Takeout & Talk: Where Culture Is Always on the Menu

Here at COCINA, part of MECENAS MEDIA, we’re serving something new this month—our very first podcast: TAKEOUT & TALK. Hosted by Xorje Olivares (SiriusXM, NPR, Vice, Rolling Stone), each episode dishes out takeout and unfiltered conversations with culture-shaping voices across food, lifestyle, and the biggest moments defining today.

As Xorje puts it, Takeout & Talk is a space to “hold conversations with friends, old and new, over delivery.” The vibe? Intimate, hungry, and always culturally curious.

A proud Tejano from Eagle Pass, Texas, Xorje brings his sharp wit and warmth to every exchange. With degrees in Broadcasting and Chicano Studies from UT Austin, he’s spent his career exploring what it means to be Latino in the U.S.—from language and identity to the many layers of our shared experience. Through his work as a broadcaster and freelance journalist, Xorje has tackled the complex, ever-evolving stories that define our communities.

And he’s kicking things off with a bang.
For the first episode, Xorje sits down with Suzy Exposito, the acclaimed music journalist who’s profiled Bad Bunny multiple times. They talk about Benito, his massive Puerto Rico residency, and his upcoming Super Bowl halftime show. The conversation also dives into the current state of music culture, the realities of music journalism, and what it means for people of color to carve out space in that industry.

Exposito—former culture columnist and editor for De Los at the Los Angeles Times—made history as the first Latina to write a Rolling Stone cover story. She previously led the magazine’s Latin Music section and has contributed to Vogue, Elle, and Vanity Fair.

Catch the video version of the premiere episode—and a peek behind the scenes—starting October 29 at wearecocina.com. After that, Takeout & Talk will be available on starpicks.tv, all major podcast platforms, and YouTube, so you can tune in wherever you get your culture fix.

Because, as Xorje reminds us, “Culture is always on the menu.”