I’ve decided to post my various publications to this blog for my organization and your enjoyment.

Originally printed in the Scarlet and Black and online at http://www.thesandb.com/community/rewarding-relish.html

Rewarding Relish

A meal at Relish, located at 834 Park St., is simultaneously steeped in local farm flavors and touches of fine dining.

The menu offers a variety of tantalizing choices, from excellent cuts of meat and fresh fish to sandwiches and other vegetarian options. Though Relish is admittedly one of the more expensive restaurants in town, it uses fantastically fresh and local ingredients and the meals are expertly cooked. Lunch provides many of the same options as dinner at a lower price, so definitely consider lunch as an option. It is tough to choose among the many enjoyable options at Relish, but some of the consistent favorites are the Relish Burger, the Chickpea Burger and the Kofta Kabob. Those looking for dessert should definitely check out the Chocolate Oblivion and Chef Kamal’s secret recipe homemade Baklava.

Relish is definitely a unique venue with a cozy feel. The homey setting is offset by touches of worldly influence, from the Mediterranean-inspired color scheme inside to the music and unique dishes that accompany one’s meal. Most of the tables are set to seat around four, with a good number of tables for two and a few tables set up for larger groups. There is a small patio section in front of Relish as well, which is ideal on a nice day.

To get an idea of the eating experience at Relish, I dropped in for lunch this past week. I started with a small house salad and a bowl of soup with bread. The salad came out first and certainly cemented Relish’s reputation for using local ingredients. Every bit of the salad was fresh and the tomatoes actually came out of the garden in back; that is about as local as food can get. The soup and bread were also superb. The soup du jour was a Cuban Black Bean soup. It was a great balance of spice and flavor, and felt quite substantial for a simple bowl of soup. The bread accompanying the soup was homemade and had great taste and texture.

After my rounds of appetizers, I began my main course: Relish’s Chickpea Burger with avocado spread, accompanied by a side of potato medallions. Quite honestly, this is among the best chickpea burgers I have ever tasted. It had excellent texture and benefited from a superb blend of spices that added flavor without overpowering the rest of the burger. The side of potato medallions was surprisingly outstanding; the potatoes had crispy skins and plenty of flavor and crunch that was a nice contrast to the burger. The burger was adorned with an avocado spread that melded superbly with the burger and the bun and added a delectable and subtle aftertaste as the spices from the burger faded. Factor in a phenomenal bun, fresh tomato, lettuce and onion, and a scrumptious side, and this burger is a winner.

Relish is ideal for smaller groups, but can easily accommodate a large group in the main dining room with enough notice. For those looking for an interesting, worldly meal with an infusion of local ingredients, Relish is exactly the place to be. The atmosphere lends itself to great meals and conversation, and the cooking is fantastic. Relish is ready to be relished!

I’ve decided to post my various publications to this blog for my organization and your enjoyment.

Originally printed in the Scarlet and Black and online at http://www.thesandb.com/community/arts-council-to-host-raku-workshop.html

Arts Council to host Raku workshop

In the middle of downtown Grinnell this weekend, an ancient Japanese art form will create incredibly unique pottery pieces. The art form is called Raku and it is a traditional style of pottery glazing that originated in 16th century Japan. This Saturday, attendees will be able to try it out and take home their own glazed pieces.

The Grinnell Area Arts Council (GAAC) is hosting a Raku Workshop this Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the downtown Grinnell Arts Center on 926 Broad St. Attendees will be able to purchase ceramic pots to glaze and have Raku-fired. Purchasing a pot includes all of the brushes and glazes needed to complete the glazing, in addition to the experience itself.

The process for attendees is relatively simple. One simply needs to show up, purchase a pot to glaze for $5-15, glaze the pot and hand it over to the event organizers.

“We bring two potters in from South Dakota, Tom and Wanda Clark, and they bring two kilns to do firings for the community,” said GAAC Arts Director Mary Rellergert ’13.

Raku is an interesting style of glazing because the results are relatively unpredictable.

“It uses both fire and smoke to create effects on the ceramic surface. You never know exactly how it will turn out, which is part of the fun,” Rellergert said.

Some of the most popular Raku glazes are an iridescent blend of earthy colors and a striking combination of black lines on white glaze caused by attaching horsehair to the surface before firing. While most pottery glazings take hours to complete and cool down, the Raku process is comparatively quick. The entire process of glazing and firing the pot should take less than three hours total. The pot can be taken home the same day as the event.

The Raku firings have been a popular event for the Grinnell Area Arts Council for a long time.

“It’s been a part of the community for over 10 years now,” Rellergert said, “This year, we’re expanding the event to include a silent auction component and a local art fair.”

The auction will include a range of impressive artwork from both past and present community members. Other attractions at the art fair include a face painting booth and a writing station with a resident of Grin City Collective.

The event will proceed rain or shine, and the activities will be tented in the event of showers. It is well worth taking a few hours out of one’s Saturday to see the Raku firings and participate. It is one of the most interesting art processes to see firsthand.

“You can watch them put the pot in the fire and watch it transform before your very eyes.  It’s pretty cool,” Rellergert said.

I’ve decided to post my various publications to this blog for my organization and your enjoyment.

Originally printed in the Scarlet and Black and online at http://www.thesandb.com/opinion/mistry-makes-meals.html

This piece is from my bi-weekly column, “Better Know A Dining Hall”

Mistry Makes Meals

The Dining Hall has more to offer than the options you’ll find listed on the menu. There are countless ingredient options and permutations of your favorite foods that can yield deliciously delightful dishes. With a little bit more work, some creativity and plentiful use of the various ingredients scattered throughout the Dining Hall, every meal becomes an adventure. You will never have to complain that there is nothing good to eat at a particular meal. With practice, you’ll begin to see unique combinations each time you seek out food and you will soon create a plethora of amazing meals. We’ll get started with an easy dish to make at every meal.

Breakfast can be notoriously difficult to find something new to eat. If the Eggs-to-Order line seems longer than your most boring class, you’re not going to want to get eggs. This usually leaves bagels, pastries, cereal, waffles and the occasional plat du jour item. While these options can be pretty enjoyable, day after day of the same item can get tedious. I suggest making a little something I call Power Oatmeal. I like to start by grabbing a large bowl (the ones for stir-fry vegetables hold the most volume) and filling it about halfway with oatmeal. Skip over to the area to the right of pizza that has the peanut butter and cream cheese. Add in a large scoop of peanut butter, a small dollop of cream cheese, and a generous squeeze of honey. Next, head over to the microwave and spice rack. I add cinnamon (tons!), nutmeg, cinnamon sugar and a pinch of kosher salt, then I toss it into the microwave for about 30-40 seconds. The honey will boil and melt the cream cheese and peanut butter. Remove the (HOT) bowl from the microwave, stir until the ingredients are well mixed. At this point, you can enjoy your deliciously nutritious oatmeal, but I like to add a scoop of vanilla yogurt to the mix for added creaminess. Another great add-in is fruit from the waffle bar; have them toss in some fruit while the waffles are cooking. This is a simple, quick dish that will get you through all of your morning classes and also tastes delicious.

Lunch is a tricky time to navigate the Dining Hall. Most of us have a more limited time schedule during lunch, so finding food quickly is key. This time, we’ll make a delicious bagel pizza. Start by grabbing a small bowl from the stir fry station and take it over to the quick pasta line; have them fill it with marinara sauce. Snag a bagel and toast it while you add a touch of cream cheese to your marinara. Grab your toasted bagel and head over to the salad bar for toppings. I like to add fresh spinach, peppers, mushrooms and a sprinkling of cheese to my bagel pizza. Take your ingredients over to the microwave area and assemble your two bagel halves into pizzas. I layer it (from bottom to top): bagel, sauce, vegetable toppings, sauce, cheese and seasonings. I season my pizzas with the Italian seasonings, chili powder and cajun spices. Microwave for about 20-30 seconds and enjoy! This is quick, easy and scrumptious.

Dinner is a great time to relax and explore the Dining Hall for ingredients and combinations. One of my favorites is a Baked Ziti Doppelganger. It’s surprisingly easy to create. Snag a bowl of marinara sauce and a bowl of pasta from the pasta bar. Add a large spoonful of cream cheese, a scoop of mozzarella cheese, two small spoons of balsamic vinegar (by salad bar) and some Italian seasonings to your marinara sauce, then microwave for about 20 seconds. Mix thoroughly and pour over the pasta. Enjoy the happiness that comes with a delicious pasta sauce.

The Dining Hall is a playground, filled with ingredients just ready to be made into amazing dishes. If you think about what you are eating, if you take the time to craft something worth indulging in, if you make every meal a masterpiece, then your life will be better for it. Don’t just eat to live, live to eat. You stay classy, Grinnell.

Picture by the incredible John Brady (bradyjoh@grinnell.edu)

I’ve decided to post my various publications to this blog for my organization and your enjoyment.

Originally printed in the Scarlet and Black and online at http://www.thesandb.com/community/mcnallys-moves-on-main.html

McNally’s Moves On Main

McNally’s Foods, a downtown Grinnell staple for decades, has opened a new location on the corner of 6th Avenue and Main Street. The new store contains more merchandise, a seating area and an expanded deli with hot food options. With an old-school, local grocer atmosphere coupled with modern amenities and services, the new McNally’s is proving to be an exciting change to Grinnell’s Main Street.

It has been quite a journey over the past few months for owners Randy and Julie Smith. The couple decided to move last winter when their landlord at the previous location decided to double the rent.

“We saw that we either had to move or quit,” Mr. Smith said.

They debated the different options and concluded that they wanted to keep running McNally’s, one way or another.

“We knew we wanted to continue to serve the community. We decided that staying in that location was not in the best interest of the store, ourselves or our employees, so we decided to see what else was available,” Ms. Smith said.

As luck would have it, an ideal space had opened up across the street.

“It’s almost like it was meant to be,” Mr. Smith said. “When we took our sign off of our old building and put it on this building, it just fit perfectly and looked so much better. It was like it was made for this building, not our old one.”

With a new space chosen and a move imminent, the Smiths set about designing their new store.

“Basically, we sat down with a piece of paper and thought about if we could design our dream store, what would we put in it?” Ms. Smith said.

This led to a relatively simple drawing they still keep in the business’s office, a drawing that closely resembles the new McNally’s. They then worked with a designer to transform their ideas into the blueprints of the space.

With only a few months left to plan and move their store, the Smiths had to act quickly. Luckily, everything started to fall into place with teams of engineers, contractors and suppliers working together to get the new space set for opening.

As they built into and refinished the new space, the Smiths encountered some hidden details that made the space an even more perfect fit.

“As the electricians started working in the drop ceiling, they found some of the original trusses. We thought they were so beautiful and went with the spirit of the building that we thought it would be a shame to keep them hidden,” Ms. Smith said.

The trusses add to the old-time environment that the new McNally’s has cultivated.

Another key component of this atmosphere is the featured showpiece: a 1922 Model T “Huckster” that sits just inside the entryway. The Model T is a throwback to the original use of the space as a Ford dealership back in the 1920s.

The old car is not just for show either.

“It actually runs. We drove around town, honked the horn, and drove it into the store,” Ms. Smith said.

The final move over was an experience in and of itself.

“The Sunday before we moved, we started taking things over in carts and everyone got involved. We had all sorts of people here. We had lots of community members here, we had students, we even had the mayor here,” Ms. Smith said.

The move took about two days, and then the Smiths placed a huge order with their supplier to fill in the remaining shelves with new items.

So far, the new store setup and its many amenities are proving popular with students, especially the seating area in the front where customers can enjoy food and drinks.

“I love the new store, I just feel so comfortable there. I can see myself studying and relaxing there, especially with that new eating area,” said Kristina De La Torre ’14.

Will Ewing ’15 agreed.

“I like how it’s clean and modern. Everything is so much easier to find and I like that new seating area. It makes me want to buy more food, just so I can eat there.”

This was quite a productive day! Despite not having class, I managed to accomplish a ton of small projects in addition to my homework.

On my History MAP Project, I met with Professor Purcell again today to discuss my ever-growing to-do list. Besides discussing where my focus will be, we also examined some topics that I will be studying alongside the project, specifically collecting oral histories and examining the digital humanities. I’m excited to begin the hard research for my project this week, which includes delving into the master building plans for the College over the past decade and a half.

I also had a swim captain’s meeting today. We are gearing up to have an awesome season and discussed community service, plans for the Alumni Meet, and suit possibilities. It’s going to be a great experience and I know that the hard work will pay off.

Next, I completed a ton of  projects and poster drafts for my Wellness Technology Internship. I’ve been doing research into heart rate variability monitors and other wellness technologies to see how we can incorporate it into our wellness programs at Grinnell. I also created a digital form for alcohol-related incidents to replace a paper version. This should allow the Wellness Department and Residence Life to better quantify the data they examine and observe trends. This should be helpful for us to create more targeted educational programming to prevent incidents from occurring.

Finally, I completed some design projects for various groups around campus. My main goal with poster designs are to make them eye-catching and easily readable.

All in all, a good day! Enjoy the poster design drafts below!