vol. 13 | issue 10 April 8 - April 21
Wakezza Tour p. 11-14 Q&A: Adam Vickerman of Cafè Levain p. 16-17
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©2013 The Wake Student Magazine. All rights reserved. Established in 2002, The Wake is a fortnightly independent magazine and registered student organization produced by and for the students of the University of Minnesota. The Wake is published with support from Generation Progress/Center for American Progress (online at www.genprogress.org).
Production Production Manager
Editorial Editor-in-Chief
Sondra Vine
Alyssa Bluhm
Graphic Designers
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Sondra Vine, Eric Berry, Kelsey Schwartz, Brittany Long
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Cities Editor
Gluten-Free at the University p.6
Voices Editor
Lactose-Free in a Cheese-Filled World p.7
Web Editor
Sound & Vision Editor
Sam Gordon
Sara Glesne
Solid Gold or Gilded? p. 9 We Are Food Over Fuel p. 9
Kelcie McKenney
Business Manager Cooper Henckel
Online Editor
the purpose of the Wake is to provide a forum in which students can voice their opinions. opinions expressed in the magazine are not representative of the publication or university as a whole. to join the conversation email abluhm@wakemag.org.
Crimea Highlights Global Dysfunction p. 15 Q&A: Adam Vickerman p. 16-17
Rock-It Delivery p. 5
Grace Birnstengel
DISCLAIMER
Wakezza Tour p. 11-14
Moving Forward & Looking Back p. 4
Being Open About Rape p.8
Brittany Long
The Wake was founded by Chris Ruen and James DeLong.
Whats Inside?
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Eigensinn Farm & Restaurant p.18 More Than Glue & Macaroni p. 19 Top 10 Songs About Food p. 20 Top 10 Bands Named After Food p. 21 The Pizza Underground p. 22
Liquor Store Open on Sundays p. 10
3 Reviews p. 23
Lauren Cutshall
Faculty Advisor Shayla Thiel-Stern
Distributors Shawna Stennes Morgan Jensen Sara Glesne
This Issue Photographers Lauren Cutshall, Sara Glesne, Sam Lindsay, Peter Mariutto, Kelci McKenney
Illustrators Sam Lindsay, Peter Mariutto, Lianna Matt, Jennifer Yelk Contributing Writers Russell Barnes, Grace Birnstengel, Alyssa Bluhm, Aaron Bolton, Lauren Cutshall, Kirsten Erickson, Herbert B. Ferguson - Augustus, Sara Glesne, Sam Gordon, Aidan Hutt, Brittany Long, Peter Mariutto, Lianna Matt, Kayla McCombs, Kelcie McKenney, Luke Michaels, Abigail Linn Rommel, Shawna Stennes, Alex Van Abbema, Shengying Zhao
The biggest unifier amongst members of The Wake staff is a borderline problematic love for food. It was almost too easy to convince everyone that we should do a food-themed issue. In fact, no convincing was required. Probably the best thing about this issue is just how diverse it is—we have something in here for everyone’s personal tastes and preferences. Allergies to lactose and gluten are becoming increasingly prevalent in society: we’ve got plenty of advice for those struggling with restrictive diets. Perhaps some of the best satire you’ll find in The Wake outside of our endof-the-semester bizarro issue can be found in the Voices section—here, a cat complains about the blandness of Fancy Feast, and a cob of corn laments over his inevitable death by way of ethanol conversion.
Almost (but not quite) better than eating food is food-related pop culture. How does food look so good in advertisements but not on your plate at a restaurant? Let us tell you. What’s up with Macaulay Culkin’s pizza cover band? We’ve got you covered. Speaking of pizza—how about that cover photo? Taking a pizza tour of Minneapolis was probably the best thing I’ve ever done that can also be considered “work.” And if you disagree with our ratings, tell us; we’re looking for more opportunities to talk about pizza. So go ahead, Wakies, and devour this issue. There’s no shame in having to use the corner of the page to wipe up some drool. Alyssa Bluhm Editor-in-Chief
13:10
Cities Moving Forward and Looking Back Author Ishmael Beah discusses Sierra Leone and his new novel By Kayla McCombs
Ishmael Beah is a best-selling author who, as a young teenager in Sierra Leone, was taken and forced to become a child soldier for the government army.
“[Beah’s] talent for writing began with his culture’s love of stories” On March 12, 2014, Beah paid a visit to the University of Minnesota Bookstore to discuss his first novel, Radiance of Tomorrow. Highly anticipated, the new book became available in early January of this year, riding in on the success of Beah’s 2007 memoir, A Long Way Gone, which shed light on the atrocities and heartbreak of war and the lives of child soldiers in Sierra Leone during the 1990s. Radiance of Tomorrow depicts the struggles and feats of Sierra Leoneans who return to their homes in the aftermath of the violence to rebuild and regain a sense of normality. The passionate story attracted dozens eager to hear from author himself. Beah began by stating that he had never intended to become a writer; in fact, writing was not generally viewed as a profitable or respectable career within his family and among Sierra Leoneans. His talent for writing began with his culture’s love of stories. Beah described with fondness the times when his father would play games with him, or the nights that the elders would tell scary stories that would keep all the children awake in their beds. It was the strength of this oral tradition that helped Beah appreciate the art of storytelling itself. The discussion then shifted to the new novel from which Beah read a short passage. He emphasized the difficulty he had while translating words and phrases from Mende into English while still maintaining the beautiful descriptive qualities of his native tongue. Because of this unique obstacle, Beah referred to Radiance of Tomorrow as “non-traditional” and rich in culture and imagery.
“What is to come tomorrow has not been tainted yet.” After reading the emotionally-charged piece from the beginning of the novel, Beah opened up to questions from the audience, fielding inquiries about future work, his current emotional state, and the characters in the novel. He seemed to always come back to his unconditional love of his country and his intent to return; like the characters in Radiance of Tomorrow, he will always find his true home to be in Sierra Leone, even after years in New York City. Citing optimism as the novel’s theme, Ishmael Beah explained its title and inspired the audience with a simple piece of wisdom: “What is to come tomorrow has not been tainted yet.”
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SAM LINDSAY
CITIES Rock-It Delivers Your Eats and Needs On Bike
Local bicycle delivery service will transport anything to Minneapolis residents By Shawnna Stennes
As Minneapolis moves in and out of the throne for the Nation’s No. 1 Bike City, delivery bicyclists are braving the Minnesota streets in growing numbers. Although the most notorious couriers on campus display a Jimmy John’s logo, one local business has expanded its bike-powered delivery service beyond sub sandwiches. Rock-It is an on-call delivery service in Minneapolis that works entirely on bikes, delivering anything from groceries to alcohol to tissues into homes and offices around the city. Every day between 7 a.m. and midnight, Rock-It’s bikers travel between zones as north as Audobon Park to as south as Lake Harriet, including all of the U of M campus area.
“Rock-It is an on-call delivery service in Minneapolis that works entirely on bikes, delivering anything from groceries to alcohol to tissues into homes and offices around the city.” David Smith, an avid Minneapolis cyclist and a courier for Rock-It, explains the practicality of delivering by bicycle. “Bike deliveries are faster and more efficient than car deliveries,” Smith said. “It’s just more versatile when traffic is backed up or when there’s a snowstorm. The car delivery has a two-hour window now instead of the bike delivery’s 45-minute window.” Although the Rock-It crew receives many personal calls, their partnership with multiple local restaurants such as Glam Doll Donuts and World Street Kitchen has made food delivery their most popular department.
JENNIFER YELK
“When people call a place like World Street Kitchen, their order is taken, entered into an online system, and we are responsible for delivering it within 45 minutes,” Smith said. The most obvious argument against the preference of bicycle deliveries is their ability to transport items without harm, yet this argument has been easily deflected with the invention of Trash Bags, a local company that creates backpacks specifically designed for bike couriers. “Trash Bags are really large, waterproof backpacks that keep things from spilling or moving around,” said Smith. “We’re delivering hot food and, because of its design, when it gets there, it’s hot.” The packs are also extremely customizable, having multiple options for pockets, holsters, slots, and handles.
Beyond the specialized backpacks and speed advantages, the founders of Rock-It credit their business pursuits to a commitment to the environment. They pride themselves, much deservingly, in not using a drop of petroleum in their shipments. Rock-It hopes to set an example and are committed to permanently changing the way we move products around in our city. To try out this marvel of a business, orders are completed on the Rock-It website with a delivery fee of $8 within a zone and $12 between zones.
www.wakemag.org
5.
Cities Gluten-Free at the University How a gluten-free student manages her food life around campus By Abigail Linn Rommel
Spring is here, and with it comes an entirely new set of dishes. While many students have been enjoying the warm treats, like holiday cookies, which come with colder weather, students living gluten-free lives had a different experience this winter. Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, barley, and other hybrid forms of wheat. Whether gluten-free students are buying “special” cookies from stores like Whole Foods or Trader Joes, preparing food at home, getting gluten-free sandwiches from a different side of the dining hall, or scoping out restaurants with more options, these students have to think about what they are eating. Transfer student Haley McCullum experienced health problems this summer before starting school at the University of Minnesota. In pursuit of finding out what was going on, she cut gluten out of her diet. After testing the results, it was confirmed that she was gluten intolerant, and was going to have to make another big change on top of transferring to a new school this year. “I realized that was the beginning of my life without carbs,” McCullum said. McCullum usually packs her own meals, but when she is on the go, she prefers a quick, leafy snack from the Marketplace in Coffman Union or at the Jimmy John’s on West Bank. While Coffman lists having 16 guaranteed gluten-free items, the dining service itself offers a plethora of options to students all over campus, according to the University of Minnesota Dining Services. “West Bank Jimmy John’s knows me too well,” McCullum said.
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Jimmy John’s can make sandwiches in the style of a lettuce wrap, which they call the “unwich.” Her favorite unwich at Jimmy John’s is the Turkey Tom. Most days, McCullum is not necessarily eating out for fun, but every now and then she finds a minute or two from her busy schedule to explore her gluten-free options around the University of Minnesota. In recent discovery, McCullum stumbled upon a restaurant called Kafe 421 in Dinkytown that accommodates those with gluten intolerances and other food-related health concerns. “They make sure there is a gluten-free option, vegetarian option, vegan option because… we all have to be something,” McCullum said. She stressed the humor behind dealing with food allergies, intolerances, and other food-related life choices. While serendipity played in McCullum’s favor that day, often there is more planning going into dining out for her. “When I go out, I have to research the place first,” McCullum said. McCullum uses Urbanspoon, a website and app that allows customers to review restaurants, to conduct her research. Although Urbanspoon is designed for all customers, whether they have allergies or not, another app targeting gluten-free customers made its way in to the gluten-free community a couple of years ago. A relatively new app, Find Me Gluten Free, makes finding restaurants on-the-go for students like McCullum more convenient. Jason Elmore, a software developer, created the app in 2010. Frustrated with his researching situation for finding gluten-free friendly restaurants, Find Me Gluten Free began. “Before creating the app, I would just ask questions when eating out,” Elmore said. The app uses GPS technology to find gluten-free friendly restaurants around the user’s location from their mobile device. Originally, Elmore personally researched and entered gluten-free restaurants to the app, but now users can add suggestions and later review them, making for a much more efficient process.
JENNIFER YELK
The app features restaurants alongside reviews from glutenfree customers. In addition to restaurants, the app includes news targeted to gluten-free customers, product reviews, and store reviews. While it was just Elmore and his users for a while, he recently merged with the Gluten Free Marketing Group, which is known for setting up the Gluten and Allergen Free Expos. Now, Elmore has his own spot at the Chicago expo on April 12. To support the gluten-free community, Find Me Gluten Free donates a portion of their proceeds to organizations raising awareness about living gluten-free. “It’s really great working on a passion of yours,” said Elmore, as he concluded his feelings about his creation. “Being able to help other people in the gluten-free community is really motivating,” Elmore said. “It helps doing all the hard work every day knowing that I’m helping other people.” McCullum did not know about this app until recently, but she admits that has been her experience from this journey so far. She credits the community for making research not too difficult. “There is just so much I am learning about myself,” McCullum said.
Cities Living Lactose-free in a Cheesefilled World
There are many places around campus to find dairy free foods By Alex Van Abbema
Several college students have the typical cereal and milk combo for breakfast. Lunch or dinner often consists of pizza, and maybe some form of ice cream for dessert. For students with lactose intolerance, however, there is a lot less freedom involved. Lactose intolerance is a digestive disorder where the body cannot easily digest lactose. The amount of lactose that a person can tolerate varies between those with different degrees of lactose intolerance. Approximately 40 million adults in the United States are lactose intolerant, according to statisticbrain.com. Aside from those who cannot physically consume dairy products, a variety of students choose to avoid dairy products for health reasons. Many students are vegan, and others simply choose not to include lactose products in their diet, and this has a variety of health benefits. One of these health benefits of living dairy free is, contrary to popular belief, stronger bones. In a Harvard study of over 77,000 nurses, it was found that women consuming greater amounts of calcium from dairy foods had significantly increased risks of hip fractures, while no increase in fracture risk was recorded for the same levels of calcium from nondairy sources. Living dairy-free can also help with a variety of common health symptoms such as headaches, migraines, and arthritis pain. Clearly living dairy free has a variety of benefits, but it can be a struggle to find dairy-free foods on a campus that
seems filled with them. Some of the best places to find foods that fit your dietary needs are in the various dining halls around campus. Jenna Brott, the Health and Wellness Coordinator for University Dining Services, works with students who have dietary needs, and finds alternative food options for them. Students can meet with her at any time to discuss their dietary needs. “Usually when they request a meeting, I’ll meet with them at the residence hall where they eat most of their meals, and I’ll also introduce them to the food manager there so they can become familiar with them,” Brott said.
“As part of our menu, we always have at least one vegan option available, so these would be available at all of our locations,” Brott said. Students with dietary needs can also discuss alternative options to the food offered at the dining halls. Every hall offers stations with soymilk, but some students may also have a problem with soy and need an alternative option.
If you don’t have a dining plan, or are in the mood to go somewhere else for food, a student can find plenty of options in terms of restaurants around campus. Dinkytown doesn’t offer too many options (no Mesa Pizza, unfortunately), but there are a few. McDonald’s is one, as you can have a hamburger as well as the french fries. Many restaurants around the area offer dairy-free options or menus, so just ask the staff for these options. There are many more options on Washington Avenue, and plenty of restaurants that serve specific dietary needs. Since ice cream isn’t an option, and almost all desserts contain some form of dairy, if you’re ever in the mood for something sweet, Yogurt Lab has plenty of sherbet options, and these flavors change on a regular basis. Chipotle is also a great place for those with dietary problems to go, as their burrito bowls and burritos, minus cheese and sour cream of course, are free of any forms of dairy. Noodles & Company offers a variety of pastas that can have cheese removed from them, and you can always stop in at Burger King for a hamburger and fries. You might have to get a little creative when going out, but there certainly are plenty of options.
“If they do have multiple allergies or intolerances, we can work with them to provide more options, such as the lactose-free milk brought in for certain students,” Brott said. If a student doesn’t want to set up a meeting with Brott, they can find things out for themselves in the dining halls. Any food option marked “vegan” has no lactose or dairy of any kind, and is safe to eat for anybody with a dairy allergy. “As part of our menu, we always have at least one vegan option available, so these would be available at all of our locations,” Brott said. If a student has any questions about whether a food fits their dietary needs, they can just ask one of the people on staff. At many dining halls, a student can request certain items, such as a grilled chicken breast, or a pizza without cheese.
JENNIFER YELK
www.wakemag.org
7.
VOICES Being Open About Rape
One student bravely tells her story, exposing the difficult stigma surrounding rape By Russell Barnes All names have been changed to protect the identities of the individuals involved. “I know you want it” is not just a controversial lyric from Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines,” but the exact words an unknown man told Cara before he raped her last spring at a University of Minnesota fraternity. “He kissed me and I wasn’t interested, but he was a bigger guy and I’m small,” Cara said, opening her arms to her barely 5-foot frame. “Then he held me against the wall.” Campus groups such as MPIRG, University Pro-Choice Coalition, and Women’s Student Activist Collective have all attempted to fight rape culture with a variety of campaigns. Cara, however, feels more needs to be done than just acknowledging the problem.
“I don’t think the justice system would have worked for me,” Cara said. “Someone could easily have said maybe I should not have gone to that party or had been drinking. Someone could have told me I could have screamed or said ‘No’ a little louder.” “It’s going to take people putting faces and experiences on the issue to address the stigma,” said Cara, a University of Minnesota sophomore. “That’s why I’m talking about my experience.” Cara struggled to admit she was one of over 600 women attending the University of Minnesota who experience rape or attempted rape each year, according to the Aurora Center, the University of Minnesota agency that aids sexual assault victims. Rape is “sexual intercourse without consent,” according to the Aurora Center. Consent is freely given when one is not under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol, unconscious, or subject to physical intimidation and/or force.
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Cara initially labeled the experience as sex she didn’t want, but her friends believed the incident bothered her. They convinced her to go to the Aurora Center, where her incident was validated as rape. Yet, Cara didn’t report the rape to the police, and over 95 percent of all rape victims do not, according to the Aurora Center. “We wanted her to report it [to the police] but we didn’t want her family life to be affected,” a friend said. “I don’t think the justice system would have worked for me,” Cara said. “Someone could easily have said maybe I should not have gone to that party or had been drinking. Someone could have told me I could have screamed or said ‘No’ a little louder.” Cara became depressed after the incident. She tried therapy, antidepressants, and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, with the latter two options contributing to suicidal thoughts. Cara also started drinking alcohol more frequently and in larger amounts, leading to an increased amount of panic attacks and eventually a hospitalization at a mental health clinic. She has quit drinking, which she says is the most important thing to prevent her from experiencing flashbacks. However, the memories occasionally come back to haunt her. She dropped a course last semester after the course’s texts depicted rape scenes. Cara is continuing her recovery; a process she says may have no end. “You don’t get over being raped,” Cara said. “You can learn how to manage it and separate it from what you are doing now.” A year after the incident, she told her mother, who was supportive. But she has been hesitant to tell others. Despite admitting she became cynical of men after her rape, Cara has begun to open her heart to her boyfriend of over half a year, Marc.
PETER MARIUTTO
“It was so nice to meet a boy who actually cared about me and respected my body,” Cara said. “He asked if he could kiss me. He asked for consent for everything.” As Cara and Marc’s relationship progressed, so did their intimacy. Yet being intimate with Marc was not easy for Cara. “The first time I had sex [with Marc], I started crying,” Cara said. “I told him I was raped and I just lost it.” This statement was followed up by a confession from Marc that Cara did not expect. “When I was six, I was raped too, and I told her that,” Marc said. “We continue to support each other.” A majority of men who are the victims of sexual assault are under 12 years old when the incident occurs, according to the Aurora Center. Fourteen percent of sexual assault victims nationwide are male, and over 100 University of Minnesota male students are victims of rape and/or attempted rape every year. Despite not wanting to get close with another man after her rape, Cara feels her and Marc’s crossing paths was “fate.” She also believes it’s important that her rape doesn’t get in the way of her building relationships. Cara admits her relationship with Marc helps her talk about her experiences yet admits her ability to talk about the experience changes every day. “Tomorrow, I may not be able to talk about this,” Cara said. “I want anyone affected by rape to not feel alone.”
VOICES Solid Gold or Gilded?
Branding boosts up the cat food industry By Lianna Matt
Like all socialites, I have my morning routine to look my best for the public. I get up, stretch, do a quick groom to make sure I do not have bed fur (yes, we get that, too), I go to wake my helper with my shining face in order to get my top-of-the-line breakfast, Fancy Feast. Yet, is it actually the creme de la creme? Fancy Feast used to be all about winning me over, but the company has lost its direction. Sure, the commercials try to hide it, saying things like “The secret ingredient is love,” but I can tell that the company is ignoring me. Instead of focusing on creating the most healthy, appealing food for the consumers, companies like Fancy Feast are creating mediocre products that have just enough flavor. All the extra time they no longer need to spend on product quality goes into buttering up, of all people, my servant. Fancy Feast has been forced into
We Are Food Over Fuel Corn speaks out against Ethanol By Herbert B. Ferguson-Augustus
So it may not be my place to say, but if you would grant me a few moments of your time, I would like to speak on the atrocity you have committed against my kind. It is the right, don’t you know, of us all to be consumed by our creators. And yet, I stand before you as a humble cob, knowing that instead, I will be converted into fuel. In 2013, your governor, alongside your politicians, decreed that 20 percent of all fuel used by vehicles in Minnesota must contain ethanol. This percentage is likely to increase in the near future.
the popularity race that everyone, from non-profit advocacy groups to retail stores to journalists, has entered. I am not trying to say Fancy Feast is bad; on the contrary, I love the kitty crack. I, like many of my peers, have followed the grand tradition of dining on it. Although many a proud servant has bragged about his superior living 25 years on this cuisine, a small cloud of negative reviews has surfaced recently. Whether or not they hold validation (I have not taken ill, but even I am not immune to a bad batch of food), other brands have replaced Fancy Feast at the top of the must-have list. Fancy Feast’s name may still be at the top, but it is time for nouveau riche to move in and our human helpers to figure out the shift. However, our servants seem to be too busy getting titillated by the company’s marketing strategies. While their promotions team still pumps out plenty of advertisements and its website has three sections dedicated to its products, an ever-growing emphasis is audience interaction. My food company––no, my brand––has joined the ranks of corporate social media pages and blogs. All the cat-themed crafts on their blog, Daily Fancies, and all of the photographs of me that they encourage her to post on Facebook cannot cover up the fact that it is not me who will be enjoying the new cat-patterned quilt or getting the credit for the amazing photo, but my human.
So herein lies our conflict: we are food, not fuel. As fuel, we increase the carbon monoxide levels in your air; as fuel, we create more pollutants through our cultivation, fermentation, and combustion than gasoline. And as fuel, we would, even if all the land in the United States were devoted to our cultivation, only provide roughly 12 percent of your energy needs, according to research at the University of Minnesota.
“...as fuel, we create more pollutants through our cultivation, fermentation, and combustion than gasoline.” Now before I say this, let me just say I am somewhat of a Sarah Palin when it comes to politics: utterly ignorant. However, I do recognize that the state’s decision on supporting ethanol stems largely from the role of big farmers in Minnesota, eager to find another source of revenue. This policy just does not reflect Minnesota’s current energy situation. Nevertheless, that’s a whole other thing entirely.
Instead of remembering the clients of Fancy Feast––uppertier cats like myself who require the very best––Fancy Feast has degraded themselves by trying to win over the human part of the cat-human combination. Is it really about the food quality anymore, or is it about the sparkling brand? With the information overload that the Internet has provided (and all the magnificent portraits of my species that it displays), products cannot just be good quality. They have to be the loudest, brightest presence. Fancy Feast has its long history of productselling behind it, so newer, better companies cannot get their advertisements to reach the blind eyes of the humans. If cat food, one of the purest substances in the world, can become corrupted so only the loudest brands matter, just think about what other industries and products can be affected by this popularity contest.
LIANNA MATT
So when you consider natural gas has a greater energy content then ethanol per gallon, you cannot help but wonder why the state has not just invested in processing plants and fueling stations for natural gas. Biodiesel has an even higher energy content and can also be produced from animal fat and plant waste. My farmer’s sister’s boyfriend, who is a mechanic, says a diesel engine can be retrofitted to use natural gas or biodiesel depending on the fuel quality. Even cellulosic ethanol, fuel made from my clothes, switch grass, would be far less humiliating then the fate you have subjected me, my children, and my children’s children to. We only want to do that which you created for, to be eaten. So whenever you ask us, from here to Albert Lea, “Are you food?” we will all say resoundingly, “You betcha!”
SAM LINDSAY
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9.
VOICES
SAM LINDSAY
Point:
Liquor stores should be open on Sunday By Alyssa Bluhm One Saturday evening last summer I found myself downtown, where I was approached by a panicked woman. “Does anybody have some money? The liquor store is about to close! It isn’t open on Sunday—don’t you understand?!” she said. “They don’t sell liquor on Sundays here? What is this state?” a friend of mine visiting from Wisconsin said. Having grown up in Wisconsin, where liquor stores are not only open on Sundays but pop up every two minutes on the side
Counterpoint:
Why no liquor on Sundays isn’t the end of the world By Sara Glesne
Rest comes rare to those in the service industry, especially on the weekend. But one small segment of that market gets a guaranteed day off every Sunday: liquor store employees. The source of this slight job perk is a puritanical “blue law” that prohibits liquor store sales on Sundays, Thanksgiving, and Christmas in the state of Minnesota. Blue laws were originally founded in morality and respect for the Christian Sabbath, but today support for them has shifted mostly to the economics.
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of major highways, I still have the same reaction every time Sunday rolls around. Legislation has recently reached the state Senate that, if passed, would allow the sale of certain sizes of beer containers to be sold on Sunday, along with letting many of the local breweries to remain open. But this isn’t enough— Minnesota needs to repeal Sunday prohibition entirely. Opening up Sunday to liquor sales in Minnesota has more benefits than making life easier for alcoholics and transplant Wisconsinites. The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (an actual thing!) reported that limiting liquor sales drives revenue to other states that do allow sales on Sunday. And because people tend to spend more on groceries on Sunday than on any other day of the week, Minnesota’s economy is missing out on a prime source of revenue by keeping stores closed on the Sabbath day. Many locals support Sunday sales, too. A Star Tribune poll earlier this year revealed that 49 percent of Minnesotans support overturning the law that prevents liquor stores from remaining closed on Sundays. While this number might not
The Minnesota Licensed Beverage Association (MLBA) is the strongest lobby group holding out on the liquor blue law in Minnesota. The majority of its contingents are mom and pop sorts of shops with smaller inventories and lower revenues. On the other hand, spokespeople for liquor behemoths ChicagoLake Liquors in Minneapolis and Big Top in St. Paul have expressed support for opening their stores seven days a week. Small businesses benefit—or at least their owners believe they do—from closed doors on Sundays. The logic goes that sales on a seventh day simply can’t grow enough to offset the costs of doing business: an extra day of wages and electricity bills. The law provides another benefit to small businesses: no liquor sales on Sundays encourages Minnesotan drinkers who haven’t planned ahead to support local bars and restaurants. Still, some Sunday liquor sales inevitably shift to neighboring states and provinces. This impetus for Twin Cities drinkers to visit our neighbor Wisconsin isn’t all bad. Even if it’s only
sound like the majority opinion, only 44 percent of those polled preferred the law not be repealed.
Continuing not to allow liquor to be sold on Sundays is keeping Minnesota behind the times compared to the rest of the country. Currently, only 12 states uphold the ban. This is number is almost unfathomably large, considering we live in a time when marijuana has already been legalized in some states. Would Minnesota instantly turn into a state full of alcoholics if liquor stores were allowed to remain open on Sundays? It’s doubtful. Would Minnesota have a better economy, be a more attractive place to its residents, and be just a bit happier if Sunday prohibition were repealed? Probably, yes. Until then, I’ll be camping out near the Wisconsin border if you need me.
to grab some New Glarus and cheese curds in Hudson before scurrying back across the border, a Sunday drive with friends isn’t the most unpleasant side effect of the law.
In a society that overvalues convenience and normalizes escapism through alcohol, the continuation of this puritanical law might actually serve an orienting role. While businesses might benefit, consumers are rightly frustrated at the economics behind the law. It’s obviously more cost-effective to load up on spirits at a store than be given individual servings at a bar, or to fill the gas tank to drive to another state. Still, I just don’t sympathize with drinkers who can’t plan far enough ahead to prepare themselves for another inevitably dry Sunday. Plan ahead, and maybe take a night off of the bottle.
Wakezza Tour A sampling of some of the lesser-known slices in Minneapolis By Wake Staff Photos by Lauren Cutshall and Kelcie Mckenney
www.wakemag.org
11.
Feature Intro
By Grace Birnstengel
Pizza Nea 2/5 slices By Alyssa Bluhm
If there is one thing The Wake staff can agree on, it is our undeniable love for pizza. To satisfy our cravings, we stuffed our faces at a variety of pizza parlors around Minneapolis— from small, specialty, coal-fired shops to full-fledged family restaurants with a gelato bar. Don’t worry, we won’t waste your time discussing the Mesa and Punch Pizzas that you already have an opinion on. Instead, The Wake reviewed joints that may not have as much familiarity among college students, but have just as much to offer. I’m willing to bet that an average college student finds his or herself devouring pizza at least once a week, but doesn’t often venture out of the Jack’s frozen or Domino’s comfortzone. Pizza can be found in different sizes, crust-types, and topping assortment all over Minneapolis, so get out there and try something new! We’ve already taken the first step for you. And after all, how could we have a food issue without eating pizza until we bleed marinara sauce?
PIZZA NEA BLACK SHEEP PIZZA BIGA FAT LORENZO’S DI NIKO’S
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When it comes to margherita pizza, it’s hard to beat Punch Pizza. Located in Northeast Minneapolis, Pizza Nea offers up a very similar menu and aesthetic to Punch. After taking a closer look, however, I’m ready to declare Punch the reigning pizzeria. First, the restaurant itself. On a Thursday evening the service was very slow. So slow, in fact, that plates didn’t arrive at our table until the very last slices of pizza were being devoured. The restaurant was also very loud, but not because trendy music by the likes of Punch was playing—it was just plain loud. I will admit that the atmosphere was a bit more sophisticated and appropriate for a date than Punch, so if you want to impress someone with fancy pizza but don’t want to end up sitting at one giant table with strangers, Pizza Nea might be the better option. But if the quality of the food is more important than who you’re sitting next to, listen up. Again, in the Punch Pizza vs. Pizza Nea fight, Punch comes out on top with better food. Pizza Nea has more options of red and white pizzas, but overall they are more expensive than Punch, and just not as good. The Salsicce and Pollo al Pesto pizzas, for example, had large slices of peppers on top that didn’t blend at all—they just added some color and complication to eating the pizza. In short: Pizza Nea isn’t worth the trek out to Northeast when you can get everything better on campus at Punch Pizza.
Black Sheep Pizza 4.5/5 slices By Kelcie McKenney
As college students we’re used to eating pizza. We know what we like, we know what toppings to add, and we know where to get it. But have you ever craved something with a little more depth? Black Sheep, located in the Warehouse District of Minneapolis, is sure to spice things up. Literally. Their unique ingredients, ranging from meatballs with ricotta to oyster mushrooms with smoked mozzarella, are cooked to perfection in coal-fired ovens. Not only did everything taste fresh, but each pizza taste-tested had at least one ingredient we had to stop and rave about. To top it off, Black Sheep has a serious command of their spices, leaving your taste buds humming from dashes of rosemary and sprinklings of garlic. Housed in a warm and cozy environment, tables are nestled between deep booths with sleek wooden backing that only add to the hip, comfortable, and lively vibe Black Sheep lets off. The service is fantastic, and the atmosphere is bubbling with energy of the sounds of content appetites mixed with heat emanating from the ovens. Clearly catered to a younger crowd, Black Sheep seems to really know what they’re doing when it comes to making pizza. While we’ve docked some points due to the lack of cell service throughout the restaurant, we didn’t leave feeling anywhere below completely satisfied. The prices were reasonable, the ingredients were wicked, and we left exponentially happier than when we had walked in. Black Sheep is pushing boundaries. Good boundaries. And you just have to try a bite.
Feature Pizza Biga
Fat Lorenzo’s
Di Noko’s
By Brittany Long
By Sam Gordon
By Lauren Cutshall
Although small, this pizzeria packs a powerful punch to the taste buds.
The line of eager diners was my first tip that this place would have some great pizza. This really is a classic local eatery, complete with faded red-and-white checkered menus and worn-in wood tables.
What happens when you go to a restaurant known for its classic deep dish and end up ordering a build-your-own thin crust? Well, when that restaurant is Di Noko’s, you get a good pizza either way.
The pizza, thankfully, perfectly complements the atmosphere. Fat Lorenzo’s serves up full pies or slices, a slice being a meal on its own. Each loaded with fresh toppings, their pizzas have a slightly spongy, crispy crust with just enough sauce and plenty of cheese.
With a classic downtown vibe that can pull off a business lunch just as well as a night out with friends, Di Noko’s seems to cater to versatility with the basics.
4.5/5 slices
When we arrived, the dining room was jam-packed and we sat in the only remaining seats, at the bar. This ended up being the best seat in the house, however, as we received a firsthand view of how these delicious pizzas are made. Flour lined the floor, crust was thrown in the air, crusts were thrust into the stone oven, and olive oil was lovingly applied to the hot and fresh pizzas before they were sent to the customers’ table. Our pizzas arrived at our table and we dug in. I was amazed at the taste and consistency of our pies. I was expecting a slice that would droop in the hand and drip oil and sauce on your lap, similar to Punch Pizza on campus. I was pleasantly surprised, though, as Pizza Biga’s pizza could stand on its own and boasted a flavor to match. I even liked our green and black olive pizza (and I really hate olives), although my favorite was the basic mozzarella.
4/5 slices
Their generous cheese blend gives a particularly rich flavor, making Fat Lorenzo’s one of the best places to get a slice of plain cheese pizza. Their options for both vegetarians and meat lovers are excellent, so bring the family and enjoy the pizza diner experience.
3.5/5 slices
If you’ve got 45 minutes to spare, their menu-approved and wait-staff-recommended deep dish is a must, yet Di Noko’s thin crust pizza proved to be a tasty, more timesensitive alternative. While the restaurant’s somewhat generic atmosphere felt more like a suburban chain than a downtown gem, the pizza’s pleasantly spicy sauce helped make up for it. Overall, if you’re looking for good, simple pizza, go for it— but don’t be surprised if it seems to lack authenticity.
If you love Punch Pizza, you will most definitely faint with ecstasy when you bite into a slice at Pizza Biga.
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VOICES Crimea Highlights Global Dysfunction European Union and United States should support democratic transition in Ukraine By Shengying Zhao To the turmoil engulfing Ukraine over the past few months, the world has turned its attention. The ongoing debate centers on state sovereignty versus territorial integrity. Since the Cold War, Ukraine itself was a product of the breakup of the Soviet Union, alongside 15 other separate nations. Like so many others, Ukraine moves forward to establish itself as a free and democratic nation and absolve itself of the Russian imperialism that had once controlled it. The collapse of Yanukovych government is thus a great success for Ukrainians. The country has a chance at last to derail its artificial version of democracy for the genuine kind. The troubled country should learn a lesson from the Orange revolution of 2004, which ended Yulia Tymoshenko’s corrupt regime but did not herald a clean president. Like Tymoshenko, Viktor Yanukovych pillaged his country to satisfy personal lust, bringing the country back to those times. The Ukraine presidential election in May must ensure that the government selected is truly democratic, rather than entrenching the authoritarian patriarchy. Yet the situation in Crimea poses the greatest threat to that democratic transition. The United States and the European Union strongly condemned the swift secession of the Crimean peninsula staged by pro-Russian separatists. Despite Russian claims, there has been little evidence of violent repression or crimes against the Russian-speaking population in Crimea. In response, The U.S. is planning to shelve a possible trade agreement and impose similar levels of economic sanctions on Russia as it did on Iran, but Mr. Obama needs Russian cooperation on Syria and Afghanistan. And yet Europe, which
has substantial economic ties with Russia, fails to act along the same lines. To complicate the issue, Ukraine’s territorial integrity is a European problem, as Putin’s move undermines the European Union capacity to counteract Russian expansionism. It is unclear how far the West is willing to punish Mr. Putin by risking severe consequences to their own economies. Yet even the United States is hesitant to make a move on Crimea as it worries that providing military backup to Kiev’s government might mislead them to be more provocative with Russia. The West eagerly seeks leverage to influence Mr. Putin’s decision, and China is their number one choice. The referendum on the future of Crimea treads on several sensitive grounds for China. Chinese leaders worry about their homegrown separatism in Tibet, Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia. The Chinese government’s approval on the vote would aspire millions of Tibetans, Mongolians, and Uighurs to seek a vote on independence. China also faces a dilemma over how to cooperate with Ukraine’s new Western-backed government, one born out of a popular revolt. And a civil uprising is the last thing the Chinese leaders want to see. Ukraine has a substantial trade relationship with China in arms exporting and agriculture. Russia remains a far
SAM LINDSAY
more important ally to China, economically and geopolitically. They are both permanent UN Security Council members with veto power and often share positions. For Russia, the acquisition of the Crimea is considered part of its core security and its sphere of influence. Putin did not declare a new Cold War, but he bluntly challenged the post-Soviet order led by the U.S. In claiming Crimea as a part of Russia, he made clear that Russia was ready to defend its claims and enforce sanctions. The annexation of Crimea also raised nationalist fervor, thereby strengthening Putin’s regime. The media has spent too much time analyzing what happened in Crimea and Ukraine as a confrontation between the East and West. It is far simpler. The U.S. and the European Union must do all it can to help Ukraine defend against Russian encroachment because it is right, rather than try to establish a new world of order. Ukraine needs the international support, both financially and politically. The West must move past its hesitation. The most important thing is for the people in Ukraine to believe that they can build a better kind of government devoted to the well-being of its people, rather than one that just reshuffles elites.
SAM LINDSAY
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Q&A Keeping it Simple Q&A with Adam Vickerman of Café Levain By Sara Glesne
The value of simplicity is never taken for granted by Adam Vickerman, head chef of south Minneapolis’ tucked-away Café Levain. Over his 10-year career cycling through some of Minneapolis’ best-loved, independent restaurants—including downtown eateries Sea Change and Haute Dish—Vickerman has formed his own aesthetic as a chef who combines comfort with the basics. Since his first internship in culinary school, Vickerman has worked on multiple occasions for Minneapolis’ Turtle Bread Company. Turtle Bread’s three cafés, two restaurants, and one pizza joint share something in common with Vickerman: a commitment to share local, delicious food with neighbors. The Wake sat down with Vickerman in Levain’s dining area, to hear about his time in the industry and his plans to run a new Turtle Bread venture in Minneapolis’ Longfellow neighborhood.
The Wake: When did you first know that you wanted to be a chef? Adam Vickerman: Middle school home ec. was a big influence, or a good starting point anyway, for my fascination with food and cooking from scratch. Growing up in the suburbs, it wasn’t something that happened very often. The Wake: What suburb were you in? AV: Rosemount, Apple Valley, and Lakeville area. I went to Rosemount and Apple Valley schools and lived in Lakeville city limits. The Wake: I saw you went to Le Cordon Bleu [a culinary school in Mendota Heights]. Do you feel that culinary school is something important for chefs to do? AV: This day and age, I don’t think so. It’s not integral. Especially with the kinds of restaurants I’ve been drawn to: the more independent, more contemporary restaurants, not like hotels and those kinds of restaurants where they look for some sort of degree. Restaurants that I tend to both visit and work at are the type that you can prove yourself at or learn on the job. So I try to make connections with the people running these restaurants. One of the things that is so great about Minneapolis is it’s such a small, tight-knit community of chefs and cooks, so those kinds of connections are vital to the longterm success of your career.
And then, there was the $40,000 in debt factor. It’s not that much debt in terms of a four year degree, but it’s still $40,000 going into an industry that you’re not going to be making six figures unless you’re going to ten years down the line, at a hotel or something like that. You’re making, you know, $30, $40, $50,000 if you’re lucky. So there’s that, but I don’t think it’s a requirement. Especially for a restaurant like Levain. The Wake: You say “a restaurant like Levain.” How would you describe Levain? AV: It’s been two distinct concepts. First it was Restaurant Levain as a fancy, contemporary restaurant. Then it became Café Levain in 2008 as a casual French bistro. And ever since then it’s kind of been evolving toward more of an American bistro. You know, we have a garden out back. We have local produce. Local farmers are vital to our food here. It’s definitely driven by French technique, but also Italian technique. But you know, French bistros are a certain type of restaurant, and I do not consider this a French bistro any more. The technique is very similar though, and I guess that’s where it still is at its heart here. The Wake: What about the technique makes it French? AV: A lot of cream, a lot of butter, a lot of cheese. My own personal technique is a lot of local ingredients applied with French cooking philosophies. But at the same time, there’s a little Italian in there. A lot of vinegar, a lot of olive oil. Not just butter and cream all the time, which is nice. The Wake: Could you tell us about first getting the job at Levain as an intern? AV: In 2004 I interned here for six weeks, was hired on afterward. They had to get rid of a few people, which was sad, but it was also kind of reassuring that they wanted me here and that I was accepted. As a line cook I worked at Restaurant Levain for two and a half years. Moved on, moved to a couple of other restaurants. [Levain] closed down a few months later. New Years Eve 2006, going into 2007. It reopened a few months later as Café Levain. So, I took over in February of 2008. Then I was here for a year, and then moved over to Trattoria Tosca, our sister restaurant in Linden Hills. Opened that up, was there for a year. Moved on from there to Sea Change and I opened Haute Dish, was the prep cook with a friend of mine. Then I decided to come back to Levain. The transition from Levain to Tosca was based on necessity, not really desire or want and that was a rocky start to Tosca and it kind of just snowballed into more issues. That’s why I left. Me and my sous chef at the time had some unfinished business here at Levain and we came back and I think we’re in year three now. He just left for Alaska on Monday. And I’m leaving in a month or so to a third Turtle Bread that I’m going to open up another restaurant at.
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Q&A that four nights a week, three courses in the $20 to $25 range, but also have a smaller a la carte menu. A big thing we’re doing over at Longfellow compared to the other two locations is we’re breaking a complete dinner menu out in Turtle Bread. So we’ll actually be running two restaurants at one time. It’s just going to be counter service, simple, well-prepared, local food. And then the other will be a little nicer. Full-service, sit-down restaurant. The Wake: What’s your favorite ingredient to cook with? AV: That’s always a tough one, especially at Levain, where we can pretty much do whatever we want. Having said that, you know I think to be really generic: butter, because it’s so important. It’s an amazing flavor. It’s so important in our processes here at Levain in terms of cooking, or flavoring, or finishing.
The Wake: Will it be similar to Levain? AV: Yes, very much so. It’s in the Longfellow neighborhood. Four or five blocks off of East Lake Street on 42nd Avenue. It’s very exciting to do something different, because three years in one place for a cook is kind of a long time. You can get kind of stagnant and complacent, so it will probably be nice to change things up. The environment at this location is kind of intense because we have all our production for all three restaurants. We have three Turtle Breads, we have Biga, we have Tosca, we have Levain. And now Longfellow is opening up another restaurant. So, a lot of the production happens here and it goes outward. Things get misplaced. Things get moved. At Longfellow it will be nice to just lock the door and unlock it the next day and everything’s still in the same spot. You know exactly what you have and where it is and how much you have of it. It will be a good feeling to walk into an environment like that while still working for the Turtle Bread Company. The Wake: Does the restaurant have a name yet? AV: Currently it’s called Foursquare. I don’t know if we can continue to call it Foursquare, just based on the app, but also just because I don’t know if it’s going to be indicative of the type of restaurant it will be. It’s not really a descriptive name at all. So, it’s a work in progress. I’m not a huge fan of making the name into this big, important thing. So far, for the concept we’ve been thinking that here at Levain on Sundays we do a three course tasting menu for $25. We’re looking to expand that over there too. We’re going to be open for dinner four nights a week to start. Do
But there’s also a product we have from one of our farms called Riverbend Farms out in Delano. They have this amazing ground cornmeal that they grind up for us. We call it polenta here because people can understand what polenta is. It’s just such a versatile base to have. You know, savory, sweet. It’s just the freshest tasting and smelling dried cornmeal I’ve ever had and he grinds it up to order when we order it too, so it’s not just sitting around. The Wake: How do you think your work as a chef has developed over time? AV: I definitely think I’ve developed a certain style and aesthetic that people know and can appreciate and look forward to when they know that I’m cooking their food. Simple, rustic are easy descriptors for the food that we do here. Local is another good one. Coming from the suburbs, meat and potatoes was one of my favorite things growing up, but I’m definitely moving toward more vegetable-heavy dishes even if it’s paired with chicken or beef. It’s always very important to us to get the seasonal vegetables when we can just because in Minnesota, while it’s beautiful that we have all four seasons, because of that our growing season is much more finite than most other locations.
low, it’s much bigger. It’s a decent-sized dining room. So it’s not the perfect dream, but it’s getting pretty dang close. It’s going to be beautiful. I’m very excited to get over there and do that kind of thing. The whole from start to finish, having a hand in the whole process of food for the neighborhood. That’s vital. The Wake: Congratulations then. AV: Thank you! Like I said, I kind of just want to get over there. It’s tough to talk to people about what it’s going to be. Just let me get over there and then you’ll see! It will explain itself. It’s tough to put it in a nice, little compact box. The Wake: You’re around food all the time, I imagine. What keeps you excited about it? AV: People’s feedback. People being generally excited about the food we cook. It’s a good line of work to get instant gratification from your work, and seeing people’s excitement and enthusiasm for what we’re doing. The expression on their faces, especially when you can see it, is definitely the thing that drives me and keeps me going. It can get pretty repetitious in the kitchen, for quality’s sake and just my technique and my style. So, it can be tough to not get stuck in a rut, but then you have to open your eyes and look at why you’re doing this. And that’s definitely the people who come in and can appreciate what we’re doing. Who can appreciate simple, good food.
SARA GLESNE
The Wake: Do you have a dream kitchen you’d like to work in? AV: Actually, the funny thing about Longfellow is that it’s been just a dream because I haven’t had to worry about working on my own or putting all that risk of my own money or somebody else’s money into a restaurant, because of Turtle Bread. Obviously all the chefs, for the most part, want a small, intimate-scale establishment where they can be there all day long. It’s a generalization, but still. The concept behind Longfellow is breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We’ll be doing a lot of take-away kind of items, pantry items like stocks and soups, but at the same time cooking people comforting, tasty breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That has always been the dream for me, anyway. With Longfel-
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Sound & Vision Eigensinn Farm and Restaurant
Michael Stadtländer spreads GMO awareness through restaurant, events By Aaron Bolton
German-born chef Michael Stadtländer channels his love for food into raising awareness about genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and organic farming. Along with building up his own farm and restaurants, he has helped found at least three food-based festivals in Canada, two of which combine music and food. Stadtländer migrated to Canada in 1980, and quickly became part of the Toronto culinary scene. Twenty years ago, Stadtländer and his colleague Jamie Kennedy founded Feast of Fields, an internationally renowned “wandering harvest festival” in British Columbia that allows participants to taste the best of their province’s fields. In 1993, Stadtländer moved his family onto a 100-acre farm that would become the Eigensinn Farm in Ontario’s Niagara Escarpment. The idea of the farm was simple: live off the land while producing all natural foods. Several nights out of the year, the
Stadtländers would invite guests over to share the great food grown, raised, and produced on the farm. Today, Eigensinn Farm and Stadtländer’s cooking have caught international attention. Restaurant Magazine rated Eigensinn Farm in the top 10 restaurants of the world. “Our greatest philosophy is growing the vegetables the way we like to see them: fully ripe, fully grown, and you will never find any GMO on our farm,” Stadtländer said. “Our pigs take 14 months, and not six, to grow. Our fowl are free-range. They take a half a year to maturity, and, yes, we lose about 20 percent to predators. All our grain is certified organic.”
Stadtländer enlisted musicians, and 100 chefs for the event to prove what delicious food the land could produce Stadtländer says his farm has more customers than they can handle. They come for a one-of-a kind dining experience, and some of the freshest food around. Due to the high de-
mand and limited staff, hungry customers have to work hard to book reservations. Courtesy and respect is part of the farm’s model as well. “If people are not respectful while trying to acquire a reservation through e-mail, or phone, we will not give them reservations,” Stadtländer said. He has also started events to help spread land preservation awareness. Foodstock was a 2011 event that spread awareness about a possible 2,316 acres excavation of Limestone in Honeywood, Ontario. Stadtländer enlisted musicians for entertainment, and 100 chefs to prove what delicious food the land could produce. About 27,000 people from all walks of life turned up for the food and music. In 2012 he put on Soupstock, which dwarfed Foodstock with its 200 participating chefs, and an audience of 40,000. Stadtländer has taken his culinary skills to great lengths to spread his personal philosophy on food, and organic farming. He says he hopes to eventually branch out to the U.S., but until then you’ll have to make a trip to Canada for Stadtländer’s superior meals.
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april 8 - april 21
Sound & Vision More Than Just Glue and Macaroni
A Look Into the Work of a Food Stylist By Peter Mariutto
As with any artistic medium, a greater appreciation is gained through prolonged exposure. Food photography is no exception. John Rajtar is a food stylist in the Twin Cities with an enormous respect for food both on and off screen. He values the ability to cook and prepare food in new and exciting ways, while maintaining the integrity of the ingredients involved. It’s an uncommon outlook considering the tricks and illusions typical to food photography as an industry. According to internationally renowned food stylist Delores Custer in her book, Food Styling: The Art of Preparing Food For the Camera, companies must use the actual product that they are advertising as the base of their photos. However, fake materials might surround the product and be applied to it—like faux chocolate sauce on real ice cream. Ice cream is actually a particularly challenging food item to photograph, as it melts quickly under hot photo lights. “Not all ice cream melts the same,” Rajtar told us. “It is definitely dependent on the composition, such as butter or fat content.” Real food is certainly more appetizing, he admits. “You wouldn’t want to eat any of this though.” Most foods that participate in photo shoots undergo processes that make them ironically inedible, such as undercooking or gluing. Objects with undesirable properties are most likely to be faked. Real ice floats, while fake ice doesn’t. Stacked ice at the bottom of a glass often makes for a more photogenic presentation. Slabs of meat and kebabs in ads have grill marks applied to them with meticulous detail. Soups are “constructed” to produce flawless appearances. A vast array of tools are required to complete the many tasks involved in making food photogenic.
PETER MARIUTTO
Tools range from the expected (scissors, strainers, and pins for lettuce), to the more obscure (dowel rods, eye droppers, and dental tools). Rajtar says he uses all the tools he brings to a job on a regular basis. His experience has made him never be unprepared for a job. “Every job has different challenges and expectations,” he said. “It is important to be able to adjust to those challenges.”
A vast array of tools are required to complete the many tasks involved in making food photogenic. In addition to his arsenal of tools, Rajtar has also assembled a prop room filled with thousands of dishes, silverware, cooking utensils, and bottles for use in shoots. The items are organized based on their use, and are all easily accessible. Because food photography is an art, its style varies from artist to artist; staying relevant and interesting means one needs to collect objects that will produce art that is relevant and interesting. Much of the personality in Rajtar’s dish collection comes from the attention to craftsmanship, such as bowls from Mexico handmade from clay and cooking utensils from Poland. He also looks for used materials that have real burns or wear, because those effects are not as easily replicated. “You wouldn’t get this kind of thing at your normal department store,” Rajtar said. He makes it a hobby looking for eccentric materials to compose interesting shots.
Food photography is an art like any other. It requires patience and hard work in addition to artistic vision. “Do you know where to get a tomato on the vine in the middle of winter?” Rajtar asked. He told us he knew someone who was growing one inside, so he went to pick it up, but to keep it alive in the cold required that he double-wrap it in plastic and a wool liner to be brought home, then re-wrapped and delivered to the shoot the next day. “If it’s the only tomato you have, you need to make sure it arrives perfect.” Rajtar said. Originally from Poland, Rajtar had traveled through most of Europe and maintains an appreciation for food beyond the typical American palette, not only in his artistic endeavors, but also through his own culinary endeavors. Rajtar continues to celebrate the many traditions and variations of cooking. He believes the true difference between “real” and “fake” food comes not only from the preparation and the know-how to cook, but from the source of the food as well. Rajtar take his work a step farther in some aspects. He works closely with Amish communities to obtain as many organic ingredients as possible. He even has a lemon tree growing in his living room. As an avid gardener, he has inspired many of his neighbors to build up their own gardens. While fake food may be an option in the realm of photography, Rajtar emphasizes the importance of using the real thing whenever possible.
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Sound & Vision The Top 10 Songs About Food These tracks prove that food can be catchy as well as delicious By Kirsten Erickson When it comes to the subject matter of a song, everyday concepts like love and death are certainly well-covered. But when it comes to food, a truly inspired track is more difficult to come by. This list is all about some of the tastiest tunes that manage to make food into art, whether they go for fun and quirky or serious and dramatic. After digging through many hunger-inducing songs, here are some of the best finds.
1. “Peaches” by Presidents of the United States of America Ah, a story about love set to one of the best fruits that has the misfortune to have a pit. Thrashing guitar chords abound as the singer speaks of “nature’s candy,” or the peach, in one of the catchiest juxtapositions of 90s rock. While the band with one of the longest names known to man ended up being somewhat of a one-hit wondter, what better one hit could there be than one about the sweetness of a peach? Best Lyrics: “Peaches come from a can / They were put there by a man / In a factory downtown / If I had my little way / I’d eat peaches every day.”
2. “Tupac (I Saw Tupac At McDonald’s)” by Matt’s Dad’s Basement The title alone is reason enough to listen to this song. It’s a little ditty about running into the presumed-dead rapper at the home of the Big Mac. Rumors of Tupac’s death being fabricated certainly aren’t unheard of, but the idea that he may just be hanging out in McDonald’s is certainly a delicious idea. Best Lyrics: “I saw Tupac at McDonald’s / He got a chicken McNugget / I saw Tupac at McDonald’s / That old G first taught me how to thug it.”
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3. “Cheeseburger in Paradise” by Jimmy Buffett Make fun of the tropical-print shirts all you want, but you can’t deny that this is one catchy, mouth-watering tune. This feel-good number has the power to make any listener pine for the sand between their toes and a thick, juicy cheeseburger in their hand, especially after this particularly brutal winter. For that, Jimmy Buffett should be applauded, even despite his somewhat-questionable fashion choices. Best Lyrics: “Cheeseburger in paradise / Heaven on earth with an onion slice / Not too particular, not too precise / I’m just a cheeseburger in paradise.”
4. “Coffee and TV” by Blur Okay, so technically coffee isn’t a food, but the music video features a nice breakfast and a dancing milk carton. That last fact alone makes placement on this list necessary, because who wouldn’t love a shimmying carton of milk? This quirky little number by Blur, best known for their “woo hoos” in “Song 2,” ultimately proves that calcium is not only good for the bones, but the ears as well. Best Lyrics: “So, give me coffee and TV, history / I’ve seen so much I’m goin’ blind / And I’m brain-dead virtually.”
5. “Chicken Fried” by The Zac Brown Band Country is one of those genres that loves to talk about food, especially the deep-fried southern kinds. This song is no different, with the Zac Brown Band singing about nothing being better than some well-cooked chicken on a Friday night, along with some other southern comforts. After hearing this tune, listeners should be warned, though, that an intense craving for KFC may follow. Best Lyrics: “You know I like my chicken fried / A cold beer on a Friday night / A pair of jeans that fit just right / And the radio up.”
6. “Dinner Bell” by They Might Be Giants In just about the quirkiest of quirky songs, They Might Be Giants name drop about 15 different types of food, from creamed cauliflower to pie and everything in between. Just to make it that much more interesting, the singer refers to himself as a “salivating dog,” maybe referring to the old Pavlov classical conditioning experiment discussed in every psychology class. Who knew a song could be both delicious and educational? Best Lyrics: “I wouldn’t like a bag of beef or a beer or a cup of chowder / Corn, cake, or creamed cauliflower / Cause I’m waiting for the dinner bell to do the bell thing.”
Sound & Vision 7. “She Don’t Use Jelly” by The Flaming Lips This is the song that first propelled The Flaming Lips to national airplay, which is a pretty impressive role for a song about how someone’s girlfriend makes her toast. While the idea of putting Vaseline on crisped bread doesn’t exactly sound appetizing, the wailing guitar and memorable lyrics makes this food song quite enjoyable. Best Lyrics: “She’ll make ya breakfast / She’ll make ya toast / She don’t use butter / She don’t use cheese / She don’t use jelly or any of these / She uses Vaseline.”
8. “Eat It” by Weird Al We can always count on Weird Al to provide a ridiculous parody of a well-known song—in this case, Michael Jackson’s
“Beat It.” The humor may be low-brow, but a nice variety of food references and a music video featuring Weird Al getting all worked up about people not finishing their meals make it a song about food that can’t be left off of this list. Best Lyrics: “Have some more yogurt, have some more spam / It doesn’t matter if it’s fresh or canned / Just eat it, eat it, eat it, eat it.”
9. “Artichoke” by Cibo Matto One usually associates food-related songs with witty, playful tunes, but this little number goes in the opposite direction. Using a sparse, rather sad sound, Cibo Matto sings about a love that has gone terribly wrong, using the peeling of an artichoke as a surprisingly deep metaphor for a broken heart.
The Top Ten Bands of All Time That are Named After Food By Alex Van Abbema
3. Smashing Pumpkins
1. Red Hot Chili Peppers
While many might think of pumpkins in their less edible jacko-lantern form, these squash are technically edible. One of the top bands of the nineties, give it up for the Smashing Pumpkins.
While hot chili peppers aren’t really most people’s favorite foods, the band has been very successful over the past couple of decades, and performed at this year’s Super Bowl. No adolescent born in the ‘90s is truly capable of escaping their influence.
4. Meat Loaf The man was a prime rock star, surprise Rocky Horror Picture Show star, and Grammy winner of the ‘70s and ‘80s. The meal might be a staple of your mom’s and grandma’s sometimes unappetizing, Midwestern dinners.
Best Lyrics: “My heart is like an artichoke / I eat petals myself one by one/ Until I feel enough / Until I lose to laugh.”
10. “Ham and Eggs” by A Tribe Called Quest Utilizing some smooth bongos and back and forth vocals, this hip-hop number makes the idea of food quite danceable. A Tribe Called Quest may not enjoy their ham and eggs, but they sure do seem to like their gummy bears, chicken, and home fried potatoes. The result is a foot-stomping tune that succeeds in making the listener quite hungry. Best Lyrics: “Chicken for lunch, chicken for my dinner / Chicken, chicken, chicken, I’m a finger lickin’ winner.”
7. Cream Eric Clapton’s first band: this 1960s power trio shares its name with a very common coffee additive.
8. Spice Girls A hugely popular all-girl British band of the late 90s, and an almost certain member of your parents’ cupboards. Behold: the power of spice.
9. Vanilla Ice While he was by all means a one hit wonder, vanilla is one of the most highly used foods in desserts, and his (only) hit single “Ice Ice Baby” is still relevant 20 years later.
5. Cake Singers of the hit song “Short Skirt Long Jacket,” and the center of just about any wedding, Cake in both of its forms is pretty memorable.
2. Eminem While his ties to one of the most popular candies of all time may be a bit of a stretch, there is no doubt about this man’s success and his impact on the music community. More bitter than sweet, Eminem has to be one of the most influential food-named pop stars in recent decades.
6. Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is one of the top bands of the ‘90s. To date, they’ve sold over 60 million records worldwide. Jam, without the pearls, is also a favorite breakfast condiment of many.
SAM LINDSAY
10. Bowling For Soup These Grammy winners and singers of the hit “1985” may have faded from the airwaves, but their namesake remains an eternal lunchtime staple.
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Sound & Vision The Pizza Underground Macaulay Culkin’s True Calling By Luke Michaels Our society has lacked the combination of food and popular music for far too long. Now, with Macaulay Culkin’s revolutionary project this drought has ended with the combination of two essential elements of American culture never brought together before: pizza and the Velvet Underground.
as for his struggle with the law. In 2004 he was arrested and briefly jailed for possession of controlled substances. Culkin seems to have struggled to cope with the “ex-child star” label that the media has tagged him with, thus dodging the public eye for years.
“The short concert involved the quintet singing their Velvet Underground medley, including ‘I’m Waiting For Delivery Man’ and ‘Take a Bite On the Wild Slice.’” Then, what began as a joke in 2012 quickly turned into a real project for Culkin, as he and four friends began to perform under the title The Pizza Underground. The band recorded a
Formed in fall 2013, The Pizza Underground is a “band” that has released a medley of nine Lou Reed songs, rewritten to include lyrics about pizza, that clocks in at just under nine minutes. Pulling classics from albums like The Velvet Underground & Nico, as well as Lou Reed’s solo masterpiece, Transformer, the band has garnered a large following across the nation, if not merely for the extraordinary weirdness of it all.
Macaley Culkin is best known for his child acting career. He starred in Home Alone and its sequel, among a few other mildly successful films (Richie Rich, Uncle Buck). Since those years, he has emerged only occasionally in the media, and mostly for his friendship with Michael Jackson—appearing in Jackson’s “Black or White” music video—as well
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The group has made a sizable impact in the social media world, managing popular Tumblr, Twitter (@cheesedayz), Facebook, and BandCamp accounts that frequently post fan art and a multitude of pizza-related jokes and photos. In order to promote the band, Culkin released a five minute video titled, “Macaulay Culkin Eating a Slice of Pizza,“ last December. The video, a nod to Andy Warhol’s Burger King Whopper project, depicts Culkin silently eating a slice of cheese pizza in an otherwise empty room. The Warhol parodies don’t end there, as the group has posted many Warhol-influenced art projects on its Tumblr page, including Campbell’s soup cans with various types of pizza printed on the labels. These works also seem to be a reference to the life of Lou Reed, as the Velvet Underground maintained a very public relationship with Andy Warhol throughout the 60s and early 70s. In January, The Pizza Underground kicked off their 18-city “Fresh to Your Door” tour, performing at small clubs and bars across the nation. The group is touring on their Velvet Underground covers as well as an odd and somewhat random Nirvana parody, titled “Nevermound,” during which the band performs their own version of “All Apologies.” The band also promises boxed pizza to anyone who attends one of its live performances.
“The band also promises boxed pizza to anyone who attends one of its live performances.” Perhaps intentionally, the band’s formation coincided with Lou Reed’s death last year. Reed, who had struggled to maintain his health in the years leading up to his death, passed away Oct. 27, five months after a failed liver transplant. The influential musician’s passing sparked a wide variety of tributes throughout the music world—Iggy Pop, The Black Lips, and The Pizza Underground included.
highlight, featuring Phoebe Kreutz’s not-horrible impression of Nico’s heavy German accent. With lines like “There we go eatin’ ‘za again,” the band has proved itself as a perfectly strange, homemade novelty act.
live demo of the nine song medley—which can be purchased on cassette from Bitter Melody Records—in Culkin’s home on Nov. 11, 2013. The group’s first live performance came two days prior to the recording, at the Sidewalk Café in New York City. The short concert involved the quintet singing their Velvet Underground medley, including “I’m Waiting For Delivery Man” and “Take a Bite On the Wild Slice,” accompanied by a ragtag band made up of pizza-box percussion and sloppily handled acoustic guitar melodies. The group’s version of the Nico-sung Velvet Underground single “Femme Fatale” was a
While a pizza-themed cover band led by one of the most successful child stars ever—as Culkin was featured in 20 movies and TV Shows before he turned 15—was probably not what Lou Reed had in mind when he penned “Walk On the Wild Side,” the novelty appeal of the band is obvious. The group will likely fill the small bars and clubs that it headlines over the next couple months as it continues to gain support across the country. Culkin’s work with The Pizza Underground could even inspire future generations to form their own food-based parody bands. The group should not be viewed as a cry for attention from Culkin, but rather an excellent attempt at getting us to wonder, “What the hell is going on?” Mission accomplished.
3REVIEWS Perfect Pussy: Say yes to Love Loud and Proud
Temples
By LUKE MICHAELS
UK psych rockers Temples’ original sound has officially made it across the pond. Formed as a duo in 2012, James Bagshaw and Thomas Warmsley’s early self-produced recordings as Temples quickly caught the attention of Heavenly Recordings. The duo then expanded, and enlisted drummer Sam Toms and keyboardist Adam Smith to form the current quartet.
The impressive debut LP from Syracuse-based noise-punk group Perfect Pussy could aptly be called “frightening” or “apocalyptic.” It delivers exactly what you might expect a band called Perfect Pussy to produce: smartly-crafted and noisy feminist punk sprints. In true punk rock fashion, the follow-up to the band’s 2013 demo EP I Have Lost All Desire For Feeling, runs at just 23 minutes, delivering gut-punch singles that rarely reach three minutes apiece. The band wastes no time in warming up. They dive straight into the album’s vicious lead single, “Driver,” which sounds like fellow feminist punkers Savages, but without the melodies and the English accents. Meredith Graves’ biting vocal delivery is matched in ferocity by pounding percussion and guitar feedback that would make even Sonic Youth run for cover. Say Yes to Love peaks with the standout track “Interference Fits,” which provides a rare melody in a droning guitar riff that supports Graves’ personal shouting match. The album then winds down with a pair of tracks (“Advance Upon the Real” and “VII”) that provide listeners a chance to reorient themselves, while building tension through the use of quiet guitars and threatening mechanical noise, put together with a hint of psychedelia. The album is a bold move and an inspiration to feminist rockers everywhere. It is hard to believe that Graves could keep up this act for more than 30 minutes without her heart giving out. Nevertheless, the results are astounding—complete and utter madness.
Sun Structures By Aaron Bolton
Freddie Gibbs Piñata
HIPHOP-N-MORE
By Aidan Hutt
The Temples first hit “Shelter Song” combines mystical lyrics with their retro psych sound. They aren’t just another psych band hopping on the bandwagon of modern psychedelia. Their first couple of singles proved they were their own brand of modern psych-rock. “Shelter Song” showcases their particular lyrical touch through word play such as, “Take all the time / time that you want to / Make up your mind / Mind how you go.”
When a bona fide gangsta rapper from one of the nation’s worst cities collaborates with one of the world’s most innovative and artful hip-hop producers, the bar for expectations is set quite high. Freddie Gibbs, Gary, Indiana’s powerhouse, dope-dealing rapper, brings his A-game to this seventeen track, collaboration album, Piñata.
The album Sun Structures as a whole represents how versatile they have become. The tracks “Move With the Season,” “Colours to Life,” and “A Question isn’t Answered” all have a heavy reverberated psychedelic sound. But “Keep In The Dark” tones down that reverb, and relies more on its catchy beat and lyrics. The album also has virtuosic guitar riffs that will ring in your head for days.
Produced by Otis “Madlib” Jackson, the album does not disappoint. Known for his mastery of sampling not only ‘70s classic funk and soul records, but snippets from films of that era as well, Madlib’s unique production style has established him in the forefront of hip-hop production greats. Before Piñata, Madlib has collaborated to make albums with hip-hop greats such as MF Doom and J Dilla.
The only real downside to the album is that Bagshaw’s voice bleeds from one song to another on parts of the album. His occasionally monotonous vocals can distract from some of the lyrical content.
Madlib is a producer with a very unique ear, which leads to only a select few being able to keep up in flow with his beats. Gibbs’ hard and relentless styling and pacing from his previous album “ESGN” is still found in his delivery over Madlib’s drastically different, and arguably better, beats. Gibbs retained his natural style while still adapting to the advanced flow switches of Madlib’s production: a positive sign for the rapper’s growth as an artist.
Still, the solid wordplay makes up for the few low points on the album. Temples are fresh psychedelia that can stand its ground.
While Madlib’s beats are some of the best in the business, Gibbs’ lyrical content and performance matches Madlib’s genius at every stride. Gibbs is one of the best in the game when it comes to gangsta rap, with his tone and bravado matching the intensity of the life he’s describing. Piñata is quality throughout. With guest appearances from the likes of Danny Brown, Earl Sweatshirt, and Raekwon, the album has new flavors mixing with the classic sounds of Madlib x Freddie Gibbs. The lyrical content is earnest, flawed, and rough, but Gibbs wouldn’t have it any other way. The gangsta rapper with no label has established himself as a force to be reckoned with.
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The Wake LAST MEETING: April 14th | 8:00pm | Fowell Hall 12