I moved to Indianapolis in 2001, after graduating from Indiana University. I always enjoyed cooking and eating out, but would acknowledge that my interests and tastes have changed over the years immediately following college, pre-kids, and with kids.
From a cooking perspective, I remember growing up, that I had an interest in cooking and creating cool menu items. My sister and I would play "restaurant" (only, our "game" was actually building outdoor restaurants, cooking real food, creating menus, and serving our parents. Additionally a childhood friend of mine and I would create "feasts" by whipping up various items (and related messes).
I would say I took a break from interesting food during college (standard dorm food, hamburger helper, ramen noodles, whatever was cheap). Dining out was a rare treat, excluding over consumption of delivery pizzas.
In 2001, I moved to Indianapolis and started my career at Eli Lilly. I can't remember too much culinary or cooking excitement in the first few years, but things changed when I joined the international audit team and started traveling globally fairly heavily.
I've always been a bit of an adventurist. If you know the Enneagram, I am a 7/8: the personality type precludes me to have many hobbies, interests, and spontaneity. I could fill the remainder of this blog article with all of my hobbies and adventures over the years, but I would say my culinary interests started to change with my international travel.
(left to right starting top left: 1. Street wine tasting in Florence Italy. 2. audit team lunch at a cafe in Himenji, Japan 3. Weekend scuba diving in the Phillipines, 4. volunteer trip team at Macchu Pichu, 5. audit team dinner in Bad Homburg Germany, 6. volunteer spot Centro Medico Parroquial (health clinica) in San Martin De Porres, an impoverished community outside of Lima, Peru.)
As I had the privilege to travel to various countries (for work) and take time to immerse myself into the food and culture, I ended trying about anything and everything, and then bringing elements back to throw dinner parties with friends. Later, I started traveling with my wife to some of these same places.
(left to right: Shabu Shabu in Japan on a work trip, "Taste of Turkey" dinner party with friends, Rome with Rachel on my honeymoon at a cafe outside of the Pantheon)
Did I eat a guinea pig in Lima, Peru on a work volunteer trip? Yes. Did it look appetizing? No! Did it taste like pulled pork? Yes. This was all part of the adventure (...and incase you are wondering. No, I won't rush back to order another. You can't un-see the look of terror that little guy had before being flash fried.)
1 order of guinea pig, garnished with split potatoes and some lettuce/tomatoes
Fast forward to 2021 - why am I taking time out of my business and family schedule to blog about food? Likely because it is one of my few hobbies that has persisted the test of time (through my 20's, 30's, kids, and early 40's). Food brings people together - work teams, families, extended families, volunteers, church members, and beyond. At it's core, food is essentially required nutrition to sustain life. If done right, it can also be an experience, a conversation starter, and a ticket to new experiences, places, and cultures.
While my days of international travel and exploring the world have become more intermittent (thanks to young kids and a global pandemic), that doesn't mean the exploration and new experiences must stop/slow.
I'll be using this platform to focus on local community (Indianapolis/Indiana/the midwest) and occasionally wherever my intermittent travels may take me.
Feel free to subscribe and engage in comments with me if you have any questions. Come join me virtually on my culinary adventures.
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