Very true. Put my heart and soul into everything. Go for a run, take a look around, that’s a good start. My team gets it. My friends get it. Even those not all soft and squishy with me recognize that I’m all in.
Soul and Old School R&B, that’s good for me too.
Graham Kerr. Julia Child. Justin Wilson. Paul Prudhomme. Geoff Smith. And later, Great Chefs of the Southwest. I spent every available (most) afternoon watching PBS, Long before food network. And now, on free tv I have the Create channel and my favorite is Vivian Howard. Food. Good for the soul. Good for the family. The strongest connection I have with my daughters, one of the hopes I have for my son.
Last year I planted collard greens. Could not give them away at the Fremont Farmers Market (“don’t know this green, where’s your kohlrabi like everybody else?”). Found a friend and a home at Dixie Quicks, Southern fare with Cajun & Tex-Mex flair & a lively Sunday brunch. Chef Rene now receiving 10-15 pounds a week of the south of the Mason Dixon Line delicacy. He knows what I know.
This year I’ve added seven tops, a turnip grown exclusively for the greens. And a huge bed of regular turnips, 5 varieites. And those greens, ah, sublime. In the right hands. Each leaf individually picked, takes time and effort and love. Our friends at Pitch Coal Fired Pizza, Chefs Manny and Alberto, they’ve got soul too.
Chef Vivian has a local grower, Warren. If not a hero a role model. He sometimes shows up with something exquisite and immediate. A talented kitchen can do wonders with seasonal products.
This week if you ate at Pitch you were undoubtedly impressed by the baby beet greens on your salads. Voted one of the top 100 restaurants in America. I called Manny, texted him a picture, Sold!
So this is where Linda and I are. Following our hearts and souls. Doing what we think best and reaping our rewards. An intuitive sense of food our best advantage. Something bred over the last 30+ years of loving food. Loving the kitchens, the chefs, the staff. Loving the love that comes from all of it.
If you would like to become a Boutique Customer, we have plenty to share.
I’m A Soul Man.
About Author
