Welcome To The Roamies

SPEAKER_03 0:00

Hi, I'm Alexa.

SPEAKER_01 0:01

And I'm Rory. And together we are the Roamies. We're a husband-wife duo and longtime travelers who believe travel isn't just about where you go. It's about how it shapes the way you live when you get home.

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On the Roamies podcast, we explore where to travel, how to travel, and why to travel. Through our lens of creativity, wellness, and everyday life.

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We're calling this Eaton Rome Google. As we travel near and far, we're sharing the ways to bring inspiration home. Daily rituals, business and design ideas, and the renovation of our historic picture upload.

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It's all about making travel tangible, livable, and meaningful long after the trip ends.

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So whether you're planning your next adventure or reimagining the life you're building at home, you're in the right place.

F Is For Family

Why Family Still Grounds Us

Travel As Fusion And Fire

Renovation Reality And The Foundation

Make Your Home Serve You

Daniel’s Family Founded Food Brand

SPEAKER_03 0:50

And now, let's get into today's episode. Hi everyone, welcome to our new episode. We are continuing our theme not only from Rome to home, but also our alphabet theme for 2026. We are at the letter F. F is for family. And first, we want to say a big thank you to Fios for sponsoring this episode because F is also for Fios, spelled F-I-L-L-O-S like Philos, but we're using that Latin pronunciation here. F is for Fios. And you'll hear more about how fun and family-founded, flavorful Fios is in just a minute. But first, we want to jump into F is for family. And on the travel side, Rory and I have realized lately that, you know, people are always making the comment that we are gone all the time. And really we end up roaming to home, just kind of like our family homes. So just as much as we travel for gigs and podcasts, a lot of our travel is going to visit our parents. Rory and I don't have kids, so it's just easier for us to go see them instead of them coming to us. So tomorrow we leave to see Rory's family, and then we're gonna go straight from there and go visit my parents and my aunts. Last month I had a trip in California. I went there for some conventions and I just made extra days open so that I could purpose to see my cousins and my nieces that are in the area. And so that is kind of how we are traveling a lot right now. It's not necessarily a million gigs, a million vacations, but we are just going and doing life together with our parents and our families. What's great is Rory and I have purpose to set up our life so that we can always be on the go, be always being ready for the next concert or acting gig or just working admin from all of the things that we do, working this podcast. And so basically, we've set up our lives on purpose where we can work from wherever we are. So yeah, we go and see our parents, but we're still working. We're still doing our daily lives, but we are just doing it with them and at their home and hanging out with them in our daily life. So we're not necessarily doing these big family vacations. Roy and I both grew up having awesome family vacations with our parents and our siblings, and they were very memorable and really kindled that fire that Roy and I have for travel. And now when we go see our parents, it's not like we're going on a vacation together with all of them, but we are just doing life together. We do try to do something a little extra fun because we're in town visiting. Maybe it's just going out to eat at a fun place. Or I think Rory's parents are planning to come soon and we will do, they'll come to us and we'll do a day trip from our house and go see the wildflowers blooming around Texas. A couple years back, Rory and I did a trip with my parents in Arkansas. And we had this really cool setup in Arkansas where we stayed in like this duplex. So we each had our own unit, but they were attached. And everything was there at this kind of lake resort in Arkansas. And it was just really nice because we could go do activities together individually and have our meals together. And it was away from our home and they were away from their home. And it would just give it a whole new dynamic than just when we go to their own home. Again, travel is so impactful and creates new memories and new experiences that are so valuable to daily life, which again is why we do all of this. Family is that foundation for all of us. And so before we ever pack a bag, before we make our next steps in business or we renovate our home, we are shaped by the table where we once sat. And your family shapes who you are. Your family, your parents and siblings, whatever your family unit looked like growing up and might look for you even right now. All of that shapes you and how you think and move and walk through life. And at some point, then you adult, right? And you realize you're not just standing on a foundation anymore. You're pouring your own. And so you start forming your own foundation and you become the grounding and the support and that steady place for your spouse, for your children. For Roy and I, that's for each other. It's for our parents and for the people that gather with us in our home. So when we see our parents now, we're reinforcing that foundation. And the foundation of family matters. It's super, super important. And of course, family can be frustrating sometimes. There can be times of tension, but there's also times of joy. It's important to maintain those family connections and allow that time together to feel like gifts. Some of you may be familiar with my story a little bit, but my sister passed away when she was 34 years old. And of course, it's still super painful. And you don't necessarily ever get over losing a family member, but you learn to adjust to new life in that way. But we lost her and then later Rory was diagnosed with cancer. And so he's now cancer free and all of that. But events like that really if you needed a push to remind you how important family is, those are big things. And so we purpose to try to spend as much time with family as we can and keep our lives mobile so that we can have that time with family. And yes, we are still wandering the globe. We are still doing all of the things that we're passionate about, but we are also purposing to spend that time. I think because we don't live in the same towns as our parents do, that our visits become more special and cherished and make it not so every day, but make it a special time. And we love that. Travel also is a fusion, and it's bringing who you already are into all that new place, that foundation that is set by your family. You bring that to the places that you go. And then you also let those places you go influence you and shape you. And it's not about abandoning your roots, but expanding them. And every trip that we take is a fusion of old and new. We bring our rhythms and our habits and our history to that new place. And we add a new site or a new story or a new perspective or a new experience to our lives and bring that home with us. And it makes life so much richer. That fusion changes how we design our space, how we cook, how we host. And our house itself is like literally a fusion. It was built in 1916 with very clean lines. And then in the 60s, we had this a renovation was made to our house that added all of this like fancy, overly decorated frou-frou kind of pieces and historic pieces from other parts of Waco were built into our house. It's just like this fusion of history. This house is just oozing with it. And so what was cool is that when they did the renovation in the 60s on this house, it didn't erase what was there. It added to the story of the house that was built in 1916. And then as we are here now, we are wanting to honor that history and then fuse that with our story as well. And so family trap travel is also a fusion of generations blending, old stories, new chapters, and parents and adult children figuring out this next season together. Or maybe you have children going off to college, and that's a new phase. And there's always change and fluctuation. There's another F-word for you. But it's that fusion of old and new and tradition and new experiences. It just all fuses together to create a really beautiful life. And another F-word that we want to bring into today's episode is fire. You know, some people travel to escape, but Rory and I travel because something in us like burns. Travel fuels the fire within us. And it's that spark that says life isn't meant to feel small. And that spark has always been there for both of us. And that's why we built our lives the way that we have. And that fire leads us to travel and experience new things. And as we travel and experience new things, that fuels us and fuels and fires our inspiration and our creativity. And it's just a very exciting place to family travel has also taught us about flexibility because as our parents age, they don't always move at the same pace we do. And so we have to be flexible about what's going on with them, just like they had to be flexible with us when we started junior high and going into all these camps and doing all these things, right? Family travel has to be flexible to work with everybody. Travel's also taught us about flow because you can't overschedule when what you really want is just conversation. We have to be frugal all the time because A, we don't have real jobs. We don't have that typical nine to five. And we want to be healthy and all of that and save money. And so, like, we bring food with us. We plan, we try to plan wisely so that we can continue to take trips like this. And it's also taught us to move fast when we needed. Like we need to pack quickly or pivot our plans or heat up something simple so we can get back to the table. It gives us freedom to build lives, it allows us to go where we're needed. And when we do it well, it feels fresh and gives us fresh gratitude, fresh perspective, fresh awareness that our time together matters. It's about a feeling. And food is a big part of that feeling. And meals don't have to always be elaborate. They just have to be there, right? Just warm, easy, shared. And so that's why we're excited about the brand that we're going to share today, Fios, because it supports that kind of life that we're actually living. On the go, rooted in family, staying healthy, and staying present. And it's such a fun brand because it fits an on the go lifestyle, whether you are on the go or whether you are actually at home. And I want to just dive into some of these F words that I've mentioned earlier in regards to travel, how they also tie into home. And so foundation. Foundation is actually in our home renovation has been a huge thing. And it's been kind of a cause of our renovation being delayed because what we've done on the house so far, on our home renovation, is we've done roofing, we've done plumbing, and we've done foundation. In the last year, we were able to start doing some things that were pretty, like we were able to start work on our outside gazebo that it was built in the late 1800s, used to be part of a historic home, and now it's a gazebo in our yard. And it was starting to rot and fall over. And so we've been able to do some cosmetic and foundational shifts in that. And we have been able to paint the outside of the house and we have been able to paint our fountain. But as far as like making the inside pretty, one of our biggest obstacles has been the foundation. And we have been working on the foundation since day one moving into this house. When our foundation shifts in the house, it creates more cracks in the walls. And you kind of have to just give time for that to settle. And we've learned that here in Waco, where we live and our historic home is Pier and Beam Foundation. And as many experts as we've had come by, they're just like, hey, your house is going to constantly be shifting. Your foundation is going to constantly be shifting. We have had to just kind of let it be where it's going to be, let the cracks form so that when we are able to start work on the inside, we know where all those cracks are and can address them. I'm just standing here in my studio looking at all the cracks all over the walls. Like it's just, there are so many. So I do not envy our contractor. So we can't make this house pretty until the foundation is set. And so that's kind of been our biggest thing in this home renovation so far is figuring out when will we stop. Because we we have other places in the home where the floor is starting to buckle because the foundation adjustment was a little too wonky. So I think we're gonna have to have them come one more time. And you know, there's only so many times you can change the foundation, or you'll never get the renovation done. So we're getting close to that stopping point with landing on where the foundation is going to be, and it's just gonna be what it's gonna be. Now, something else we have done on the inside is that we mentioned this before in our episode D is for Doors. We had Skip Rawls work on our fireplace. I don't know what it's called, the thing that holds the wood in your fireplace. There's a fancy word for that, and I don't know what it is, but Skip Rawls updated it. He was able to keep the original piece, but add and extend it so that it is no longer broken and it actually holds the wood for the fire. And so that is another thing we've been able to do on the house. So that was really fun because now we love, love building a fire in that room. And the surround around our fireplace is a piece that came from the original YWCA in Waco. It's really fun to be enjoying a fire around that historic piece. And as we continue renovations, we want our house to have flexibility. We want it to be a space that can be hosting for family and guests, Airbnb guests, where we can have events in the yard that the community can come and utilize our yard for their events. But we also work here and we record here. We need quiet spaces, we need places we can rehearse, we need places we can audition, we need places we can film, we need places where we can just get away from everything. And when we're always on the go, we need that retreat space where we can just feel like we can relax and chill. And so home has to be flexible. And this is where I just want to remind you guys that your home needs to serve you. You don't serve your home. If you have a whole dining room and you'd never use it, but you have this other area in your house that is super junky because you have nowhere to put that stuff and no space to do what you really want to do. Maybe it's time to consider being flexible and saying, hey, this room was originally meant for X purpose, but for us, our house needs to serve us. And we need a space like this. And so make that space. Like make those changes, be flexible, make those shifts because it needs to give you what you need and fuel you. And so that's my philosophy, and that's why flexibility is such an important thing when it comes to home renovation. And of course, you want to think about flow, and we are thinking about flow, like flow for walking through the space and one room to the next, but also how care conversation can carry from the kitchen to the living room. Fast is another F-word that we're gonna have to run across as we get as we dive in more toward this renovation because contractors will be in the middle of stuff, and we would love to have everything planned out and perfect, but something usually always goes wrong, right? So being able to make fast decisions is going to be a skill that I know Rory and I will both have to develop as we dive in more to this renovation. And then, of course, we want to be frugal as much as we can. And so we want to keep what we can historically and only fix what has to be fixed and be very frugal about that. And one way that Rory is being frugal right now, like as we speak, he's not here with me in the studio because he is right now rescuing historic wood that matches the wood in our historic home. There is a home just a few blocks down from us that is having to be completely destroyed. They are tearing down the entire house. And Rory has been working tirelessly to rescue the floors from that historic home before they just get taken away to a dump pile. So he is reclaiming that wood piece by piece, board by board. And not only is he saving history, but he is also being frugal. It's gonna save us a lot of money because Rory is taking the time to get dirty and messy and get sore and sweaty and gross just to go rescue those boards. So that's going on like right now as I'm recording this. And that frugality is giving us the freedom to be able to renovate more on our timeline and breathing space either to save or to use elsewhere in the renovation. We're gonna be bringing more history into our home in the renovation. It's gonna keep things fresh. We're gonna add those new touches, that fusion of those new touches layered onto these old stories. And so through all of that, our family is still the foundation of this home. And of course, can you hear him purring? Maybe not, but we travel and love our furry felines. Our furry felines, Mozzie and Ellie. They are our family and travel with us and they do so well. They don't get to go to Europe with us, but uh they go see family a lot. And my parents had a grand cat sit when we went to Europe last year for three months. So bless the parents for that. Thank you for that appearance, Mozzie. And don't worry, you will not find any feline in Fios Foods because they're vegan. Uh, so we want to introduce you to. If you haven't heard of them, whether you've heard of them or not, we want to remind you to go out and purchase FEO Foods. And you're gonna hear all about them in my interview with Daniel Caballero, and he's the president of FEOS Foods, and it's a company that he started with his brothers, inspired by their dad. And they've taken something rooted in family and made it accessible for life on the go. So whether it's a road trip, a renovation day, or sitting around the table, we're excited for you to hear his story. Hi, Daniel. Thank you so much for joining us today. We're really excited to hear and dive in more about your brand, Fios. And we thank you so much for sponsoring this episode. And we are connecting with you because we love your brand. We love what you have to offer, and we want to be able to just share that with folks. Since this episode is F for family, I want to just hear, I know your family was kind of a big part of like how you grew up influenced this brand, and then how you formed this brand. Has to do with a lot of your family background. So I'd love to just dive in and start there.

SPEAKER_00 21:20

Absolutely. So the brand started in 2017. We launched into Whole Foods Market, and the idea behind the brand was to take the traditional foods we grew up with, uh like Cuban style black beans in particular, and remix them for an on-the-go lifestyle so they're more convenient because we didn't have time to prepare what's known as sofrito beans from scratch. Sofrito is a saute of onions, garlic, bell peppers, and extra version olive oil, and other aromatics mixed in with beans while they cook. And that that was the genesis of the brand. I started it with my brother. We named it after my dad, his nickname was Feel, growing up in Cuba. And one of our first products was the Peruvian style lentils with sofrito. Along with the Cuban black beans and sofrito. Since then, we've evolved and continuing with this theme of how we can keep traditions fresh and remix the foods we grew up with for an on-the-go lifestyle. Since then, we've launched into walking tomates. And this has been the newest product line for the brand today.

SPEAKER_03 22:18

I love it. So let's let's back up just a little bit. Where did you grow up and why was this food part of your heritage and your family tradition?

SPEAKER_00 22:31

So I'm Cuban-Panamanian American. My dad is from Cuba. My mom is from Panama. I was born and raised in Aurora, Illinois, just outside of Chicago. Okay. So that's where I grew up. But I grew up eating these foods daily. Cuban black beans in particular are a staple and uh part of many meals throughout the week as a child, as were garbanzo beans and lentils and all kinds of basically beans and sofrito, in addition to tamales, were uh just a regular staple throughout my childhood. And into adulthood as well, of course. Yeah. When we started the business when we were doing RD, I was doing a lot of work and taking family recipes and replicating them uh with a pressure canner at home because that's a good way to gauge how it'll work if it can scale and be manufactured and created in these pouches.

unknown 23:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 23:20

So I was doing a lot of that, and my brother Antonio came by and he asked what I was doing, and I explained it to him and he said, Oh, interesting. And before I knew it, he was helping me with all of that. And we were cooking up like formulas from scratch that that we grew up with, and then he was helping me take those and try to replicate them and uh on the benchtop and a stovetop with the pressure canner system, you know. And we just kept working on it, and then when the time came that we were gonna manufacture the product, he was involved as well, and that's how we started the business then. And that and then a few years later, my other brother, Rafael, joined the business as well in a sales function. So now all three of us, in addition to Fred, another co-founder in the company, are involved day to day in operating fields.

SPEAKER_03 24:04

Wow. So it's definitely a family business, family started business. And has it been really fun for you guys to work together or has it created more stress and or has it been kind of a mix of both?

SPEAKER_00 24:17

No, no, it's been fun actually. Yeah, it hasn't it hasn't created a lot of stress for us in general. I mean, there are there are moments of stress in in any business and any industry, but in general, we've had uh we've been having a really good time with the company. And it's been fun to see the formulas that we grew up with created a new and a different way for this on-the-go lifestyle, if you will. And it's been fun to see that and see what people do with the traditional foods. While we may have grown up eating black beans and rice or lentils as like a soup or on a on a better rice again, basically. It's fun to see how people take these products and eat them in just totally different new ways that we never would have expected. Ways that aren't necessarily traditional, but are fantastic as well and a great way to enjoy the product. And it's just natural. That's the natural way food is consumed. People will find new ways to enjoy these different preparations and meals no matter where in the world they're from.

SPEAKER_03 25:13

Love it. Beans and legumes are like the perfect food because they're full of protein and fiber in the beans. And so you've got this really nice whole food, especially when you're mixing it with the grain, you have a whole food protein all of a sudden with this vegan vegetarian meal. And I just I love that because they're so foundationally nutritionally sound. So I love that and I love that it's clean. I want to just point out it's really interesting. I just assume when we're on the road and we eat at Chipotle and we stop in, you know, they have a lot of organic foods and they have nice veggie choices, and it just gives us kind of like a healthier on-the-go option if we stop like at Chipotle. And when I get their tofu, their soy, it's called sofritos. And I just assumed that that meant like it's a Mexican soy thing. And so it's interesting that you're saying that sofritos, sofritos, is it O S or A S?

SPEAKER_00 26:11

Uh Sofrito, just sofrito, so frito. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 26:15

Okay. So because I'm married to a Cajun, in Cajun cooking, you have like the Trinity, which is your base for cooking, right? You're gonna have your onion, your bell pepper mix. So it could be not just green pepper, but maybe red and green peppers, and you're gonna have parsley. You might have garlic in there that and celery, but the part of the trinity in Cajun cooking is the celery, the pepper, and the onions. And so because I'm married to a Cajun and have learned about this, when I make my beans at home, dry beans and my pressure cooker, that's what I throw in there. Like I naturally throw that in. And so if I'm just having beans, whatever beans, whether they're chickpeas or black beans or whatever, that's what I'm that's how I'm making that at home. I'm adding in those veggies, whatever I have on hand, to season them. So that's so interesting that you differentiate not only between beans and sofritos when we purchase our FEO sofritos, that we're getting a like a treat. Like we're getting this special treatment to a bean or legume. So do you want to kind of like just expand on that a little bit and help my uh understanding more?

SPEAKER_00 27:28

Sure. Yeah, the the Trinity and sofrito is effectively the same style and preparation. Uh vegetables, spices cooked in some sort of oil and sauteed, and and that brings out the aromatics, and that's used to season and flavor beans. Sofrito is uh the name for the same preparation throughout mostly the Caribbean, but also Central America and and other countries throughout Latin America. And it it is varies by region and it varies within countries as well, and it varies depending on the bean dish that's being prepared. Some bean dishes will use tomato, for example, in the sofrito, other ones will not. So and then, of course, when you get to the Trinity, it includes celery, which is a different style altogether, and it includes spicier hot peppers, whereas in in Cuba, traditionally sofrito or historically hasn't used a lot of hot, spicy hot flavor profiles, if you will. So it varies quite a bit. The chapotla style sofritas is kind of like a spin on the word sofrito, and it's a chipotle creation, probably inspired by sofrito, I'm assuming. I don't know for sure. And uh offers another delicious option, I'm sure. So yeah.

SPEAKER_03 28:40

Okay, so with sofrito, would you only use that preparation for beans?

SPEAKER_00 28:46

One of my favorite dishes, and there there are there are technique differences, like when preparing it for beans, the onions and the bell peppers are diced into very small pieces or medium-sized squares, if you will, or rectangular pieces. When uh cooking with like uh one of my favorite dishes is a Cuban style baked snapper, and that's made with a sofrito that includes a tomato base, or not. That varies. Some people will use tomato, some won't. Bay leaf, onion, garlic, bell pepper, extra version, olive oil, cumin, sometimes oregano, sometimes not. Maybe some people would add a dash of cayenne, but not often. And that is stuffed into the whole snapper. Whole snapper is rested on coined potatoes, all drizzled in olive oil and baked fully, and the sofrito is inside of the snapper, uh seasoning it.

SPEAKER_02 29:35

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 29:36

You know, flavoring the fish as it cooks.

unknown 29:39

Nice.

SPEAKER_00 29:40

Ropa vieja is another very common and popular dish that also incorporates a sofrito style preparation with uh shredded beef, if you will.

SPEAKER_02 29:48

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 29:48

That's the quickest way to describe it. And that's a like stewed shredded beef style preparation with sofrito that adds a lot of flavor. And then of course, also one of my favorite ones, Florida style or Caribbean style lobster tails with a sofrito as well, with a tomato-based sofrito is delicious. It's fantastic. And that's where the lobster tails are coined and uh cooked with the shell on in a in a sofrito stew-like preparation, and that it's a very flavorful sofrito on a bed of rice, or you know, it's just a delicious combination.

SPEAKER_03 30:22

Okay, so y'all, you we hope what we're making you hungry as we're talking about all these delicious flavors. Well, tell us a little bit about your travels and how that inspires your brand as well.

SPEAKER_00 30:33

So my family, myself, we do a lot of traveling every year lately, over the past, I would say, three or four years, we've been really focused on the visiting the different national parks throughout the United States. And of course, when we're out hiking or enjoying other parks, especially on these very long, like all-day style hikes, we we definitely like to bring our walking tamales with us. And it it takes the tamala and makes it a portable on-the-go option for these long hikes. It's uh just a great, great thing. Instead of like a sweet granola bar, we have this in our backpacks in addition to other snacks. And it's just a really good, good option on these long hikes. Most recently, we even took them to on a trip with my family. My wife is from Sweden, so we went to Sweden and did a lot of exploring and hiking out there, and we took the tamales with us there as well. And it's just a really good option on the go. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 31:25

Love it. So you were able to travel overseas with them and they did just fine.

SPEAKER_00 31:30

Yeah, yeah, they did just fine. They they they usually have no problem whatsoever going through airport security, especially because it's like a solid tamale in the pouch rather than a liquid. So sometimes they'll look at it and then they say, Yeah, this is fine, and we just go right through it.

SPEAKER_03 31:45

Right, right. And your tamales are vegan, which is great. And so you're not having to worry either about like when those are when you're traveling with those, like flying across international borders, they might they're cooked vegetables, so they're not gonna be concerned about that. So that's a good yeah.

SPEAKER_00 32:04

We we haven't run into any issues traveling with them.

SPEAKER_03 32:07

Love it, love it. Well, I love that your wife is from Sweden. That is very fun. We just released our music video with a duo from Sweden called Carry You, so that's really fun to have a little Swedish tie-in there. So give your wife hellos from us, and uh, hopefully we can get back to Sweden soon. What's been your most recent national park that you visited?

SPEAKER_00 32:26

The the last trip we did was to Arches and Zion and Bryce Canyon. We went to all three of those parks in Utah. It was a long drive in between them, but it was a great, it was a really nice drive. And the parks themselves are are amazing. So it was a really nice trip.

Shelf Stable Food For Busy Days

SPEAKER_03 32:42

Amazing. Rory and I have not yet been there, but we did talk about which national parks to visit at which time of the year in our previous episodes with Jennifer Broom. So check those out if y'all haven't heard those yet. The national parks are just amazing. Rory and I, our most recent was our visit to Big Bend, which we also have a little series about as well. So we'll put all that in the show notes. But I just I love that it's a nice hiking, that your tamales are great for hiking and for on the go. And that's one of the things that made us really big fans of your brand because we are always on the go. And especially for me, being like vegan vegetarian girl, having a vegan option is really, really cool that it feels like a meal. And like you said, like when you were hiking, you you might add it to like your granola bars or your nut mix or something like that. But the tamales are just like something different and they feel like a meal. They feel like hearty and yummy and fulfilling, and it's a vegan option. So it's not gonna be too heavy, but it's gonna be filling. And I really, really love that. So I also love that your beans and sofritos are also shelf stable. Y'all, all of this is shelf stable. So not only could it be part of your emergency, you know, we've even done a little series on emergency preparedness because as you think about being on the go, if you have to evacuate your home or you have some kind of emergency, you need good, good, like stable things to take with you, or the electricity goes out a week or whatever. Having those shelf stable options in your home are great for not only like emergency preparedness, but also just being on the go. It can go in your lunch sack with your kids, it can go to work with you, and then you can also make it at home. And so I love that it's so versatile and fits in so many places because it's a shelf stable, because it's so much more difficult when you have food on the go that has to be refrigerated and you have to kind of care about making sure it's not gonna go bad. But because it's shelf stable, you can keep it in your pantry and throw it in your backpack or your purse for the day. What's kind of the thought process behind your technology? You know, what inspired you guys to go that direction with your brand?

SPEAKER_00 35:08

It was exactly that, that we we wanted an option that wasn't perishable that we could take with us, whether it's to the office for work or uh pack with our kids' lunch or what it what might whatever it is where we need where we don't have to worry about it being perishable. That was the motivation behind it. So we back when we launched in 2017, at the time, uh there were a few brands making these shelf stable pouches, Seeds of Change and uh Tasty Bite were two popular ones. And we didn't really see a Latin American style option under those same same formats, and that was what motivated us to create a Latin American style option for very similar on-the-go ritual or occasion. Well, we didn't know and we kind of seen back in 2017, was how much the uh tamales would be used for like long endurance cycling events and running events and people rock climbing. Actually, when I was in a Zion, it was funny. I was on our Instagram feed, which has a lot of the outdoor community engaging with us. And while I was there in Zion, people were posting from throughout the park that they're eating a tamal on top of Angels Landing, for example, one of the more popular hikes. And I couldn't believe it. I was like, I'm here, and then another person was climbing in Moab, closer to you know, a little further away from Zion was climbing, they were rock climbing in Moab on the other other side of the state. Man, and uh at the same time that I was out there, and it it really drove home for me how much uh this product is connected with that outdoor enthusiast community.

SPEAKER_03 36:39

Yeah. So there's so many populations that this serves, right? There's they're just that versatile that they're gonna hit your active folks, your busy folks, and you know, I just I love that it's so versatile. And you have different flavors too, right? Of your tamales?

SPEAKER_00 37:00

We do. We have um we have five savory flavors that are more traditional, like bean sauce. I've added the bean sauce aroja, bean sauce abanero, a poblano rajas flavor, and a lote sweet corn tamal as well. In addition to that, we have some dessert flavors, like a vegan and chocolate tamal. Right here, we have a peanut biloncillo tamal. Biloncillo is like a type of unrefined sugar, and then we also have a strawberry tamal. So we have the dessert flavors as well. Those are definitely better warmed up just a bit, like 25, 30 seconds. Warmed up, it brings out all the flavors and the aroma, and they're great with a cup of coffee.

SPEAKER_03 37:36

Wow. Okay, we haven't, as of this recording, we haven't tried them, but on our socials, we will try them and you guys will see how I'm gonna love that chocolate going on there. So I haven't heard of that sugar either. That is, I look forward to learning more about that too. What is it called now?

SPEAKER_00 37:55

Yeah, uh pilon sill. It's like those sugarcones you'll see in the supermarkets, and it's uh called piloncill. Okay, pilon silk, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 38:05

Okay, I love learning new things like that. So you're teaching me so much, Daniel. This is awesome. And then what are your flavors for the beans and sofritos?

SPEAKER_00 38:14

Beans and sofrito, we have the Cuban style black beans, the uh Peruvian lentils, we have a Puerto Rican style pink bean, also with a sofrito, and then a uh like a Tex Mex style pinto with jalapeno pepper, and that's more of a medium heat. Okay. The other flavors are all mild.

SPEAKER_03 38:30

Okay. So of the flavors between the tamale and then the beans, which ones are the hottest, spiciest ones?

SPEAKER_00 38:38

We have a habanero tamal that's uh very spicy, that's the highest heat. Then we have a medium, medium salsa roja tamal made with bacia pepper and guajio peppers and chile de arabo. This is a medium heat, and then we have the mild one, bean salsa verde. And this one's the mildest of the flavors. They're flavorful, yeah. The Cuban black bean, the Peruvian lato, and the Puerto Rican pink bean have no spice heat level at all, but they're packed with flavor from the onion, the garlic, the bell peppers, and the olive oil.

At Home Meal Ideas And New Products

SPEAKER_03 39:09

We've talked about how your products are vegan, vegan friendly, but I hear you have some things coming out for my uh Cajun counterpart that I married to. You want to tell us a little bit about what's on the horizon with y'all?

SPEAKER_00 39:25

Sure, yeah. We are as a brand adding protein options that include meat and cheese into the tamales, more traditional flavors as well. And those will be coming very soon within the coming months. Those will be in the marketplace.

SPEAKER_03 39:38

We will have all of that info on the show notes, and you'll be able to follow them on their socials and on their website to be able to stay tuned with them and keep in keep following them for all of the different flavors that you guys roll out. We've talked about how it's so great for on the go, but let's talk about bringing these foods home. A lot of us when we're home, it's still nonstop. Like when Rory and I come home, we're having to do all of the things we have to catch up with our life at home and do all of the 50,000 things that didn't get done because we were traveling for a week and then we have we're also getting ready for the next trip. And so we're always like home for us isn't like this naturally like, oh, we're just chilling and relaxing. We need something that's easy and convenient for a fast dinner that's also healthy. So, what are some ways that you've seen, like either your favorite ways that you enjoy fios at home, but also that, you know, maybe some creative things you've seen people do?

SPEAKER_00 40:39

Well, I've seen both the most traditional with the Cuban style black beans on a bed of rice or the Puerto Rican style pink beans on a bed of rice and mix together for rice and beans. That's the most traditional, or even breakfast options with like the the eyed egg on top of the bean salsa roja, tamal. Cook the tamal on the skillet with a little bit of olive oil till it's cooked through and then fry an egg next to it and eat it all together. The tamal and a fried egg on top is delicious. A great breakfast option on the go. And very good rounded, you know, mix, a good mix of protein, carbs, and and fat, like just a good well rounded meal option uh for breakfast. Uh same with the the beans. We've seen beans with a fried egg is a great option. And then getting even more creative, we've seen people use the beans like kind of like blend them up with a dolp of craned flesh on a on a crostini, for example, as an hors d'oeuvre. Using them in salads, using them in burritos, yeah, nachos all over. Yeah, we've seen many, many preparations. Yeah, different styles.

SPEAKER_03 41:37

So for someone who has not tried these yet, sometimes when you get a tamale like at a farmer's market, for example, they're like in the corn husk, and you kind of have to peel them open and stuff like that. So for someone who's never tried these and is just listening through audio, if they open up the tamale pack, what does that look like?

SPEAKER_00 42:01

Well, there is no husk. And I would say that these are not while the ingredients are traditional, these are prepared more with the masa and the ingredients all blended throughout rather than a filling.

unknown 42:13

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 42:14

Uh and they're they're really meant to be an on-the-go option for a tamal. It's not meant to replace or, you know, substitute in for a home style tamal if that's what you're yearning, like a home cooked, fresh out of the pot with a cornhus tamal around the holidays. It's a that's a very special preparation as well. And we're not we're not saying that we've replicated that per se in a pouch. It's more that this is an on-the-go, uh tamal as a bar type option. So that that's the difference. Yeah. The flavors there, the the smell is there, it, you know, the masa, the aroma is there, it's fantastic. But it's not a home homemade style tamales, it's a tamal in a pouch for on the go. So just to be prepared on that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 42:59

Now you is the pouches are microwaveable, yes?

SPEAKER_00 43:03

They are. They are. You can heat the pouch 15-20 seconds and the tomato will be warm. Most people just eat them on the go, uh, right from the pouch.

SPEAKER_03 43:10

Okay. So they'll have it room temperature or cold even.

SPEAKER_00 43:14

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_03 43:16

What about the beans and sofritos? What is the cooking time? Those are microwaveable as well, those pouches.

SPEAKER_00 43:22

Yeah, these are microwaveable 60 seconds.

SPEAKER_03 43:25

60 seconds.

SPEAKER_00 43:26

Yeah, just tear a notch to vent and then microwave it for 60 seconds and use care when handling because they will be hot. Same with the tamales after about 15, 25 seconds. But they will be hot when pulling them out of the microwave.

SPEAKER_03 43:39

Yeah. So, y'all, that's like super quick, convenient meal at home. You could pour an enchilada sauce over those and, you know, the beans and tamales and have a nice dinner and add a grain if you like, or veggies, whatever. I love the ideas that you gave us on how to prepare it, and that's really, really cool. We can take this on the road and we can. Have it at home. We just love the flexibility of that. We just love easy and efficient and healthy and clean. Like these don't have all the processed icky stuff that you're gonna see with processed foods. Since this is our F is for family episode, we also have all of these other F words that we thought were really kind of a fun fit with our alphabet theme that we're doing this year. Kind of silly, but kind of fun. And so are you up for a speed round, Daniel?

SPEAKER_02 44:32

Sure.

SPEAKER_03 44:33

So I'm gonna list the the word and you can share how does Fios tie in with that word, all right?

SPEAKER_00 44:41

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 44:41

Okay. Flavor.

SPEAKER_00 44:44

So frito.

SPEAKER_03 44:46

Okay. And delicious so frito, I would probably delicious so frito. Yeah. Fusion.

SPEAKER_00 44:53

Fusion. Keep traditions fresh.

SPEAKER_03 44:56

Alright. Foundation.

SPEAKER_00 44:59

Family.

SPEAKER_03 45:00

Fire.

SPEAKER_00 45:01

Habanero tamales.

SPEAKER_03 45:03

Okay. Forward.

SPEAKER_00 45:05

Forward. Tamales on the go.

SPEAKER_03 45:08

And also that you're gonna be adding the meat. That's something you guys need to do.

SPEAKER_00 45:12

Yeah, innovation. New innovation. Yeah, yeah, new products. Flexibility. Flexibility.

SPEAKER_03 45:18

Personally, I love how Theos is flexible to be on an on-the-go option, but also a warm home-cooked meal.

SPEAKER_00 45:28

Yeah, yeah. Flexibility is on-the-go options. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 45:32

Fast.

SPEAKER_00 45:32

Fast, ready, ready to eat.

SPEAKER_03 45:34

Frugal.

SPEAKER_00 45:35

Frugal, yeah. These are a cost-effective option for an on-the-go meal. That's freedom. Uh tamales time, anytime.

SPEAKER_03 45:44

Fresh.

SPEAKER_00 45:44

Fresh. Again, I'd have to, I'd have to go to sofrito because we only use fresh ingredients and fet fresh vegetables and our tamales. We only use fresh onions and ingredients in our in our products and all our items.

SPEAKER_03 45:57

And also your non-GMO verified, which is awesome.

SPEAKER_00 46:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 46:01

I love, yeah, that's so important to us. Feel. How does Fios make you feel?

SPEAKER_00 46:07

It makes you feel great. Satiated? Happy? I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 46:15

Yeah, good. Yeah, I mean, it's it's a great filling option that fuels you like emotionally because you are feeling satiated, but then you're also it's happy. It's it's flavors of home and consistent with your family and your traditions.

SPEAKER_02 46:31

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 46:32

Well, Daniel, thank you so much for your time with us and kind of just sharing a little bit of insight and background into FIOS. And how can people find you guys online?

SPEAKER_00 46:44

Yeah, so uh we're we're at Whole Foods, we're at Amazon. Amazon has us online, our website as well. We do ship direct from our website. In addition to shelf stable. Yeah, we're shelf stable. So uh TikTok shop also carries a product, and then a number of other stores throughout the country, including uh Walmart. Aldi is gonna have us on shelf during Cinco de Mayo for a rotation with the walking tomales and the beans. So there's just a number of other retail accounts throughout the country. On our website, we do have a store locator as well where you can search and find our product. Uh more recently, Maverick, close to the national parks, all the Maverick. Gas stations carry the walking tomatoes as do the QT uh quick trip stores as well throughout the country.

SPEAKER_03 47:28

So great. And then on socials, where will people find you and follow you so they can connect?

SPEAKER_00 47:35

So Instagram is one social media platform, and then TikTok. TikTok, we're present on TikTok as well.

SPEAKER_03 47:41

Okay, awesome. Well, we will put links to those in the show notes. We'll put links to that store locator so that you guys can go into our show notes and be able to connect with FIOS there. And then uh I guess we're all gonna have to go to Moab now so that we can take our pictures, eating our tamales in Moab, which Rory and I have yet to do. Yes, so definitely tag them on your adventures. Thank you so much, Daniel, for your time. And we look forward to enjoying more FIOS on the go and at home.

Carrying Tradition Forward And Closing

SPEAKER_00 48:12

Great, thank you. Thank you so much, Alexa.

SPEAKER_03 48:15

Thank you again, Daniel. Thank you, Fios, for sponsoring this episode. You know, your tagline is keep tradition fresh. And tradition doesn't stay fresh by accident. It doesn't stay alive by accident, it stays alive when someone carries it forward. And when someone takes what they were given, the flavor, the fire, the foundation, and adapts it for the season they're in. And Daniel, thank you for inspiring all of us to take something that we've been given. And maybe that maybe that can inspire a business that we start or some creative project that we do as a reflection of the foundation of our family, the flavors we love, and carrying that into our everyday life. And so that's what family travel has become for us. Just showing up, bringing something warm to the table, remembering that the real flavor of life is always family. As you roam to home. Thanks for joining us, and we'll see you on the next one. We hope we've inspired you this episode.

SPEAKER_01 49:19

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SPEAKER_03 49:20

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SPEAKER_01 49:23

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SPEAKER_03 49:25

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SPEAKER_01 49:28

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SPEAKER_03 49:39

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SPEAKER_01 49:42

That's right, that's T-H-E.

SPEAKER_03 49:44

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SPEAKER_01 49:50

Bye.