Edible Columbus Spring 2020

Complimentary

edible COLUMBUS THE STORY OF LOCAL FOOD

Member of Edible Communities No. 40 | Spring 2020

Franklin & Madison County Farm Bureau

You’re Invited!

9th Annual Breakfast on the Farm E E R F Saturday, June 13th 8 a.m. — 11 a.m.

Enjoy FREE made to order omelets, learn about agriculture and how food gets to your kitchen table, see all types of farm equipment, and interact with farm animals!

Location: Beck’s: 720 US-40 NE London, OH 43140

Register by June 5th breakfastonthefarm2020.eventbrite.com

Questions? 614-876-1274

Hosted by Beck’s

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䘀漀爀 猀攀愀猀漀渀愀氀 挀氀愀猀猀 氀椀猀琀椀渀最猀Ⰰ 愀渀搀 琀漀 猀挀栀攀搀甀氀攀 愀渀 攀瘀攀渀琀Ⰰ 瀀氀攀愀猀攀 瘀椀猀椀琀 漀眀攀爀猀愀渀搀戀爀攀愀搀⸀挀漀洀 edible COLUMBUS .com ®

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SPRING 2020 | CONTENTS

DE PA RTMEN T S 3 EDITOR’S NOTE 5 #EDIBLECOLUMBUS 6 EDIBLE ENTREPRENEUR

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13 FOOD MEDICINE 16 ARTISAN 26 RECIPES 32 DRINK 40 HERO

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FE AT U RE S 20 DOWN ON THE CAMPUS FARM

These Kenyon College students are cultivating new attitudes along with the crops

By Wynne Everett | Photos courtesy of Kenyon College

20 FOOD TRUCK TALES

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Meet some of the city’s mobile vendors whose cuisine deserves your attention

By Anna Kurfees | Photography by Blake Needleman

36 EVOLUTION OF A CHEF

For Tyler Minnis, the menu reflects a world of experiences

By Gary Kiefer | Photography by Jeremy King

C O V ER

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Photography by Devin Trout

EDITOR’S NOTE

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efore I could sit down and write this note to you about spring, I had to go out and shovel the snow off my driveway and sidewalk. I have always enjoyed the snow, aside from the shoveling part, and I prefer it to the cold, gray days that dominate the winter months. At this point of the year, however, I’m ready for spring.

We can’t predict how the weather will treat us, but we can say with certainty that spring will arrive with the vernal equinox at 11:50pm on March 19. The amount of daylight has been growing each day since late December. When the vernal equinox arrives, the hours of daylight and darkness are almost exactly equal all over the world.

The natural world will begin to awaken from its dormant winter state. As the soil warms, we will start to see earthworms again, which means the robins will return for one of their favorite foods. Daffodil leaves will begin to peek through the soil.

It’s the season of new growth.

That makes it an appropriate time for Edible Columbus to bring you a look at some new ventures in the food world. In this issue, you will have a chance to read about a start-up business, Echo Spirits Distilling Co., where the young owners are looking to the past for inspiration. We will look at a new restaurant with a familiar chef going in a new direction, and we’ll take you to a new cocktail bar, the dream of an award-winning mixologist.

This issue also features a personal essay about how sharing a meal can bring healing thanks to an organization called The Dinner Party. Its members are young people who have lost loved ones, and their gatherings are a time for sharing both food and stories of grieving.

COLUMBUS PUBLISHER

Franklin County Farm Bureau MANAGER

Devin Trout | devin@ediblecolumbus.com

COPY EDITOR

Doug Adrianson

DESIGN + SOCIAL MEDIA Devin Trout | devin@ediblecolumbus.com WEB DESIGNER

talented young chef making his mark, a farm run by college students and some food trucks you will want to try.

Edible Feast

PHOTOGRAPHY + Illustration

While the official start of spring may be on our doorstep, any excitement must be tempered with the realization that we have to wait a while yet for some of the best benefits of spring. Most of the outdoor farmers markets won’t be opening until May. And no matter how nice the weather gets, the general wisdom is that you should hold off on most outdoor planting until after Mother’s Day on May 10 to avoid the possibility of frost.

Here’s hoping that spring brings us all the growth we desire in our gardens and in our lives.

Gary Kiefer

Patti Blau | Jeremy King Autumn LeAnn | Blake Needleman Devin Trout

WRITERS Wynne Everett |Gary Kiefer Anna Kurfees | Nancy McKibben Melinda Meadows | Julia Oller Nicole Rasul ADVERTISING

Alicia Rittenhouse alicia@ediblecolumbus.com Nick Faulkner nick@ediblecolumbus.com Rachel Thorp rachel@ediblecolumbus.com

gary@ediblecolumbus.com

Part of our mission here at Edible Columbus is to uncover hidden gems in our area that you might not be familiar with, so we also will introduce you to a

CONTACT US

P.O. Box 368, Hilliard, Ohio 43026 devin@ediblecolumbus.com ediblecolumbus.com

Edible Columbus is brought to you by Franklin County Farm Bureau Board of Trustees: President, Leland Tinklepaugh | Secretary, Roger Genter Vice President, David Black | Dwight Beougher | Veronica Boysel Charles Hines | Denise Johnson | David Lewis Ross Fleshman | Nathan Zwayer | John Hummell Lewis Jones, Cassie Williams Edible Columbus

EDITOR IN CHIEF Gary Kiefer | gary@ediblecolumbus.com

@ediblecbus

Edible Columbus is published quarterly and distributed throughout Central Ohio. Subscription rate is $25 annually. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be used without written permission from the publisher. Every effort is made to avoid errors, misspellings and omissions. If, however, an error comes to your attention, please accept our sincere apologies and notify us. Thank you.

@ediblecolumbus

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80 #oaklandnursery @oaklandnurseries

now celebrating 80 years of being Columbus' favorite local nursery!

TUO&EDISNI EMOH YNABLA WEN NILBUD ERAWALED SUBMULOC

oaklandnursery.com

spring seasons

Eat well to be well.

15 E. Olentangy St. Powell, Ohio 43065 614.822.9990 LocalRootsPowell.com

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#ediblecolumbus

Let us introduce you to one of the many Columbus food lovers whose work we follow on social media.

Christina Musgrave Tasting With Tina I’ve been passionate about food for my entire life. As a young girl, my first question when I woke up was: “What’s for dinner?”

That initial curiosity has only gotten stronger. As time goes on, the more I realize I love food and cooking for the sense of community and family that it builds food enables us to get together and talk to each other; food brings us together.

And at the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about.

I’m a food and wine lover turned recipe developer. My passion is creating experiences full of good food and great company.

On my blog and social media pages, you’ll find recipes, restaurant reviews and recommendations, and tips & tricks to be the best cook you can be. I hope you’ll join me in my food journey—I’m excited for what we’ll cook together.

Instagram: @tasting.with.tina Website: tastingwithtina.com Facebook: @tastingwithtinablog Pinterest: @tastingwithtina Twitter: @tastingwithtina

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Echo Spirits Distilling Co. Customers are encouraged to know the maker at this new Grandview business

By Nicole Rasul, Photography by Devin Trout

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oe Bidinger and Nikhil Sharoff say that a shared interest in the art of craft libations has kept their friendship kindled through the years. Columbus natives who met as teens at Bishop Watterson High School, the duo is now turning their hobby into a business with the launch of Echo Spirits Distilling Co., a craft distillery and bar on West 6th Avenue in Grandview.

“I graduated from college in 2008, which was the middle of the recession,” Joe says. “I didn’t have a job, but I had gotten used to good beer and wasn’t going to give it up. It was cheaper to make it than buy it,” he notes with a laugh.

Joe began brewing at home and soon discovered that Nikhil shared this interest, too. The two analytical minds—Joe has a degree in finance and Nikhil in engineering—say they found the creative outlet of beer making to be nourishing.

In 2012, the friends started to consider turning their hobby into a business. However, with a craft beer boom under way in the region, they were unsure how their concept fit in. On the lookout for what Joe calls “the next big thing,” the pair attempted a host of other home-brewed beverages, including wine, sake and mead.

It was at this point that Joe and Nikhil became captivated with the craft spirits movement they saw taking root in communities across the country. “A wave of craft distilleries opened in California, Oregon and Washington,” Joe explains. “We went to Gig Harbor, Washington, and took a week-long distilling class. It was intense, but that was when we started taking the idea of opening our own business seriously.”

In 2019, after several years of research and engagement with craft makers in town, namely Watershed Distillery and Middle West Spirits, Joe and Nikhil launched Echo Spirits in the space formerly occupied by Four String Brewing. In October, their alcohol was approved for sale and by December, it could be found on the shelves of stores in the city. This spring, the craft cocktail bar attached to the distillery officially opened for business.

EDIBLE ENTREPRENEUR

Additionally, many of the Echo Spirits products have pre-Prohibition-era influences in the ingredients used or the way they have been concocted. “Rye whiskey was more popular than bourbon before Prohibition,” Nikhil says. “Genever was more popular than gin.”

Derek Reno, beverage director for the bar, says that Joe and Nikhil’s devotion to creativity drew him to the company. “I’ve deeply followed all of the distilleries in Columbus from the beginning and I’ve never quite seen anything like what they’re doing with the Genever,” the craft cocktail veteran says. In perfecting the recipe, the founders have sought involvement from the local craft bartending community to get their buy-in regarding the liquor’s ideal composition.

Joe and Nikhil say they’re excited about the new endeavor.

However, it has been the community’s embrace—from other craft makers who have offered time and expertise to neighbors who pop in regularly to check on progress—that has made their decision to launch Echo Spirits feel like the right one.

“Columbus is really great,” Joe says about the outpouring of interest from the residents of his hometown. “Everyone is so excited and supportive.”

Learn more about the company and where to buy their products at echospirits.com.

Nicole Rasul writes about food and agriculture. Follow her on Twitter @rasulwrites or view her writing online at NicoleRasul.com.

The company produces a white rum, which Nikhil says is unique in its reliance on molasses and sugar. “Most people make it with one or the other, but we make it with both,” he explains. “It gives it a sweetness and body,” which Nikhil says allows it to pair well but also enables it to be enjoyed alone.

This summer, Echo Spirits will launch their Genever, a Dutch grain-based liquor rich in botanicals. Though the juniper-heavy beverage resembles gin, it also features whiskey-like malt tones, the makers explain. Later this year, the company will offer a rye whiskey, which is currently maturing. Additionally, an aged rum— already crafted but perfecting offsite—will be bottled soon.

In conversation, Joe and Nikhil note their brand’s pre-Prohibition-era undertones. The company’s name is a throwback, or what they call an “echo in time,” to when individuals knew the makers in their community. “You’d go to a butcher or baker,” Joe says.

Echo Spirits leans heavy on their “Know Your Distiller” tagline.

“You can come in and shake the hand of the person who makes your rum, and he’ll personally give you a tour,” the duo wrote in a Kickstarter campaign that helped to fund their company.

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DOWN ON THE CAMPUS FARM These Kenyon College students are cultivating new attitudes along with the crops

By Wynne Everett

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ometimes farmers need a hand. And when the student farmers at the campus-owned Kenyon Farm needed some extra volunteers one weekend, they went just a bit overboard in recruiting help.

“They sent out an email that said if people didn’t come help, they’d have to slaughter all the goats,” Anna Deryck said. “I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, I have to go help!’”

They were exaggerating, of course.

But Deryck, then a freshman, was hooked. Now she is one of a handful of Kenyon College students who have traded life in a residence hall for life in a farmhouse, complete with chores like cleaning out chicken coops, weeding gardens and caring for a growing herd of goats.

The Kenyon Farm, a 10-acre farm just outside Gambier, is a place where students spend their school year on a working farm that they operate.

It is part of a growing trend of hands-on student-run farms and gardens at colleges around the country. In the last decade, universities and colleges have found that campus agricultural operations are popular with a generation of students who value locally sourced food. Campus farms give students an opportunity to get their hands dirty, grow something tangible (and edible) and connect their community to the source of its food.

The farm near Kenyon’s campus, 50 miles northwest of Columbus, became available in 2012 when the owner, a Kenyon alum who was working for the campus food-service provider, suggested it would make a good place for a campus farm project. Kenyon bought the property and has been gradually developing an academic program based on an immersive farm experience.

also make use of the farm, which includes a 19.5-kilowatt solar array that supplies more than half of the farm’s electricity needs.

The farm started out by raising turkeys and potatoes for the annual Piercegiving feast, which is Thanksgiving at Kenyon’s dining facility in Pierce Hall. Today the farm includes egg-laying ducks and chickens, along with large vegetable and fruit gardens, cut-flower beds and a pollinator garden.

The student farmers produce everything from radishes, lettuce, peppers, garlic, carrots, onions, tomatoes and strawberries to cut flowers and honey. The mix of vegetables produced each year varies based on the interest of the farmers.

The farm also is expanding its herd of meat-breed goats and has hosted an annual goat roast in the fall. This winter 11 goats called the Kenyon Farm home.

Some of the farm’s produce is used by the campus dining hall and some is sold to the public, which also helps with the farm’s mission of connecting with the surrounding community. Student farmers sell to members of the public who stop by the farm and also from a farm stand they set up most Wednesdays on Gambier’s Middle Path walkway.

Having a campus farm helps Kenyon’s dining service meet its goal of using more locally sourced ingredients and provides students with meals grown in part by their classmates. “They’re eating food not even a full mile away from where it was produced,” said Kenyon’s Director of Green Initiatives David Heithaus. A campus farm makes sense at a college in a rural community surrounded by farmland. “It’s such a great fit in Knox County because we’re an agricultural community,” he said.

The farmhouse dates to the 1870s but was substantially renovated in the 1980s. It can hold as many as six live-in student farmers, but usually has four or five residents. Other students who live in traditional campus housing also volunteer at the farm. They’re guided by a full-time faculty farm manager, Ryan Hottle, who helps the students plan their projects and manage the livestock and crops. In many cases, it is Hottle who disabuses students of any sentimental pastoral notions they have about farm life.

“Take your rose-colored glasses off because it’s not a lot of watching goats jump around. A lot of it’s gross, dirty jobs and sweating,” Hottle said.

Even so, the college often has more applicants for the program than the farmhouse can accommodate, making it a competitive program.

The students balance their traditional college schoolwork with 20 hours a week of farmwork. Along with planting and weeding, building duck ponds and hoop barns, the student farmers use the Kenyon Farm as a site for academic research into agriculture-related topics like thermophilic composting and vermiculture (worm farming).

Various classes in biology, chemistry, economics and sociology

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In most cases, the students working at Kenyon Farm don’t come from farm families or have any previous involvement with agriculture. Many do not even come from farming communities, Heithaus said. “At one point I think everybody who lived there was from New York City or Los Angeles,” he said. “None of them had any experience with this sort of thing.”

The student farmers also have a wide variety of majors. Deryck came to Kenyon from Honolulu, Hawaii, planning to major in physics. Now a senior, she has changed her major to environmental studies and plans to go to veterinary school. For her, the farm experience helped her figure out her future.

“I’ve known for a long time that I wanted to work with animals,” she said. “My work here guided me to that.”

The goal of a campus farm isn’t to produce the next generation of farmers or veterinarians, but to produce graduates who go on to other types of careers with a more sophisticated sense of where food comes from than they’d get otherwise. Student learning and student experiences are the priority, not profits or producing farmers, Hottle said.

And it doesn’t hurt that growing your own fresh produce right outside the back door can improve the average diet of college students.

“Living here is awesome,” Deryck said. “I actually eat a lot more vegetables when I’m at school than when I’m at home.”

Photos courtesy of Kenyon College Wynne Everett is a Columbus native who grew up eating fruits and vegetables from her grandparents’ farm and beef bought on the hoof at the county fair. She’s now a vegetarian and veteran journalist whose career has taken her to Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Chicago and Toledo. She has a passion for food stories and can be reached at wynneeverett@gmail.com.

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FOOD MEDICINE

Can Tomato Tarts Heal Grieving Hearts?

At this dinner party, we’re inviting grief to the table

By Malinda Meadows, Illustration by Patti Blau

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n a hot summer evening last year, I pulled a tomato tart out of the oven. With high hopes and crossed fingers, I peeked beneath the foil.

It smelled delicious. Thanks, Samin Nosrat, we nailed it.

The tomato tart was for an event I was attending called The Dinner Party, yet it wasn’t quite the type of dinner party that might stir up images of champagne bottles being popped or fanciful desserts being passed around.

Instead, this particular dinner party was more likely to conjure images of hospital walls and funeral processions, bleak days and sleepless nights. The Dinner Party, after all, was a place for grieving.

And while The Dinner Party could have organized as practically any kind of group so long as grief was at the center of it, such as The Tuesday Tennis Players or The Fantastic Knitting Club, the specific idea of breaking bread together holds additional significance in our society.

Few societies seem to move faster than Americans do, with productivity often taking precedence over everything else, including the sharing of meals. In fact, the average American eats one in every five meals in their car, while one in four Americans eat at least one fast food meal every single day. While physical health can surely suffer as a result of these habits, there is also something that can be said about the mental effects of eating alone.

But first, let’s get back to that tomato tart.

Yes, this was a dinner party specifically for grieving. Pull up a chair, and I’ll tell you more.

The Dinner Party is an organization created for 20- and 30-somethings who have experienced a significant loss in their life, whether it’s a parent, partner, child, sibling or close friend. The loss might have occurred in childhood, or it might be more recent. Either way, it’s a club none of us ever wanted to join, but one we found ourselves in nonetheless.

With “dinner tables” in nearly 100 cities around the world, including Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati, the attendees—aka Dinner Partiers—gather together over a shared meal for one purpose: to have candid conversations about death and grief.

Our group was meeting in a warm and inviting home in Clintonville, hosted by a fellow Dinner Partier. None of us had ever met before, but we all had one thing that tied us together: the death of a parent.

Experiencing the loss of a parent at any age is difficult, but it’s especially difficult when it happens at a young age. This is a story I know well, as I lost my mother very suddenly and tragically in my early 20s. That loss became an incredibly isolating experience, as most of my peers still had both of their parents, if not their grandparents as well.

And while traditional bereavement groups do exist, like those often associated with hospitals or churches, these can further exacerbate the feeling of isolation when the other grievers are at different stages of life. Twenty and 30-somethings are often too young for the average bereavement group, while also being too old for youth grief support.

The Dinner Party was meant to fill that gap in support, and for good reason.

A nationwide survey of 1,006 adults age 25 and over by the New York Life Foundation revealed that 14% of those surveyed had lost a parent or sibling before the age of 20. When this percentage is applied to the U.S. adult population as a whole, it is estimated that nearly 30 million people in America have experienced the death of an immediate family member during childhood or adolescence.

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As I crossed the threshold into our host’s home at The Dinner Party, I wasn’t quite sure how I’d feel or react. This is where I was counting on the tart to help ingratiate myself to others. After each Dinner Partier had grabbed a plate, the host led the conversation, giving everyone the opportunity to introduce themselves and share what brought them to the table.

Between bites and sips, stories started flowing. Some shared more than others, and the conversations varied from things left unsaid to loved ones to the aftermath of funerals to how peers and coworkers had started treating them differently. Many spoke about where they were with their grief and where they hope to eventually be.

The gathering was a gentle but necessary reminder that even when grief feels terribly isolating, there are, in actuality, people who do get it. Eating together was a small act, and it required very little of us, but it was a chance to listen and a chance to be heard.

The connection between food and funerals runs deep, one that often carries into the days and weeks following a loss. But what about when the ceremonies end, there’s no more frozen lasagna and grief begins to settle itself in? While studies connecting the importance of food and grief are still in their infancy, there are some important elements that are known when it comes to sharing a meal together.

According to the Mental Health Foundation, there are psychological and social benefits to sharing a meal, such as increased feelings of contentment and security. It also brings a grounding opportunity where anxieties can be expressed and feelings heard. Listening to others during dinner time can also instill and deepen qualities such as empathy and understanding.

And perhaps most important of all, sharing meals can make people feel connected to others.

Eating won’t directly solve our grief—or any problem, for that matter. A tomato tart can’t bring back a loved one, make the holidays easier or sort out the almost cruel amount of paperwork that follows a death.

But what it can do is bring community back to where it has been lost. To lessen the heartache of isolation, to provide a sense of emotional nutrition and to make a dinner table feel whole again,

even if that dinner table is in someone else’s home. Or, as chef and author Thomas Keller said, “When we eat together, when we set out to do so deliberately, life is better, no matter your circumstances.”

As for my life, I’ve not only found dear friendships, but a special place to improve my grief (and tomato tart) until they can be improved no more.

And while our own family dinner tables will never quite be complete again, at this one, we’re at least all in good company.

For more information about joining or hosting a table, visit thedinnerparty.org.

Malinda Meadows is a freelance writer based in Columbus but will travel the world for a good meal. She loves handmade pasta, Swedish music and the first day in a new city. Find more of her writing online at malindainthesnow.com or follow along on Instagram @ malindainthesnow.

Enjoy the taste of pure Ohio maple.

BonhomieAcresMapleSyrup.com Email: dnbrown33@gmail.com | Call: 740-501-4681

250 Cleveland Ave. Columbus State Community College

M-F, 7 a.m. – 2 p.m.

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GHOSTWRITER PUBLIC HOUSE Chef Brett Fife creates the menu for a new restaurant

By Nancy McKibben, Photography by Devin Trout

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hen Crow Works furniture company owners Dennis and Denise Blankemeyer pursued Chef Brett Fife for the job of executive chef at their yet-to-be-opened restaurant, he was not looking to end his successful nine-plus years as executive chef at Lindey’s.

Lindey’s was a landmark, the new restaurant a question mark. And it would be located in downtown... Johnstown?

A former Hoosier, the 44-year-old chef had ditched plans to go into law enforcement, obtained his culinary degree from Columbus State in 2004 and cooked his way up the line, rising to chef positions at Hyde Park and Brio at Easton before moving to Lindey’s.

But in the offer, he heard opportunity. “To start something from scratch and to have the freedom to cook food I wanted to cook—it spoke to who I wanted to be as a chef.”

From scratch Chef Brett began menu development for the new restaurant in August 2019. The owners wanted to showcase their company’s fine commercial furniture, built in their Killbuck, Ohio, factory. Located on Johnstown’s main drag, about 20 miles northwest of Columbus, the finished restaurant would be anchored by two full-size bars and completed by an open kitchen, custom Crow Works furniture and mercantile items and stunning chandeliers.

Christened Ghostwriter Public House (a nod to the unsung heroes of the kitchen), the restaurant’s menu would reflect the public house concept. To Chef Brett, that meant “tavern fare elevated with interesting ingredients and technique and bold flavors.” Comfort food kicked up a notch.

He first reviewed his idea file: that Instagram food photo whose “oozy cheese” he wanted to see in his own smashburger; that Food & Wine red pesto recipe whose profile and presentation he could tweak; that appetizer idea (goat-cheese-stuffed dates, wrapped in coffee-rubbed bacon) that was begging to be put on a plate.

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He called his vision “refined rustic”: food that would dazzle the palate and the eye, sourced from local farmers and growers, and finished on the wood-fired grill whenever possible.

Finally, “I would put a dish in front of the owners, who have dined the world over. A lot of palates help refine the food and ideas I generate.”

Remembering himself as a “very artistic kid, always drawing and doodling,” Chef Brett stresses that “people eat with their eyes first. Presentation breeds anticipation.”

Despite a “very small timeline to prepare,” Ghostwriter opened on Nov. 7, right on time.

With an artist’s passion, he talks about using “positive and negative space, color, shape and layers” to create a gorgeous plate like his pork chop with a black mole sauce: “The flow of the sauce, pops of orange from the squash, pink shallots, green cilantro, the charred crust of the meat.”

Local first Local and sustainable were essential to Chef Brett’s vision, both to support “quality local craftsmen, growers and brewers” and to produce the best-quality dishes. If he couldn’t source a product locally, he still looked for “well-treated, well-grown, high-quality products” whether vegetable or animal.

He found: Covey Rise Farms (chicken); Black Radish Creamery (cheese); Lucky Cat Bakery (bread); Copia (eggs); Saddleberk Farms (bacon); Lucky Penny (goat cheese); RL Valley (beef); Milligan’s (maple syrup), Shagbark Mills (corn, beans, rice); Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams.

Local produce was scarce for the November opening, but Chef Brett has since talked to enterprises like Knife and Fork Farms and Fyffe Backyard Farm about showcasing their vegetables come summer.

Fired up The third menu driver was the restaurant’s high-end wood-fired grill, the GrillWorks system. Fueled by oak and hickory firewood from Almendinger Sawmill in Johnstown, the grill’s fire touches almost every recipe.

The short rib is slow-cooked once, until tender, then finished over wood. “Char and smoke,” Chef Brett says reverently. The chicken, ribs, salmon and hearth-roasted vegetables also flirt with the grill. Even the Caesar salad is split and grilled before being plated and served.

Eventually, Chef Brett and the owners hoped to power the grill sustainably, using off-cuts from the furniture factory.

Mid-October saw recipes finalized, menu descriptions written and tastings completed. Eager guinea pigs provided feedback.

For dessert and brunch dishes, “sometimes my wife and kids” were the lucky eaters. For “more complex dishes,” the chef himself, his sous chefs and his cooks did the tasting.

“All have tons of great experience across restaurants in Columbus. Some have dined nationally, some may have regional experience or are from an area of the world whose food I’m making,” such as the black mole.

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Chef Brett is unstinting in his praise of his staff. “They’re as close to a chef’s dream team as possible. They want to be here, they believe in the food, they want to learn, they put in the time.

That’s been a blessing.”

In the spring, Chef Brett will incorporate the Saturday and Sunday brunch menu that he envisioned way back in July 2019.

Lunch will hit soon after.

And as Ghostwriter becomes more and more the restaurant that Chef Brett envisions, the wise diner will return often to savor the chef’s latest tweaks toward perfection.

Ghostwriter Public House, 49½ S. Main St. in Johnstown, is open for dinner Tuesday through Sunday evenings. See the menu at ghostwriterph.com.

Nancy McKibben is happy to combine her loves of eating and writing with the opportunity to advocate for sustainable agriculture in the pages of Edible Columbus. Her latest project is Kitschy Cat Alphabet, a rhyming alphabet book in postcards. She is also a novelist, poet, and lyricist, the mother of six and the wife of one. View her work at nancymckibben.com; contact her at nmckibben@leader.com

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Food Truck Tales

Meet some of the city’s mobile vendors whose cuisine deserves your attention

By Anna Kurfees, Photography by Blake Needleman

S

o… why a food truck? This is the question I asked four local food truck owners in an effort to get a look behind the curtain (or window) on food trucks in Columbus.

There are more than 100 members of the Central Ohio Food Truck Association today, and collectively at least 190 mobile food offerings.

But food truck owners have had to overcome many challenges in the past decade, including regulations on where trucks can park, mobile vending laws, rules about distances from other businesses and many more. In fact, food trucks were not allowed to park on city streets until the law was changed in mid-2014.

Despite the challenges, food trucks have quickly risen to popularity among both owners and customers alike. In today’s day and age, it is commonplace to suggest dinner out at a local food truck. Here are some special ones to watch for.

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Street Thyme Our first visit was with Alex Emrich, owner of the popular gourmet burger truck Street Thyme. Alex’s passion for mobile cuisine began when he was working on a food truck in early 2013. He had spent the previous years working in the restaurant industry, where he developed a love and passion for serving others and bringing joy to the community through food. Alex is enthusiastic about the food truck industry as he believes it is a great opportunity for would-be entrepreneurs. He said that the food truck community in Columbus is very supportive, and people are always willing to help each other.

Alex is not a stranger to the many challenges that arise when operating one’s own business. He said there are still restrictions on where trucks can park if they do not have exclusive rights, as well as costly truck repairs and specific channels that need to be followed when serving at businesses or corporations.

These challenges haven’t put a damper on Street Thyme’s success. Street Thyme has been in business for seven years, winning the Columbus Food Truck Festival after just two years of operations.

The award-winning burgers offered by Street Thyme are anything but ordinary. Alex recommends the Apple Bacon Brie Burger featuring Granny Smith apples, sweet onions, thick-cut bacon, brie and his own tarragon chive aioli. Another favorite is the Green Jacket, which includes fried green tomatoes, roasted red peppers, pimento cheese, arugula and garlic aioli. These menu items were a collaboration between friends and family and have been staples on the truck.

We tried the Green Jacket, which was mouthwatering and savory, as well as the Irish Breakfast (with fried egg, bacon and jalapeño jelly), which was unexpected, hearty and tantalizing.

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Moody Trudy’s Our next stop was Moody Trudy’s where we had the opportunity to chat with the star herself: Trudy King!

Moody Trudy’s pressed-sandwich food truck was born out of a gap year combined with a move to Columbus and an unrelenting passion for food and hospitality. Once Trudy persuaded her parents to spend college-tuition money on a food truck instead, the story began. Although Trudy has held a myriad of hospitality and food-focused jobs, she attributes her growth and education to her position in the kitchen at Muirfield Country Club. Here she was able to learn techniques and skills to carry on to her own venture.

Trudy has been inspired by the challenges she has faced owning and operating Moody Trudy’s. “Sometimes your whole business is stuck on the side of the road in a downpour, and you start to wonder, ‘What in the world have I done to myself?’ But it’s inspiring; I love the challenge,” she said. “I see my colleagues, and we share horror stories, and you have a sense of community. I’ve made wonderful friends.”

Trudy names the family-run food truck Porketta as one of her favorites in the business.

Surprisingly, Trudy views her food as her biggest unforeseen success. Although she has always loved cooking, she never expected to have people rave to her daily about her delicious creations, which include a multitude of childhood favorites. Trudy has her truck out at least four times a week, but she likes to make sure it’s not an effort for her customers to hunt her down. She says if the beer is good at a local establishment, you may find her truck there.

When asked about her favorite menu items, Trudy said that she has put such special care and intent into each sandwich that it’s hard to pick just one.

She likes to take her customers on a journey to pick out the perfect sandwich. No matter your restrictions, likes or dislikes, there is an option for anyone, and quality is never sacrificed. We recommend the Mul-Fetta Not, featuring olive tapenade, gouda cheese, Italian meats and tomato; or the Artimus Parmesano featuring baby Portobello mushrooms, artichokes, red pepper, oregano, banana peppers, onions, balsamic, parmesan and mayo. These flavors are bound to surprise your taste buds in every way possible!

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Two Fatt Indians Amit Kumar of Two Fatt Indians shared his excitement about opening a food truck serving North Indian food.

Amit felt like this was a unique opportunity to serve the community as well as to bring Indian cuisine to Columbus. Amit went to school for culinary arts but also had his fair share of work in both retail and HVAC. His experiences interacting with and serving others eventually led him to opening Two Fatt Indians.

Amit echoes the sentiment that he and his food truck partner, Raj Sabherwal, were surprised at how much Columbus would love the cuisine that Two Fatt Indians offers.

This was the biggest unforeseen success to them. The truck is out almost every day of the week for either lunch or dinner, only closing for a rest day on Sundays. Amit has enjoyed the fellowship in the community of food truck operators participating in multiple festivals including Comfest, the Food & Wine Festival and music events.

The truck’s North Indian cuisine is a bold punch of flavor combined with traditional preparation and unique spices. Amit recommends the Chicken Jalfrezi, featuring chicken prepared with bell peppers, onions and red-ripe tomatoes stewed in a spicy curry; as well as the Lamb Saag, featuring delicate bits of lamb cooked in a hearty spinach cream sauce. There’s a wide range of delicious offerings for everyone from vegetarian to meat lovers.

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El Tacoriendo If you’re looking for authentic street food tacos, look no further than El Tacoriendo, parked permanently at 3344 Allegheny Ave., off James Road on the East Side. Street tacos don’t get much better than this with thick, warm, multi-layered corn tortillas, spicy and flavorful meat, an array of toppings and hot sauce with a kick. There was quite a line of people waiting to get their fix on a snowy Saturday in January—that’s how you know it’s delicious.

We highly recommend the traditional tacos with one of each meat sampling and both red and green sauces. We have to thank Gus Webb of @614_eats for showing us this treasure.

If you’re wondering how you can locate these scrumptious food trucks, there are two avenues we recommend. First, you can download the app StreetFoodFinder. While every single truck isn’t listed here, it’s certainly a great starting point. Next, check out centralohiofoodtruck. org. You can usually count on finding food trucks parked in downtown Columbus from 11am to 2pm on weekdays, and at local breweries around town on evenings and weekends. If you’re aiming to find the hidden gems among the many Columbus food trucks, you should also check out @614_eats on Instagram.

Anna Kurfees is a food enthusiast with a passion for showcasing the chefs, line cooks, servers and bartenders who bring the food scene to life. You can follow along on Instagram @behindthemenu614.

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THURN’S MEATS

Harrison Farm Celebrations. Animals. Teaching.

A Columbus Classic Since 1886

Now booking for 2019 + 2020

530 Greenlawn Ave, Columbus, Ohio Thurs & Fri 8am-6pm | Sat 7am-1pm 614. 443.1449 ThurnsMeats.com

614.271.0304 www.harrisonfarm13@gmail.com www.harrisonfarm13.com

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Vegan Toffee Oat Muffins

By Tia Jones, The Sprinkled Atom

Yields 1 dozen muffins Ingredients 1 cup quick oats 1½ cups flour 1 cup non-dairy toffee coffee creamer 1 cup vegan brown sugar 3 tablespoons aquafaba 1 teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda 1 ∕3 cup vegetable oil 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions: Preheat oven to 350F. In a mixing bowl, add flour, quick oats, brown sugar, baking soda and baking powder. Mix well with a whisk or standing mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.

Next, add the creamer, oil, vanilla extract and aquafaba and mix well.

Line a muffin pan with cupcake wrappers and fill ¾ way full with batter.

Bake for 15—18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Allow muffins to cool on a cooling rack.

Top with a dusting of powdered sugar.

Devour!

Notes: Aquafaba (bean water) is the water from a can of garbanzo beans.

To make this recipe non-vegan, substitute 1 egg for the 3 tablespoons of aquafaba, use regular brown sugar and the dairy creamer of your choice.

Can’t find toffee creamer? Try caramel, French vanilla or hazelnut coffee creamer instead.

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Eat Your Medicine Strawberry Gin Spritz

EAT

By Allison Hendricks, Student Coordinator for Columbus State Hospitality Programs Photography by Blake Needleman

Makes 1 drink Ingredients 3 strawberries 1 lime wedge 1 teaspoon sugar 1½ ounces gin Ice cubes Sparkling rosé wine

Directions: Fill rocks glass with ice. Set aside.

Prepare the strawberries: Hull and slice 2 strawberries; keep separate. Make a cut about ½ inch into the third strawberry, being careful to keep it whole for the garnish.

In a cocktail shaker, muddle together 1 sliced strawberry, lime and sugar. Add gin and fill to the top with ice. Top shaker with lid and shake for 30 seconds.

Strain mixture into prepared glass. Stir in remaining sliced strawberries. Top with rosé. Garnish on glass rim with remaining whole strawberry. Serve immediately.

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Spring and Beet Salad EatBlueberry Your Medicine with Savory Berry Vinaigrette

By Marlenia Locke Lowe, Preceptor for Columbus State Hospitality Programs Photography by Blake Needleman

Ingredients: 4 to 6 golden beets 4 tablespoons olive oil 2 teaspoons salt ½ cup walnuts Cracked black pepper 5 ounces Spring Mix lettuces 2 cups fresh blueberries 1 cup goat cheese ¾ cup Savory Berry Vinaigrette (recipe below)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Wash and dry the beets, rub them with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil and season them with 2 teaspoons of salt. Place on parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until tender, about 40 minutes. Allow to beets to cool enough to be handled.

While the beets are cooling, toss the walnuts in remaining olive oil and season with a little black pepper to taste. Place on parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until toasty, about 7 to 10 minutes. Check the walnuts frequently as they can burn suddenly.

Remove the skin from the beets and slice as desired.

To finish the salad, mix all of the ingredients and toss to distribute the vinaigrette evenly. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

Vinaigrette Ingredients:

Vinaigrette Directions:

Makes ¾ cup ½ cup blueberries ¼ cup water ¼ cup sugar ¼ cup rice vinegar 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon sweet onion, minced 1 teaspoon sea salt ½ teaspoon cracked black pepper ½ cup olive oil

Place blueberries, water and sugar in a small sauce pot. Bring to a simmer and cook until all of the blueberries have popped. Strain the mixture and reserve 6 tablespoons of the strained syrup.

To the syrup add the vinegar, Dijon mustard, sweet onion, salt and pepper. Stir well to combine.

Slowly add the olive oil in a steady stream while whisking to make a smooth vinaigrette. Taste and adjust seasoning accordingly.

SourEat Cherry Lazy Danish Your Medicine Recipe by Bronwyn Schieber, Lead Baker for BLEND Café & Bakery Photography by Blake Needleman Dough: 1 stick (½ cup) butter, plus a bit more for the pan ¼ cup granulated sugar, plus a bit more for the pan 2¾ cups all-purpose flour ¾ cup whole milk 2 eggs 2 teaspoons instant yeast ½ teaspoon salt Filling: 1 cup ricotta cheese 1 cup ground walnuts ½ cup granulated sugar 1 egg Fruit Bottom: 1½ cups sour cherries, drained ½ teaspoon orange or lemon zest (optional) ½ cup sugar Glaze: 1 cups confectioners’ sugar 3½ tablespoons whole milk

In a separate medium-size bowl, mix together ¼ cup sugar, cherries and zest (if using).

Assembly: Put the dough onto a well-floured surface and push it into a 16- by 10-inch rectangle. The dough will be very tender.

Spread the filling edge to edge over the dough.

Roll the dough up starting from the bottom edge to the top.

After the dough is rolled, you should have a 16-inch log of rolled dough.

Distribute the cherries evenly on the bottom of the Bundt pan, then sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup sugar over them.

Gingerly pick up the log and put it on top of the cherries in the Bundt pan. Cover the pan with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise until the dough almost reaches the top of the Bundt pan, or until about doubled in size. If crunched for time, you can put the Bundt in the refrigerator overnight and bake it the next day.

Bake the Bundt for 40–45 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 190°.

Directions:

Prepare a Bundt pan with butter and sugar: With your hand, smear the softened butter generously in the pan, making sure to cover the entire inside of the pan. Then, coat the entire inside with granulated sugar.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Dough: In a large bowl, cut the butter into the flour with your hands. The butter should be pea-sized when finished.

Add the milk, eggs, yeast, sugar and salt; mix until combined. Then, mix for 2 more minutes. The dough will be very sticky, but try to mix as best you can.

Cover the dough and let it rise for 2 hours, or until almost doubled in size.

When the dough is just about ready, prepare the filling and fruit:

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In a medium-size bowl, mix all the ingredients together to make a paste.

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After baking, leave the Bundt in the pan for 10 minutes, then take it out.

Make the glaze: Whisk together the confectioners’ sugar with the milk.

After the Bundt has cooled completely, drizzle the glaze over it.

community microfarms food security economic opportunity systems approach nutritious food sustainable agriculture our community at justice studentJoin co-ops social discovery.osu.edu/InFACT community microfarms food security economic opportunity systems approach nutritious food sustainable agriculture

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DRINK

Mixing Business with Pleasure at Law Bird

By Julia Oller, Photography by Autumn LeAnn

A

nnie Williams Pierce has spent more than half of her life serving plates of food, pouring beers and mixing up elaborate (and award-winning) cocktails. She liked the work, but spending dozens of hours in dimly lit bars—where she had little say in decor or the drink menu—grew wearisome, especially during the cold, dark winter months.

Now, when Williams Pierce heads to her job, it’s in a sunlit space she designed based around an elaborate—and personal—menu paying homage to her worldwide travels.

Law Bird, the Brewery District bar Williams Pierce opened in November with her husband, Luke Pierce, serves wine, cocktails and beer (plus snacks to sop them up) in a sunny space filled with palm frond motifs, a bright color palette and warm neon signs.

“The physical space is such a reflection of the two of us,” said Williams Pierce, 31. “It’s great because it’s no longer just in our heads. For so long it was the two of us in here every day either painting and working, exposing a brick wall, or on our computers formatting everything and picking everything and designing everything, and now it has hundreds of people coming through the door.”

Between them, the couple have decades of food and beverage experience. They didn’t plan on switching career paths anytime soon, Williams Pierce joked, so they decided they might as well work for themselves.

Before she was legally of age to work in bars, Williams Pierce waitressed in diners and restaurants.

A move to Chicago for college in 2006 landed her a mid-day bartending job at a high-volume sports bar. Told she “wasn’t hot enough” to bartend at night, Williams Pierce poured bomb shots and opened Bud Lights for customers during the lunch rush.

Not until moving back to Columbus in 2011, when Matt the Miller’s Tavern manager Christina Meehan sensed her nascent talent, did Williams Pierce learn about the art of alcohol.

“I will highlight her and point her out all day any day because she’s the first person to really give me that opportunity to learn, and learn the breadth of what there is to know,” she said.

This is in contrast to the many men who have taken credit for her success. “It fills me with rage but it also makes me laugh,” she said.

Williams Pierce moved up thanks in large part to her own thirst for learning. She educated herself on flavor pairings, ingredients and technique during stints at the Sycamore, at her pop-up Four Thieves Thirst Bar and at the esteemed German Village spot Curio.

While at Curio, Williams Pierce became the first woman to win the United States Bartenders Guild’s Most Imaginative Bartender award. Her Japanese-inspired martini—infused with snap pea vermouth—earned her a victory after six previous attempts.

She has since turned that curious, competitive attitude toward Law Bird, formatting the cocktail menu herself and building tables and painting the space alongside Pierce. The imaginative cocktails she designed for the opening included the Graeter Flavor Saver (stone fruit, port, Cynar and egg served like a Ramos gin fizz) and Ooples and Boonoonoos (Japanese whiskey, banana liqueur, Pommeau and pineapple rum).

A hefty chunk of the menu highlights what Williams Pierce likes to drink the best. Since she came up in cocktails and Pierce worked in beer distribution, they found a happy medium with wine, sherry and sake. All find prominent places on the menu.

Also given high billing: the names of each Law Bird employee. In an industry that often minimizes the status of those who serve the patrons, Law Bird’s owners wanted to ensure their employees felt acknowledged.

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The service industry is often transient, but the couple knew they could give others the tools to turn it into a viable career.

“People … don’t see all the options you can really [get] out of being in this industry and have a career from it and we’ve tried really hard to provide that,” Luke Pierce said. “That’s really what we’re focusing on here, which is hopefully creating one of the best teams in Columbus and that will allow us to spread and continue to grow.”

Right now, they’re both working long hours doing administrative work, planning the next menu and meeting with reps during the day and working service four nights a week.

Not only does serving customers demand a different set of skills, it also requires a complete change of attitude from business operations.

“I wear my heart on my sleeve,” Williams Pierce said. “You can read my emotions all over my face, so that’s the hardest part for me right now, just that total mental and energy shift.”

While the days are still lengthy, Law Bird’s owners have witnessed the community rally around the bar in ways large and small. A crowdfunding campaign raised more than $22,000 to help kickstart the business, and local bars and restaurants such as Watershed and Antiques on High regularly boosted Law Bird on their social media platforms in its earliest days.

Enjoy your Spring with an edible Columbus subscription Purchase a year-long subscription for your inner foodie.

Williams Pierce sees the “light, bright and funky” space as another bottle on the growing Columbus shelf of interesting independent food and beverage spots.

“It’s where our team is [and] our community is,” she said. “We want to continue to be able to serve them because we love them and wouldn’t be able to continue doing what we’re doing without their enthusiasm and engagement and support.”

Her oft-repeated mantra seals this commitment.

“We serve people, not cocktails,” Williams Pierce said.

Law Bird, 740 S. High St., is open every evening except Tuesdays.

Check out the latest cocktail offerings at lawbirdbar.com.

Julia Oller writes a little bit about a lot of things: jeans, sweet corn and George Strait have all been subject to her sentence structure.

You can follow her on Twitter @juliaoller.

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EVOLUTION OF A CHEF For Tyler Minnis, the menu reflects a world of experiences

By Gary Kiefer, Photography by Jeremy King

T

he dinner crowd on this January night fills nearly every table in The Market Italian Village. They have come to see what Chef Tyler Minnis has put together for his No Menu Monday, a twist he added to challenge both his own creativity and the palates of his diners. It’s a chance to “wing it,” he said, by using what the kitchen has on hand or what a farmer might deliver that day.

The chef’s handwritten notes describe the food available on this night. Delicata squash with radicchio, blue cheese and apple.

Pork Milanese with white barbecue sauce. Pizza with oysters and mushrooms. They are wildly different offerings, but they show a consistency in approach with layers of textures and flavors. These are familiar dishes prepared with sometimes unfamiliar ingredients, a chance to “push people out of their comfort zone a little bit,” Minnis said.

At the age of 34, Tyler Minnis is already recognized as one of the city’s top young chef talents. He made his first big splash at 28 as one of the chef-owners of Angry Bear Kitchen, which drew rave reviews. Now his mission is to establish a fine-dining tradition at The Market Italian Village on Summit Street north of Downtown.

It opened in 2014 as a local market that sold meats, produce and wine and also served breakfast and lunch.

Since taking over in 2016, Minnis has cut back on the products, eliminated breakfast and lunch and remodeled to expand seating.

He also started a dinner service that is attracting people from far outside the neighborhood. He calls this restaurant “my office,” but he’s also the director of research and development for the entire A&R Creative Group, whose restaurants include The Crest Gastropubs, Alchemy Juice Bar & Café, Ethyl & Tank, TRISM and Fourth Street Bar & Grill.

When A&R owner Abed Alshahal met Minnis, he liked the “humble confidence” of the young chef. “You could tell his passion was in the creative process, and when it came to industry expertise, he was on the forefront of culinary innovation,” Alshahal said.

When Minnis describes his journey as a chef, it’s clear that his career, like one of his dishes, has come together in layers: formal training, of course, but also travel, time in top restaurant kitchens, learning from mentors, opening a restaurant and being in charge.

From the beginning This chef story starts at Ohio University. Minnis, who grew up in Zanesville, got a job as a dishwasher at the Athens restaurant Lui Lui and ended up as a cook. “I learned that I loved it, and I knew I wanted to cook more,” he said. He switched majors to a hospitality management program, got his degree and then headed to Oregon to attend the culinary program at the Art Institute of Portland. The birthplace of food guru James Beard, Portland was well known as a food destination and home to top chefs.

In addition to his classes, Minnis took full advantage of a tradition in the kitchens of fine-dining restaurants called a stage, which is essentially an unpaid internship. It comes from the French word stagiaire, meaning trainee, and it dates to an era when culinary skills were acquired by apprenticeship. He spent time in the kitchens of Portland chefs he admired to learn about techniques and ingredients. He eventually returned to Ohio, but continued to do stages with top chefs in the Midwest.

His first full-time job at a fine-dining restaurant was at Latitude 41, one of the early Columbus restaurants to focus on farm-totable dishes. Minnis worked under Chef Dave MacLennan, who, he said, was “very talented and a good mentor. He put together a great staff. I met my Angry Bear partners [Jarod Norris and Daniel Scalzo] working there.”

MacLennan, now chef-owner at the Even Keel Fish & Oyster in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., said Minnis in those early days already showed important aspects of being a good chef. “Tyler always had a lot of self-motivation. He would push himself harder than I would push him. And he had a real passion for food.”

In 2012, MacLennan moved to Basi Italia, the Victorian Village restaurant of husband-wife team Chef Johnny Dornback and Trish Gentile. Minnis followed to be a sous chef, and it would be a big step in his development.

In Dornback, Minnis found not only a chef who knew food, but also a business owner whose devotion to consistency and quality has kept Basi Italia among the best Columbus restaurants for 17 years. “Of the Columbus chefs, he’s number one,” Minnis said. “I still look up to him.”

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Dornback said it was clear from the outset that Minnis was a talented chef. “Tyler is a great person to be around, he’s got a great attitude and he’s funny,” Dornback said. “But he’s also an incredibly hard worker. He truly enjoys what he does and it shows.”

The lessons Minnis took from here went beyond food. He listened to Dornback describe the challenges of running a small business and watched him do repairs on the old house where Basi is located.

He took to heart Dornback’s philosophy about how to treat employees and customers.

“Everything is not transactional in the restaurant business. It’s important to build relationships,” Dornback said. “As a restaurant owner, you want customers to come back, you want employees to stay, you want to build something to last.”

A new direction Minnis said these discussions helped prepare him for the biggest leap of his career to that point. In early 2014, he and partners Norris and Scalzo opened Angry Bear Kitchen. Having their own restaurant had been a dream of theirs while working together at Latitude 41. When the restaurant Sage closed, they took over that space in the Clintonville area.

He loves to use fresh and local ingredients, so he works with local farmers year-round. He said he usually bases a new dish on “a really good vegetable” and builds from there. “I think about mouthfeel a lot,” he said, so he likes to use purées and sauces for their silkiness. Among the textures, he likes to have something with a crunch such as nuts or seeds.

“I’m always thinking about texture, and then the layers of flavors, so you have all these different things going on in a dish,” he said. “That’s how the customer should perceive it while they’re eating it, just layers, layers, layers.”

For all he has accomplished so far, there certainly will be more layers to come in the evolution of Chef Tyler Minnis.

“Tyler is extremely talented,” said Johnny Dornback. “His arc is only just beginning in this industry.”

The Market Italian Village, 1022 Summit St., serves dinner from 5pm to 10pm Monday through Saturday and offers brunch on weekends. Learn more at themarketiv.com.

Tyler Minnis also will be on the team of local chefs preparing dishes for Eat Up! Columbus,a fund-raising dinner for Freedom a la Cart on April 25. Find details at freedomalacart.org/eat-up/

The restaurant and its chefs attracted a lot of attention as reviewers praised the frequently changing menu and innovative dishes, such as a pork rillettes hand pie with mustard ice cream.

“We took a Portland-type approach of pushing boundaries, working some different ingredients into familiar dishes, and then people will give it a chance,” he said. It was a great experience, but the hours were long and the work was hard. After a little less than three years, he said his partners were ready to sell the business.

Then came an unexpected call from Abed Alshahal, who runs A&R Creative Group with his brothers Ali and Ismail. “I remember calling him up the day after Angry Bear closed, saying, ‘Hello, Chef. I know it’s a tough time, but tough times lead to opportunities, and I think I have an opportunity that might spark your interest.’”

A&R not only gave Minnis a prime job, they also added to his experience by sending him on a nearly month-long research tour of the Mediterranean countries, including the Alshahals’ home country of Lebanon. “It was very exciting to have the restaurant group invest in me like that,” Minnis said. “Travel is very important for everybody but in particular for chefs. If you stay in your little corner of the world for too long, your creativity can be stifled.”

He returned with new ideas for The Market Italian Village, whose menu he describes as “Mediterranean with Midwestern roots.” His twin brother Collin is also on board as beverage manager for the A&R group.

When creating his dishes, Minnis tried to pair flavors you might not expect to work together, such as an appetizer featuring anchovy and peach and olive tapenade. “I can almost taste the dish in my head before it’s on the plate, so I can be fairly certain it’s going to work.”

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I would drive all the way across town for Weiland’s chicken salad.

I know this because I do it at least once a week.

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edible COLUMBUS .com ®

SPRING 2020

39

Operation FreeChee This charity serves up hope along with free meals

By Gary Kiefer, Photography by Jeremy King

40 SPRING 2020

edible COLUMBUS

®

I

HERO

t’s the simplest of comfort-food meals: a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup. But when Billy and Lorena Smith are serving, it comes with smiles and words of encouragement.

For many of the recipients of this free meal—disaster victims, homeless men and women, impoverished schoolchildren—the hope and cheer it provides are as important as the food itself.

Welcome to Operation FreeChee, a nonprofit operation launched by the Smiths to feed the hungry and to spread a little love. It arrives in the form of a food truck of sorts: a 22-foot trailer that is a self-sustaining comfort-food factory capable of feeding 400 people an hour. On its longest goodwill mission, Billy and Lorena worked the trailer by themselves, churning out grilled cheese sandwiches by the hundreds and tomato soup by the gallon for the people of Panama City, Florida, who were living without power or fresh food in the weeks after Hurricane Michael in 2018.

“It’s food, but it’s also moral support,” Lorena says. “In that situation, people can think the world forgot about them. But we want them to know that we’re all in this together.”

This charity began as a whisper of an idea in the hearts and minds of a couple who worked in the restaurant business and loved living in their hometown of Lancaster, Ohio. Both were born in Lancaster and moved away but eventually came back. They met and married 20 years ago. They became successful in business and involved in the Lancaster community. But they had the skills and the desire to use food to help people in a different way.

“There are not a lot of foods you can do as quickly as we do with only a few ingredients,” Billy says. “We were able to find a simple and fairly inexpensive way to feed somebody, to make them smile for the day.”

With a goal of helping people in their time of need, Billy designed the trailer to be self-contained, including a generator running lights, a 20-gallon soup kettle and a large panini press that can make 16 grilled cheese sandwiches every 80 seconds. They make use of the classic ingredients that people remember from childhood: Kraft cheese slices and Campbell’s tomato soup.

Adorned with a brightly colored Operation FreeChee logo (“Soup, Sandwich and a Smile!”), the trailer was put to use at another natural disaster last June, serving tornado victims in the Dayton area.

But the Smiths don’t just wait for a crisis. The Operation FreeChee Facebook page is a chronicle of their travels to United Way events, Lancaster community festivals, Nationwide Children’s Hospital and schools around Central Ohio.

“We built it to respond to natural disasters and times of hardship, but it’s also been nice to go out just for the fun of it,” Lorena says.

“Grilled cheese and tomato soup is just an all-American thing that everybody loves.”

Their charity efforts thus far have been funded by profits from their current Lancaster restaurant, the Cherry Street Pub, opened in 2015. They also have a catering business, the Smoked Food Factory, and are partners in The Mill Event Center.

“At the end of the day, it’s really the community here in Lancaster that made this possible because they’ve been so supportive of our restaurants,” Billy says. “The pub here paid for everything, which means the community paid for it. We couldn’t be more grateful and thankful for that.”

The Smiths have plans for more trips this year, but Billy sees ways to expand the charity operation beyond the trailer, including designing a smaller version of the rig (which, with the pickup truck that pulls it, currently requires a 50-foot parking space) and raising enough money to build FreeChee vehicles for other communities.

“It’s just people helping people,” Billy says, “and spreading love through grilled cheese.”

Learn more about the operation at operationfreechee.com and follow their travels at Facebook.com/OperationFreeChee.