Interview with a Cannabis Innovator: Max Moyet of Max’s Wake and Bake Tours
What better way to see New York City than on a 420 friendly guided tour?
I can’t think of a better way to see a city than with a group of fellow cannabis consumers, so I was excited to hear about Max’s Wake and Bake Tour, a tour of New York City that integrates cannabis with New York. You’ll be treated to beautiful art and delicious food on this extensive walking tour through New York City.
Max Moyet is many things — a life long New Yorker, a gourmet chef, a cannabis lover, and a breakfast aficionado just to name a few that are especially relevant to the tour.
I jumped at the chance to get to know the person behind a LGBTQ welcoming, 420-friendly walking tour of New York City.
When did you first experience cannabis and what was it like?
Max: I must have been around 14. Believe it or not, at the time, I was friendly with a group of bikers in their mid-twenties. I would hang out with them as they sat around passing a bong amongst themselves. They never pressured me to smoke with them, but after a stressful argument with my parents one day, I decided to indulge. It was very surreal.
What was your favorite cannabis experience?
Max: I was at Roseland in New York City, where 311 and Cypress Hill were performing. I was hanging out backstage with my friend Estevan Oriol, an LA-based photographer. After catching up with him, I bumped into B-Real, who introduced me to Nick Hexum and Tim Mahoney, the frontman and lead guitarist of 311. B-Real pulled out a huge joint, and we all got stoned together.
It all happened very organically, and I felt honored to be welcomed into their circle. I was a broke nobody hanging out with award-winning musicians, bonding over our mutual appreciation for cannabis. This was back in the 90’s. Things like that don’t happen anymore.
What was it like coming out about your cannabis use? When did you?
Max: I guess I’m coming out about it right now! To be honest, it’s not something I’ve ever felt the need to officially announce; it’s just been a part of my life.
What’s your favorite terpene?
Max: After doing some research, my favorite strains majorly feature caryophyllene and limonene. I really enjoy Louis XIII, Biscotti Pippen, and good old Sour Diesel.
What inspired you to create a tour?
Max: Over the recent years, I’ve been noticing an increased acceptance and normalization of cannabis use in New York City, leading to its being decriminalized and finally now, legalized. I’ve been based out of NYC my whole life, and really got to see the shift in attitude surrounding cannabis use here. As society embraced it more and more, I saw an opportunity to start a tour catering to cannabis enthusiasts like myself.
After some research, I discovered that while cannabis tours have been available for years in California and Colorado, no one was doing this yet in New York. Still to this day, mine is the only such tour in New York City.
I’m trying to set the standard, and create my own brand.
What are your favorite aspects of the tour?
Max: I’ve gotten to meet a lot of really interesting people from around the world, and hear their stories. Many of them share with me how difficult it is to be a cannabis user in countries where it is highly illegal. Part of my job is putting their minds at ease, and giving them a safe environment to smoke and enjoy themselves, without feeling like they have to look over their shoulder constantly. So, that is very rewarding.
What were some of the interesting problems you’ve had to solve in putting the whole thing together, were there places you wanted to add but just couldn’t due to time?
Max: The original structure of the tour was going to be much different. Since it’s a wake and bake tour, I always wanted to start with breakfast. The Bagel Store in Brooklyn was going to be the original meet-up spot. The place had a great assortment of artisan bagels, and was right next door to a shop featuring all sorts of high-end, organic CBD products and treats. My plan was for us to visit both locations before continuing the rest of the tour in the Chelsea area of Manhattan.
Unfortunately, right before I was about to launch the tour, The Bagel Store was seized by the IRS!
I had to change the entire “first act” of the tour, which now starts at Absolute Bagels on the Upper West Side, and takes guests through Morningside and Central Park. The Bagel Store has since reopened in a different location, but it’s not convenient. Additionally, I used to take guests to the Samsung Experience in the Meat Packing District. This was an indoor, state-of-the-art virtual reality amusement park. It was free, and people loved it. Covid shut it down.
Do you find it’s mainly tourists who partake in your tour, or residents getting to know unknown spots in the city?
Max: They have all been tourists. I started the tour only months before the pandemic hit, and at first I was mostly getting international travelers. When the city went into lockdown, tourism died completely, and for over a year, so did the tour.
I was pretty devastated, having come up with a great idea for a new enterprise, and getting shut down when it had barely begun. Tourism is slowly starting to pick up again, but due to travel restrictions, Americans are mostly traveling to other states rather than other countries.
So, I am now seeing a lot of American tourists traveling from other states, especially states where cannabis use is still illegal and frowned upon. It’s wild to hear how different attitudes are in different parts of the country.
What does your Every Day Carry look like, cannabis-wise?
Max: If I’m conducting the tour, or going to a social event, I’ll pack my portable vaporizer. My wife has more contact lens cases than she needs, so I store extra flower in one of those. It’s secure, discreet, and easy to transport. On days when I’m just out and about, running errands, I don’t carry cannabis at all. Just the essentials: keys, wallet, and breath spray.
Favorite consumption method for walking tours?
Max: I prefer vaping to smoking. While I like the way it smells while I’m actually smoking, I don’t like the odor sticking to my hair and clothes. The Mighty by Storz and Bickle is my favorite vape to bring on tours. It’s basically a small, portable version of their Volcano Vaporizer, which is the one I use at home.
Is there a different vibe with people who are on edibles vs. vaping or smoking?
Max: People on edibles will typically consume their product one time before the tour begins, and will then be very relaxed for the tour itself. Guests who smoke or vape will light up several times over the course of the tour. So, the only real difference is that for those who are vaping and smoking, I get to show them my favorite spots to light up. Guests most often book the tour in pairs, so I include a complimentary pre-roll for every couple who wants one.
What was the best New Yorker reaction to the tour?
Max: To be honest, most of my buddies who I’ve mentioned the tour to think I’m joking about this being my job, until they read the reviews! Then, they’re impressed. One friend said he was going to start his own tour in the same vein. As of today, he still has not.
What’s the thing you’d love to have included but there was just never going to be a way, time-wise?
Max: There is a shop on Broadway on the Upper West Side called Mondel Chocolates. They’ve been in the same location, owned by the same family, since 1942, and specialize in fresh, handmade European chocolate. I’d have liked to include it on the tour, since it’s right in the neighborhood where we meet up. But, they don’t open until 11:00am, by which time we’ve left the area. Otherwise, I really am taking people to my favorite spots in the city.
How have social consumption methods changed since the pandemic?
Max: No one shares anymore — the age of “puff puff pass” is over! People roll up their own joints, pack their own bowls, and bring their own vape pens. There used to be a culture of rolling up one or two joints and passing them around in a circle. Not anymore.
What do you wish I had asked about?
Max: I have a lot of ideas for the future of the tour. For example, I’ll have rotating days, like “Munchie Mondays” and “Fun Fridays” — one tour every week that features a special guest. I’d like to bring growers in as special guests to join us for an hour, so it will be like a cannabis classroom as well as a walking tour, and people can meet the grower behind the strain being offered in the complimentary roll-up that day, learn about THC, CBD, and get a bit of an education on the subject.
So many of my friends are eclectic individuals who are notable in their fields — artists, actors, musicians, and chefs. I’d love to bring them in as special guests who can talk about what they do.
I want to make this a tour that is inspiring for artists, and caters to communities that are often left out when people talk about cannabis culture.
When I was in my twenties, the best parties were at gay clubs, and I always felt very welcomed. So, it is important to me that the tour be LGBTQ-friendly.
Max’s Wake and Bake Tour starts at Awesome Bagels at 9:30 AM and ends at Chelsea Market at 2:30 PM — with many, MANY sites in between. Book your tour here!