Welcome to the latest episode of Lunch with Shelley with today’s special guest Sara Taylor Fagan! Sara, aside from being my birthday buddy, is a true data whiz, a serial entrepreneur, the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Tunnl, and a regular contributor on NBC’s Meet the Press.

Join us and Claude at the always fun and delicious Café Milano for a really interesting conversation that includes chats about polls, microtargeting, behind the scenes in the green room, and memorable stories from Sara’s White House Days.

Check us out at www.lunchwithshelley.com or wherever you get your favorite podcast, and in the meantime Peace, Love and Lunch!

Welcome to the latest episode of Lunch with Shelley with our special guest Teresa Carlson. Teresa is the founding President of the General Catalyst Institute, where she leverages her decades of leadership experience as a visionary industry builder. She also serves as an international advisor and board member for General Catalyst and is a veteran executive of several large tech companies including Amazon, Microsoft, Splunk and Flex port.

Not surprisingly she’s been referenced often as one of the most influential women in technology!

Teresa is a fellow Café Milano aficionado - so join us at our corner table for a delicious conversation about fascinating career stories, good business practices, the arc of technologies over the past few decades, and really interesting personal insights at www.lunchwithshelley.com or wherever you get your favorite podcast and in the meantime Peace, Love and Lunch!

Shelley gets you ready for another season of great food and wonderful conversion at the best restaurants in Washington DC. It's Lunch with Shelley!

Welcome to the latest episode of Lunch with Shelley with our special guest John Feehery. John is a sought-after political communications strategist – columnist -- television pundit – author - and a longtime dear friend.

John has had an incredible career in the nation’s capital – starting as a researcher and speechwriter for House Minority Leader Bob Michel, to a communications director for House Majority Leader Tom Delay, and then as a press secretary for Speaker Dennis Hastert.

Fast forward to several private sector jobs, and now John is a partner at EFB Advocacy - a boutique lobbying and communications shop.

John has consistently been rated as one of the top lobbyists by The Hill newspaper -- and is widely quoted around the world because of his deep knowledge of the legislative process -- crisis communications - and politics. He blogs at the Feehery Theory and is also a columnist for The Hill newspaper.

Join us at the delicious Claudio’s Table for a very fun and wide-ranging conversation about John’s start in DC, Capitol Hill, policies, politics, covid, Ireland, and much much more!

Check us out at www.lunchwithshelley.com or wherever you get your favorite podcasts and, in the meantime, Peace, Love and Lunch!

Welcome to the latest episode of Lunch with Shelley with today’s special guest Harry Schnipper. Harry is the owner of Blues Alley, the world renowned and oldest continuously operating Jazz Supper Club in America! Nestled in the heart of Georgetown, Blues Alley – which is celebrating its’ 60th anniversary - has been referred to as the house that Dizzy built, (that would be Dizzy Gillespie of course), and it has hosted some of the most notable jazz musicians in the world, as well as many favorite local musicians too.

At its helm, Harry is an expert producer, lecturer, educator and presenter of nightly nightclub entertainment. Over the course of many decades, he has perfected the art of curating his nightclub calendar while simultaneously fulfilling the role of his own non-profit jazz music education organization.

We are at Harry’s and my frequent lunch spot – the dug out at Billy Martins - so join us for a conversation about all things Jazz, great DC venues, famous artists, great music and more at www.lunchwithshelley.com or wherever you get your favorite podcast, and in the meantime Peace, Love and Lunch!

Welcome to a special bonus episode of Lunch with Shelley featuring the great Claudio Pirollo, the owner, Chef and delightful personality behind the Et Voila restaurant. Along with fellow Et Voila Chef Alex Malaise, they have created and recently released a wonderful cookbook called “The Essentials of Belgian Cuisine,” and the book is true to its name!

Join us for a very fun conversation with Chef Claudio about his favorite foods, famous chef’s and the joy of Belgian cooking at www.lunchwithshelley.com or wherever you get your favorite podcast and in the meantime Peace, Love and Lunch!

Welcome to the latest episode of Lunch with Shelley with today’s special guest Jennifer Griffin, the very well-respected national security correspondent for FOX News. Since 2007 Jen has reported daily from the Pentagon where she questions senior military leaders, travels to war zones with the Joint Chiefs and Secretaries of Defense, and reports on all aspects of the military.

Join us at the always wonderful Et Voila while Jen shares incredible stories about her reporting from all over the world, starting as a budding journalist in Johannesburg, South Africa, to the Middle East, Moscow, and then her very impactful recollections from her seven years in Jerusalem.

Jennifer is an avid supporter of veterans, a member of the board of directors for the Prevent Cancer Foundation, and a co-author, along with her husband, of This Burning Land: Lessons from the Frontlines of the Transformed Israeli-Palestinian Conflict – a book about their time together in Jerusalem which I highly recommend. She is also credited with saving her Fox colleague Ben Hall’s life, and her re-telling of that story is like listening to a movie script, but better because it’s true!

Give this a listen at www.lunchwithshelley.com or wherever you get your favorite podcast and in the meantime and as always, Peace, Love and Lunch!

Welcome to the latest episode of Lunch with Shelley with today’s special guest, Ambassador Audra Plepyte, the Lithuanian Ambassador to the United States of America and to the United Mexican States.

As a career diplomat with over 30 years of experience, Ambassador Plepyte has held numerous positions within the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs dealing with bilateral and multilateral issues, heading the European Union Department, the Personnel Department, and the International Missions and Conflict Prevention Division. She has also served as Lithuania’s ambassador to Spain and the World Tourism Organization, and is now the first female Ambassador of Lithuania to the U.S.

Throughout our discussion, we talk about growing up in Vilnius under Soviet control, the importance of freedom and the beacon of hope that the United States played during those years, how modern and welcoming Lithuania is with a very happy young population, music, history, and of course food and lunch!

We’re dining at the lovely and historic Lithuanian Embassy in Washington DC, which is celebrating its 100th year of being in this exact location, so join us over salmon, bagels, Lithuanian cheeses, and amazing desserts for a very delightful and enlightening lunch!

Check us out at www.lunchwithshelley.com or wherever you get your favorite podcast, and as always and in the meantime, Peace Love and Lunch!