@JoelECarlson – Hello everyone, and welcome to the Food-Friday Twitterview of @StephMarch. Set your timers to 1hr and lets get cooking!
Q – #1 So @stephmarch, where did you grow up and what led you to doing the work that you do today?
A: I am a Minny girl, from the Orono area, and I guess I am just always hungry.
Q – #2 Obviously by your Twitter Avatar image, you are in the food business. What kind of work specifically do you do?
A: I am currently the food editor for MSP Magazine and I have a radio show on MyTalk 107.1 called Weekly Dish.
Q – #3 So for the @MSPmag, are you given assignments as to places to check out, or do you do your own “hunting”?
A: I am the one who doles out the assignments, which means that I am rabidly watching all media for mentions of new places.
Q – #4 Ah! So do you work then with @DeRushaEats & @FreshTartSteph? Any new trends in restaurants in MSP right now?
A: wow. Nice gaffe :) While I love and appreciate those cats, they write for “the competition”. I’m at @MSPMag.
As for trends, it seems to be all about cassoulet, agnolotti and octopus right now. And you can bet the small plate revolution
going to keep on keeping on. Plus I think you’ll see other cities grasping more in the way we do. And bourbon, It’s all about bourbon
Q – #5 OOOPS! My sincere apologies to you and @MSPmag. :) Any trends that you’ve seen locally that will continue?
A: Hakuna matata! I also think you’ll see a lot more cross-collaboration between restos. Like when @ScottPampuch cooked at
The Local the other night. This generation of chef buddies that’s currently at the stoves all like to hang and travel together,
despite the different employers. It’s going to be a fun ride over the next couple of years.
Q – #6 What do you see or envision with the coffee shop & cupcake scenes? Will they continue to grow?
A: I think the coffee scene is blooming right now, what with all the fiends doing one-cup brewing. I’m a fan. So I think
we’ll still see growth there, but not hugely like Starbux, because it’s anti-commodity. Cupcakes aren’t dead, but might
have a little while longer. They’re fun, but places like @patisserie46 and Solveig’s new Sun Street breads will lead a new level of
baking in town. Also, donuts are the next cupcakes.
Q – #7 I’ve tried @YoYoDonuts and they are fabulous! Now your Favorite: casual restaurant, store, winter activity & grocery.
A: Picking a fave resto is like choosing a fave kid (of which I have 4), but I will say that I like burgers at Lion’s Tap
and I’m enamored with the pizza @PizzeriaLola and I can’t stop thinking about the dry rub wings @ PsychoSuzis. Winter is for braising
and dark beer drinking. Although I am known to road run in the snow to keep the size of my butt manageable. Grocery is a toughie, I
stop at a lot of places to get what I want, and yes I buy giant pork shoulders at costco so that I can have pulled pork for days, but
I’m a Kowalski’s fan, but more often frequent Lunds.
Q – #8 How have you found the use of Social Media for getting your thoughts, ideas and views out to your audience to be?
A: I luff it. I am ridiculously addicted to the twitter and I think it brings foodies, especially, close together. I love
when people tweet about what they’ve eaten, it helps give a good understanding of what restos are doing from the eaters perspective
My fam gets a little annoyed when I tweet during dinner, but whatevs. I think the conversations about food are fresh and driven by
hunger and passion and heart. You don’t find that in a lot of industries. Nobody in carpentry is tweeting about carving, are they?
Q – #9 Ah, I don’t think so. The foodies literally talk from their gut right? :) Any advice for future food writer/reviewers?
A: Food writers/reviewers need some credibility, I think, so I’d say get your butt in a resto job at least once. You can’t
really measure a place unless you’ve been in their shoes in some way shape or form. Also, eat everything. If you don’t think you like
shrimp or bleu cheese, eat it at least 10 times. And then keep trying it. Breaking into the paid world of food writing is super hard
you have to make connections and be out there with a real and unique voice. So keep tweeting and meeting and eating. Sorry :)
@JoelECarlson – Good advice from someone that knows! Thank you very much @stephmarch for your time and insights today. Have a great evening!
@StephMarch – Cheers! Off to Happy Hour!!! With Bourbon!