The Formula 1 Path to Success

Plus: no laptop cafes and the intellectual imperative to train travel

Welcome to Small Talk, an email I serve out every Monday morning exclusively to our Breakfast Club members in NYC and Charleston. The premise is simple: my top of mind topics for the week’s worth of breakfasts, lunches, and dinners ahead anytime some chatter is required. From now on, I’ll be sharing it with subscribers of The Supersonic as well. Enjoy, and crib topics as necessary.

Pardon the delay, friends, it’s been a bit of a busy one. With that said, and without further ado, here are the stories that I’ll be pulling from this week whenever the breakfast, lunch, or dinner table conversation runs dry.

For consideration …

• Cafe culture reinvented
  While the biggest threat to coffee remains rising arabica bean prices (because extreme weather, because climate change), the industry is combating other headwinds as well. Take Starbucks. As anyone who’s recently had their barista ask if they’d prefer a mug to a paper cup (don’t worry, we know that sometimes you’re gonna two-time the Breakfast Club), Starbucks has been making strides toward better hospitality. That’s all part of CEO Brian Niccol’s plan to make the chain feel more like a local third place rather than a “corporate coffee giant with big Wall Street shareholders.” Other upgrades include more outlets and increased seating. Niccol’s announcement, made last week, came one day after several striking Starbucks union baristas were arrested. UK cafes might not share Niccol’s vision, especially where outlets are concerned. In an effort to bring back the convivial, bohemian dream of cafe culture (and turn tables quicker) over the grind of remote workers yammering away on video calls and hamming their keyboards for hours on end, several coffee shop owners have banned laptops. “No laptop” signs have become increasingly popular in windows across Britain. Then there’s the rising cost of gentrification threatening to take down local cafes, which one Williamsburg owner pushed back against in a tearful TikTok that has since gone viral, even catching the attention of Joe Jonas.
  

• F1 goes full content studio
  For those who didn’t feel like staying up all night on Saturday, you might have missed the opening Formula 1 Grand Prix of the 2025 season, which took place in Melbourne. The action was wild, with rain wreaking havoc to the track and drivers’ tires. Tl;dr: Lando Norris held off Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton made his somewhat lackluster Ferrari debut, and five rookies splashed onto the scene. Beyond the grid itself, however, F1 is a brand that continues to fascinate me. For those who know my background, I cut my teeth in content, and narrative storytelling remains an obsession — there’s a reason I love writing this email every Monday morning. Which is where F1 comes in. Back in 2017, the sport—while relatively global—had a niche and elitist appeal. Fast forward eight years, and F1 is booming, particularly among young viewers, with over 750 million fans worldwide according to a recent Nielsen study. Why? Content, storytelling, call it what you will. When Liberty Media took over (acquiring F1 for $8 billion), they treated the then 70-year-old racing federation like a modern day media brand, and appointed Chase Carey—former vice-chairman of 21st Century Fox—to lead the charge. In came YouTube videos, Netflix’s Drive to Survive reality series, and drivers themselves active on social. Turns out that was just the beginning. The FT has got an entire special report (I do love a deep dive) on the reinvented sport, which includes a look at F1’s ongoing “Disneyification” as well as the upcoming Brad Pitt movie — do watch the latest trailer.
  

• Trains, trains, and supercars
  I also love a good train ride, preferably above ground. Belmond’s Orient Express remains on my bucket list, and don’t get me started on an idea I had for a very specific train route I wanted to bring to the public a few years ago. At any rate, there might be an intellectual imperative to slow travel by train. Swiss-born contemporary philosopher Alain de Botton insists that travel by train can aid our thoughts, claiming that “consciousness is assisted by the possibility of looking out of the window, locking onto an object and following it for a few seconds, until a new coil of thought is ready to form and can unravel without pressure.” For those looking to take de Botton’s advice, the Times has got you with this roundup of the best North American rail journeys. Though, if all the F1 talk above has stoked your wanderlust, there’s also Italy’s “Motor Valley,” which has become a destination of sorts for supercar enthusiasts who want to tour the factories and museums of Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Maserati. You can also take some of these cars for a spin. And, as luck would have it for us restaurant pros, said trip takes one to Modena, home of several spots worth a reservation.

Quicker hits …

• What it was like to be Anthony Bourdain's assistant.

• Jean-Georges wants Gen-Z, and the rest of us, to go clubbing.

• Mr. Beast? More like Willy Wonka. The YouTuber makes more money from his chocolate than his content.

Enjoy your week.

BL

Ben Leventhal
Founder + CEO
Blackbird