Broccoli here, aka John K. I am not going to start a rant with my first blog, but I can't take CNN anymore (or FoxNews, for my righteous right wing friends out there). Frankly, they both constantly blather on about more jobs lost and how politicians can't figure out where to stimulate the economy (anywhere, please).
So, my partner, Eggplant and I feel the crunch. We are in the hospitality industry and yup, it is tough right now. I will NOT give any of my money to a commercial fast food operation though. It is inconceivable to me that in this downturn Mc (insert expletive here) Donalds is posting a profit.
Eggplant (Amy C.) has been in the hospitality industry for a while now, from owning a restaurant in Chicago, to managing the wine program at SideBern's, to schlepping a wine sample bag as a distributor rep. Me? Well, I'm a chef who is not a chef. I have a culinary degree, but instead of the knife, I chose the vine – selling wine is a great reason to always be drinking it!
We have read all the books about how and why to eat sustainably: Michael Pollan, Barbara Kingsolver and Jamie Oliver. We get it. Slow Food? Sign us up. But in 2008 we could have been the poster children for the faltering economy – 3 layoffs, COBRA insurance, and an unexpected pregnancy (also known as a pre-existing condition). Needless to say, the budget is tiiiightt!
We do believe in our food, though, and we are determined to continue to eat healthy, sustainable foods despite our circumstance. Even more so with our little Bean (Baby Lily) on the way, because I don't know about you, but I like peanut butter with everything BUT salmonella! And that is why we cannot afford to be careless anymore.
Check us out next week and we'll be talking about where to buy some great local veggies, posting recipes and sharing more about how we eat like an organic royalty without breaking the bank. See you then.
-Broccoli
This article appears in Feb 11-17, 2009.