Real Food Traveler

No, we’re not proposing you drink your way across Santa Fe, New Mexico. Not really, anyway. But we do suggest you take advantage of the Margarita Trail program that enables you to try unique, hand-crafted Margaritas (in a very responsible way), at different restaurants and bars. Each Margarita has been conceived of to show off the personality, tastes, and vibe of the place serving it. So in that way, it’s a unique way to experience Santa Fe’s food and beverage/restaurant and bar scene – authentic cuisine you can sip!     Hungry for more? Hop on the Margarita Trail while you’re in town for the Santa Fe Opera! See what is in the schedule for 2020, plus some other things to do while you’re there.

Old Salem, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina is this wonderful, unique slice of life (and history) that combines living history with regular, every day life! We wrote about our visit to Winston-Salem which included some time we spent in Old Salem. Learn more about the Moravian culture and the rich history in Old Salem in addition to what awaits you when you go, and when the best times of the year are to visit. Here’s the link to our Editor’s Pick article, Weekend in Winston-Salem. Meet Martha Hartley, Director of Moravian Research and Co-Chair, Hidden Town Project, Old Salem Museums & Gardens in North Carolina. To learn more about Old Salem and the Moravian culture, visit their website, here.     The crafts people have examples of wood turning that they are working on, for people to see such as spindles for chairs or stair railings.   Balls of cookie dough to roll out and bake for customers at Winkler Bakery in Old Salem.

It started with some sips of whiskey around the family table. For Bev Heising, her husband, and adult kids, a simple “what if” became a thriving distillery business on an island off of the state of Washington. Listen to my conversation with Bev about the process of starting Whidbey Island Distillery, what life is like there, and what you’re in for when you visit.     Hungry for more? Listen to our podcast with the Chief Bee Wrangler on neighboring Camano Island, and one about the Organic Farm School on Whidbey Island which is growing future farmers, as well as food.

You know the old saying: “Birds of a feather flock together”? It certainly applies to the great Crane Migration is one of the major animal migrations in the world. How lucky for those of us who live in the U.S. that it comes straight up through the middle of the country, giving so many of us the opportunity to experience this natural wonder. We spoke with Nebraska’s Director of Conservation Research at the Crane Trust, Andrew Caven. He has a front row seat to the migration every year, and studies the birds year ’round. There’s a lot more to the event than just seeing a bunch of birds. Andrew tells us about the work of the Crane Trust, why Nebraska has been a favorite stopover for the birds (you won’t believe how long this has been going on), and some of the birds’ unique behaviors, including how they romance each other. Photo courtesy of the Crane Trust.

Chef Shahin Afsharian, currently living, working and discovering the food scene in Savannah, Georgia. Whenever we visit a new place or move to a new city, part of the thrill is getting to know the restaurant scene. Imagine, then, what it’s like to be a chef who has lived all over the world, getting to know the food scene – with an insider’s perspective! We spoke to Chef Shahin Afsharian who recently moved to Savannah, Georgia and is happily getting to know knew ingredients, new methods, new people and new restaurants. Listen in on my conversation with him about what it’s like to be a foodie, exploring the foods of the world.

Dr. Jennifer Short of Camano Island Honey. You’ve heard of beekeepers, but have you ever met a Chief Bee Wrangler? That’s what Dr. Jennifer Short, DVM, MBA is. Camano Island Honey at Sanctuary Farms Apiary on Camano Island in the Pacific Northwest is ensuring the health, success, and purpose of bees. And she’s helping other people do it to. There has been a lot of “buzz” about the importance of bees in the world today. I had a really interesting and informative talk with Dr. Short about the whole bee scene and learned a lot. I bet you will too. Take a listen. A nice summer day at Camano Island Honey. Photo by Dr. Jennifer Short.

How do we get our food? Farmers are an enormous part of that answer. Important as the industry is, the number of farmers is dwindling. That’s where the Organic Farm School comes in. Meet Judy Feldman, Executive Director of the program. Let’s talk farming and the future. Learn more about the Organic Farm School on their website, here.

Wisconsin is cheese country. But it isn’t about mass quantities for the masses. It’s also about the art of making it. When we visited, we met a man who has made cheese his life, building a business (and the building that houses it), while pursuing the art of cheesemaking in Door County, Wisconsin. Meet the owner of Door Artisan Cheese Company,  Mike Brennenstuhl, who we talked to about pursuing dreams later in life and the extent he went to provide excellent cheese experiences.   After listening to this podcast, you’re going to want to visit Door County. Here are a couple of RealFoodTraveler.com articles that will help you plan your trip: Three Perfect Days in Door County, Wisconsin and Al Johnson’s Swedish Restaurant.

We’ve heard the name, of course, and even had it several times in restaurants. But we really didn’t know what it meant in terms of what the cow is like, what it means in terms of raising them and feeding them. And, since it is something of a delicacy, and more expensive than regular beef, we wanted to know how to prepare it well at home and how to order it well at a restaurant. So, what’s Wagyu Beef all about? All of this Wagyu curiosity was prompted by an annual event at Angel Fire Resort in Angle Fire, New Mexico, called the Wine & Wagyu Weekend. In 2018, it takes place August 24-26. Visit our main article to get details about it. But to learn more about the main focus of the event, the beef, we had a chat with two folks from the ranch supplying the beef, A Bar N Ranch, Katie Bolner and Chef Al. Take a listen and learn about this very special beef and a very special event honoring it. What’s Wagyu Beef? It’s more than just a name. It’s a way of ranching, and eating.

Hot Springs is not just a name for the destination in Arkansas. It’s a vast history – geological, social, economic, and more. Recently, we got a glimpse into what a perfect day would be in Hot Springs from writer Jamie Siebrase. And we found out about the unique ingredient to be found in the beer. We found it so interesting, we called up Tom Hill, Museum Curator for Hot Springs National Park and asked him to tell us more about what makes Hot Springs such a great place to visit. Stay tuned for an upcoming article about Hot Springs’ very unique beer scene! Tom sent along a few photos from what it was like inside some of the bath houses. The photos are National Park Service images, courtesy of Hot Springs National Park.     We have more podcasts for you to enjoy from RealFoodTraveler.com journeys. Enjoy them here and be sure to subscribe on iTunes.

It’s so easy to love Carmel-by-the-Sea and Hofsas House Hotel. Photo by Courtney Drake-McDonough. In our expanded post about Carmel-by-the-Sea, we said that visiting Carmel is like coming home, even if you’ve never been there before. It’s such a charming, small-scale, safe, friendly place. Part of that feeling of “home” comes from where you call your home base during your stay. For us, that was the utterly charming Hofsas House Hotel. Pretty in pink, European, and just a short walk to the core of the village and to the ocean with white sand beaches, it’s ideal. We spoke to Carrie Theis, one of the owners and the general manager of Hofsas House, about Carmel-by-the-Sea. She told us some very interesting tidbits about the village including why none of the houses have street addresses, why the whole place feels like it’s right out of a fairy tale and the artistic roots of Carmel. She also tells us more about Hofsas House including her childhood memories of this family-run hotel. Carrie provides a wonderful prev

Paola Legarre, owner of Sage Creations Organic Farm in her beautiful lavender fields in Palisade, Colorado. Lavender plants have a long and storied past. They have been used for centuries for food, health and beauty purposes. And beautiful it is, in varying shades of blue, growing in mounds in vast fields. Colorado will host its annual Lavender Festival June 29-July 1, 2018 in Grand Junction, on the Western Slope of the Rocky Mountains. Learn more about the festival, the plant’s history and what it’s like to grow lavender in our latest podcast. Our guest this time is Paola Legarre, owner of Sage Creations Organic Farm. Learn more about Paola and her farm on her blog:  https://sagecreationsorganicfarm.com/category/blog/

Devil’s Thumb Ranch is only about an hour outside of Denver, yet the Colorado ranch feels a world away. It’s the perfect place to get in touch with your inner cowboy or cowgirl (that you might not have known was lurking). You can read more about it, here. We had the opportunity to sit down with former Executive Chef Josh Bettis who, relatively new to the Ranch and to Colorado, is responsible for a staggering amount of meals in the Devil’s Thumb Ranch family of eateries. After our chat for this podcast, Chef Bettis took me into the kitchen to show us how he and his team assemble a pretty darned amazing steak dinner. He also threw in some great meat-cooking tips we can use, whether grilling outside or in a cast iron skillet as he was. Check out the video, here.

Typically, when one wants to have a camping experience, they need to hit the road, head to the hills or otherwise be pretty isolated from the rest of civilization. But there’s a new type of camping area, just minutes from the heart of Savannah, Georgia that allows people to get in some wilderness time (with leanings toward glamping), yet take in some shopping, strolling and dining in the city, nearby. Listen to this podcast to get to know CreekFire Motor Ranch. Beautiful trees, sprawling expanses of grass and a lake ringed with a path are at the heart of CreekFire Motor Ranch.     — Courtney Drake-McDonough, Managing Editor, www.RealFoodTraveler.com   Get another glimpse of CreekFire Motor Ranch, here.

When Lia Huber came to town on her book tour, I was so ready to meet her! I’d gotten a good start on her book, “NOURISHED: A Memoir of Food, Faith & Enduring Love (with Recipes),” and loved it. She did such a wonderful job of describing her travels, her issues and the food she experienced that I felt like I was right along with her. We met at a coffee house downtown, with construction trucks all around. Turns out, those background sounds would become part of the story. Get to know Lia Huber and her book along with me. And be sure to learn more about her book and get a delicious recipe, in our article, too. — Courtney Drake-McDonough, Managing Editor, www.RealFoodTraveler.com