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THE INDUSTRY ISSUE
No. 9 — Fall 2021
For communities across the globe, restaurants offer a means of connection through a common language: food. But for the past 20 months (and counting), the industry has lived in uncertainty as the places we gathered closed their doors, workers lost their jobs, and weaknesses in our supply chains were exposed.
But this industry, and the people behind it, are tenacious, and there’s no going back to the way it was before. In The Industry Issue, we explore how the industry turned to support their communities and used this moment to fight for a better and more equitable future for workers, purveyors, farmers, fishermen and beyond.
In This Issue
Why These Walls Matter
By Erin Wade
A restaurateur reflects on how the struggle to save restaurants also threatens to kill them.
Making the Case for Regenerative Ranching
By Carly DeFilippo
Mainstream media—and even Michelin-starred chefs—have touted the environmental benefits of eliminating meat from our diets. But what if the ecological reality is far more complex?
Are Paris’ Bistros a Museum of Their Former Selves?
By Emily Monaco
Bistros were once a stalwart of the French capital, but as chefs grow more interested in trendy, contemporary fare, this classic establishment may be relegated to become a relic of its former self.
Louisville’s Grales Fights To Reopen and Reinvent
By Michael Butterworth
One Louisville craft beer bar and all-day café’s journey navigating closing and reopening during Covid, despite the lack of government assistance.
Truffles in Turmoil
By Rebecca Ann Hughes
White truffles are becoming even more of a rarity as global warming damages their habitat.
Dinner, Disembodied
By Nicole Grennan
As apps increasingly replace humans in purchasing and ordering food, restaurant and delivery workers risk being entirely dislodged from our collective consciousness, a process that disembodies the people responsible for feeding us.
“You could have a good year, followed by several bad years. By telling the story of the ranchers and incentivizing organic practices, we have allowed family farmers to look their children in the eye and say, ‘I can give this ranch to you.’”
— Kay Cornelius, “Making the Case for Regenerative Ranching”
Artisan Fishermen Reconnect Argentina to Its Oceans
By Kevin Vaughn
Independent fishermen have always fed Argentina—until an industry for export pushed them to the margins. Today, they struggle to reclaim control of their oceans.
Honoring Locality with Bell’s
By Rebecca Roland
In Los Alamos, Bell’s honors its Santa Ynez Valley roots through their commitment to local farmers and involvement in the community.
If You Build It, They Will Come
By Rebecca Roland
At Bell’s in Los Alamos, Greg and Daisy Ryan empower their staff through creating a new kind of kitchen culture.
Voices from the Food Supply Chain
By Ferron Salniker
We talk to a farmer, foodservice distributor and chef about the challenges they still face getting food to the plate.
The Challenges of Serving Indigenous Cuisine in Alaska
By Bailey Berg
In Alaska, the absence of Indigenous restaurants is a result of food scarcity, unique laws, and the protecting of tradition.
“The very things we keep doing to meet our customers digitally are making restaurants even more replaceable by what is most disrupting us. We may be trading away what has defined restaurants as a social institution and surrendering what a grieving world most needs from us now.”
— Erin Wade, “Why These Walls Matter”
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