My Newest Category: Chefs and Restaurants

Pictured at left, cheeses from River Cafe & Cheese Shop. Which brings me to my newest category: "Chefs and Restaurants."

Back in August of 2005, Sam Breach of Becks & Posh asked fellow food bloggers participating in the Eat Local Challenge if anyone had a list of restaurants that were serving local food products. Well, that got me to thinking, and I started asking my farmer friends which restaurants they sold to. I started making a list at my food forum, MouthfulsFood.com.

But I wanted to see these places on a map. I admired the map technology that Adam uses at SliceNY, but didn't want to learn a new programming language: the blog stuff has been challenging enough. Happily, Adam pointed me to Platial.com, where a user can customize a map to her heart's content. (I am a map geek/lover/fiend. I love maps.)

So with no further ado, welcome to the Chefs & Farms map that I've started. It doesn't operate exactly as I would have it, and it's a work in progress, but...but...it works! There are currently five pages, and counting, of restaurants and farms and artisanal food purveyors who support local farms. By clicking a page number, the markers are revealed: they don't all show up at once, alas. But I will be adding city names to the restaurants...for now, I added San Francisco places first, so those places will always be on the very last pages. Restaurants are tagged with "supports local farms" if I know them to either buy directly from my farmer friends, or if I know their reputation. Mentioning "organic" anything on a restaurant website also garners inclusion on the map.

I'll get around to the rest of the world someday...heh. (Let me know the names and URLs of any farms or restaurants or shops that would qualify. I'm still learning how the Google technology works, and not every farm is listed by address, unfortunately.)

. . . . . . . . . . .

Yesterday turned up a fantastic blog that is my current pick for "maybe the food best blog I've ever seen." Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Harriet's Tomato. Not only because of Michele's education and intelligence, but for the diverse content. Fiddlehead risotto, anyone? Plus I am a fool for quotations (perhaps you've noticed), and she dresses them up with groovy graphics. I'm officially jealous: why didn't I think of that? And then there's the Louis Prima, Ella Fitzgerald, and Andrews Sisters in the sidebar. Swoon.

. . . . . . . . . . .

Back to work with me now. Check out the map?

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: "I have an existential map. It has 'You are here' written all over it." —Steven Wright

Thanks for visiting.

Comments

[sam]

love the map idea - great.
and thanks for the link to Harriet's Tomato too!

[mary g]

I'm with you and Mr. Lucky on the martini question: gin, and no excuses. And not (as I was once served it in a country-western bar) on the rocks.

[mrs D]

That map thing is nifty!

And -- perfect timing too -- I just started working on a list of local producers and products for the San Juans. I was planning on just putting up a page of links, but a map to go with would be excellent! Great find!

[farmgirl]

Your map is fabulous. Bravo on (yet another) job from the heart well done. But I couldn't find the Missouri listings :P.

And I almost got lost just now over in Harriett's Tomato. How appropriate that I landed there on her Wallace & Gromit post. I adore them! You are right--a wonderful blog. Much to delve into. Thanks for the link. I'll have to check out Mr. Lucky and the others later! xx : )