For a chef, where food comes from is a very important thing. I was lucky. I grew up surrounded by farms in Nebraska, and my father was a vocational agriculture teacher. Food production from the farm to the table was a natural thing for me. In fact, my senior year of high school, I was president of our Future Farmers of America chapter.

Lots of other people don’t have that same country background. That is one reason why I love Farmer’s Markets so much. It is an opportunity to meet the people responsible for local food production, taste what comes from the ground locally, and connect with the community as a whole. From the perspective of a Campus Cooks chef, I’m gathering ideas, making new contacts within the food community, and thinking about what products might work for the guys in my house.

Over the last two semesters I’ve gotten a good idea of what my clients like and don’t like. I have a very good idea of what they’ll be interested in seeing
on their menu the next week. So, as I walk the Farmer’s Market, I’m not just thinking about what I’ll take home to feed my family. I’m thinking about the jams and jellies. I’m looking for local honey. I’m wondering if an herb garden outside of my kitchen would work. You see, a chef might be in and out of a kitchen, but we’re always thinking about the people we feed. Being a chef isn’t so much a job as it is a life. New recipes, local ingredients, fresh presentations. It is all on our minds all the time.

Good Food. Interesting people. Even a little free entertainment. What more could you ask for on a beautiful, spring Saturday morning?

The content for this blog came from Chef David at University of Arkansas.