeff Perera: the club. Aaron: exactly. But the amazing thing about that, and I agree with you, is that if somebody asks, that person is then going to give a testament. Like if I'm walking around in my branded t-shirt and you just read off it, yeah, brand. You've acknowledged it. There's no discourse. There's no dialogue. There's no nothing. But if I'm wearing a funky t-shirt with something that you either don't recognize, you quasi recognize, or you can tell is something, you'll laugh. I was like, it's funny. This is actually, blah, blah. then you've got now you're sort of, you're an advocate. You're engaged in a whole other level. it is a, it's an interesting play from a brand's perspective to your point, this new version. Jeff Perera: Two examples that I can give you. One, I wear a Just Bagel run t shirt. People say, I love Just Bagel run, awesome bagels. They're like, Cool, me too. Keep walking, right? I'm standing in line at Disney World, back to the guest behind me, talking to Danielle and the kids. Someone hears my voice, just Aaron: Haha Jeff Perera: talking generally about life or what rides next, or do we really want to wait twenty five minutes? Whatever. And they say, Excuse me? Are you Jeff? my gosh. I love your bagels. They're so amazing. There's like there's the identification of the brand, and then there's the realization that you're like a part of it. And I think those are two different things that kind of run parallel to each other, but they're different and they're on their own rail and they can both be valuable. I think they skew Demographically different. I think you and I are more likely to put a shirt with a logo on it, just because of who we are and what we grew up with, and that's sort of everything was logo to your point. Like, I mean, I remember walking around with like a Marlboro duffel bag because my parents like, you know, Aaron: 100 % Jeff Perera: yeah, 100% took that to camp, you know. but Aaron: The free duffel Bag. Jeff Perera: my kids don't want anything with a logo on it. They just wanna have the thing and where they got it from. And it's just different. I think times change and the way people identify with brands and products Aaron: Because again, that's insider. Like, you know, you know. And that's why love something. One of my favorite stickers we've ever done is back to school. And it was a calculator. And the calculator had bagel spelled out in display. Super simple, super cool, was clean. But to your point, it didn't say Jeff's on it anywhere. But I thought it was one of the best, best little pieces of giveaway because who is clever, thoughtful, like, and everybody's going to say, where did you get that? And the answer is exactly Jeff Perera: Hundred percent. Aaron: what you want. The answer is the marketing opportunity. Jeff Perera: I don't need it to say Jeff's Bagel run on there because when it's on the back of my laptop and I'm at a another coffee shop or I'm in class or I'm at work, someone says to me, your calculator sticker's so funny, it says bagel. Where did you get that? I got a Jeff's Bagel run. Aaron: Yep, that's the moment. Jeff Perera: And that's the moment. And then someone's I Jeff's Bagelun. I've never heard of it. What it like, then there's a dialogue. And then, which we already know this to be true, the strongest, most reliable. Data point we have is word of mouth gets a guest to come. If you say, I recommend this business or this product or whatever that is, you're that person's going. The person you're talking to is gonna try it, more likely than not. Aaron: So what do you think some of the best giveaways right now? Obviously you're a squishy fan, but what else? Jeff Perera: I just have an eleven year old and an eight year old, so I've got squishes everywhere. I don't have any Aaron: Ha! Jeff Perera: seven brew squishes and I don't have any swig squishes. I just have regular old fashioned Temu squishes. But you know I You really put me on the spot. I thought I was asking you the questions today. But I for me, I actually think it's not even something we give away for free. I think we have the bagel of the day. And when you have a unique flavor Aaron: Mmm. Jeff Perera: and you're able to go there and enjoy that or share it with friends or whatever that looks like, I think that moment creates a lot of the same Relevant points that we talked about. You know, there's there's identity and proof. You were there, you got the thing on the day that it was available. You're likely going to be posting about it. So there's social momentum that builds, and someone is like, I didn't get that bagel of the day today. I wish I could have gotten it. You know, the number of times you've missed out, Aaron, on a bagel today 'cause you forgot or you're busy or you couldn't get to a store and then felt bad about it when I come and talk about how good it was. That FOMO is Aaron: Sure. Thanks. Jeff Perera: real. That FOMO is real. And I think that's a really relevant one for us. And it that one's not free. That one costs two bucks or whatever. You know, cost of a bagel. So I think there's I think there's that for us. And I think that's like our everyday item. Sometimes they're bigger and better and crazier than other days, you know, like Harry Styles releases a bagel or released an album, we created a bagel. Like you're probably never gonna see that again. We're never doing watermelon flavored sugar again. You know, like it's just not gonna happen. So if if you were there for the moment, you were there, but you might not be. So I think there's value there. Aaron: This is where, this is where we, you know, we, a lot of times me normally are throwing things at the marketing team's feet. Go solve, go solve. This is a, this is a great idea. they rarely are, but I'll put this at my own feet for this one. This is where I think it'd be fun to have that in the app. It would be awesome to have the ability to capture those moments in the app and badge them. think. a merit badge system of like, had that bagel or I had that LTO or whatever. I've always thought about this because it is, there's moments in time that probably will never be revisited and kind like my pins. can't wait until. four years now, five years from now when I'm talking about my Gen 2 pin that nobody else has, which is amazing. So when you're just like, hey, I had the watermelon sugar bagel. It was terrible. So I've got one like, I actually, didn't try that one. So I don't know. But I will say that a great example of that is the peppermint, the candy cane bagel that we did two years ago, two years ago. Yeah. Jeff Perera: yeah. Aaron: Terrible. It a toothpaste bagel. It looked fantastic. It was awesome. like we got the dough stripes in there. looked great. And I will say it fully succeeded in tasting like peppermint, but that doesn't belong in bread. And so it just tasted like, and I ate it because I love candy canes. I ordered it. I got it. I took some bites. I'm like, wow, that's terrible. Put on some cannoli cream cheese. It saved it. But it was a moment. And I remember it fondly, clearly. Jeff Perera: Well we did evolve that bigle and I think it came back the next year as peppermint bark. So we took the same peppermint Aaron: That was good. Jeff Perera: we put the same peppermint dough, dialed it back a little bit, added chocolate sprinkles and more chocolate sprinkles on top. Now one is that's a winner. Aaron: Yeah, that one I liked. But the straight peppermint, just peppermint colored dough or peppermint and colored dough. Although, know, side tangent here. Why no more colored doughs? Jeff, I feel like the colored doughs were a staple two years ago and we just too much prep. Jeff Perera: So it was actually more than two years ago. I think it was Aaron: Is it really that long now? Wow. Jeff Perera: Might have been well, maybe it was twenty twenty four. Christmas of twenty twenty four, I think was the last year we did it. We did a red and a white striped dough. And what happened what happened was our batch sizes are too big. And so when you get Aaron: Mmm, yeah. Jeff Perera: more than one color, you're making a batch of, say, red and a batch of white for this like candy cane experience. You're you're yielding sixteen dozen. And guess what we didn't sell? Sixteen dozen. So you had this Aaron: Yeah. Jeff Perera: enormous amount of bagels and you could reduce batch sizes, I guess we could probably mess with that, but between batch size, lack of sales, and honestly I think there's only one population of people who like colorful bagels. Only one. And the and they're all under the age of twelve. Aaron: And generally not financially liquid. Jeff Perera: They don't have cash to come to the bagel shop. They don't even have a way to get there. So it's then re we're then relying upon a family member to take them to the bagel shop to then plead and beg for that colorful bagel. So there was it's Aaron: Good luck. Good luck. Jeff Perera: it's w it's funny. I I get asked that question often. They're like, Do you do a rainbow bagel or why don't you make these colorful bagels anymore? And I tell people they didn't sell and it's just they're like, What do you mean? I like, They just didn't. It's a plain bagel with color in it. Outside of the you know, notwithstanding candy cane bagel whatever I made, but Aaron: Yep, it's true. Jeff Perera: it's just a plain bagel. And so I think people find a lot more Aaron: They're fun, but they don't... Jeff Perera: they look great, they're cool to look at, they taste mostly okay. I think sometimes when you get that much color into something, you can almost start to taste the color. And I know that's psychosomatic, but you don't 'cause you can't really taste blue. But like you taste blue. Aaron: I agree. Jeff Perera: it's just so much more fun to get a cinnamon sugar bagel with cake batter. Aaron: Yeah, if you want the color. Jeff Perera: Equally as fun. Aaron: But the psychosomatic part is very interesting because I think that's another thing that drove that peppermint bagel. just it, the colors, it had flavor, had the flavor, but just that layered with the look, layered everything, was like, my goodness. Like it just was there, yeah. Jeff Perera: Anything. I think this happens sometimes with the banana bread bagel, which was our Aaron: Mmm, yeah. Jeff Perera: March March Madness Champion, banana bread. This is a bagel that Aaron: Crazy, still. Jeff Perera: I it still blows my mind. You know, it's it's we make we use real banana extract, we have nutmeg and some cinnamon, and we're really trying to pull forward the idea of a like of a banana bread. in a form of a bagel. And sometimes when you at least for me, when I first bite into it, I don't get banana bread right away. It's after I've been chewing it and the aroma starts to kind of like fill my sinus cavity that like I'm hit Aaron: Yep. Jeff Perera: with this like banana and like nutmeg nuttiness that I start to think that it finally dawns on me, banana bread. Because just from the first bite, it's not there. Which is why I can't believe this bagel constantly crushes. Blows my mind. I'm shocked every time I think about it. Aaron: can't sleep on the aromatic element. I remember we had another wild one. I don't know if it's coming back this fall, but Nana's stuffing was like that. Nana's stuffing was like first bite, it's like I don't even know what this is. It's got a little flavor, but it's mild. And you don't really, like you can't place it and then you smell it. And then you taste everything that's in there. And you're like, my God, this tastes like stuffing. It's just strange experience. Jeff Perera: So that bagel when I first set out to make it, I was trying to think of like what's the most quintessential like Thanksgiving item and you know cranberries there. You've got, you know, cranberry sauce, turkey. Can't really make a turkey bagel, that's just feels completely wrong. But yeah, I mean meat flavored bagels, that'd be just just can't. I just can't do it. I'm not there yet. The stuffing made sense to me. Aaron: Good to have limits. Jeff Perera: The stuffings made sense to me. And so when you look at the ingredients and stuff, and you it's breadcrumb and some people do carrots or mushrooms or celery. There's all sorts of different things that people put in their stuffing. Ultimately to me, it's about that like fragrant, herby, kind of vegetable forward aroma that you get when you scoop that stuffing and it's steamy and it's hot. And we make it with with vegetable soup mix. Not veg vegetable broth. So like We use a a a large portion of vegetable broth in replacement of the water to infuse that flavor of the things that just aren't gonna break down like celery into a bagel dough nicely. Aaron: Yeah. Jeff Perera: And that that flavor does really come through it it fills that void where, you know, the the texture and the chew of like a of a regular stuffing might be missing. So yeah. I think we should serve that bagel this year with a side of gravy. Aaron: 100%. 100%. That should be like a dipper. Like a little... Jeff Perera: Like a dipper, like a great like a gravy dipper, yeah. Aaron: I'm still advocating for, I'm a huge cranberry fan, I'm still advocating for a cranberry spread. It's like an LTO spread. think Nana's stuffing with a cranberry spread would be nuts. It'd be crazy. Jeff Perera: Cranberry spread's not in the plan, Aaron. You're really just I have time, but will Danielle allow it? Aaron: I'm not here to... I mean, not if she's sane. You work so far out in advance now. this is, can't accept my last second ideas anymore. You're a couple of quarters ahead. Jeff Perera: Well, this is also not so I am, but I have September, October, November. She gave she said I have she gives me sixty days. That's where I have to be. I have to be sixty days ahead. Aaron: That's it. jeez. We can work with that. That's fine. Jeff Perera: So I I think I could work with this is what I'm saying. I think I can work with it. Aaron: telling you, cranberry spread because, because this is what I think the angle has to be. I'm a very big Thanksgiving dinner leftovers sandwich maker. I like Jeff Perera: Mm. Aaron: making the dagwoods of leftovers. I put everything on there. I put, if we've got carrots, I put the carrots on there. If you've got stuffing, stuffing goes in there, which is insane because it's bread on bread, but I don't care. If there's sides, gravy's poured over the sandwich, cranberry. Sauce goes in there, everything. So to have a cranberry spread, a Nana's bagel, and then some leftovers, a Jeff's Dagwood, Thanksgiving Dagwood. Jeff Perera: Are you picking that up or are you using like a fork and knife to get through that? Aaron: no, I said there's there's an approach. So Jeff Perera: Okay. Aaron: I mastered this over the years. You have to panini it. I have a panini press and I get super thick bread, slice it very thick. And so you lock it all in with a panini press, but it's huge and the gravy is everywhere. And then I just get paper towel and it's like I'm like at a barbecue. There's a bunch of paper towel and I just go into it. And then by Jeff Perera: Stop in it. Aaron: the time you're like this and you just hose yourself off, like there's no This is not date food, people. This is you eat this around people that know you. It's not gonna be pretty. Yes, right. Jeff Perera: Over the sink. Yeah. It's over the it's like over the sink, over the trash can. Yeah, yeah. There's gonna Aaron: Exactly. With a bib. Jeff Perera: be there's gonna be entrails on the ground. Yeah. Aaron: Yeah, it's not pretty. Jeff Perera: you'll get I think the anti stuffing drops before Thanksgiving this year. We're also Aaron: Hmm. Jeff Perera: pulling some pumpkin flavors back into Thanksgiving time because that always feels like a good time. Our cranberry orange bagel Aaron: Fill the fridge. Jeff Perera: will make yep, cranberry orange will make a Triumphant Return. So I think there's there's some really great flavor profiles coming for the bagel today in November. I'm really looking forward to it. There's another there's a new one that's coming, a Thanksgiving Leftovers bagel. I think you're gonna like that one. Aaron: That's what we're talking about. See? I'm excited already. Jeff Perera: Yeah. Yep. It's cranberry orange dough, rosemary, Osciago cheese. Yeah. Yeah, Aaron: Yeah. Jeff Perera: I think that's what it is. I I'd there might be one other ingredient on there, maybe onion. I don't know. It's very good. It's very good. Aaron: I mean, now I just see some cranberry spread to go in the middle of it and it's a slam dunk. Jeff Perera: Okay, cranberry spread with a gravy dipper. Aaron: I, my idea does not preclude other great ideas. So yes, yes Jeff Perera: 'Cause there's a perfect like Aaron: to all of it. Jeff Perera: all right, we're gonna definitely talk about this in detail at some point on the pod as we get closer to Thanksgiving. But what's like the perfect Thanksgiving bite? Aaron: it's... It's for me, it's the sandwich bite. So it's everything. But the critical piece is that Thanksgiving is savory all the way down. Except for cranberry sauce. That's why the cranberry Jeff Perera: Yes. I Aaron: sauce is so critical. Every bite, doesn't matter what your stack up is, has to have a little cranberry for that tartness to cut it all. That's the critical part. Jeff Perera: I think it's like you grab the fork, the first layer is a little bit of stuffing, and then you can come through your mashed potatoes on your plate that have the gravy on it already. Aaron: Yeah, yeah. Jeff Perera: Then you stab the bit of cut turkey, and then you run the turkey through the cranberry jelly or cranberry sauce. And that and just Aaron: Get as much food as you can. Yeah. Jeff Perera: you know, mouthful, try not to like lose any out the sides. Yeah. So good. Aaron: And I'm a firm believer that the gravy's just on everything. Like I build my entire plate Jeff Perera: Everything. Aaron: and then you go to the gravy, there's no, it doesn't go on this or that. It on everything. I am Jeff Perera: Yeah. No. Perf that's it's it's it it's on everything. Aaron: starving right now. I wasn't at the beginning of this episode, but I am starving. This sounds so good. Jeff Perera: Our neighbors have a our neighbors have these awesome plates. They're like I don't know, they're like bowls, but they're plates. I don't know how to describe it. Aaron: Okay. Jeff Perera: They have like a about a this thick of a ledge and they dip a little bit in the center, but they're clearly plates. Like they stack like plates, they look like plates, they're big like plates. But they got Aaron: If wealth. Jeff Perera: that but they're walled. And I joked with them the last time we had dinner there. I was like, I'm coming over for Thanksgiving because you could fill that whole thing with gravy. Aaron: Just like a... Jeff Perera: And then like a waiting pool. Aaron: So if you're Jeff Perera: Like a gravy waiting pool for all of your for all your stuff. Yeah, I know. I know. Aaron: the gravy splash pad of the plate. Jeff Perera: Okay. Funny story. And then we probably needed to finish this podcast. But Aaron: Ha Jeff Perera: we you know George and Jennifer, we invented them over. And Jennifer said, we'll bring dessert. And I was like, what are you gonna bring? She's Well, I was going through my garage and I found this old like chocolate fountain. I figured we'd give it a try. Like she just had like a chocolate fountain like in her garage. So she brings it over. We get the whole thing Aaron: Amazing. Jeff Perera: set up. Chocolate's starting to melt. It's like not viscous enough, so we have to add a little like olive oil or whatever to it to help like thin it and get it like rotating Aaron: Like, yeah. Jeff Perera: through. And once it starts really ripping and cranking, the motor was like the the piece that's the motor that pulls it up through the tube and gets it to flow. I guess that piece wasn't connected. And so it just starts splurting out like everywhere. Just like arterial chocolate spray. All through the living room. It was 'cause it was Hilarious. And also like screaming, chocolate flying. It was great. It was great. And they're gonna love Aaron: That's Jeff Perera: that they gotta and they're gonna love that they gotta mention. That was so much fun. That was so much fun. Aaron: Hey, that's, yes, there you go. maybe there's, needs to be like bagel Jeff Perera: Mm-hmm. Aaron: fondue. Jeff Perera: my god, don't me started. Beer cheese. We'll just leave it there. Think about Salt bagel and beer cheese. It makes a great week here on the weekly run. Thanks for listening. Bake fresh, bring joy, build community. Bye.