Meet Tiana Blocker | Content Creator & Food Enthusiast

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tiana Blocker and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tiana, do you have some perspective or insight you can share with us on the question of when someone should give up versus when they should keep going?
I’m a person that has lived many lives. And one thing for sure, I will try something until it’s obvious that I need to move on to the next thing. If it’s truly not serving me, or bringing me joy, then I Pivot. I like to use the word “PIVOT” instead of “giving up”. Each path I’ve chosen and have had to PIVOT to the next, have all correlated in some kind of way. I also like to be very realistic when making decisions.
 

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My journey is all over the place. But somehow I’m always brought back to FOOD. I actually used to sell dinner plates back in 2018. I even catered a party before. But, I’m also known for knowing the “spots” because I’d post where I’m at all the time. Me and my friend would make it a goal to try out new food spots, new places on the weekends. Eventually I started to notice people were asking me more for recommendations so I figured I’d just make a page dedicated to places to go, food or fun wise. It was the morning before my flight back to Miami from a business conference in Dallas, Tx. I reviewed this popular breakfast spot. And that video went viral on TikTok. That’s when I knew I couldn’t stop and had to take it seriously. From the start I saw the impact my reviews had on small businesses which warms my heart so much. The feedback I get from the owners is the biggest factor that keeps me going. I’ve gotten so good that I’ve gotten hired to create content for restaurants/businesses.  I’m truly in my own lane and I love that for me. A lot of people think what I do is simple and easy or I’m just eating for fun. But this is a business. I have my days of feeling burnout and I just don’t even want to look at my phone. But I also want to expand peoples palettes and get them to be open to try new food from different cultures. But yeah, I want the world to expect to see way more than what they’re seeing now from me.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
For food, right now I am so in love with Tanuki River Landing. My gosh, the place is absolutely beautiful. First of all, it’s on the water. You can eat your food while watching the yachts pass by. The drinks are bomb and the food is outstanding. Derry’s for old school southern breakfast. Honorable mentions, High Roller Sushi for the best Hibachi in SoFlo, Jolly Ice Parlor, The Side Chick Mia, and The Flava Zone. I’m not a “hangout” or club kind of girl. I’d rather do that in another state. I’m a homebody that likes to fine dine, shop, travel and catch soft life vibes.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to dedicate a shoutout to a Podcast called “Social Proof Podcast”. It’s hosted by David Shands and Donni Wiggins. They drop so many gems and are truly committed to helping business owners. They don’t hold back and give real, raw constructive advice. They’ve had so many guest speakers on their podcast and each and every episode I’ve been able to take info from and use. I recommend this podcast to anyone that owns a business or is thinking about getting into entrepreneurship.

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