Canal Street Dreams: Laura Stemmer on Hot Motherhood & Nightlife Evolution

Podcast: Canal Street Dreams
Hosts: Eddie Huang & Natashia Perrotti
Guest: Laura Stemmer
Date: November 25, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode of Canal Street Dreams brings together hosts Eddie Huang and Natashia Perrotti with New York nightlife icon and TikTok “hot mom” Laura Stemmer. The trio dive deep into how parenthood intersects with the wild realities of nightlife, the shifting culture of New York clubs, and what it means to retain personal style and authenticity as both a working creative and a parent. The conversation is refreshingly candid, self-deprecating, and brimming with love for New York’s lost grit.

“Nothing prepares you to be a parent more than grinding at night and dealing with alcoholics." —Natashia (00:48)

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Surviving Nightlife and Parenting

• Comparing Toddlers to Drunk Clubgoers:
  The group kicks off by likening toddlers to unruly, drunk patrons, noting the chaos of nightlife prepares you for parenthood’s demands.

  • “Your kid is just like this customer who cannot be satiated no matter what you do. They’re going to leave a terrible Yelp review.” —Host (01:02)
  • “Toddlers definitely have an air about them... it’s a drunk, belligerent person sometimes.” —Laura (01:10)

• Nightlife as Parenthood Bootcamp:
  Service industry work—especially at night—creates resilience crucial for raising children.

2. The Evolution (and Decline) of NYC Nightlife

• Cabin Down Below Stories & “Rogue” Partying:
  Laura and Natasha reminisce about running iconic bars and how club culture has lost its famed rogueness.

  • “The cabin was special because it was like the period at the end of the sentence. And again, it was just me and a bar back, and I was running the room. There were certain codes, certain ways, certain things we had to function...” —Natasha (03:21)

• Loss of Grit and Democratic Vibes:
  The group grieves the corporatization and sanitized vibe of post-2015 nightlife.

  • “Now everything’s like, with brands, right? And the brand’s coming in, they’re going to curate the list. This guy can’t come. That girl can’t come. Like, it used to be democratic, and that’s what made the party scene dope.” —Host (12:51)

• Wine Bars & Post-Party Culture:
  The decline in heavy drinking post-COVID has shifted energy toward wine culture and culinary scenes.

  • “With the decline of drinking, I think it’s given a really cool path to wine culture, which is interesting.” —Natasha (15:34)
  • “Dinner is the night out now, which is cool.” —Host (16:45)

3. Parenting, Authenticity & Creating (Hot) Mom Communities

• Navigating Club Life and Relationships:
  Relationships work better between people who've survived the service industry; “straight edge” outsiders often don’t get it.

  • “It just doesn’t work.” —Host (08:23)
  • “You just need a man who’s more confident than you are... I’m the most. Yes. Chair.” —Natasha (09:22)

• Redefining “Hot Motherhood”:
  Both guests champion embracing their identities fully, styling post-kid bodies and remaining unapologetically themselves.

  • “Being hot, being in service, having a kid and then coming back and like being hotter.” —Natasha (10:31)
  • “Nothing makes you more of a woman than having kids and coming out on top.” —Natasha (42:06)

• Community Building through Realness:
  Throwing “parent parties” and just showing up authentically attracts likeminded, non-judgmental friends.

  • “The more you are yourself, the more people recognize it and they’re like, that feels good. That feels refreshing.” —Natasha (33:15)

4. Culture Shift: Fashion, Grit & Gen Z

• Homogenization & Risk Aversion:
  The group laments how unique style and subcultures (punks, goths, etc.) have disappeared, replaced by homogeneity and “walking mood boards.”

  • “If you’re out with your four girls, you’re all clones. What’s the game plan here?” —Laura (20:39)
  • “Fashion is better when it’s aspirational. It should be aspiration.” —Host (21:19)

• Gen Z’s Hyper-Self-Consciousness:
  Social surveillance, mood board culture, and fast-moving trends stifle experimentation and freakiness.

  • “They really, really care... but to the point that it limits their individuality.” —Host (22:52)
  • “There’s an overwhelming amount of referencing and mood board culture... so the incentive to develop personal style... is at an all time low.” —Laura (24:24)

5. Parenting Styles, Schools, and Social Class

• Public vs Private School Dilemmas:
  The hosts and guests reflect on their own mixed schooling backgrounds and the impact of privilege/homogeneity on NYC kids.
  • “Everyone is a little moneyed, a little studied, needs to be luxury, needs to be, like, buttoned up. Just like, where are the public school kids?” —Host (26:04)
• Staying “Rogue” as a Parent:
  True friends (and their kids) find each other through authentic, sometimes offbeat parental camaraderie.

6. Sex, Kinks, and Post-Kids Confidence

• Motherhood & Sexual Empowerment:
  The conversation is joyfully explicit on the confidence, kinks, and unapologetic sexuality that comes with motherhood.
  • “I’ve never felt more in my skin than now... I was born to be a mil 100.” —Laura (43:02)
  • “We talk about this all the time. We’re like, just bring. Don’t kink shame ever.” —Laura (47:11)
• Funny and Candid Breast Milk Anecdotes:
  The group swaps stories from using breast milk in recipes to “reselling” it, to obsessions with lactation and pregnancy kinks.
  • “I made like cadre pepe, but it’s really just like breast milk pasta.” —Laura (48:45)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Club/Parent Parallels:
  “Every child is like a dude at Dropkick Murphy’s in Boston.” —Host (01:24)

• On NYC Nightlife Grit: “The cabin was special because it was like the period at the end of the sentence... my skin couldn’t be thicker.” —Natasha (03:21)

• On the Transformation of Partying:
  “Now everything’s with brands... it used to be democratic.” —Host (12:51)

• On Post-Kids Fashion:
  “No one’s dressing up... I thought it was LA because we were there for the past five years and I was like, going crazy.” —Laura (17:44)
  “Where are the heels? Where are the fur coats?” —Laura (18:07)

• On Gen Z's Cautiousness:
  “They really, really care... but to the point that it limits their individuality. I just want them to be like, don’t judge yourself so hard... fly your freak flag.” —Host (22:52)

• On Parent Friendships:
  “I throw a fucking rager... But I don’t throw a kid party. I throw a parent party.” —Natasha (31:27)

• On Sex, Kinks & Confidence:
  “Nothing makes you more of a woman than having kids and coming out on top.” —Natasha (42:06)
  “We’re walking, babe... nothing goes harder than [pregnancy sex].” —Laura (47:03)

Important Timestamps

• Nightlife vs Parenting Parallels: 00:32–01:46
• Cabin Down Below & NYC Club Culture: 01:47–04:41
• Wellness & Vape Culture Replacing Partying: 05:17–06:27
• Relationship Compatibility & Nightlife: 07:30–09:13
• Female Leadership in Nightlife: 11:03–12:06
• Transition to Branded/Cleaned Up Partying: 12:51–15:34
• Changing Party Dynamics, Post-COVID: 16:08–18:23
• Erosion of Personal Style: 19:16–21:58
• Gen Z, Social Media & Fear of Individuality: 22:52–25:17
• Public vs Private School Parenting: 26:03–27:43
• Throwing Rager Kid Parties for Parents: 31:27–33:29
• Kink & Sex Positivity as a Parent: 42:12–48:05
• Breast Milk Culinary Adventures: 48:34–50:14

Rapid Fire Q&A Highlights (37:14–41:56)

• Best cocktail:
  “Martini girl but, honestly, margarita is due for a comeback.” —Natasha (37:22)
• Harder to handle: Drunk VIPs or toddlers?
  “Toddlers. You can kick out a drunk VIP. You can’t kick out your kid.” —Natasha (39:19)
• Go-to late night meal:
  “Still a dollar slice girly. Artichoke slice. But honestly, too old to eat late.” —Natasha (39:44)
• First date red flag:
  “Guy flexing his bag. Be impressed with me, not what you have.” —Natasha (41:04)
• Favorite toxic trait in a man:
  “BDE. Come confident, come hot.” —Natasha (41:42)

Conclusion

This episode is a rollicking, heartfelt confession from three people who have lived fast, worked hard, and now love harder as parents. It’s an ode to the lost wildness of New York nightlife, a celebration of female self-possession post-kids, and a love letter to being “rogue” and real in a world growing ever more curated and cautious.

“Be yourself, because everybody else is already taken.” —Natasha (35:13)