Do It.

Whitney over at Rookie Cookie and I chatted thru e-mail a few weeks ago about eating local. About how unfortunate it is that people in Utah are all-the-rage for big trendy chain restaurants, and local restaurants with incredible food go unnoticed and unsupported. She's challenging her readers (because she has some) to eat local. I will too. Eat, that is.

She has a nice list of locally owned restaurants. I'll add my own:

Mi Rancherito in Spanish Fork

Red Iguana in SLC

Eva's in SLC

Sweet Tooth Fairy in Provo

Osaka in Provo

Diamond Grill in Salem

BOMBay House in Provo and SLC (BOMB intentional)

Thai Chile Garden in Orem

Please leave me a comment if you have other recommendations :D

I also want to add a little promo for local produce. I'm fortunate enough to have red-meat-eating parents and a cattle-farmer grandpa. I've grow up on farm-raised, grass-fed, organic beef my whole life. If we weren't eating beef we were eating fresh farm-raised lamb, or wild elk. For a lot of people, this sounds creepy and wierd. For me, I know the difference in taste and quality between grass-fed meat and corn-fed meat. And also the quality of life for the animal. Its a huge difference, believe me. So I'm lucky to have a freezer full of fresh beef. I know where it came from, and I know what it ate, and I feel good feeding it to my family.

I've also fallen in love with Verd's, a tiny local market down the street that carry's a ton of local produce. We've eaten local nectarines, peaches, grapes, raspberries, chiles, peppers, tomatoes, onions, peas, green beans, watermelon, and canteloupe all summer. I love going there. I will be so sad when it closes for winter.

I also picked up this at the bookstore. So excited. I love him.