Spring has sprung…..finally.  Well, the weather isn’t cooperating, but the produce is finally starting to arrive.  I have been looking forward to the arrival of our first local asparagus in the next couple of days.  This is really MY first indication that we are finally over the cold and dark.  Next week we will feature the local asparagus on at least three items on the menu and also our produce supplier is bringing us a new local spring mix.  I really enjoy this time of the year after trying to be creative with beets, turnips, carrots, potatoes and the occasional box of kale through the winter months.

Today is Earth Day.  Nourish has committed to featuring a new sustainable shrimp from a company called Laughing Bird.  The great thing about it is that no habitat or environmental damage is part of the raising or harvesting of these shrimp.  This company is also going to offer scallops in the future as well, so keep checking in.  Today we’re featuring shrimp po’boys with remoulade sauce on the menu and a salad featuring the shrimp as well.

Another big announcement for the day is that voting begins for a contest that I entered to support our commitment to sustainability.  I have been selected as one of twelve chefs from across the U.S. & Canada to compete for a chance to cook my recipe for the James Beard House (like the Grammys, but for chefs) in May.  I chose to feature cider braised pork shanks from Fischer Farms and oyster mushrooms from Hawthorne Farms, paired with creamy smoked tomato grits, in a comforting dish perfect for this time of the year as the cool evenings are hanging on.  This dish utilizes several local offerings from some of our suppliers and is part of how we at Nourish try to keep our guests connected to the farmers that are our life blood.  The voting will happen on YouTube and the top 5 get to go to the James Beard House in New York City to show their stuff.  How about a little support for Nourish?

Just around the corner, we will have Indiana strawberries, heirloom early tomatoes, spring greens, as well as great products from our partners from Fischer Farms, Capriole Farms Goat Cheese, Viking Lamb, Fair Oaks Farm Cheese and many others.  Stop in and see what we have every week…..the menu is always changing.

Be patient….Think SPRING.

Filed under: Local

We started with this photo from 100 Acres.

Well, we got off to a late start but all of the volleys are in! If you remember, I originally posted about design collaboration and summed the way Layers Tennis works. I got some interest from local designers on twitter and we announced the battle in a follow up post here.

So now that you are caught up… I present you with the first 4 design volleys.

Nathan’s First Serve (click the image for larger view):

As soon as I saw this photo it took me back to the days of playing Let's Pretend, with my younger brother. With a little creativity we always managed to transport ourselves to places where adventure could be found. Looking back on those experiences it was obvious that I needed to illustrate a landscape that could have been fashioned from nothing more than our own imaginations. I had to restrain from overworking this piece, though. I wanted to leave it fairly open so the other designers could add elements from their own memory banks. I'm really hoping to see some pirate ships moving over the horizon or perhaps an octopus tentacle reaching up from out of the water.

Aaron’s Volley (click the image for larger view):

When Nathan told me that his first volley was going to be floating water and a concept of imagination my thought process went immediately to pirates. I love doodling and when those doodles fit into a design concept, it's blast. And isn't that what Creativity and Imagination are all about!?

My Volley (click the image for larger view):

When I saw pirates, I knew they would be part of what I wanted to do but wanted to continue to push the imagination theme. So finally it hit me, Space Pirates! I love doodling too so I added a few minor doodles and also flipped the colors.

J.M.’s Volley (click the image for larger view):

Looking at all the volleys i knew there was nothing more illustrative that I could add. I really wanted to find a way to bring the girls into the action. With the pirates and the space pirates closing in I thought it was time for the girls to catch a ride to their next adventure. That quote about imagination is by Jules de Gautier.

Filed under: Art, Design, New Media, Technology

Filed under: Guest Bloggers, Marketing, Musings

We challenged America to submit to be the IMA’s next top blogger and America answered.  Over the course of the next month, we’ll post the finalists in the IMA’s “So You Think You Can Blog” contest. After we’ve posted all five entries, we’ll let our blog readers vote for the winner. This week: Meet Crystal Hammon.

If I want to become part of the IMA’s blogging team (and I do), I’m supposed to write something about myself and the best anecdote or experience I had at the museum.

What is best? Best for you to read or best for me to have? I don’t know. It’s all been good. So I’ll just give you my top five experiences and let you decide what’s best. Let’s save the boring bio stuff for the end. I’ll try not to make it too boring, yet totally true. Have you noticed how easily people brag/exaggerate in their online bios? Everybody is a guru of something. Not me. But we’ll talk about that later. Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: Guest Bloggers, Marketing, Musings

We challenged America to submit to be the IMA’s next top blogger and America answered.  Over the course of the next month, we’ll post the finalists in the IMA’s “So You Think You Can Blog” contest. After we’ve posted all five entries, we’ll let our blog readers vote for the winner. First up: Meet Jessica Hancock.

Tell Us A Little About Yourself:

Well, hello!  My name is Jessica Hancock and you’ve asked me to tell you a little about myself.  This is always a struggle as it’s easier to do in person, but the point of a “blogger” is to be as electronically-concise and as catchy as possible.  So, here goes…

I was born and raised in an Indianapolis suburb boasting mansions and cornfields, which did suit me well until I realized the world was a bigger place. Yep, it really is.  I convinced myself to pick up and study abroad in Londontown where my cultural education was based solely on gallery-hopping, pint-gulping and boarding cheap airlines to other countries, all while scraping the bottom of my bank account to mere pennies. ‘Twas a time! Fast forward through college, I am now a fundraiser by occupational trade and love being involved in the local community.  I’m stoked to say that, at the ripe age of 27, I proudly serve on two local Boards – Bicycle Indiana and more recently, I was invited to serve on the Earth House Collective Board.  How do I spend my time, you ask?  Easy. Picture me attending a smattering of as many live concerts as possible, traveling traveling traveling, monthly volunteering at the IMA, drinking copious amounts of black tea with cream & sugar, riding my bikes aimlessly through the streets of Indy and dallying about my new house.  I became a home owner this summer!  I count my blessings daily and never have forgotten where I came from [ahem, the sticks of Boone County]. Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: Guest Bloggers, Marketing, Musings