THE GRAIL with Dean Delray

Today I do a full deep dive into Custom Guitars with Luthier Greg DeLuis. Greg makes some of the most incredible hand made guitars in the tradition of master luthier Doug Irwin. If you have seen Jerry Garcia's guitars like Tiger, Wolf or Rosebud you know that these are not some off the shelf store bought guitars. The amount of detail and work put into building those guitars is almost a forgotten craft. Greg continues the tradition even hand cutting all the inlay himself. Hear this mans amazing journey on this episode of Let There Be Talk / The Grail.   Check out all of Gregs Guitars on his instagram @deluisguitars    My tour dates are up https://www.deandelray.com  Patreon bonus episodes https://www.deandelray.com/patreon   

Today I sit down with Artist, Director, Kii Arens. This man got his start in the art world back in 1994 working for Michael Lang on Woodstock 94 and his whole world changed. You may of seen his videos he's directed for Glen Campbell, Ringo Starr and DEVO or some of his amazing Hollywood Bowl Rock Posters. Tune in and hear Kii's story and take the trip into The Church Of Color. Thanks for supporting The Grail Subscribe and leave a Review. DDR

If you are a fan of West Coast Choppers then you definitely know my guest Tay Herrera's work. On a chance call to West Coast Choppers Tay landed a Dream Job engraving all kinds of parts for Jesse James. This mans story is incredible. Tay has been engraving motorcycle parts by hand for most of his life. He even engraving an entire motorcycle for Brad Pitt. Please leave a review and Subscribe on iTunes and YouTube. Thanks for the support my friends. DDR Patreon for all my bonus episodes https://www.patreon.com/DeanDelray  Tour Dates and Merch https://www.deandelray.com 

Today on The Grail I sit down with Josiah Citrin and talk all things food including the pressures of being a 2 Star Michelin Chef. Josiah is one of the most incredible Chefs in the industry and also a very cool Human.  Josiah is a two-star Michelin chef and owner of Santa Monica's highly-acclaimed Mélisse, Charcoal Venice,Charcoal Sunset and Dave’s Doghouse at the Staples Center in Downtown Los Angeles and Indian Wells Tennis Garden. His culinary philosophy, “In Pursuit of Excellence” sets the standard for all of his concepts, whether fine-dining or casual. Citrin discovered his passion for food through his family at an early age, growing up in Santa Monica and Venice with a mother who was a caterer, and a French grandmother who cooked family meals. Their knowledge, combined with his excitement for cooking and business, led him to pursue a culinary career. Citrin moved to Paris to explore his French heritage after graduating from Santa Monica High School, and worked for three years at fine Parisian restaurants Vivarois and La Poste, gaining an understanding of and respect for the rules of traditional French cooking. This invaluable experience taught him both the art and discipline of cooking and fine dining, and formed the definitive basis of his training. He returned to the United States in 1990 and began applying his skills at Los Angeles’ finest restaurants—notably Wolfgang Puck’s celebrated Chinois on Main and then at Granita. After two years, Josiah moved on to join Patina and Pinot Bistro and cooked alongside famed chef and savvy restaurateur Joachim Splichal. Citrin subsequently became chef at Capri restaurant in Venice and Jackson’s in West Hollywood. With a heightened interest in French gastronomy and a spirit for entrepreneurship, Citrin launched JiRaffe in 1996 alongside childhood friend and fellow chef Raphael Lunetta. Selling his interest to JiRaffe to Lunetta in 1999, Citrin pursued his lifelong dream of opening his own fine dining establishment by debuting Mélisse which opened to critical acclaim and has been impressing the culinary world ever since. HONORS Citrin’s honors include: Two Stars from Michelin Guide (2007, 2008, 2021), #1 for Top Food in Los Angeles and #1 American-French Restaurant for Food in Los Angeles by Zagat (2013, 2014), “Best Wine List” by LA Weekly (2015), “Top 100 Restaurants in the World” by Elite Traveler (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018), Five Stars by Forbes Travel Guide (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018), “Top Ten New Chefs” by Food & Wine magazine (1997), and “Best Chefs of the Year” by Los Angeles magazine (2012).

Today I sit down with Rich Lasner VP of Development at Vox Guitars.  This mans history in the guitar world is incredible. From his early days at Ibanez working with Steve Via and Paul Gilbert to helping with the 5150 Combo at Peavey to Designing one of the biggest selling guitars ever at Yamaha. Rich has been on the ground floor for some of the greatest guitar designs ever. His cool Eddie Van Halen stories alone are worth the listen. These days he's at Vox Guitars working on all kinds of cool stuff. His story is incredible and I really think you guys will dig this one. Don't forget to subscribe to my channel and please help spread the word. Thank You DDR

After a 6 month hiatus I return today with my guest the great Blake Kuwahara owner and designer of Blake Kuwahara Eyewear.  This man has been in the Eyewear game for 40 years. He started out as an Optometrist then worked his way into the eyewear industry as creative director of Liz Claiborne becoming a designer for 7 different brands including Jordache. Blake then started his own line called KATA ended up selling that brand and now he has a brand new company that is absolutely taking it to the next level in the Eyewear world. Sit back and hear us dive into all kinds of topics from Architecture,Denim, Design and Glasses. I hope you guys enjoy his story. Thanks for understanding about the time off that I needed. Keep the candles lit and have a fantastic week. This episode is brought to you by Optical Connection   Click on the link for all your Optical needs https://optical-connection.com  Use the code DEAN at check out for 10% off anything. Or call them and use the code. Doesn't matter where you are they will ship.   DDR

I've always wanted to talk to someone about Safes. Most people don't think about it until it's 2 late and their house has been robbed. Today I sit down with my friend Josh Rosenberg who works for Dean Safe and we dive way down the rabbit hole  of everything you need to know about Safes. We also talk about Stand Up Comedy and great Movies. Thanks for tuning in my friends. DDR  

Today I sit down with a man that has been in the guitar game for most of his life Mr Walter Carter of Carter Vintage Guitars in Nashville. Walter's knowledge of Vintage Guitars is incredible and his reputation in the guitar business is next level. Sit back and enjoy this mans story on today's episode of The Grail. Have a great week and don't forget to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes and YouTube  and please leave a review. Thank You DDR  

Today I sit down with my new friend Artist, Chris Rogers the man who painted the incredible Brody Stevens mural in Reseda California or as the great Brody Stevens would say in the 818. Over a 10 day period last month Chris flew out from Austin Texas and painted a Beautiful Mural of Brody and today we find out how this all came together. Special shout out to Tommy Godlove who put this incredible project together with Brody's Family and Friends. Long live our friend Brody Stevens. I love you Brody and will never forget you. DDR

Chances are if you are a fan of this podcast you have come across a Yondr bag at a Comedy Show or Concert. Yondr is a small locking bag that you put your phone in before you enter a concert or comedy show that can only be unlocked when you step into a phone free zone kind of like a smoking section. Graham Dugoni CEO of Yondr stops by to give us the history of this iconic invention. As a performer I fell in love with this invetion and I had to hear it's history. I think you guys will find this episode pretty damn cool. Love it or hate the Yondr I feel like we all need to unplug when we are out enjoying Art. DugonI, a former soccer player, founded Yondr after attending the Treasure Island Music Festival in 2012. After witnessing an intoxicated man dancing and people filming him, he pondered how this could affect freedom of expression. After raising $100,000 from friends and family, the company was up and running. Tune in and enjoy this mans story on episode 67 of The Grail DDR

I have been riding motorcycles most of my life. In fact out of the 5000 plus Stand Up Comedy sets I've done over 3500 of those I rode a motorcycle to get to the show. I have been in love with Ducati  Motorcycles for years so to have my guest Jason Chinnock on the show was an absolute honor. Jason is a lot like me. He came up in the Rock n Roll world but later in life he switched gears into the Motorcycle world and the rest is history. Jason stopped by today to tell us how he became the CEO of Ducati North America.  This is a must listen especially if you wanna know the history of Ducati. Thanks for tuning into The Grail. Check out my Patreaon https://www.patreon.com/DeanDelray  Enjoy DDR

Today my guest is Architect Jorge Gracia. Jorge is responsible for some of the best Architecture in the last 20 years down in Cabo San Lucas and Todos Santos. His homes have been featured in Dwell Magazine and he has a client list a mile long. Jorge has branched out into the U.S. and has projects going on everywhere including Downtown Disney. Hear this mans story on how he got into Architecture and how he started his Architecture school in Tijuana. Jorge has designed and built some of my favorite homes in Mexico so it was an honor to talk to this man. Thanks for tuning into The Grail and taking the ride. Have a great weekend. DDR  

Today I sit down with Caroline Artiss, CEO of Migos Dog which is some of the best dog food in the world. Caroline has an incredible story going from being a Chef for humans to helping prep and build a Fresh Dog Food brand from scratch out in Malibu Calif. Caroline had a restaurant in the Heathrow Airport that became a victim of Covid. She also had a TV show on the BBC America so this new gig is really out side the box for her. It was amazing to hear Migos story on how they started a Dog Food Brand in California just 7 months ago and I really think you guys will dig this episode. Thanks for always taking the ride here on The Grail DDR

Today on The Grail I talk with 2 guest.  First up is Troy Kudlac owner of Kud Properties and Real Estate Developer in the Joshua Tree,Palm Desert and Palm Springs area. 2nd Guest is Andy Canada,General Contractor and owner of HOME AND CONSTRUCTION SERVICES. This man has been building some next level homes in the Joshua Tree area. I have always been obsessed with amazing architecture especially the homes in the Palm Springs area. Palm Springs and the surrounding area is a gold mine of incredible homes. Over the last few years Troy and Andy have been building some of the best new homes I have ever seen out in the desert. Tune in and hear these guys stories.  Also visit there websites and instagrams for an idea of what we are talking about.  Troy with his new Eichler homes in Palm Springs and Andy's masterpiece called ON THE ROCKS in Joshua Tree

Brian the Bootmaker celebrates his 11th anniversary of making some of the finest handmade boots I've ever seen right in downtown Los Angeles Brian returns to the show to talk about how things have changed over the last decade of him being in business. We also talk Trucks, Cars and Real Estate and Comedy. Thank you my friends for your continuous support of The Grail. DDR

Once a year the big guns in the watch industry drop new models and for watch nerds like Kevin Christy and I its like Christmas in March. Today we dive into the new watches from Rolex, Patek Philippe, Tudor and More. We also talk about the lunacy of the flip game of the new Omega Speedmaster/Swatch Moonwatch. Tune in and enjoy some craziness. Don't forget to leave a review and subscribe on iTunes and Youtube. Have a great week. DDR

Today my guest is Gard Hollinger Co-Owner of Arch Motorcycle Company. Gard and his partner Keanu Reeves started a Custom Motorcycle Company 10 years ago focusing on building some of the greatest 2 wheel machines ever made. I spent the day at Arch Motorcycles located right in Los Angeles and my mind was blown. Hand made V-Twin Motorcycles like you have never seen. Tune in and hear the story of how this company started. Thanks for all your support and please tell a friend about The Grail

Today I sit down with the King of the 4x4 world Mr Jonathan Ward owner of Icon. Jonathan builds the most insane Trucks and Cars I have ever seen. Jonathan's first career was in the acting game. This man worked on Broadway then moved to California for TV and Film work.  After years of success he realized he wasn't happy in the acting world and decided to leave it all behind for his true passion restoring Toyota Land Cruiser's and Ford Bronco's. Icon is hands down the best in the world and that is the truth. Tune in and hear all about the Holy Grail of 4x4's  follow him on Instagram @icon4x4   Also join my patreon for all kinds of bonus episodes and live Zooms https://www.patreon.com/DeanDelray

Today on The Grail my guest are the owners of the greatest Taco Shops in Los Angeles, Victor Manuel Delgado III and Jorge Alvarez of TACOS 1986. Sit down and hear the passion of these 2 men and how they started their very successful Business. Both these guys grew up in Tijuana before moving to Los Angeles and going for their dream. I would say Tacos are probably the greatest food every created and Victor and Jorge are the Kings of Authentic Tijuana style Tacos. Do yourself a favor and visit TACOS 1986 in Los Angeles and absolutely lose you mind.  Thanks for all your support of The Grail have a great weekend. DDR

If you ever wanted to know how you become a Master of Wine then this episode is for you. Vanessa Conlin was a musician performing internationally and on Broadway before deciding to make a change in life. Vanessa packed up her life in NYC and moved to the Napa Valley and dove full on into the history of Wine becoming one of the worlds leading Wine Experts. Vanessa's story is very inspiring and even if you don't drink wine you will love this Ep. Enjoy  DDR