Roti Brown Transcript
Kerry Diamond:
Hi, everyone. You're listening to Radio Cherry Bombe, and I'm your host, Kerry Diamond, coming to you from Newsstand Studios at Rockefeller Center in the heart of New York City. So many people are here at Rockefeller Center today because of the famous tree. I'm actually going to run over and see it right after our recording.
Today's guest is Roti Brown, the Los Angeles-based creative force whose fresh take on entertaining, food, and personal style has made her a standout voice online. What began as a love of cooking passed down from the women in her family and a brief detour into political science has grown into a multifaceted career that blends content creation, creative direction, and a uniquely warm, welcoming approach to hosting. Roti is a new friend, and I'm so glad you'll all get to meet her. If you're curious how someone becomes a professional content creator, this will answer a lot of your questions. We also talk about entertaining, of course, because it's the holidays and because Roti is a pro at making everybody feel so at home. From her oversized fabric tablecloth hacks and self-serve drink stations to her philosophy that, “if you're calm, you're not really hosting,” I can relate to that, Roti has made entertaining, joyful, communal and completely approachable. Stay tuned for my chat with Roti Brown.
Today's show is presented by JW Marriott. Nature is healing. Those words may come up often as an internet meme in all of our social feeds, but there is truth to be found there. Research has shown that spending time in a natural setting can have a positive effect on our mental and emotional well-being. At JW Marriott, nature is part of the brand's DNA. Founder J. Willard Marriott treasured his daily nature walks, and his wife Alice was an avid gardener. Now, every JW Marriott property around the world has its own JW Garden providing a sustainable source of fresh herbs and vegetables that are used throughout the guest experience, from your welcome elixir to your in-room dining order to your late-night cocktail or mocktail. Best of all, the JW Garden offers guests a chance to sit, connect to nature, and just be, so you can reap some of those mental health benefits yourself. Think of it as a chance to check in and tune out. Learn more and book your trip at jwmmarriott.com.
A little housekeeping. Cherry Bombe has teamed up with the Visa Dining Collection by OpenTable and Visa to present a new event series, Working Lunch: Tastemakers at the Table. Each stop in the series has included a delicious chef-driven lunch, meaningful networking, and a panel conversation with some of the city's top culinary talent. Our final stop is Charleston on Thursday, December 11th, this Thursday, at Brasserie La Banque. We'll get to hear from Brasserie's Vonda Freeman, Jillian Schaffer from FIG, and Corrie Wong of Jackrabbit Filly and King BBQ. Access to all Working Lunch experiences is available for eligible Visa credit card holders, and tickets are on sale now. Terms and conditions apply. Visit cherrybombe.com for all the details. You can also find the link in our show notes. I hope to see you in Charleston.
What else? The holiday issue of Cherry Bombe Magazine is finally here, and it's all about cake and features three incredible self-taught cake artists on the covers: Lucie Franc de Ferriere of From Lucie, Aimee France a.k.a. yungkombucha420, and Amy Yip of Yip.Studio. All three discovered their passion for cake during the pandemic and transformed their hobbies into thriving careers. What else is in this issue? So many delicious cake recipes, profiles of other incredible cake artists, stories of non-profits using cake for a good cause, an inspiring bake sale, and so much more. To snag the mag, head to cherrybombe.com or check out the link in our show notes, or find a copy at your local bookstore. We love our stockists, and you can find us in some great places across the country. Places like Kitchen Arts & Letters here in Manhattan, Books are Magic in Brooklyn, and Omnivore Books on Food in San Francisco. For a full list of retailers, visit cherrybombe.com.
Now, let's check in with today's guest. Roti Brown, welcome to Radio Cherry Bombe.
Roti Brown:
Hi. So excited to be here, I cannot wait to chat.
Kerry Diamond:
Tell everybody where you are and why you are where you are.
Roti Brown:
Yes. I'm here in L.A., I'm actually an L.A. native, born and raised. I'm on the opposite coast, so I feel like so much of the people that I work with are actually in New York, and I'm in New York quite often as well. But L.A. is home, and I think it always will be for me.
Kerry Diamond:
You did live in New York for a little while though, right?
Roti Brown:
I briefly lived in New York. I can barely claim it, I was there for about five months. I was remote at the time, and then I got a dream job offer and moved back to L.A. pretty immediately. But I loved my time there and, even now, I do feel like I have the best of both worlds because I'm out there a lot for work, I feel like I've gotten to know the neighborhoods and I have all my favorite food spots. It has my heart in a certain way, but I'm here full-time.
Kerry Diamond:
What was it like growing up in Los Angeles? For those of us who experienced L.A. as young people through television and movies, it seems very specific.
Roti Brown:
Yeah. I think it's different when you're from here. I think a little bit of that allure is lost. Also, for me, I grew up in the suburbs. So, I grew up in Pasadena, which is technically L.A. County, but it's definitely not downtown L.A., you're a bit off the beaten path. I think in the same way people that aren't from L.A. have these ideas that they're not maybe fully immersed in about the city, I really did have those too being in my suburb, being in a very quiet neighborhood and a place that really did feel small town sometimes. So, yeah, when I got old enough to move to the city, I was so excited about it and I think I discovered it, even being from here in a new way, being more immersed in it.
Kerry Diamond:
What did you think you wanted to be when you grew up?
Roti Brown:
I wanted to be a lawyer, yeah, mm-hmm. I studied political science in school and then I think, to go back a little further, I just grew up in a family that, really, the only job options that were presented to me were very corporate roles. My family's very corporate, both my parents work very corporate jobs so it really was presented to me as, if you want to be happy and you want to be stable, you can be a doctor or a lawyer and that's it. So, I knew I couldn't do blood, wouldn't be good with those things so I was like, "Okay, law is the only option." I loved what I studied and I had a lot of fun living in that world for the time that I did but I knew as soon as I graduated that it wasn't what I wanted to do full-time. I just didn't know what it was going to be, but I knew like this isn't going to be for me.
Kerry Diamond:
Did you do anything with your political science studies?
Roti Brown:
I have never ever worked a day in my field. I've never technically used my degree.
Kerry Diamond:
So interesting. Talk about, gosh, politics right now.
Roti Brown:
Mm-hmm.
Kerry Diamond:
Are you a nerd? Are you super interested in politics, follow everything?
Roti Brown:
Totally, yes, 100% a political news junkie. And I think, especially with the times we're in now, I appreciate that separation; I can't imagine it being my work. You know what I mean? It's so crazy and I feel like I would just be way too immersed and way too affected by everything happening if I couldn't at least step away from it. I love to keep up, I love to stay informed but I think it worked out the way it was supposed to, for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
You are the perfect person to ask this question of, I'm always interested in the fact that most content creators do not wade into politics.
Roti Brown:
Mm-hmm, yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
Is that a personal choice? Is that something their management is telling them? Shed some light on that for us.
Roti Brown:
I think it's case by case. I have not heard of management having people shy away from it. I think, with the most recent election, there was a lot more political influence that was seen as normal and acceptable. I think not everyone wants to be, quote-unquote, polarizing and I think people tend to be like, "If I'm here for food, we're going to stick to food and that's what we're going to talk about and I'm not going to involve other things." But I'm so firmly against that, I think it's so important to share what you believe and to just come on and be open and especially to stand up for the things that you believe in.
This year, especially with food, we've seen how much politics makes its way into things with everything that happened with SNAP benefits and so many little situations where there really is overlap, I think, in every niche. So, I'm definitely seeing it more and I hope to, I hope more influencers are more open about what they believe and come out and say it when they need to say it.
Kerry Diamond:
I agree. It does bum me out because it's almost like you're letting other people do the hard work for you-
Roti Brown:
Totally.
Kerry Diamond:
... and benefiting from that. You're benefiting from staying silent and that's never a good thing.
Roti Brown:
Yeah. And I think, for me, I like following people that are vocal and politically engaged. I see it as a plus, I would rather know exactly where you stand.
Kerry Diamond:
We'll be right back with today's guest.
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You’re political science, planning to go to law school, what happens next?
Roti Brown:
Yes. So, I graduated into the pandemic which, at the time, felt ... It was so crazy, I think there was so much fear, we knew so little about COVID at the time. But I think the benefit for me, which ended up being a blessin,g is that it really allowed me to just pretend that time didn't exist. I think I had a lot of pressure from my family, expectations, it's such a common question when you graduate, what are you going to do next, where are you going to go. And I think because it was the pandemic and the world stood still, it just allowed me to just stop and be like, "Okay, what do I actually want to do?" I moved back home, I went to college out of state, and I took three jobs simultaneously, which was crazy, but I worked at a restaurant as a hostess.
And then, the restaurant, it was a very cool space, local place, and the owner of it owned a liquor store next door but it was a very curated liquor store. He handpicked everything, they would do wine tastings every Thursday night and then he was a chef, there would always be a food pairing. So, I was doing that most nights and it was a great way to be in the food world. And then I took two internships, one under a creative director, an amazing woman named Cole Moser, and I was just helping her on set, honestly, mostly steaming clothes but really just getting to watch her work which was fantastic.
Kerry Diamond:
That is a skill, Roti.
Roti Brown:
Yes, it is. It definitely is.
Kerry Diamond:
A lot of people want to work on photo shoots and they don't know the basics and I'm like, "You got to know how to steam a dress."
Roti Brown:
You got to know how to steam and how to keep talent at bay while other things are happening. And then I was interning for a media company called EveryStylishGirl which is New York-based under an amazing woman named Nana Agyemang and I was just her executive assistant. I didn't know this at the time but it was the culmination of everything that I do now because it was a little bit of content creation, it was getting to work really closely with an amazing female creative director who I learned so much from and then it was working in food.
Kerry Diamond:
Were those interests of yours? Even though you were studying poli sci, were you creative, were you someone who cooked a lot?
Roti Brown:
I was someone who cooked a lot, I've been cooking since I was five. I come from a family of amazing women home chefs and so I just never viewed cooking as a skill, I just viewed it as you need to feed yourself and you feed your family, and thank God you can make food taste good. So, it was something I knew how to do and I did very frequently and I loved doing it but I just didn't view it as a job. Certainly not anything I could make money from, that wasn't ever a goal of mine.
Kerry Diamond:
And what about the creative side? Were you someone who always loved photography, social media, magazines?
Roti Brown:
Yeah. At that point, I had definitely a heavy interest in social media, mostly just on a personal note; I had a really big interest in fashion but I actually did not know what a creative director was. It was such an interesting learning curve for me to be thrown into this industry that I didn't really know existed, and I'm getting ahead of myself, but that's what I ended up doing a few years later.
Kerry Diamond:
Tell folks what a creative director is.
Roti Brown:
Well, I think it's hard to define. I think it's a broader term, especially nowadays, when it can look so different whether you're doing it for yourself or for a really big company but I'll speak to it for what it was for me when I was an intern for Cole. She was working for, actually, a mall, it's called ROW Downtown L.A., but it's a very fashion-forward mall, all of the stores are very high fashion. She was in charge of, basically, curating all the assets that the mall went out with. So, we would do quarterly shoots that were seasonal, she was in charge of putting together the creative vision so what is this photo shoot going to look like and feel like, who are we casting in the photo shoot, where are we shooting, what outfits make sense to shoot, considering that it's seasonal.
So, it really was down to the details of everything visually creative that had to do with the brand and I would say that is the definition that makes the most sense. It can change, for sure, depending on where you are but that's the broadest, most accurate, I would say.
Kerry Diamond:
So, you've got these internships, we're deep in the pandemic, what comes next for you?
Roti Brown:
I started freelancing on the side. And so, in terms of content creation, when people ask me when I got started, it's a bit of a complicated question because I've really been doing it since the beginning just on a much smaller scale. Luckily, I never really let go of it, even when I had a full-time job, I would do it a little bit. I was creating a little bit of content and then I went full-time at EveryStylishGirl, which is the media company, so that was a little bit more fashion and content creation-based and then, from there, got a recommendation to get a full-time job as a content manager.
Kerry Diamond:
And was this at Jenni Kayne?
Roti Brown:
Yes, mm-hmm, yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
And a big job. Those of you out there, I'm sure most of you know the brand Jenni Kayne. But for those who've been following it for a long time, that brand really went from, not quite zero to 60, but they are a major brand today.
Roti Brown:
Yes, yes. I joined right after they had that first big moment of growth, it was when the home line was really picking up steam, they obviously do really incredible work with their home line and then Oak Essentials, their skincare line, had just been started but I worked under another amazing woman, Meaghan Cox. It's really something when you have a boss that wants to show you the ropes and I think I've been lucky enough to have that everywhere I've gone where I've had people above me that prioritized my learning, it's been so helpful for me in my career.
Kerry Diamond:
That's a good thing to point out. Did you feel that you needed to make it clear that you were the kind of person who wanted to be on the receiving end, or were you just fortunate to work in those kinds of atmospheres?
Roti Brown:
I think a mix of both. I think that's advice I got from my parents, honestly, early on is be a sponge as much as you can if you're going to try something new. They're like, "We're going to support you but you better get in there and take everything that you can from it and really walk away from it feeling like it's something you could do on your own one day if you love it."
Kerry Diamond:
That's great advice. I've looked at every job I've had as graduate school. You're getting a paycheck to go to graduate school, essentially and learn everything you can. What did you learn at Jenni Kayne?
Roti Brown:
I think I learned so much about how much goes into a campaign. I think I was just so naive not only with fashion, with beauty, with anything. If you're looking at a singular photo, a website, a magazine, a catalog, a campaign, there are so many people working behind the scenes to bring that together, especially creatively, really just pouring into the details. And then, even from the time that the creative vision comes together, from it being shot, from it being edited, I just had no idea how much work was really being put into it. I think that was so eye-opening but also it opened my eyes to how many jobs there are in the creative field which is something I just really did not know about before.
Kerry Diamond:
After Jenni Kayne, where do you go?
Roti Brown:
Then I started working for myself, I was full-time freelance. And then, during that time, I got my own creative director title working for Ashley Tisdale.
Kerry Diamond:
You made the leap to go freelance?
Roti Brown:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Was that a difficult decision?
Roti Brown:
Yes and no. I think, at that point, I had dabbled in it enough that it didn't feel like a cold turkey diving into the deep end decision, it felt a little bit more like walking into it. So, yeah, I think it's always a scary thing to do. It's less stability, for sure, you don't know what's coming in but I think I was very clear on what I wanted at that point and I knew that was going to be the best thing for me.
Kerry Diamond:
What did you do to prepare? Did you have money in the bank? Did you have a whole plan? What was going on?
Roti Brown:
Yeah. So, I did not have a plan necessarily but I did have goals, monthly goals. By January, I want to make sure I have this many clients or, by June, I want to make sure I make this amount of money or this is a dream client for me to work with and that's really something I learned when I was interning. Both of my bosses at the time were really big on, if you want something, you need to write it down and then work towards it. And so, I think I really took that with me of at least I'm going to track my progress and I remember telling myself I'm going to give it a year, if it doesn't work, I can go back full-time, I can find something else. But I just felt like it was my time to bet on myself to take the leap and so I was like, "I'm just going to do it."
Kerry Diamond:
Are you still goal-oriented?
Roti Brown:
Yes. I need to visualize things, and writing them down really helps me to do that.
Kerry Diamond:
Have you worked on your 2026 goals yet?
Roti Brown:
I have not but that will be coming. I'm actually ... I'm going to do a vision party with my friends, we're going to make boards and I think it'll be nice to say the things out loud, the scary things out loud to each other and hold each other accountable that way.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, that's great. I have not done my 2026 goals yet but I hadn't thought about grabbing all my friends and doing it together, it's not the worst idea. What were some of the things you learned as a freelancer?
Roti Brown:
Oh, my gosh. I think I was good at the things that I'm good at and bad at the things that I'm bad at. Do you know what I mean? I think I learned very quickly that, if you have the budget to pay someone to do the thing that you're not good at, please do. Learning curve of knowing how to do your taxes, things like that were a hard learning but a good one. Little things that I hate. I hate editing, it's a me thing and I just learned that, if you're just sitting all day doing the thing that makes you unhappy, it's not going to make your work life any easier. So, learning how to outsource, that was a really big one for me.
Kerry Diamond:
You're a freelancer, you're chugging along, you get a big client.
Roti Brown:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Tell us about this client.
Roti Brown:
So, big client came to me by way of a friend which, by the way, I really feel strongly is how I've gotten all of my favorite opportunities is being recommended by people that are close to me. And I remember I hadn't been creative directing, I had never done it on my own but I also ... I hadn't been doing it in name formally. But I think, as I went to pull experience for Ashley in my interview, I realized that I really had been doing it for my own page. I had been putting together mini campaigns and organizing what I wanted things to look like and all these soft skills that apply to creative direction. At first I was like, "Oh, it's been like a minute for me on this," then I was like, "No, actually this is what I'm doing now." And yeah, we had one phone interview, we just really hit it off, I love Ashley.
Kerry Diamond:
Ashley Tisdale/Ashley Tisdale-French.
Roti Brown:
Yes, they're her new name change. But yes, she hired me, I think, within the week and I just came onto the team and really hit the ground running.
Kerry Diamond:
What kinds of things did they have you do?
Roti Brown:
I was working for her directly but Ashley has an amazing wellness line, it's called Being Frenshe, that is definitely what took a lot of the attention. There's an amazing product line, it's all based on sense and how scent can be really healing and there's tons of products. So, she basically was looking to revamp the entire creative vision so we just started with what they had and then worked in getting completely new assets, completely new creative direction for everything that was coming new. So, it was pretty nonstop but it's my favorite work experience ever.
Kerry Diamond:
Were you a “High School Musical” fan?
Roti Brown:
Of course, yes. Who wasn't?
Kerry Diamond:
I didn't know if that was a job requirement or not. Next, you decide you're going to go on your own completely and you are the creative director of you.
Roti Brown:
Yes, yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
That's the best way to put it. You decide you're going to be the creative director of Roti Brown. What went into that thinking and deciding that you're done with clients, you're going to work with clients in a different capacity and you are the talent.
Roti Brown:
Yes. When I first started working for Ashley, and I was still freelance with her, but I was doing 40-hour work weeks so it definitely felt full time and I think I just quickly realized it wasn't part of the vision that I had for working for myself. I love working with Ashley, even now we'll text and she'll call me and she's one of my favorite people but I think, when you're dedicating your time to someone else's vision, that really comes through in your work and I was simultaneously doing content creation and doing everything that I do on the side. I was writing recipes, I have a Substack called Flavor Garden, I was keeping up with things over there and it just became really challenging to do both. And so, I just had to sit back and be like, "You're going to have to pick one or the other and, when you started this," at that point it had been two years ago, "You said it was your time to focus on you and it's just not really possible to split yourself in that way."
So, yeah, and then I think there was also this pressure of me loving Ashley so much and not wanting to let go of what I think is a really rare work relationship. I think loving your boss is not something that most people could say and I almost felt a little bit of guilt of, oh, my God, this is a dream situation and you want to walk away from it, that's crazy so it took a long time. I was there for two years but eventually I was just like, "You have to make true to what you said which is betting on yourself and giving yourself 100%."
Kerry Diamond:
That's a tough one. As soon as you said that, I was thinking of bosses I've had over the years who I just adored. And when you have no idea how to resign, that's a sign that you really loved it there.
Roti Brown:
Yeah, totally.
Kerry Diamond:
Well, no, actually, I'll take that back. Sometimes you have a mean boss, and you're afraid to resign to the mean boss but, yes, it's really tough when you love your boss, and you love your colleague,s but it's clearly time to move on.
Roti Brown:
Yes, yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Any regrets?
Roti Brown:
No regrets.
Kerry Diamond:
Was it completely the right decision?
Roti Brown:
Yeah. I think, as soon as I did it, even with her reaction, she's so supportive of me but I think I just knew in my heart now is the time for you. I'm so grateful for the experience, I learned so much, that's the other thing. I think, everything I've done, whether it's gone poorly or really well or just different than I've thought it would, I've never come out of a situation not learning something that I haven't been able to apply in the future and I learned so much there.
I think, really, just being the person with the reins, the person to make the final call to make the decision to say like, "This will be good, this will look good, that will not look good," that decisiveness I think is so powerful. Especially as a female in this industry, I think it's so important to be able to say what you need and what you want and to just stick with it. Even though I had seen that in practice from so many amazing women leaders and bosses, that was my first time having to do it myself and I think that's one of the most valuable lessons. I think it's only been six months since I've left but no regrets on my end.
Kerry Diamond:
Let's talk about Roti Brown, entertaining queen.
Roti Brown:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
There's a lot I want to know. You don't just write about food. I noticed, in Flavor Garden, you definitely specialize in recipes but, when folks look at your Instagram, it's entertaining, it's tablescapes, it's recipes, it's hosting, it's fashion, it's so many different things. Is that because there's no way you could just do one thing?
Roti Brown:
It's almost coincidental how it's all just aligned and it's been very kismet. But when I started off posting content, I was actually a beauty creator so I was posting about skincare and makeup, fashion a little bit which was always been a passion of mine. But when people say I turned my hobby into a job, that is so true for me. I've been cooking in the background and, for years, even as a content creator, just never thought to post about it. Randomly posted a recipe video on a whim and it just blew up. So, I think adding food into the mix, even though I think that's what people know me for, that's the new thing, the other things were already there. It makes sense now because it really is all the parts of me showing up on my feed but, yeah, it wasn't a part of the plan for them to all exist at once, for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
December must be your Super Bowl. How do you start planning content-wise, and what are some of the things we'll see this December?
Roti Brown:
Yes. So, we plan ahead, I do have help. I have an assistant who's fantastic at just helping me organize my thoughts. We've been talking about holiday content since, probably, August. One of my main goals, especially this year, the holidays really are my favorite time of year, I have a huge family, I really wanted to make sure that I'm not only sharing but also getting the time to enjoy in my real life and planning was really just the only way to do that. I've been posting a lot about recipes and I've been doing the tablescapes. I'm having friends over so much at this time of year, family over so much this time of year, it's a representation of everything that's going on in my life just being put out into the world.
Kerry Diamond:
I love seeing your mom in some of your videos.
Roti Brown:
Yes. Oh, my gosh. She's my biggest inspiration, I feel like, especially for food and hosting. She would have, I think, 40 people over every Saturday at her house. Insane, consistent, hosting, cooking huge meals by herself so it's really great.
Kerry Diamond:
Is your mom ready for influencer life?
Roti Brown:
She needs to be. I've been telling her you need to join me more. I love filming with her, she's so fun and funny and I think we vibe off each other really well. So, yeah, I'm trying to pull her in a little bit more.
Kerry Diamond:
You are so skilled at creating a beautiful tablescape, and I noticed that you're not even really using tablecloths. Do you go buy fabric? Is that how you do it?
Roti Brown:
Yeah, I buy fabric. This is my number one asked question. In L.A., for anyone who's not here, we have something called the fashion district, it's just tons of raw wholesale fabrics, you can literally find anything in the world. Tablecloths can be really expensive, especially for the oversized ones so I think probably about, two years ago, I was like, "I'm not going to buy tablecloths anymore, I'm just going to buy fabric and make it look the way I want to." So, yeah, my house is full of fabrics that I've used once. It's the best hack for tablescapes, I swear.
Kerry Diamond:
And what do you do about the bottoms and the sides? Is it okay if they're not finished? What's the vibe you're going for?
Roti Brown:
Yeah, I just tuck it under, no one's going to see it. I feel like the look that I love right now is the very dramatic oversized, I love when it's dragging on the floor so I just give it a little bump and no one knows.
Kerry Diamond:
And I read that you'd bought something, it was a bridal fabric.
Roti Brown:
Yes, yes. I've had so much fun playing with fabric, finding new fabrics this year. I could spend hours in the fashion district in L.A. Next time you're here, we'll have to go together.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, I would love ... I've never seen it. We've got some good fabric shops here, they're disappearing a little bit, but we are lucky in New York. And then there's Michaels.
Roti Brown:
Yes, of course.
Kerry Diamond:
A lot of towns have a good old Michaels. If you can give us some advice for setting a table because a lot of us, especially in New York, our apartments are so tiny.
Roti Brown:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
We don't really entertain at home that much. You have such a beautiful house and you've been so gracious about sharing it. And we don't have an extensive array of plates and cups and all the things that you need to make the table look beautiful but you can fake that a little bit. How do you do that?
Roti Brown:
I think there's just some things that you can swap out to make it look like you're doing really different things. Honestly, even for myself when I host, I almost always reuse a lot of the same plates and glasses. So, I would say a few things. I would say get some flatware, serveware, plates, cups, whatever that are just really timeless and then I would play in other ways. Sometimes I'll do fruit on my table for a centerpiece, sometimes I'll do flowers, sometimes I'll use the fabric as a runner and I'll place just vases even without florals. So, I think people should just be open to having a little more fun with it and they would realize people probably have things in their homes that could easily make a table really beautiful. It doesn't have to be so complicated and so expensive, you can find little things outside or in your space.
Kerry Diamond:
I also get the sense from the tables that you do you're more about family style or a party than sitting around the table.
Roti Brown:
Yeah. Even if we're sitting, I like family style, I like a pass plate, I think it's more communal. I always say my favorite conversations always happen around food. I've met the best people, I've learned things about people that have been in my life forever, I've learned things about new people and I think there is something about just that shared aspect, passing a plate to the person next to you or reaching across someone and asking for it, that communal vibe that comes from it. I almost never really do plated dinner parties if I'm having people over. A lot of times, I'm having people over that might know me really well but maybe don't know each other and I want people to talk and connect and just feel very warm in my home so it's my favorite way to host, for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
That's such a great point because it does force people to interact.
Roti Brown:
Yes, yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
Who maybe, throughout the course of the night, if it was just everyone was served, you wouldn't necessarily look that person in the eye who's next to you, across from you.
Roti Brown:
Totally.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah, that's a great reminder.
Roti Brown:
It's a natural icebreaker almost, you know?
Kerry Diamond:
Mm-hmm.
Roti Brown:
Mm-hmm.
Kerry Diamond:
Tell us what are some of your favorite foods to serve in December?
Roti Brown:
Well, I cook a lot of cultural food, my family is from Trinidad and Tobago, and then the other half of my family is from the south. So, we do oxtail stew, I love a very warm, comforting…A dish that had to stew for hours on the stove is my favorite, favorite thing. I'm trying to think what else. We eat a lot of rice, we'll do a lot of sweet potato dishes. I know everyone around Thanksgiving it's so big, but my family will put sweet potato in everything and so will I. Give it to me as a salad, as a pie, as a hot side, as a main, anything, I'll take it.
Kerry Diamond:
How are you adding L.A. flair to all of that?
Roti Brown:
I just love a fusion recipe of any kind. I think that's so much of the beauty in L.A. is you can find almost any kind of cuisine here and you can find it done really well. And I really think that's my comfort zone is, even when I cook traditional foods, I'm like, "How can I spice this up and make it different?" I don't want to follow the exact recipe that's my grandma's, I want to take my grandma's recipe and do something new to it and that's very L.A. to me.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you have a favorite farmers' market?
Roti Brown:
I like to jump around. I do really like the Santa Monica farmers market. It's a little overwhelming but I like it there, there's a lot to see. I love the one in Larchmont, it's a little more quaint and you can get through it. Those are probably my top two.
Kerry Diamond:
Overwhelming is a good word. When it's citrus season, oh, my gosh.
Roti Brown:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
The Santa Monica farmers market, I honestly don't even know where to begin but I love it. I'm so jealous in the winter of everything that you all have out there.
Roti Brown:
Every time I go there, I feel like there's stuff I've never seen. I got fresh dates there the other day which I've never ... I didn't even know that that's how they just grew, I was like, "This is crazy."
Kerry Diamond:
I was in L.A. for Jubilee, and I grabbed my mom, and we went to the Santa Monica farmers market on Saturday morning, Jubilee was on a Sunday, and I went to the date guy and got Barhi dates. Have you ever gotten those?
Roti Brown:
Yes, yes, yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, my gosh, they taste like caramel. And then I got regular dates and he had the stems, the pieces of palm that the dates grow on and I just finished my last dates from him the other day.
Roti Brown:
Oh, my gosh, yeah. Beautiful, beautiful stuff, so much to find.
Kerry Diamond:
How about cocktails or mocktails, what's your thing for holidays?
Roti Brown:
Well, my family doesn't drink so it's always a mocktail at their house but they do ... My whole life, even though they don't drink alcohol, there's always some kind of delicious alcohol-free mixed drink which I think is just nice. At my house, when I host, I will always have an option of wine, some kind of non-alcoholic and a cocktail. I make sure, every time I have people over, I have all three. I love having, similar to what I said about family style, I like having a little pre-batched self-serve station. I think it's a nice social moment, I can direct people there when they come in so they're not bothering me so I'm in that crazy frenzy that's the first 20 minutes of hosting or whatever. But yeah, it creates a nice moment for people to mingle and chat and, if they're pouring themselves to drink, maybe they'll pour it for someone else too so that's my favorite thing to do.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah, I was going to ask, are you a calm, cool, collected hostess?
Roti Brown:
I'm a little bit of both. It depends. I think the good thing is, now that I host so much, I think I have people over almost every week, I have a lot of people in my life that come pretty consistently that are comfortable enough that they're like, "What do you need?" and I'm like, "Oh, please grab me ice or whatever." So, that has helped. But if you're calm, you're not really hosting, that's not how it works.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, my gosh, I think that's the quote of this episode. If you're calm, you're not really hosting.
Roti Brown:
Totally.
Kerry Diamond:
I always laugh when Martha Stewart and Ina Garten talk about hosting and all the things you have to do in advance so you're not the crazy hostess who opens the door with the wet hair, that would be me.
Roti Brown:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
It's good to hear it's not just me. And how do you invite people? I know there's so many options today, Partiful and Paperless Post. What's your preferred method of inviting folks?
Roti Brown:
I like a text message or a phone call. I'm really big on calls. Especially with my girlfriends, I want to talk to them, I want to chat with them so I'll call, chat for a few minutes and I'll be like, "By the way, would love to have you over." And then this is so archaic but, if I'm having a bigger party, I will probably send a text or an email and then keep track in a spreadsheet. I don't know what it is about Partiful, I'm not a Partiful girl.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah. Every time I get a Partiful one, I struggle a little bit. And then Paperless Post gets lost sometimes in the inbox.
Roti Brown:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
But yeah, I love a phone call too but I'm Gen X, Roti, you are not.
Roti Brown:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Your friends must get startled when you call them.
Roti Brown:
They probably do. They're used to it by now, they're like, "Oh, this is normal." And I'm an early, early riser; they're used to very early a.m. phone calls from me as the norm.
Kerry Diamond:
Don't call me early in the morning, I'm not a morning person. How about desserts? What's your whole philosophy on dessert? What are you serving for your final course?
Roti Brown:
I like a fun dessert, that's my thing. That can be interpreted in a few ways. But my favorite dessert that I served all year was a wine granita that I made. We did it over the summer and I put it in martini glasses and it was so good but it was also just something so nostalgic about it. I did popsicles at a pool party over the summer, that was so fun, an Aperol Spritz popsicle that everyone loved. I like a little bit more of the unexpected as opposed to a pie or a cake. Or if I do have a cake, I just want my guests to get involved, maybe there's a berry sauce on the cake, I'm having them pour it on at the last second or something like that.
Kerry Diamond:
I love this. I feel like you're the hands-off hostess.
Roti Brown:
Yeah. I want them to do the work for me.
Kerry Diamond:
All these moments of interaction where you're not just a passive guest at Roti Brown's house.
Roti Brown:
Totally. I think one thing I think about so much is the feedback that my mom would get from having people over. We could not get people out of our house on the weekends, they were just so comfortable but I think there really is so much beauty in that though. You can have someone over and make them feel so welcome that they do not want to leave so that's just my goal. I feel like, anytime I have people over, I'm like, "I don't want it to feel this huge formal thing all the time, I want" ... If you want to get up and get something from the kitchen, please go. Please move to the couch for dessert, make yourself comfortable. I just want people to feel cozy.
Kerry Diamond:
Let's do a little speed round.
Roti Brown:
Okay.
Kerry Diamond:
And then we will let you get out of here. What beverage do you start your day with? Because you're waking up early, you're making phone calls, what is fuelling you?
Roti Brown:
Matcha. I gave up coffee three years ago, so I'm a matcha girl now.
Kerry Diamond:
How do you do your matcha?
Roti Brown:
I like a matcha cappuccino, it's very specific because I don't want too much milk and then oat milk, no sugar.
Kerry Diamond:
Are you doing the matcha strawberry lattes at all?
Roti Brown:
No.
Kerry Diamond:
Nope?
Roti Brown:
I don't want any flavor. And it's so funny, I went to a cafe with my boyfriend the other day and he never gets matcha with me but I walked in and she repeated my order, my barista and he was like, "You're coming here way too much." I was like, "Yeah, probably."
Kerry Diamond:
What is always in your fridge?
Roti Brown:
Always in my fridge, grapes, frozen cookies. I always talk about this. One of my favorite hosting tips, you should just have some kind of really easy snack or dessert that you can just pop into your oven just in case you have an unexpected guest or whatever. So, yeah, I always keep frozen chocolate chip cookies just in case.
Kerry Diamond:
I would eat all the cookie dough, I would not be able to do that. One stressful night on deadline, writing a story, and it will all be gone.
Roti Brown:
Totally.
Kerry Diamond:
What was your favorite food as a kid?
Roti Brown:
Grits, cheese grits. And then I ate them so much that I could not eat them anymore but now I love them again.
Kerry Diamond:
You became a grit.
Roti Brown:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
That's funny. What are you streaming right now?
Roti Brown:
Oh, my gosh, nothing good. That's really bad to say but I'm over all new TV. What am I watching? I am watching “The Real Housewives,” I'm watching “Salt Lake City,” I'm enjoying i,t and then I'm going back and watching “The Office” for the 800th time.
Kerry Diamond:
I had to confess, I've really never watched “The Housewives” aside from, I think, a few episodes when Jenna Lyons was on because we love Jenna.
Roti Brown:
Of course. It's time to start though, I think it's time to dive in.
Kerry Diamond:
All right.
Roti Brown:
It's a good watch.
Kerry Diamond:
Dream travel destination?
Roti Brown:
Right now, I'm dying to go to Namibia or to Zanzibar.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you think that's in the cards for next year?
Roti Brown:
I think so. Yes, for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, fun. Okay, last question. If you had to be trapped on a desert island with one food celebrity, who would it be and why?
Roti Brown:
Oh, my gosh, this is so easy. It would have to be Ina Garten because I just feel like I'm obsessed with her. I feel like she would make me feel so comfortable if I got to be treated like her husband. I don't know where she would be finding the chickens to roast for me but I feel like she would try. Do you know what I mean? Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
So, wait, you'll be roasting the chickens not Ina?
Roti Brown:
No, she has to roast them. I need the treatment, the warm come home to this even though we're trapped. I feel like she would make a way to do it for me.
Kerry Diamond:
Exactly. I would go find the chickens just to have an Ina Garten roast chicken.
Roti Brown:
Yes, absolutely.
Kerry Diamond:
100%. Well, Roti, I am so happy to have you as a new friend, it was really wonderful getting to know you at our dinner. Please tell your mom the Bombesquad says hi, and I hope we get to see a lot more of you in 2026.
Roti Brown:
Yes. This was so lovely, thank you for having me.
Kerry Diamond:
That's it for today's show. Thank you so much to Roti Brown for joining me. Don't forget, tickets for Jubilee 2026 are on sale, our Cake Issue just dropped, and we are so proud of it, and we'll be in Charleston this Thursday, December 11th. Visit cherrybombe.com for more or check out our show notes for all the links. Our theme song is by the band Tralala. Joseph Hazan is the studio engineer for Newsstand Studios at Rockefeller Center. Make sure you come on by and see the tree if you are in town. Our producers are Catherine Baker and Jenna Sadhu, our executive assistant is Brigid Pittman, and our head of partnerships is Rachel Close. Thanks for listening, everybody. You're the Bombe.