It may be a leap that falling gas prices caused a spike in restaurant sales.  Lower prices at the pump are thought to have loosened up funds for car owners so they now go out to eat.  Americans are spending less money at grocery stores.  It appears that just 10 months ago, the amount of money spent at grocery stores exceeded restaurant sales by $1.6 billion.  This is when gas prices began to decline.  By December of last year, the gap had reversed and restaurant sales exceeded grocery store sales for the first time, EVER.  By the end of April, 2015, restaurant sales outpaced grocery store sales by $1.5 billion.  It took just 10 months for the pendulum to swing that far in the other direction. This data was compiled by the NRA (National Restaurant Association) read the full story here.

We asked ourselves what that meant to our business.  We are not a place you could just grab a snack or pick up dinner on the way home.  We are, however, a food service business from which you could feel good about ordering.  Corporate catering is our focus.  If you don't bring a lunch to work and your office orders from us, you can be confident that our food is good for the body.  When you are catering a party and don't want to spend all your time tending to the food, calling All Natural Chicago will allow you to be proud of the food you are serving.  It will allow your guests to feel good about the food they are consuming and you will be spending your money on food that gets eaten!  We support local growers and producers, so the money you spend stays here in our area. 

We felt like people were on the verge of taking back the food table.  Instead, they voted with their dollars, on restaurants that may not offer transparency of their food origins.  We really hope that the pendulum swings in the other direction someday.  Big agriculture and their trampling of the food chain will have lasting effects.  We don't know what they are yet.  We can only do our part and hope our clients will learn from us.  Again, we source local product.  We buy it as fresh as possible.  We make the food to order.   Our food tastes great and works great for your body. If you are going to spend food dollars outside the grocery store, we hope it's at companies with sound philosophies. 

We catered a beautiful birthday party dinner on Friday evening.   The home was spectacular, the guests were fun and energetic and the service was impeccable.  Shortly before the first course, I went to make sure every one was seated and ready.  The guests were sort of looking at each other quietly.  I wasn't sure what was going on.  A few moments before, cell phones were out, photos were being taken.  There was a jovial vibe in the room.  Now, quiet, people were getting up one or two at a time, and heading toward the front door.  I made my way over to that area, only to discover the beginning of what became a large collection of cell phones amassed in the front hallway.  It began with one guest, thoughtful enough to leave their cell phone next to their umbrella on a shelf near the front door.  The host had gone to close the door and discovered this kind gesture.  It moved her enough to say something to the table.  Her words were not meant to shame, only to compliment the thoughtful guest and thank them for their consideration.  Apparently, the other guests shared her sentiment and decided to become engaged in the atmosphere and company of the evening.  

By the time the soup course, which was first, hit the table, the jubilation had returned and the guests were in the swing of celebration.  It was the kind of evening that if you did not have fun and enjoy yourself, it was your own fault.  The food courses came out timely.  I know I am a little biased, but the flavors were spot on and the guests really seem to enjoy them.  Every course was designed around the guest of honor's favorite foods.  We began with Mushroom soup, served with a brioche crouton and shitake bacon (stay tuned for a future post about this).  The second course was orrecchietti in a Parmesan infusion with asparagus and artichoke hearts.  The main course was braised short rib with red onion jam garni, served over creamy polenta with green beans.  Before all of the plates were served, the guests were asking if there were seconds of this dish.  Dessert was birthday cake and chocolate covered strawberries.  I thought I would share the menu, but as I did, I had the thought that I bet every guest could have told you what they ate.  Until the drinks had been flowing nonstop, every person was engaged in the conversations, the food and the ambiance.  Alcohol may have made the evening fuzzy, but at least it wasn't being viewed through the screen on a cell phone... 

Green City Market's mission statement states that Green City Market is a nationally recognized marketplace model for distributing, promoting and educating about local sustainably-grown food.  In serving that mission, they also include local chefs to help the education process.  Today, Saturday, March 1st, our Chef, Micky Kearns, has the honor of demonstrating his knowledge and enthusiasm for using the freshest, highest quality ingredients and elevating them to their greatest potential.  Whether you came out today to see the demo, heard about it and decided to tune in here, or just stumbled upon this post, we really hope you will visit your local farmer's market and try making this dish.  Your friends and family will marvel at how much flavor you can achieve with simple vegetables. 

Bacon Jam makes an impact on the NBC News team today.

It is important for Chef Micky to create and demonstrate dishes that work.  If you have ever used a cook book that left you feeling like a failure because your dish never looked like the picture or tasted like the description explained, it can be frustrating.  This short demo is a snapshot of our signature bacon jam.  The best way to try it is to give us a call but here is how you can try it at home.  There are a few ingredients and of course, you can adjust the recipe to your taste.

• 1 pound of bacon
• 2 onions - use any combination of sweet (vidalia), white, yellow (spanish) or red onion to develop your flavor
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 t brown sugar 1/4 t ground allspice 1/4 t chili powder1/4 t ground black pepper
• 1/4 maple syrup
• 1/2 cup coffee
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

Method of production:  Chop the onion finely -  food processor works fine. Mince the garlic.  Grind the bacon into tiny bits - the food processor works for home cooks but this can also be ground in a meat grinder.  Cook bacon in sauté pan until all of the fat has been rendered.  Separate bacon from  fat and reserve the bacon bits (The bacon fat can be saved for other dishes like biscuits or fried potatoes).  Sauté onions until they caramelize, when there is about 5 minutes left before brown onions, add the minced garlic and saute until aromatic.  Once onions and garlic are done, add back the bacon bits, add dry ingredients (spices and sugar).  When they have been incorporated,  add the liquids.  Reduce to syrup like consistency then call everyone you know to come over to enjoy your new dish.  Spread it on sandwiches or a bagel with cream cheese to give them that extra UMPH!

I don’t know if you have ever come across something that just ignites you.  It seems to happen a lot when I am sitting at home on my computer.  That is not the best place to have it happen.  Generally, you are in your lounging clothes, in front of the TV or at least, not in a position to take your energy further afield.  Today, I got lucky.  I am working in the kitchen.  I took a little break to feed my body (a good friend reminded me that I must stop to nourish myself if I want others to be nourished by our food) and checked my phone.   We have a great support group of friends that are pulling for our success.  Diane reminds me to be the change I want to see in the world.  Nina is always sharing positive motivation and is the first to tell us how great we are doing.  Michelle is all kinds of encouraging when she passes along something I have done because she is inspired.  Shellie gives me great online resources that move our cause along.  All of them have contributed today and here I am, full belly, in action to share their lessons.   If you are a foodie, care about the planet and the food supply, enjoy helping local businesses and mostly just notice that the world is ever changing and we have a say, then this blog post might be a tool for making a difference.

Facebook really is a great tool.  It all began when NIna posted, “It’s not selfish to love yourself, take care of yourself, & to make your Happiness a priority.  It’s necessary.”  ­-Mandy Hale.  This was an image from www.Livelifehappy.com and I really liked it.  Then Shellie shared something on my timeline that compelled me to click.  It was a new website called FarmPlate.com.  It is still in BETA so I am excited to be so far ahead of the curve!  This site aims to be an “online community that connects farmers, fishermen, foragers, food artisans, restaurants, markets, distributors and foodies everywhere.”  These words were taken directly from their About Page and they really spoke to me.  We are slow food and would love to be listed in this resource.  But more importantly, we look forward to using this resource to be better at the things we want to do.  When I sat down to write this post, a message came in from Facebook that Diane, my cheerleader, had posted something that awaited my approval...”Life is too short to worry about stupid things.  Have fun.  Fall in love.  Regret nothing and don’t let people bring you down.”  Whew!  Lofty aspirations or are they just the natural way of things?  I totally get that it is simply a matter of perspective.  In order for this little nugget to be easy and natural you have to give up being right AND let others be who they are.  I thank Diane for this chestnut.  I am in action to create my world the way I want it. 

There are also the influences that Chef is grateful for.  He's got Alain, who is an idea man and then some.  When they get together, it is like a think tank fueled by great food.  There are the great chefs that have inspired, influenced and motivated him, like Chefs Lee, Gaetano and David.  They still mentor and share, I suppose we all should be grateful to them.  There is also Chef Kriss, his ideas make our chef very well rounded.  If you have had anything sweet from our kitchen, it was influenced by Chef Kriss.  Finally, Chef Jill Houk, a friend of mine, that has done much to help us.  I am grateful to have reconnected and drawn from her expertise.  Our Chef has also benefitted greatly from her input.  Scot and Lana for getting us into this "mess", we thank you for being here when we didn't think that was possible.  Our Moms are the best.  To them we say, "Hey, we are who you made, deal with it!" and thank you!

Now, to the resources I wanted to share….

http://www.farmplate.com/  Use this resource for all things nourishing.  They need the community's support in order to realize their dream.  I would like to jump on their band wagon.

http://www.thekitchn.com/a-foodlovers-guide-to-chicago-90602.  Here is a fun one.  You may not be in Chicago, but perhaps you could use Google to see if there is a similar resource in your area.

http://www.slowfoodusa.org/ is an organization that believes in good, clean and fair food for everyone. 

So again, I want to thank all that have done something that encourages the staff at All Natural Chicago in any way.  I may not have mentioned your name (Lainie, LaVerne, Carol, Tina and others), but that's mostly application.  Some of our friends and family have shared what we are doing.  Some have called and ordered food.  There are some that send great energy our way.  It doesn’t matter how small or huge your contribution might seem, it matters.  I bet there are some great friends and supporters out there that don’t even know how large a role they play.  It takes a village to raise a child, and this is another child in our family.  Thank you to our village!