Good morning everyone. Today’s special guest is the Senior Food Editor at @MNMOmag, @DearDara. Set your timer to 1hr and lets begin.

Dara:    let’s!

So @DearDara, tell us a little bit about yourself. Where did you grow up, go to school and what did you want to be as an adult?

Dara:    NYC, math-geek high school, and then came to MN for college, Carleton. Wanted to be: A writer! A cook. A writer! A cook…

How did you get into the food industry, and what kind of jobs did you have at first?

Dara:    Dishwasher! Started when I was 13, then worked my way up thru kitchen positions, ending as a sous & pastry (2 places)

I see. So when did you start transitioning to writing about food and restaurants? Did you have a blog?

Dara:    After college. & no, print, pre-blogging days…

Since critiquing people and the food that they make is such a personal thing, did you find it difficult at first to do?

Dara:    At first, yes. It’s rude to say people can’t cook! Six months of bad linguini in, it gets easier.

When then did you start working with @MNMOmag and what do your responsibilities cover?

Dara:    2008, food & wine writing.

I can imagine that you eat and taste a variety of foods. Do you have a style or ethnicity of food that you prefer?

Dara:    I like just about everything, really, hard to beat great Korean, French, Japanese, Italian… But a talented chef can

make anything great, ie Haute Dish’s revelatory 1980′s Midwest Americana.

In addition to all of the KINDS of food that you try, you probably eat/taste a lot of food. Is calorie counting tough?

Dara:    Not really-no problem w the wine either, neither gout nor hazleden seem to be on my horizon… Knock wood!!

Good! :) In addition to @MNMOmag, what other kind of publications and writing have you done or would you like to do?

Dara:    my book is Drink This, Wine Made Simple, & I write for Saveur, Bon Appetit, more.

Impressive! Besides food & wine, what other interests or hobbies do you get involved in? More book ideas on the way?

Dara:    I like hiking, walking, having children, and not going crazy. Museums & books help.

have another book in the works, but it’s top secret for now.

To close, what TC food events and openings are you looking forward to in 2012?

Dara:    So many! Just blogged a bunch at mnmo.com, but our food & wine show, chef challenge, butcher & boar..Thanks! Was fun!

Joel:    Thanks for your time and sharing some of your life on #MNMOtv today. Be sure to read her work at www.mnmo.com. Later!

You may have seen her on the Twin Cities based entertainment show “Twin Cities Live”.  You may have also heard her voice sharing celebrity pop-culture news on MyTalk 107.1 FM with a “Dirt Alert”.  What though are her interests? Who’s “Henry”? What’s it been like being a homeowner for the first time and what’s her decorating style? Find out answers to those questions and more by checking out the first part of this interview with Elizabeth Ries.

Hello everyone! Welcome to today’s @MNMOmag Twitterview with Stacie Clark of @TigerAthletics. Lets get running!

Tell us a little bit about yourself Stacie. Where did you grow up and go to school?

Stacie:    I went to college at Indiana University in Bloomington Indiana. But I call Minnesota “home”:)

I see. So when did you decide that you wanted to get into the training/workout business?

Stacie:    I’ve always been athletically inclined…loved sports and anything that had to do with working out.

So after college, I became certified and started training on the side and doing group classes, races,

I ended up having such a passion for it and life itself, I mean it is a “lifestyle”..that I decided

to do this full-time with my husband Chris Clark…LOVE IT!

So Tiger was born in 2005

That’s great to be able to share your passion with your husband! Did it take some courage to start your own Co?

Stacie:    ABSOLUTELY! A lot of hard work and passion…it’s a journey, but one well worth being traveled.

What was your orginal business plan as to what services you’d offer to the public?

Stacie:    The 1st biz plan was to originally offer classes and training for youth athletes ages 6-15yrs.

We have since expanded to over 20 youth/adult weekly class offering; summer FIT camps;

Mexico FIT adventures, private coaching, team coaching/training and more! You can now find us all over

the Twin Cities metro:) We are mobile so it’s generally easy to find us at one of our locations.

What would you say drives your passion to help people get or stay fit? Is mental coaching involved in what you do?

Stacie:    What drives my passion is seeing the joy of everyone’s success and seeing them move thru space…

so that’s a wide client base…but such a niche. It involves passion on our end just as much as the

physical ability and mental coaching aspect to motivate the audience we have.

If someone is thinking about starting on an exercise regiment for the 1st time. What do you recommend to start with?

Stacie:    From there, most people generally lack a cardio base/foundation and core training….so it’s our job

to assess and write a program that is realistic for them to handle and achieve with success. I always

like giving my clients “homework” to do on their own too. When they don’t do it, I know it…:)

More about you. Your FAVORITE: Place to run, restaurant, store, athletic gear, hobby other than exercise.

Stacie:    FAV places to run r: Mexico on beach & French Park in Plymouth…miles of trails. So beach + trails.

FAV restaurant: Kobe sushi Plymouth;my husband’s laughing b/c he says I need to say “Texas Roadhouse!”

FAV store: LOVE shopping in NY..fav is Zara, H&M, Barneys Coop…in my past life I was the

Fashion Director for Marshall Fields-turned-Macys..so I love Fashion. For me,what I wear has to be

functional as well…it’s my everyday outfit. I shop at Lululemon;looking cute is part of the job too!

Can you explain what MEXICO Fit is about and what you’re launching today?

Stacie:    Mexico FIT is a group trip we organize 2xs/yr; Feb and Nov. The great thing @ the trip is it makes you

want to train in advance and excel while your there. We train 2-3 hrs/day. You get results in just

4-5 days…then the last day we do an Adventure FIT race. U go beyond what u think u can do. Today we

we are launching 20+ classes geared towards youth & adult hi-energy fun, but result-oriented.

Sure to make u sweat! Classes are $20 single or class packs of 5,10, 20 for discounted px’s. Would love

to see you all come out & give us a try. Find us: Planet Spirit,Hot MamaEdina, MiniHops, Balanced Barre

Sounds like training for women since they are at womens stores? Anything going on this summer?

Stacie:    It’s training for men & women..only Hot Mama is a female store. YES! Summer FIT camp. Kids ages 4-18 train w/Chris

and the adults (moms,dads, nannies,athletes) train with ME! Think hurdles, strength bags, pushups, dirt

hills, weights, sandbags and more! SO FUN! Most importantly the kids and adults train simultaneously

Joel:    Thanks for sharing today Stacie some of your work and passions on #MNMOtv! Have a great week and keep up the good work!

Stacie:    on the field. Summer Camp starts June 12th! Thank you and hope to see you!

Joel Carlson

With the new year well along, what should people expect in the world of social media to happen in 2012?

Google+ started in the early summer of 2011, and it now has around 90 million users. Though how many of those users actually use their accounts frequently, if at all, may be another story in of itself. What though is going to happen in 2012?

Twitter and Facebook have not stood still and let other platforms pop-up without staying fresh and new themselves. They’ve made some changes to keep people interested and active on their networks. Is there going to be a NEW network though that people will just flock to and use frequently? Will people suffer from Social Media Overload this year? Check out this video report that Joel Carlson gave to Jamie Yuccas of the WCCO-TV Saturday Morning show, regarding what to look for in 2012.

Welcome everyone to the @MNMOmag Twitterview with guest @Sonjaeileen from the @BeautyRoomMPLS. Lets have some fun today!

Sonja:    Hello!

So tell us a little bit about yourself. Where did you grow up, go to school, and what did you want to be as an adult?

Sonja:    I grew up in Excelsior, MN and went to Minnetonka HS. I went to Aveda to become an esthetician

I actually wanted to be a pilot. I wanted to go to UND in Grand Forks, but then I found the world of spas!

That’s a GREAT world! :) How did you know it was a good fit for you? Where did you start using your skills?

Sonja:    In high school I worked in a small spa as a receptionist & fell in love with the environment & work it was so peaceful

My first real job as an esthetician was in Santa Barbara, Ca. We used organic products & I fell in love with that too!

Santa Barbara CA is a good place to start! Did you get good tips? Did you get to work with any celebrities?

Sonja:    Worked in Santa Barbara for 3 years, then moved to LA. That’s when I started working on some celebrities

I worked on Montana in Santa Monica & at The Beverly Hills Hotel, which was the greatest experience ever.

have worked on Jennifer Garner, Pamela Anderson, Melania Trump and Kelly Osborne to name a few. It was fun!

The Beverly Hills Hotel was a crazy place for celebrity sightings! It was an unbelievable experience.

Wow! How were you treated by them? Did they want to talk about themselves or did they ask questions about you?

Sonja:    Actually, most of them were very nice. Not too much conversation in general (because they were relaxing!)

Every once in a while a celebrity would be stand offish, but for the most part they were cool.

Was the spa then kind of an oasis for them from the public, or would they get “swarmed” there too?

Sonja:    The BHH was know for being very private & protective of celebrities. They always felt comfortable there because they..

knew paparazzi were not allowed near the hotel. We couldn’t ask for autographs & could only address them by last name.

EX. Good afternoon Mr. Buffet. He was one of my favorites!

Do you mean investor @W_Buffett? Can you tell us what he had done?

Sonja:    No, I meant the singer, Jimmy Buffett! Sorry, different spelling.

And he didn’t do anything in particular. I was just excited to meet him :)

Neat. Lets move on to today. Where do you work now, and what kinds of services do you offer to clients?

Sonja:    Today I work @BeautyRoomMPLS on 43rd & Chicago. It’s a beautiful salon/spa where I specialize in facials, skin care,

and waxing. I use an all natural skin care line called @ARCONA_LA which has given my clients wonderful results.

Super! So what days of the week can people make appointments with you?

Sonja:    I work T 9-5 (every other) , W 12-8, Th 11-7, F 10-6 & S 10-4 (every other)

The Beauty Room is at 4300 Chicago Ave, Mpls 55407 612-724-4111. I would love for everyone to come check us out!

Good to know. What’s one skin tip that you’re giving to people with the weather we’re having right now?

Sonja:    Drink lots of water!!

Our climate is so dry, leaving us with dehydrated skin. Also, exfoliate a few times a week & use moisturizer daily.

Lastly. Got any big goals that you’re targeting for next year?

Sonja:    I eventually want to open a small boutique spa of my own. Not sure when it will happen, but stay tuned

Joel:    Great idea! Well thank you Sonja for sharing some of your life on Twitter today with the #MNMOtv audience. Take care!

Sonja:    Thanks so much Joel, I had a wonderful time.

Good Thursday morning to everyone. Welcome to today’s #jectv Twitterivew with Jeremy Iggers. We’ll talk about food, himself & the TC’s.

Joel:    To begin with. Where did you grow up and go to school? What was your focus growing up?

Jeremy:    Didn’t really get into food until my college years, traveling around the world.

I grew up all over – Arkansas, Louisiana, Chicago, Buffalo, and a couple of years overseas in France and Germany

A traveling man! :)  So how did you get started in writing about food?

Jeremy:    I came to MN to go to grad school in philosophy, and thought it would be fun to review restaurants as a hobby.

I found a room in an apartment in Dinkytown, and one of my roommates turned out to be the first editor of TC Reader!

I showed him – DR Martin – some sample reviews, and he hired me – but I had no idea what I was doing.

But there weren’t a lot of pro restaurant critics in 1976. Three years later, the Minneapolis Star hired me freelance.

Back in those days, the local restaurant scene was pretty bad – hardly any ethnic restaurants, just meat and potatoes.

So you got to “pioneer” an industry that was changing locally. When would you say the “shift” happened locally?

Jeremy:    The shift really hit in the 80s, I went to work for the Detroit Free Press, but got hired back in 84 by the Star

Lots of new restaurants opened in that era, both haute cuisine, and ethnic – big explosion of Vietnamese places.

There was a lot of national food media, too – Julia Child, Craig Claiborne, Pierre Franey, that drove local interest

I see. So you were with the @StarTribune up until when, and when did you start your food website?

Jeremy:    I was with the Strib until 2007, mostly reviewing restaurants. I left in 2007, and started http://TCFoodies.com in 2009

The restaurant scene changed dramatically over those years – first Vietnamese, then everything else Szechuan

Northern Italian, Ethiopian, Korean, Thai, plus a lot of new more authentic Mexican restaurants

And of course a lot of interesting haute and nouvelle cuisine places – Quatre Amis, Aquavit, etc., etc.

The food options have been really expanding in the Twin Cities. What happened with www.tcfoodies.com yesterday?

Jeremy:    We moved TCFoodies to a new home as part of the Twin Cities Daily Planet, now @tcdailyplanet.net/tcfoodies.

It’s a great fit – TCDailyPlanet – which I started w. friends in 2005 – has lots of food content & great interactivity

Our motto is Fresh Food News Daily, and we’ll be dishing up food stories that you can’t find anywhere else.

What kind of sharing will people find on the website? (i.e Reviews? Cooking tips? Trends?)

Jeremy:    Like Lu Lippold, a terrific blogger – every Tuesday. Check out her recent story about Candyland : http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/column/lu-lippold/saint-pauls-tiny-candyland-stands-corporate-snack-giants

Anybody can have their own blog on the Daily Planet – and we want new blogging partners. Contact me.

We’ll also feature lots of food and restaurant stories from our ethnic, neighborhood and community media partners…

Sounds like a good site for people to bookmark on their web browser! Will you be a contributor as well?

Jeremy:    Yup! My column will appear every Wednesday – here’s the one I posted yesterday:  http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/blog/jeremy-iggers/what-i-learned-north-coast-nosh

I almost forgot to mention – we have a new weekly TCFoodies newsletter – go to http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/subscribe to sign up.

To close, what’s your “Big Picture” for your foodies website?

Jeremy:    I’m excited about it. It’s going to be a place for foodies to share info about everything food policy & healthy eating

to fine dining and gastronomic adventures. And we’re hoping to add special foodie events as well…

Joel:    Super! It’s going to be exciting to watch, especially for all of the Twin Cities “foodies” out there. Have a great day!

Jeremy:    Thanks! The tcfoodies link hasn’t completely transferred yet, so go to http://tcdailyplanet.net/foodies instead. Happy Eating!

Good Wednesday morning everyone! Time for this weeks @MNMOmag Twitterview with our guest, @AndreaKopfmann. Lets begin.

Andrea:    Thanks for having me, Joel!

To start off with, can you share a little bit about yourself? Like where you grew up and went to college.

Andrea:    I grew up in a very small town in SD called Alpena. I went to college in Marshall at Southwest State.

What did you major in at Southwest State? Did you intern anywhere after college?

Andrea:    I majored in Communications – Radio/TV/Theatre. Loved every minute of it! I was going to be the ESPN girl. Ha!

Graduated in 2007. Interned @1013KDWB that summer then @nemerfieger from Sept-Oct. Then went right to @WalserAutoGroup

Lets leap ahead to your role as the Director of the Walser Foundation. What about the role appealed to you?

Andrea:    So much! First, the organization and the people. It was a brand new position so I’ve been able to pave my own path.

It was a whole new challenge for me. I’ve never been involved with something like this. It’s been exciting since day 1

That’s great! Explain for people, what the Walser Foundation actually is and how it works? When did it get started?

Andrea:    5% of pre-tax profits from @WalserAutoGroup go to the Walser Foundation. We work with fantastic non-profit partners

Walser has been in business for 50+ yrs. At one time, the Foundation operated under a different name

The mission has stayed the same. Supporting women, children and families here in the Twin Cities

So buying a car from the @WalserAutoGroup helps the driver and the public! :) What groups do you work with?

Andrea:    Yes! And anytime you service your vehicle or purchase parts from us!

We work w/ @OpenArmsMN @bolderoptions @UpperMidwestMS @starkeyhearing @mnaidsproject Teen Challenge @childrensMN

SAVE, @2harvest @diabetesMN, Fraser, Amplatz Children’s Hospital and more. Check us out here:

So MANY people benefit from your work at the Walser Foundation! How does that make you feel personally?

Andrea:    Pretty proud of the company I work for. I’m just lucky to be apart of it. How does it make you feel, Joel?

Helping people is always a good thing. I’m guessing you attend a number of events. What were some of them from 2011?

Andrea:    Ready for a big list?

Many events w/ @StPaulSaints. @OpenArmsMN Moveable Feast & Butterball. Many events w/ @UpperMidwestMS & @diabetesMN

The @CharlieAwardsTC @IveyAwards Glamorama for @childrenscancer Teen Challenge Gala, Basilica Block Party & many more.

Lets shift back to you briefly. You’re a local foodie. What have been some of your favorite places to eat at lately?

Andrea:    I frequent Eli’s constantly. 112 is always amazing. @SaffronMpls is brilliant. I have a fantastic time @TravailKitchen

Restaurant Alma and La Belle Vie are my celebration spots

And this time of year, I love the ramen @Masu_NE. I can’t get enough of it. It’s like crack.

Joel:    Super. Well thank you for being a part of #MNMOtv today and sharing some of your story! Have a great week Andrea.

Andrea:    Thanks for having me, Joel! I had fun.

Kristin Makholm

Hello everybody! Welcome to today’s @MNMOmag Twitterview with @kmakholm (Kristin Makholm). Lets get started!

Kristin:     Hi Joel!

To begin, lets learn a little bit about your background. Where did you grow up, attend H.S and college?

Kristin:    I grew up in Milwaukee, went to Shorewood High School and college at Northwestern University.

When you were growing up, what were some of the fields of work you thought you might want to get involved with?

Kristin:    I was primarily a musician growing up–piano, bassoon, singing in choirs, and always knew the arts interested me

when I got to college, I rebelled and studied art history because I thought it would be cool to work in an art museum

I was a liberal arts geek, and studying art history was fascinating to me.

A good decision! So what kind of work did you do after college that led you to working at the MMMA?

Kristin:    Graduate school in art history at the U of M, internships at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Met in NY, the MIA

Curatorial jobs at the St. Louis Art Museum and the Milwaukee Art Museum, gallery director at MCAD

It was probably all the contacts I made at those jobs that have been so important to what I’m doing now at MMAA.

Networking is always valuable! With there not being an actual museum space, at the moment, what does your role entail?

Kristin:    Well, trying to resurrect an art museum is a full-time job! I need to encourage people to continue to support us.

I need to refine the vision and mission of the MMAA to remind people of our importance to the arts in Minnesota

I’m also taking care of our great art collection and getting it out for people to see and appreciate around MN.

To get the message out to everyone who will listen! This takes the form of exhibitions, articles, and Twitterviews!

Fundraising!

Wonderful! Now isn’t there some kind of touring exhibit that lets people see some of the collection? Is there a website?

Kristin:    Yes! Our Treasures is our current traveling show of great hits from the collection.

It began its tour at the Tweed in Duluth and is now at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter.

It continues to Carleton College, the Plains Art Museum in Fargo, and ends back up here at the Weisman next winter.

All the info is at http://www.mmaa.org. Fabulous art by Paul Manship, George Morrison, Joan Mitchell, great stuff!

What’s the cost to see the “Our Treasures” exhibit? Regarding fundraising, what are some options for the public to help?

Kristin:    The show is free at all venues. It has a free treasure hunt brochure too for kids and families to investigate the art

We just restarted our membership program, so bringing everyone back to support the renaissance of MMAA is our goal.

$40 gets you reports on our events, exhibitions and the satisfaction of knowing you’re helping us get reestablished.

We’re looking for volunteers to help out. And we also accept donations in any amount!

When you’re not being the Dir of the Minnesota Museum of American Art, what do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

Kristin:    Two kids (15 and 11) keep me busy, but I also sing in the Plymouth Church choir, which keeps my music buds active.

But it’s a full-time job just keeping up with exhibition openings and art events after 5 pm and on weekends.

Joel:     Thank you so much Kristin for sharing some of your life and work today on #MNMOtv. Have a great rest of the week!

Kristin:    Thanks! This was fun!

A few weeks ago I went out for dinner to get some good, high quality food for take-out. No “golden arches” or making a “run across the border” for me. I was willing to wait for my food to be prepared by hand and not have my order be ready in 2 minutes or less.  Instead, I was willing to wait for a good meal to take home with me.

For me, looking at a menu and deciding what I want to eat can at times be a real chore, especially if my literal and emotional “gut” are not telling me something specific that they’re craving. So I looked at Yum’s menu and decided on the ground chuck burger, without onions, and of course I had to get it with an order of their highly rated french fries. I just LOVE the sauces that they provide you to dip them in!  So after making my order, I waited for it and then brought it home to become my dinner. (Eating a few fries on the ride home. Couldn’t resist!)

In no way am I a burger expert of a burger aficionado,  but when I took my first bite of my medium-well ground chuck burger, it was really good! It had good flavor and was placed on a very good bun. A restaurant or cafe can have the best meat, but the bun really can help with the flavor and eating experience, or crush the experience all together. In this case, it was a good complimentary bun for the burger. The meat itself had good flavor and wasn’t too greasy either. I’d recommend it to those looking for a good burger experience.

So while Yum Kitchen and Bakery may be more known for their baked goods and french fries, be sure to try their burgers, you won’t be disappointed!

Romeny Chan

Good morning everyone! Welcome to today’s @MNMOmag Twitterview with @RoeWolfe co-founder Romeny Chan!

Where did you grow up and go to school?

Romeny:    I grew up in Bloomington as a youth and finished my high school years in Burnsville…

I attended college in Winona for Advertising and English.. Oh, how I do miss the bluffs!

I see. So how did you get into the makeup and fashion business?

Romeny:    As far as I can remember, I was really into water painting. From there, I painted incessantly using all types of media…

Later, I made a natural transition into fashion and make-up. Truly enjoy working with faces and features

What then led you to open @RoeWolfe with Ashley Kilcher?

Romeny:    @LuLi795 and I have been in the fashion industry long enough to know it was time to evolve…

From being on sets, artistic direction behind spreads and fashion shows, we wanted our inspirations to be approachable

Hence, a “fashion marketplace” – a humble boutique that consults you. We are passionate and just as ambitious.

So your boutique is more than just a retail location right? How would you explain as to what you offer customers?

Romeny:    Yes! Our team are all artists and stylists. Every woman is different, so we make it an intimate experience…

Along w/ our high-end collections, we have @BECCA_COSMETICS - and so, we offer image consultations and lessons

Once women know that we embrace the many magnitudes of woman, there’s no questioning our integrity of services

I understand that you are a perfume specialist. Explain how you can help women in this area.

Romeny:    Olfactory love. We carry Nasomatto and Boadicea. Men and Women leave here in a silage of sentiment!

I had to make sure our lines were unisex. There’s such an art and intimacy in finding the right scent….

Lastly, what are some of the brands that you carry in womens fashion in your boutique?

Romeney:    To mention just a few, we carry: Darling, WinterKate, Love Sam, Darling and Saivana.

Items from Pendleton, Nasomatto and A Peace Treaty are unisex! And, our full cosmetics line : @BECCA_COSMETICS

Joel:    Thank you Romeny for your time and comments today! See @MNMOstyle‘s article for more details – Suburban Chic

Romeny:    It was a pleasure!