Thoughts: Stormy Weather for the Food Industry?

It's an interesting time to be writing around the periphery of the food world. The industry, and its legion army of amateur and professional personalities, reviewers, thought-provokers, and unflappable Instagrammers have been receiving a lot of press lately.  And at least from the mainstream side of things, little of it is flattering. Take your pick: the Reviewercard tempest-in-a-teapot (if nothing else came out of the brouhaha, I now know who John Birdsall, who wrote the story behind the latter link, is, and plan to follow his writing, because he makes me smile); subtler reminders that not everyone enjoys others' flash photography during their dinner out; or perhaps this wickedly pointed and yet often on-point post about unspoken thoughts and the food industry. (In regards to this last piece, while we're in accord about elevated cuisine and $16 mac & cheese, I will defend to the pain that cabbage rolls, depicted in their Thought 16 as an example of "not every cuisine deserves to be celebrated," certainly do deserve celebration. And afternoons dedicated to making nothing but with laughter, family, and new and old friends.)

All of this feels, to misquote the newest Selena Kyle, a little like the moments before a storm.

Here's hoping that I'm wrong; still, it feels like there's a few changes on our horizon. How we Tweet and talk about food is changing; hopefully for the better, the more respectful. (Standing on chairs to get a shot of your appetizer really is a little over-the-top.) But for all of that, I quietly advocate that there's still space for all of these odd, wonderful personalities.

After all, KW's food community was the first to welcome me; in particular with my golden ticket at Nick & Nat's Iron Chef competition. In that evening, I gained a new voice and met folks who I admire, respect, and whose lives have intertwined with mine in different ways ever since. I was a little dumbstruck as I took the guest judge's chair - "I can't talk about food; not really," I told the dark-haired woman sitting beside me, gesturing slightly to the man two seats over, "that's Andrew Coppolino, for heaven's sake."  I'd been in town for only a couple of months, but Andrew's Waterloo Region Eats was one of the first local sites I found, and I referred to it  (and continue to) as a map of the region; ideas, recommendations, and things not to miss. She smiled, distracted me with pointing out a chef's dexterous maneuver  rolling and slicing gnocchi with impossible ease, and got me talking; Anna Contini, Foodlink's project coordinator and local food advocate, is a good person to have in your corner.  Susan Cook-Scheerer of Rogers TV Cable 20's daytime (who I would meet again, later, through my work) rounded out the evening's judges. She and Andrew welcomed me to the community, as Anna introduced me, and while they all approached food from different ways of thinking, (and, perhaps, in a more cynical space, could have looked down their nose at this starry-eyed twenty-something with wild hair and wilder metaphors) their welcome was genuine and their thoughts (on the food, on the night itself, on the community and connecting with it) each added something different to the event.

I've a weakness for symbolism - after all, look: here is the neophyte, the established food writer and personality, the media, the community benefit organization. Four judges, four different stakeholders. The thread dancing through this recollection is that there can be a place in the food industry for everyone with an interest in or connection to it. It worked, that evening; it can work on a larger scale with the right steps forward. Whether part of the traditional or independent media structures, advocate or grower, newcomer or steeped in the history and knowledge of a place/art/style, our insights and experiences, when collected, can't help but make our community stronger.

Pie-in-the-sky optimism? Perhaps. But here's to food, wine, and moments of shared wonder, even so.

Event: Taste Local! Taste Fresh!

There are, I think, few better ways to welcome fall in than with a riot of fall colours, and fantastic, in-season, local food shared with an interesting mix of friends - and friends you've yet to meet.

And so, Foodlink's "Taste Local! Taste Fresh!" event was perfect for these colder days we've been finding ourselves in.

Taste Local! Taste Fresh! or #TLTF2011, as it's termed around the Twittersphere, ran for most of the afternoon on Sunday, September 18 out at the Riverside Meadows Park in St. Jacobs. I had the good fortune to be working as a volunteer behind the scenes, handing out custom pottery plates (by clay diva Vicky Davis) to attendees and snapping photos (and snagging tastes) whenever I was on break.

The vegan salad rolls from Fertile Ground and Seven Shores were delicious and gorgeous - as were the local flowers that Fertile Ground brought as a backdrop. I kept wanting to snag one for my hair, but was fairly certain this wouldn't go over well!

These two were one of twenty teams: 20 local farms and 20 culinary institutions (restaurants, catering companies, cafes, caterers...) were matched up for this event - one would provide feature ingredients and the other would make some culinary magic with them for the sampling delight of the 400+ attendees, volunteers, and participants.

It's wonderful to see this kind of support for local restaurants and farmers; given, in sunny, summery Ontario, "eating local" has gained some traction, but it's events like this that truly build a sense of community - if you know the farmer that grows the apples on your table (thanks to the folks at Martin's for the Honeycrisp, that said!) it can change the way you look at your food and connect with your community, often opening doors to new friendships and new experiences along the way.

Speaking of new experiences, one of my first samples was a pulled rabbit crostini with a marigold & peashoot slaw from Puddicombe House and Top Market Rabbitry. (YUM.)

I'd never tried rabbit before, and thought that Chef Lance's preparation was delicious. I don't think it will be a meat choice I will seek out regularly (particularly as, in my history at least, when it appears on a menu, it's to the tune of ~$40 for an entree) but it meshed beautifully with the piquant, fresh, and wonderfully colourful slaw and ultimately was a great "taste."

Despite a windy start, the day was gorgeous, and it was fun to people-watch as folks floated by on their own personal Cloud Nines with smoked apple gelato or pumpkin blinis in hand. I think everyone who I asked "so, any favorites yet?" had a different answer.

When walking around before the event started, I had to snap a shot of the homemade pepper jelly from the amazing team at Kitchener-Waterloo's Culinary Studio! These jars almost look like minature stained-glass windows, but their contents (a swirl of which was served, perched atop a freshly made corn donut with buttercream icing) was far more delicious.

Another perk of events like these can be the bits of education one picks up along the way. In this photo, you can see the results of when Baer's Vibrant Farms and Wildcraft teamed up to make a scrumptious sous-vide organic beef spiral served in a sesame cone with quinoa slaw.

As I snapped photos, I learned from the Wildcraft crew how the sous-vide cooking method works - it may not be the most visually attractive process, but it rendered delicious results!

All in all, it was an amazing event, and I already can't wait for next year's Taste Local! Taste Fresh! With luck, I'll be one of those aproned blurs working behind the scenes as a volunteer to help make it awesome, once again.

Crosspost: "A Little Birdie Told Me"

While guest judging at the first Iron Chef Uptown of the year, I had the fantastic luck to meet up with one of Foodlink's representatives. Over delicious scallops and apple martinis, she asked if I might guest-blog for Foodlink's Local Dish blog sometime.

Rendered completely giddy and floored by the offer (and a little intimidated), I puzzled over what to write - until the idea of talking about the connections between social media and gastronomic events like Iron Chef Uptown came to mind. Upon moving to KW, it blew me away how many folks in the food and service industry used tools like Twitter to keep up with each other and the various events in the region. Not only that, how welcoming they were to newcomers like myself.

That said, the pun about "a little birdie" in the blog post's title is both terrible and transparent, but then, I've always had a weakness for awful puns. (As for why this was posted on my own blog so belatedly? Summer is terribly distracting. ^^;;)

Article @ Foodlink's Local Dish.

I hope you read on and enjoy; thoughts are always welcome!