Travel Job Series: Kae Lani Palmisano
Many years ago, I met Kae lani Palmisano - a whipsmart, funny, talented and kind writer. Her genuine passion for her craft was always very apparent to me and why we bonded. We’d cross paths a lot and work together at times, but ultimately, became good friends.
Now that we’re both based in Philly, it’s been a joy to get more quality time with her, share a small group of confidants and circle of friends. I am so pleased to have her on this Travel Job Series, since she has some great advice and perspective to offer. Plus, all the Philly readers are going to recognize this local foodie celebrity! Dig in….
Please meet Kae Lani Palmisano.
Emmy Award-winning host of WHYY's Check, Please! Philly & Food Editor, Philadelphia magazine - a local celebrity, who is genuine to the core.
Tell us a little about yourself, please.
As a food and travel writer, I enjoy following the journey food takes to get to the plate. I'm the Emmy Award-winning host of WHYY's Check, Please! Philly, a television show that explores dining throughout the Philadelphia region, and the host and writer of Delishtory on PBS Food, a digital series on the history of food. I am also the Food Editor for Philadelphia magazine.
What is your background and education?
I actually have a Business Marketing degree from Rowan University, an excellent state college in New Jersey. Even though I didn't go to journalism school, my marketing degree has been really useful in navigating digital media. I learned how to do market analysis, research demographics, and develop content strategies, which are all things that journalists now need to do.
What's a typical day for you on the job?
I don't know if there is a typical day. Some days I'm working in my home office, editing stories for Philadelphia magazine and our online food vertical Foobooz. Other days I'm reporting stories on location, which can be as glamorous as dining at fancy restaurants or as rugged as hanging out in hot kitchens, foraging in the woods, and going to farms. And then a few weeks out of the year I host Check, Please! Philly, and I hang out in a TV studio. There's never a dull moment!
You've had such a cool career path. Let's talk about some of your successes and projects, if you can share or tease anything upcoming.
I think my most recent achievement has to be starting a new job as the food editor of Philadelphia magazine at 29/30 weeks pregnant and immediately getting to work on "The 50 Best Restaurants in Philadelphia," which is my department's biggest issue of the year. I jokingly called the issue "my other baby" because I was literally working on it while driving to the hospital to give birth. Seems pretty reckless to change jobs so late in pregnancy, and take on an extremely taxing and stressful project right off the bat. But sometimes life's greatest opportunities come at the most inopportune times. And every time I've bet on myself it has always worked out in the end.
In terms of upcoming projects, Philadelphia magazine is celebrating The Best of Philly's 50th anniversary in our August issue. The package was the first of its kind in 1974 when it started and has since spurred other "Best of" packages at local magazines across the country. A new season of Check, Please! Philly will also be airing in October — the same time we'll be filming season 5!
For our Philly readers, how have you been liking the 50 Best Restaurants list and navigating the hilarity of our competitive nature? I won't even ask about cheesesteaks!
It's an honor to oversee 50 Best Restaurants. It's really important to me to strike a balance between the suburbs and the city, fancy restaurants and neighborhood favorites, and old classics and the newest, trendiest spots. The feedback this year was surprisingly positive considering how I've seen the list cause such controversy in the past. I always joke that Philadelphia is the smallest big city in the world. Everyone knows each other. And though there is competition, I think the collaborative spirit of our city outweighs the rivalries. Especially after the pandemic. Most people in the Philly industry pull one another up and celebrate each other's victories. I saw a lot of that with the most recent 50 Best Restaurants list. Even the folks who didn't make it still congratulated the people who did.
What's your favorite meal if you had to choose - anywhere in the world and one right here in Philly?
When I started working as a food and travel writer, I did not have to stay in Philadelphia. I could have lived anywhere in the world, but I chose to live in Philly, because we are so spoiled by how incredible our food scene is. Honestly, both of my favorite meals are Philly meals. The best meal in the world has to be Royal Sushi Omakase. I recently had the privilege of experiencing Jesse Ito's summer menu and the food was incredible, but it was the service that put it over the top. Jesse took the time to have a conversation with everyone at the omakase counter, and he remembered so many details about his customers, like how the couple on one end of the bar got engaged during their last visit, and how my husband and I just had a baby. The generous hospitality and watching him perfectly measure out sushi rice to build outrageously delicious bites — I really admire how he's mastered the craft.
The other great Philly meal is actually out in Haddonfield, New Jersey (just a few PATCO stops away from Center City). Gass & Main is elevating nostalgic suburban foods and experiences. Chef Dane DeMarco served a grilled salmon with baked beans and broccolini, and it doesn't sound like the most significant meal, but each bite transported me to every single cookout I've ever been to.
I think what sets a restaurant apart is not just the food, but the experience they create. Once the flavors have faded, it's the fun moments you had that are everlasting.
What do you feel is your biggest career risk?
The biggest career risk I've ever taken was the initial switch from working in marketing to becoming a food and travel writer. I used to do my marketing job by day and blog and do freelance writing assignments at night. After my father passed away I realized that life is fragile and time is fleeting so I should be doing what I love every day. So, I made the leap. I left my day job and just went full-time freelance.
What is a good career advice tip?
Always bet on yourself. Only you know what you're fully capable of.
It's also important to have a side project that you own entirely. A lot of times, when you work for a company, whatever you create is owned by them. That way, if you are ever laid off or a passion project of yours at work gets canceled, you have a living portfolio of work that expresses your style and your interests. Here's an example: Back in 2016, my husband Jon and I had a Facebook live show called Friday Night Cookies. Every week, we'd take a famous cookie brand and explore its history, like how Hydrox cookies were the first chocolate sandwich cookie before Oreo, or how pumpkin spice was invented. The series ended up getting millions of views, it caught the attention of USA TODAY 10Best who later hired me to launch a new food publication under the Gannett umbrella, and it caught the eyes of producers at WHYY who invited me to audition to be the host of Check, Please! Philly. Of course, the series succeeded partially because Facebook was prioritizing live video as it was their hot new product at the time. But it just goes to show that timing is everything. True luck is when preparation meets opportunity.
If someone is looking to get media trained and better on camera, what would you recommend?
Practice in front of a camera, even if it's your phone. Film yourself and watch it. Also, don't try to memorize a script because if you lose your train of thought you might get entirely derailed. Just go in with your talking points and talk like you're having a conversation with a friend.
Share one or more career highlights, maybe one that was particularly pivotal.
It's a shame the app formerly known as Twitter went down the drain. Every single pivotal career move was because of Twitter. I connected with so many industry professionals, I found most of my jobs there (even the Philly Mag job), and people found me through Twitter. I guess the overall takeaway from that is that you never know where even the smallest interaction will lead you.
What's your most memorable trip and why?
I went to New Zealand right after I got married. No, it wasn't the honeymoon. We actually went to Thailand a couple weeks beforehand, came back to the United States for Thanksgiving, and then I left my husband at home for three weeks to solo travel around New Zealand. It was great to go on such an extraordinary trip like that during a big life transition because it gave me the chance to reflect and dream about what I wanted to achieve next. Toward the end of my trip, I went to the Great Barrier Island, a remote island off the coast of Auckland. It's a Dark Sky sanctuary, which means the island has so little light pollution that they actually got an international certification to help protect the night sky. Needless to say, it's extremely dark at night. I was driving my rental car to go stargazing with a tour group, and on the drive to the meetup spot, I felt this profound sense of achievement. Here I was, on the other side of the planet, driving an old Jeep on the opposite side of the road, in the darkness of a remote island, totally alone. The reward for taking chances and putting myself out there was a night sky so bright with stars it was disorienting. I think of that when I need to hype myself up.
What is the most memorable or cool food/dining experience and why?
In my line of work, people often assume that the fanciest, most expensive meals are going to be the most memorable, and though I do appreciate the excellence chefs bring to the table, my favorite food memories tend to be way more low key. There used to be a small house next to the PATCO in Collingswood, New Jersey that only sold cannoli two days a week. It was run by an older gentleman who was a retired teacher and he only did it because he really loved cannoli. He would even refuse to sell you cannoli if you weren't going to eat them within the next few hours — he'd demand you buy a cannoli kit instead because we wanted the shells to stay fresh. They are still the best cannoli I've ever eaten. It was called Cipolli Cannoli. Unfortunately, the owner passed away and the business is no more. It's those kinds of places that really stick with me.
What would you tell your younger self?
I wish I didn't worry as much. You may think I'm super brave for quitting my marketing career to pursue writing, or flying to New Zealand right after getting married, or changing jobs while pregnant, but I deal with a profound amount of clinical anxiety. I sometimes look back and I have great memories, but there was also a worrisome undercurrent just beneath the surface. If I were to do my life over again, I'd do it the exact same way, but just with less stress. I'd probably tell myself, "You always make it work out in the end."
Please share a fun fact that not many people know about you, food related or otherwise!
One of my favorite poems of all time is Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's A Psalm of Life. It's something I recite to my daughter in the morning. Longfellow wrote it after his wife passed away, and it feels like the words of someone who's been beaten down by life but refuses to be defeated. It's about pursuing the life you want regardless of the outcome, and that just by simply expressing your truest self it can encourage others to do the same. The last line is kind of a mantra for me. I think about it multiple times a day:
Let us, then, be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing,
Learn to labor and to wait.
Is there anything else you'd like to share that's important in the current media landscape or final parting words? Feel free to share anything that you'd like and we can highlight.
Media is not dying. It's just changing. But what media changes into is up to the public. There is so much misinformation out there. We really need to be discerning about what media we consume and support local journalists who are out there sharing important stories about our communities.
