Dining With Dana

Spending time with adventuring friends is quite life giving. So glad I got to share some space with Chelsea Steele. A pioneering young woman from Orlando who has made her way to Los Angeles. She has already started and sold a mini-cultural phenomenon, has a couple songs out, and is now shopping her screenplay around the LA town. I'm tired just thinking of doing all those things. We shared one of m...

First podcast on the road! So fun to check in with my filmmaker friend, Jon Strong. We chatted moving to Los Angeles from Orlando with his family, in the middle of a pandemic. Jon talks and talks and we are here for it. ; ) We chat his growing up in Orlando, how his family of origin influenced him as a dad, and his plans for living in Los Angeles! I made him one of my new favorite drinks, a Jungle...

It’s no secret that I could talk about International travel all day and/or International food! So it was such a pleasure to chat with Katerina about her life that may or may not resemble “My Big Fat Greek Wedding.” She and her husband opened Taverna Opa , Tapa Toro and have a new Mexican concept in the works! Plus, she is headed to Greece in short order for her family Holiday (pack me in your suit...

Well, we all gotta eat. And one of the best places to eat around town is Pig Floyd’s . I have to say we are more than blessed when it comes to incredible food and drink in Orlando! My friend Thomas Ward who created Pig Floyd’s came by for a chat and drink and shared some fantastic stories! We chat learning how to create delicious burgers by watching YouTube, going broke a couple times in adulthood...

Well Cheers to new friends! It was so fun to invite someone NEW over into my home and on the podcast this time around. So fun to chat the Enneagram in depth and get to know an incredible story of courage and new adventures! We got to sip on some tropical Tito’s Vodka drinks, that I named after my new friend, and share in the wonder that is all the wonderful folks that live in Orlando! I know you w...

You don’t know Orlando if you don’t know Corinne Gammichia. She is the mastermind behind Alchemy Hair Salon. I would dare to say, Orlando’s most creative salon! These stories are PURE GOLD. She shares her journey with High School, why she still doesn’t have a full kitchen, and her road to being an adoptive mom to her incredible son, Seger! We may or may not have had Pineapple and Mango Waterloo Gi...

Oh Man. Just such a delight to spend time with Kim Devitt! Kim was the second employee with Corkcicle . So it’s safe to say, she’s almost been there from the very beginning! And what a journey it has been! Kim started in Marketing for many years and has done a fantastic job transitioning to an Account Manager, as per the Covid transition that we are all in! We chat how she came to be interested in...

Super inspired is how I feel when I hear what Sorcha is up to! Her story is super fascinating and is so relatable! Isn’t that the way of life sometimes? It’s not always a clear cut path. Some people have a clear cut path and others of us have a journey to find our way, but eventually we get there! Sorcha is bringing some incredible things to Orlando in the art world for people of color. It’s prett...

So sweet to spend time with a sweet friend, who happens to have lived a few lifetimes already … at the age of 26! Casey graduated in the top handful of students (out of over 60,000) at UCF a few years ago. Since then, she has gone on to work with tech companies and start-ups and is now building community at Credo Conduit . Listen in as we chat about the things that really affect us from our childh...

What a treat to hear Tracy’s story! She arrived on the scene about 4 years ago to open the beautifully curated New General Store , but she has a pretty incredible story before she landed here with us in the Orlando area! Tracy has such a giving Spirit, as well as, an amazing example of a BadA** Woman Business Owner! We sipped on some lovely Blueberry Bourbony Drinks and I learned so much. I know y...

When one of the most interesting folks in Orlando comes over for a drink and a chat, it makes for a good day! I’ve known Kyle Steele for many years now. It’s so encouraging to see people along side you working hard to bring good things to fruition. Kyle has started many things over the years. He is currently working in some really interesting areas of Racial Reconciliation. We sip on some fancy Ti...

Happy New Year Darlings! So glad to finally get a NEW podcast out. So excited that it’s with one of my bestest friends. Kate and I have known one another for 15 years. We have seen each other through a lot of our adult lives. We switched up the convo a little for this interview. We chat all the British Crime shows that we have watched….we forgot Killing Eve (one of the best!) And we take a deep di...

I mean REALLY. I could gush on Orlando all day. One thing that I treasure the most is the fascinating people that make up this City! Joseph Hayes easily makes that list for me! He is a man about town, writer of plays and writer of beautiful words about my favorite subjects: Food & Beverages! Plus he has a whole history of his many careers and how he landed in Orlando! We sip some super delish...

What would Orlando town be without some of the best eats in the area? The Good Salt Restaurant Group folks are some good folks. No surprise there. Listen in as we hear about how Jason & Sue met, got their start and never dreamed they would be opening their fourth restaurant in a Global Pandemic! It was SO fun to interview my first couple. Listen in to see why!

Terry Olson is most definitely one of a kind. So glad he brought his one of a kind self over for a cocktail and a chat! Terry has long been an institution around Orlando. He helped to start SAK Comedy Clue and not long after started Fringe Festival in Orlando. He now calls himself the Chief Arts Instigator in Orange County and helps to support so much of the Arts we have available to us! I made hi...

Talking with Shea Glenny makes you feel like you can get through and do anything you want! She has been in Orlando so long it feels like she has always been here. Shea has created space for women entrepreneurs and provided support for those less business savvy. (Me: slowly raises her hand.) She also has created many resources for businesses to incorporate Empathy as business corporate culture, whi...

There are so many aspects of what makes a community great. Unique people and events is just one of the contributing factors. We are celebrating 10 years of Pecha Kucha in Orlando, thanks to my friend Eddie Selover! If you haven't experienced this, I really hope you get a chance to, in real life, once we are doing that again! I got to chat with Eddie about his Journey to Orlando, what it was like b...

Stories on Stories on Stories with my long time friend Bonnie Barton Lewis! We could have talked all day, but we narrowed down to 2+ hours. There is too much to share. Bonnie's time spent in Oscar de la Renta's personal home, to being a part of Ralph Lauren's extended photo shoot family while traveling the globe, to being in Gwyneth Paltrow's personal home. Plus how she has helped pull off 36,000...

When a friend that you admire a lot comes over to share her life story, you really listen in. Recently I had the pleasure of chatting with my friend Dr. Shanta Barton-Stubbs about so many things! I learned so much about her life that I previously didn’t know! She almost got lost her life in a car accident, had a real culture shock when she started the New Image Youth Center and what it was like fo...

Time spent with Kelly Romano is always time well spent! Seeing her work ethic is really always an inspiration. Spoiler Alert: Kelly is an 8 on the Enneagram, the same as me. We had a REALLY great time chatting about what it is like to live inside the skin of a female 8. Fun Stuff! Plus I made Kelly my favorite cocktail of the moment: a Novella made with Waterloo Gin No. 9. ENJOY Kelly’s laughter t...

Listen in as I chat with Walter Phuego, Owner of  Studio 17 Creative . We sip on some Tito's Handmade Vodka Summer Sips and chat about what Black Lives Matter means to him, ways you can engage with BLM, his growing up in Orlando and how I may have convinced him of the merits of the Enneagram. This episode is FIRE. You do not want to miss it!

When I hear of all the things Benoit has going on, I am simultaneously in awe and exhausted! If you have ever had the pleasure to take an Artistic performance at Timucua, you have Benoit to thank for it! As the conductor for Cirque du Soleil for nearly 20 years, Benoit is no stranger to bringing the Arts to life. I was so glad to be able to sit down and chat the Timucua Arts Foundation , his growi...

In a not so recent time, when humans were gathering in person, you could find me drinking a Tito’s Handmade Vodka adult Shirley Temple for one, while I got to chat with my friend Ryan Adams, the local one. Ryan cares for the community at City Beautiful Church . We get to talk moving to America, his home bartending situation and my favorite subject: THE ENNEAGRAM. Ryan has a deep knowledge of this...

What an immense pleasure to have such an immensely talented friend, Shawn Welcome over to chat! Shawn created DiVerse Word, which is Orlando’s longest running Open Mic night at Dandelion Cafe. It’s an Orlando institution and not to be missed. Shawn has quite the story to share and we did it which sharing a Tito’s Handmade Vodka Cocktails and some laughs. So please do ENJOY!

When you have been waiting patiently since you started this Podcast to have your Gal Pal Ashley Dishman over for a drink and a chat! Ashley is behind some of the most iconic gathering places / bars that Orlando has known in the most recent years. Not that it would be fancy enough for her establishments, but we sipped on Rosewater Thyme Tito’s Handmade Vodka Cocktails and talked about changing the...