McClure's bloody mary mix is among the best mixes we've ever purchased retail. more ›

Looking to shop local for the holidays? Consider heading to Ms. Mint's 2nd Annual Local and Fair Trade Holiday Bazaar. more ›

Willie Nelson (and filmmaker Johnny Kelly) show us a farmer who shifts to industrial farming, learns to regret it and returns to the land. more ›

Restaurants get all the attention. Celebrity chefs, page-long restaurant reviews, interviews and special dinners occupy the attention of the food media, which latches on to each new spot in turn, alternately gushes or rants, and then moves onto the next. I don't mean to imply that I am outside of this cycle, as I also rush to new restaurants, only occasionally to return. But a little bit under the radar, a movement keeps growing which promises to change the way we eat permanently. Not a trend, but a wholesale change in the way we consume food. When I first moved to this city seven years ago, Chicago had one of the most amazing restaurant cultures in the world. Now, we have one of the most amazing producer cultures in the world, and that is making all the difference. more ›

October marks the second birthday of Chicago's Downtown Farmstand, one of our favorite under-appreciated gems. The farmstand is dedicated to selling only food produced within 250 miles of Chicago and stocks a great selection of goodies. This month, there will be tons of different local food events, tastings, conversations with local producers and special exclusive products only available in October. more ›

Chef Joshua Kulp and Chef Christine Cikowski of Sunday Dinner, known for their locally-grown food focused catering business, get rave reviews from their guests and clients but their granola bars have always been highest on the request list. Listening to their fans and looking for business growth they created, Eat Green Foods. The company, so their website reads, is dedicated to producing a line of foods, “made with a consciousness that supports all things local and sustainable, from ingredients to packaging to economy.” Currently, the company focuses their efforts solely on granola bars. more ›

"I know it's pretty unbearable outside, but would you like to put on the beekeeper suit before we hit the roof?" Myk Banas, Executive Chef of the Marriott Chicago asked as we wound our way trough the service staircases. more ›

Last month, I bought a garden plot at the Peterson Victory Garden Project. It's been amazing to watch the project get underway. Less than a month ago, the space at the corner of Peterson and Campbell was a vacant lot, filled with concrete, irregular gravel and standing water. But after tons of work, gravel, mulch and sweat, the garden is looking beautiful. Over a hundred raised beds have been built and filled with soil, and planting has begun in earnest. more ›

Do you know where the tomato that you're eating right now comes from? more ›

Two years ago, we bought our first local turkey to serve for Thanksgiving. At the time, it was mostly an ethical decision - after reading far too much about turkeys that are too breast-heavy to walk and too stupid to mate on their own, we didn’t want any part of the turkey empire that is Butterball. We visited a farm near our parents' home in Iowa, picked out a turkey that seemed lively and drove home with it that very day. After brining and roasting, the turkey was presented to family and friends, and we realized the other reason to buy local - it tastes better. Much better. more ›