Innovator’s Kitchen: 3 B Bevie Cocktail
June is Pride Month – a time to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community and pay tribute to the activists at Stonewall. Pride Month is largely attributed to bisexual activist, Brenda Howard, aka “The Mother of Pride.” A year after the Stonewall Riots, Brenda organized Gay Pride Week which eventually became the Gay Pride March in New York, laying the foundation for Pride Month to be celebrated worldwide.
Of course, celebrations don’t always happen in large parades, you can have one right in your kitchen. And a celebration isn’t complete without a tasty cocktail, where different flavors come together to create something beautiful.
On the third show of Innovator’s Kitchen, we celebrate Pride Month with the 3 B Bevie Cocktail, a celebratory drink concocted by Chef Eliza Martin herself. This cocktail plays off the marriage of 3 completely different flavors:
- Basil
- Blood Orange
- Balsamic
Yes you read that right – balsamic!
While Chef Eliza prepares this unique and refreshing beverage, we discuss the role of allyship and honoring the richness that comes from inviting different people to our table, and different flavors into our dishes.
Different Ingredients Coming Together Creates Richness
A world where basil, blood orange, and balsamic (and whatever clear liquor you prefer) goes together seems unlikely. But the reality is, the wildfly different flavors of sweet, savory, and acidity create rich, dynamic flavors. Each ingredient helps the other stand out, rather than clashing.
This combination makes the drink perfect for honoring diverse flavors and diverse perspectives.
Mixing different flavors is where the richness is, and mixing different perspectives in the office is where innovation occurs.
Allyship is Reflecting on How You Invite Everyone to the Table
I admitted to Eliza that as a straight person, I was quite ignorant about the LGBTQ+ community when I was younger. I didn’t know a lot of people in the community and only saw it through the lens of what I saw on TV. I was ignorant, until I started meeting wonderful innovators in the space who happened to be LGBTQ+, and it reminded me of how we need to constantly reflect on the lens through which we see the world.
“I think society-wise, we don’t think enough about inclusion in the LGBTQ space. We don’t bring enough of that in EVERY celebration space and table that we sit in.”
Now, Eliza and I both have a lot of friends and colleagues in the community. Eliza emphasized how important it is to honor those friendships and create a safe space for people of different perspectives – especially as a leader.
“Working in a kitchen, everyone shows up with a different story. We can start with small measures of celebrating hand-in-hand, and it’ll grow... It’s a domino effect.”
It’s true – being able to show up fully as who we are is key. Otherwise, we’re hiding key perspectives that create that breeding ground for innovation and inclusion.
So use this recipe as a reminder to not only invite someone different to the table, but make them feel comfortable as well.
If you haven’t thought about inclusion, this is your chance to do so and if you have, then continue to push yourself and make it the norm to celebrate diverse experiences.
As we bite into this wisdom, we also encourage you to download our recipe and try making this deliciously diverse cocktail yourself:
Want to try the recipe? Download it below!
WATCH THE FULL SHOW :
About the Author
Monica H. Kang
Monica H. Kang, Founder, and CEO of InnovatorsBox® and Author of Rethink Creativity is transforming today’s workforce through the power of creativity. She helps companies rethink culture, leadership, and team development by making creativity practical and relatable regardless of industry or job title. She has worked with clients worldwide including Fortune 500 companies, higher education, government, and nonprofits. Monica’s work has been recognized by The White House, Ashoka Changemakers, National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC), and Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC). Prior to InnovatorsBox®, Monica was a nuclear nonproliferation policy expert. She holds an M.A. from SAIS Johns Hopkins University in Strategic Studies and International Economics and a B.A. from Boston University.
