I left school to cook with Cannabis & have created a successful business. Grateful to be featured on major news networks & cooked with some celebrities. Currently working on my 1st Restaurant...AMA!

Does it feel weird that you get to go on TV and be famous for cooking with cannabis while other people are still getting locked up for it?

Totally, it really blows. There is almost nothing I can do for those individual people other than change the laws to help them get out and have a shot at a decent life again by making sure minorities are not only represented, but carved out opportunities for those that were incarcerated in this industry.

My heart breaks for them, but what can I do other than push forward and get this yuppies to change the law in favor of the people?

Excellent question, thank you so much for asking.

For those that are curious who I trust and have worked with: http://www.drugpolicy.org Cat Packer is one of the awesome people that ran it. Here is when I had her and Ophelia Chong on my show to talk about the policy reform and release of incarcerations: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xDFCjXTE18&index=6&list=PLsRq_2H1A2tE4QmYEMRn4PilaJtVuZ6Mn

You should make a point to hire almost exclusively pardoned victims of the war on drugs as your business expands. They were clearly quite effective at purveying cannabis and will be in need of employment.

I will hire the people that care about food, excellent service, technique and that have a passion for cannabis. If they have been pardoned and meet these requirements I would be more than happy to hire them.

If they have been pardoned

That's a pretty high bar. Do you mean if they have served their sentence?

I think he means that he wants to hire people that care about food, are able to provide excellent service, technique, and that have a passion for cannabis. If they meet that criteria, having prior issues with arrests for marijuana possession would not preclude them from employment. Merit based but not contingent on past legal issues.

this

There is tons you can do. You can donate proceeds of your restaurant to legal defense or various activist groups. You can use your platform for education. You could help by employing former prisoners and people with felonies. You could provide a work-study program for former convicts or something that helps with reintegration into society.

Definitely! Excellent suggestions. First off I mainly use my platform for education. Currently we are too small to donate profits (because we haven't hit profitability yet), but we do employ a couple convicted felons with non-violent marijuana charges. And Currently we take in stages for a few days at a time but due to the structure of the company (we travel a lot for speaking engagements, dinners, etc) so it is hard to have a work study program until we have the restaurant up and running. When that is a reality, I look forward to having those things in place. And hopefully more! Right now, I try to help as much as possible. Both patients and non-violent offenders.

Wow, you seem like a super cool dude. Congratulations to you, reading about your business made my night better! Good luck on hitting profitability and don't forget about your roots!

That means a lot to me, I sincerely thank you. And I won't!

How did you get banned twice from r/trees?

The first time i posted a dish I thought people would enjoy but it was considered self promotion.

And the second time I answered someone with my website and that was considered a violation :/

But I’m back and will be a good boy

Alright so as a weed chef I'm hoping you can shed some insight on this crazy shit that I've been chasing for years:

The year is 2010; my roommate is prepping some ganjabutter for some ganjabrownies. I leave for a while and do i-cant-rember-what. When I come back I see that the butter has reduced and is currently BUBBLING LIKE CRAZY. Way too many bubbles, seems like the butter overheated and we were worried we burnt the product. So we take it off the heat immediately, mid bubble, and proceed to make some brownies.

They were insane. Hands down the most significant effect I have ever had from edibles. One brownie put me on the floor. Two brownies and I couldn't swallow food I had pasties so bad, and I must have been at a [12]. I needed confirmation and gave a brownie to a coworker in his 30's, a chronic smoker. Told him they were intense but homemade, and that there was only weed in them. The next day he thanked me for this caveat, as the high was so intense he would have thought there was acid or something on them.

The marijuana we used was normal. Smoking it gave normal effects. We didn't put any spectacular amount into the brownies, I think it was somewhere between an 8th and a quarter ounce.

I have tried to duplicate this butter/brownie method but to no avail! I have never been able to buy an edible of similar potency either.

Do you have any idea what happened here? I mean I guess the effects had a lot of scratchy throat/dry eyes/negative side effects, but god damn it was insane. If you know what I did and how to do it again I would love a link or instructional or something.

Anyway all the best! Thanks for the AMA.

Oh man, I’ve been here dude. In fact, I thought that when people said they hallucinated from Cannabis they were lying for attention or something...until that day..

To answer your question, first off, you had some potent bud. Point blank. Second, by leaving that butter to boil, you had cooked off all of your Terpenes and Cannabinoids and been left with just THC. Ingesting just THC is kind of crazy, it is basically the same as a band only playing one note the entire time, super fucking loud. There are no supporting elements, nothing to direct that raw psychoactivity. CBD counteracts the psychoactivity from THC and the Terpenes give the type of high (giggly, contemplative, body, etc). You had none of that. So it was straight THC.

Hope that helps a little!

Edit: I've been corrected on the DMT information. u/Damienslust pointed out my terminology was incorrect and has a great explanation below of how DMT is correlated (or not correlated I should say) with this particular instance.

How prepared are you to only receive tips of $4.20?

On a more serious note how do you think this will affect other franchises that already exist? Do you think they will start implementing edibles or cannabis to their menus?

Haha I hadn’t thought about the tips. Perhaps the decimal will be moved over a space or two..

I think they will have to remain separated through licensing. Not every restaurant will be able to serve THC. Only those that have the on-site consumption licensing.

How do you dose edibles carefully enough to create a whole cannabis restaurant? Plus, your clientele won't be high until after they leave. I just don't understand your business model.

Our guests are at our dining experiences for 2-3 hours. If they stay in the lounge, perhaps even longer.

The dosage is coming in over 10 courses, so the way we have structured it is that the first two courses will serve as the initial take off, by course 4-5, 45 min after ingesting is when the effects start to creep on. The remainder of the meal is guiding them into a nice euphoric high zone rather than keep sending them to the stars. For us, it is about balance. We finish the meal with CBD before sending the guests into the lounge to decompress.

Essentially, everything is timed.

Interesting! How do you account for different metabolisms, weights etc? Do customers have, I don't know, like a chart they follow based on weight and experience of how much to eat?

Without proper funding, we are still a little ways off from a universal chart, and even then my guess would be around 75%-85% accurate. However we ask extensive questions to better understand the guest so we know previous experiences.

We also use a nano technology that allows for a faster metabolism in the body which helps us stay on track with various guests.

However we ask extensive questions to better understand the guest so we know previous experiences.

Cool, so it's a customized experience. Sounds neat!

We also use a nano technology that allows for a faster metabolism in the body

Could you go into more detail here?

Definitely!

Nano technology is a fancy way of saying that the THC or CBD molecules are suspended in a water soluble solution making it homogenize with anything water based (where as usually it’s only fat soluble). Our epidermis can absorb things that are 40-60 nanometers wide so the nano technology also breaks the compounds from being 4000 nanometers wide to being 40-60nm which allow it to be ingested and metabolized much quicker than a normal extraction.

Never tasted cannabis (if it even has a taste) so just wondering whether it has a particular flavour that you can't get with other "herbs". Are there any dishes in particular that are really enhanced by the combination flavour-wise?

I haven’t really tasted anything close other than edibles, but there are a couple beers that kinda remind me of it just a little bit. In particular, I’m thinking of the first pull of a bottle of Stella Artois, but I also drink quite a bit so my taste is probably different than yours. It’s like the taste of the food, but with an undertone that tastes like pot. If you’re ever around someone whose about to light a joint, ask them to take a dry hit (one without it lit) and you’ll get a taste of what it’s like.

Hops are cousins to hemp

Are you aware that edibles can trigger psychotic breaks even among people who have no issue smoking flower (tiny percentage but)? How do you plan to mitigate this? Quick google search results.

EDIT: I'm all for legalization but I had an experience where a gf ate half of pea-sized piece of cannabutter and was "attacked by wring wraiths" trying to suffocate her for 40 minutes afterwards. So I looked up and it turns out it's a thing.

This is an excellent question! One that I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about.

The answer is three fold. 1st is that we know how much we are dosing people and we ask extensive questions to better understand our guests needs and tolerances to avoid the issue in the first place. If that doesn’t work as planned, At Herb Restaurant, we plan on having “Guides” (not servers) that are trained with detecting mannerisms of people that may be starting to feel uncomfortable. CBD will be given immediately. Then we plan on having a psychiatrist/yogi in the lounge where if someone is feeling overwhelmed, they are able to drink fresh juices, talk through their heightened state with the yogi and be calmed through CBD.

Thanks for the reply. I wish you the best and I suppose it's not a huge issue given the number of outfits making/selling edibles but that was one night I wish I could forget. It wasn't simply a bum trip, she was hallucinating and inconsolable. And the dosage was minute.

I mean the reality is, it happens. And we have to prepare.
However I can almost certainly tell you the tiny bite she ate may have been minute, but the dosage was probably astronomical. That’s why it’s so important to regulate the industry and have some consistent products.

A psychiatrist might be a bit expensive ...

Probably less expensive than calling 911 like some suggest.

But seriously, it’s just a measure to make sure people are comfortable.

You could probably hire a licensed therapist instead for a lot less money than a psychiatrist. They'd also probably be more suited to the task than a psychiatrist.

Thanks I’ll look into that

This answer doesn’t buy me in, you plan to have a psychiatrist in a restaurant just for this? Fresh juices to attend mental attacks? Why people insist to drug themselves?

drug themselves is inaccurate.

You are welcome to not get any cannabis and just receive a beautifully crafted tasting menu. Or there are many restaurants to choose from in LA. I bet you’ll hear about it from a friend and become curious yourself though.

This seems good on paper but it is a poorly planned idea. Have you ever been to a dispensary and looked around at how many different types of people go in there? It's not your tv stereotype stoner hippy. I think this would be better executed as a "meal prep" restaurant with a solid warning label stating that consumption of cannabis may induce unwanted side effects for the unprepared. No insurance company will back you if a customer goes into a psychotic breakdown in your restaurant and hurts themselves or others. Also think of the people that would hate to be around someone that is freaking out in the table next to them. Most people dont like sitting next to a table with kids, much less adults acting worse than kids. I dont want to sound like I hate weed, I love it. I just want to be realistic. Most people arent even affected by edibles until an hour or 2 after they consumed the products, how are you going to deal with the DUI's people get? Bars get heavily fined or even shut down if a person is caught driving drunk after leaving their establishment.

Our packages come with rides to/from the restaurant. As well as hotel packages for out of towners.

We are also talking about the worst case scenario here.

Also our price point and food type yields a certain demographic

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It’s via a website where you don’t have to “show off?” In front of your friends. If anyone is worried about being themselves in front of their friends, I’d suggest to find some friends that care for you on a deeper level.

CBD is non-psycho active and counteracts the psycho activity that THC would give the guest. They are two completely different components that work harmoniously.

If someone is too high, there is nothing that calling 911 would do. 911 is for physical emergencies, not psychological breakdowns. 9/10 times 911 will say there is nothing they can do for them. And the 1 time they can it’s because of insistence on the behalf of the caller.

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Before you walk into the establishment, you have filled out the questionnaire online, signed the waiver, paid, and reserved your date. We have already researched you, read over your profile and are now gearing up for the day you enter. We want you to feel special because that’s what food and cannabis means to us. Even if you choose the non-Medicated option, the integrity of the Food is the most important. I just didn’t make that part clear

Thank you for your concern and I will definitely be posting updates on these issues that are sure to arise. These are valid points which will be addressed.

What would your death row, final meal be?

Thanks for the question!

42 oz Bone in Ribeye with all the sauces,

Wurrug dawali (stuffed grape leaves) made my my grandmother

Chocolate cake with a milk chocolate ganache and dark chocolate mousse.

Medicated or not?

Edit: thanks for the answer.

At that point, Medicated

So I just started a keto diet and I'm missing my edibles dearly, any chance you have some low-carb low-sugar recipes?

We have a few. If you don't mind, I would love to PM you the recipes when we are wrapping up the cookbook because they will be in a better format and for 4-6 people.

Have you looked into using lecithin, sesame seed oil, or glycochocolate in your recipes to potentiate the cannabis?

Study Supporting Claims

I've seen the lecithin as a bio availability agent, however I need to do more research into it all. I've been focusing on the nano tech but this is a really good read, thank you for citing it!

Are you worried at all about Jeff Sessions and the reversal of the Cole Memorandum? If not, do you think that this decision has the potential to get the ball rolling on Nationwide decriminalization/legalization?

I am not that worried as my lawyers have really set up my business structure in the best way possible for this sort of outcome. I think that it could urge congress to make decisions quicker which could be a huge success for us all. However in the meantime, he is scaring the shit out of small businesses and forcing many of them to operate even further in the gray zone or perhaps illegally. The bigger companies in the industry can afford to hold out, the smaller companies cannot.

Here is what my law team from Frontera said:

The Cole Memo was a memo that set forth the enforcement priorities of the Federal Government relative to cannabis.  In layman's terms, it basically said, if you complied with state law and didn't run a cartel, organized crime ring, traffic cannabis interstate or out of the country or otherwise be a bad actor, you were not the Federal government's enforcement priority.  Instead the Federal government's priority was going after these bad actors.  Sessions decision to overrule the Cole Memo means that there is no enumerated Federal enforcement priority (i.e., the Federal government should treat any CSA-violation by any cannabis operators like any other Federal crimes).  Meaning, there is no have a preference as to who to prosecute, so the DEA could conceivably go after anyone that violates the CSA (i.e., all cannabis operators).

At least until the new budget goes into effect (perhaps later this month), the Rohrbacher Blumenauer budget amendment still provides cover.  The Rohrbacher Blumenauer budget amendment provides that the Federal government is defunded from spending money prosecuting state- compliant medical cannabis operators.  Case law interpreting this provision says that the Federal government can spend money prosecuting a case against operator, but, if the operator can show state-level medical cannabis law compliance, the case is dropped.  It is unclear if this will be renewed in the next budget.

Whether Sessions intends to go after California operators is unclear.  It does seem that this move was intended to be directed as a shot at California, given that he changed a 5 year enforcement policy 3 days after California's new program went live.  Practically, it doesn't seem to be a good use of Federal resources given the U.S.-wide perceived popularity of cannabis (pursuant to polls).  Additionally, this does not seem to be a move that would be supported by Trump's base (which likely would prefer the fund to go towards say, the wall/immigration issues).

This might be a big deal, and could signal a line of high profile cases brought by Sessions and the DEA (if Rohrbacher Blumenauer is not extended).  I would imagine they would target big operators (like Harborside) to make a splash in the news cycle and to scare and deter smaller operators.  But, you never know with this administration.  On the other hand, it very well could be not a big deal at all.  The backlash from politicians in the 29+ green states will push this issue into the national spotlight, in a way that the Trump administration might not want. Only time will tell here. 

How to I integrate cannabis into my menus so that I can accurately judge the amount of cannabis I am serving?

How can the home cook use cannabis flower?

How do you reduce or eliminate that distinct cannabis funky flavor found in many edibles?

How can I use flower in my BBQ rubs or spice blends?

It all starts with what you are using to infuse the menu. What I recommend doing is (if you live in a medicinal or rec state) going to your local dispensary and picking up extract that you love and asking for the lab testing with it. That way you understand how much THC is in it. From there you can extrapolate how much THC is being used based on the volume/weight of ingredients you are putting into the recipe and devising it by servings. That is not exactly how we do it, but this is sufficient for home use.

The home cook can use flower in a few ways: you can extract it in a fat, you can extract in ethanol, you can vaporize it (or smoke it but smoking defeats the purpose of tasting your food), you can pulverize it into a dust and use it as a flour (mixed with AP flour), you can rub it on your body while wearing lingerie, you can finish a BBQ dish off by using the flower to smoke the dish, and more. Although I’d be weary using top shelf nug for these types of applications.

The first thing I would do if I were you to get rid of the taste is lower the dosage. Most people don’t need 500mg THC in the brownie pan. It is overpowering and really doesn’t taste good. Second is to use a highly concentrated form of THC, if you are using a super concentrated extraction, you’ll only have to put in a few drops for the whole pan. Third is to balance the flavor so it doesn’t come through. Here are some things that balance it: Tomatoes and tomato sauces due to their high acidity and sweetness, Cacao, high acidity fruits.

I wouldn’t recommend using the flower so much. Because you really aren’t going to get the most out of the bud by using it in this type of application. However I’ll tell you a little secret. Use the fan leaves from your plant. Each strain has a distinctive fan leaf flavor and when you dehydrate it and grind it, it can be used as an excellent spice.

Do you have any fears that someone might get stuck in a permanent loop of eat > stoned > munchies > eat > stoned > munchies ad infinitum after you open your restaurant?

Nah, we'll just charge them rent

Are you using your celebrity in this field as a platform for those currently in prison for using the same plant? Have you considered ways you could positively influence that population?

Absolutely, I answered in an earlier question but that is part of the reason for de-stigmatizing. I have worked with and greatly admire this lady by the name of Cat Packer. She is head of the Minority alliance in this industry and I’ve had her on my show, as well as supported her through meetings and what the whole initiative stands for.

I am not oblivious to the disparity and unfairness of those incarcerated for enjoying the plant.

Is Gary with you right now?

Hah! He is working in the house as am I :)

How did you get this idea ?

Cooking has always been a passion, but when I started to think about how to de-stigmatize this plant so people all over the world would be able to have access to its benefits, the people incarcerated could get out, and we could start using industrial hemp to spare earths resources. Food was the easiest way to break the stigma since all that was out at the time was brownies and rice crispies.

Its hard to complain or fight when you are served delicious food and drink and its even harder to carry a stigma about a plant in a dish with other plants. That at least was my original thoughts about it.

What college were you in?

Banana slugs in the building

STEVENSONNNNNN HOUSE 6 represent

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I was on Bong Apatite the first season episode 3. I like to get inspiration from nature and other great chefs.

I don’t currently grow my own but I have for years.

I prefer organic soil because it gives the plant such a great diversity in CBD and Terpenes. The bacteria in the soil really help to provide a distinct energy for a healthy plant. I’ve asked many high profile growers and most of them prefer soil as well.

How can I buy your book?

You can pre-order the book if you’d like. You just send an email to [email protected] with the subject line “pre-order Perspective” and you can follow the instructions. Otherwise you can wait until it’s out in a few months and grab it off amazon or Barnes n Noble

What do your parents think about this?

Also congrats on getting a restaurant!

They think its great now with still a lot of stigma behind it. They used to be much worse, like didn't talk to me and shunned me. But Education has done wonders.

If Von Miller called you the GOAT, you're okay in my book.

Would you mind explaining the context behind this? Did you meet up with him or cook for him or something? I'm a huge Von Miller / Broncos fan so I'm just curious how this went down.

I have not cooked with cannabis for him. Just regular non-infused Foods. But we became acquaintances after that and text every once in a blue moon. Solid dude with good taste

Do you have any tips for someone that's willing to uproot their lives and move cross country to get into the cannabis industry?

Make sure you are financially stable to make such a decision. Make sure it aligns with your heart and what your truest passions are in life. Then go for it. Stay fluid and realize that your path may change directions, but your overall goal is what is guiding you.

Hi Herbalchef, you're paving the way in the cannabis and food industry, you're work is inspiring. I have some questions for I have similar goals I'm working towards:

what inspired you to start experimenting with cannabis and food?

What tips can you offer for people trying to follow your steps?

Where do you see food and cannabis industry in the future once it's finally legal

Edit: one more.

When it comes to dosages, what is your rule of thumb

Thanks Rooster.

Hi Rooster, thanks for the questions and kind words.

Initially I was inspired because through my studies, I felt that the plant had been misrepresented in the public eye. So I began questioning more as to why it was illegal/ostracized if all the science was pointing towards this being used as a very helpful medicine. The more I uncovered and studied, the more I felt like I was uncovering a hidden gem in the world that I needed to share.

For those that are trying to align in this path, I would say to really start studying. Study the plant, the endocannabinoid system, CBD’s, THC and Terpenes, and then...study cooking. Too many people are trying to become “cannabis chefs” without becoming a real chef first. This side of the industry needs real chefs that are talented in order to legitimize the niche. So make sure you’re working in kitchens and learning on the side until you’re ready.

I may be biased because I see what the industry is doing first hand but here are some things you will see in the future along with some of my predictions: Cannabis restaurants will remain niche, however Cannabis edibles will make up close to 50%+ of the market. Edibles will be very wide spread and cannabis lounges will become common place. You will start to see huge festivals based around cannabis something similar to what a Coachella once was. Cooking schools will have certifications for cooking with Cannabis as well (part of our doing).
Essentially Cannabis will be normalized and everything/everyone will try to have cannabis in it until people realize that they should take it easy (kind of like when you give a kid the keys to a candy store and they go HAM the first night and get a tummy ache, so after that they calm down a bit).

So I have been playing with cooking with weed for a while, and am a restaurateur, but no worries on competition, I'm not getting those licenses. Hell getting an alcohol license was too much work for me.

Anyway, I've been playing with trying to use marijuana in recipes that are savory. I've come up with adding ground weed to beef stroganoff in the last 5 minutes of simmering, to activate the THC and allow the flavor to mix without overheating. Also garnishing lasagna in the last 5 minutes seems to work without overheating the weed. My question is this: am I doing this an efficient way? Are there better ways to add in the flavor and the THC? I don't really like making cannabutter, because it makes my whole apartment building smell like weed, any suggestions on preparation, or on other weed friendly recipes?

Edit: also, fellow chef here, specialty is sausages (bratwurst mainly, but I do make others for myself from time to time) and cheesecake stuffed - graham cracker rolled - chocolate covered strawberries, if you wanna pick my brain for some ideas

Neither of those methods are the most efficient way to utilize the cannabis. The bio-availability will be much more if you are able to extract it first hand and then add to the dish.

What's your favorite restaurant and why?

Hmmm, I would say either Alenia, Osteria Frencescana, The Fat Duck. Alenia blows my mind, it is so inventive and I feel that I am on an adventure when I look at their food. Osteria because of Massimo and the story he brings to the table. The Fat Duck has been described to me as the most wonderfully personal meal you will ever have. And if the walk through was any indication, I 100% believe it to be true.

My god you are so brave!!! You are an inspiration for young children everywhere. When do you find time in your busy schedule to cry while looking in the mirror?

I don’t have that luxury. Good day sir