Add food and friends. Mix well. Repeat as necessary.

When I applied to culinary school, I was asked to write a personal statement. In 250 words, I needed to be able to communicate a part of who I was.  Sounds easy right? Wrong.  This was the reason my application was delayed.  I wasn’t sure how to put my life with food in 250 words.  Eventually, I got it down, and thought I’d share it and expand on it.  Here is what I submitted, with everything else I wanted to share:  

I grew up traveling the world.  My father worked for an airline, and we took off every chance we got.  While I have 32 years of amazing memories, there are 2 that stand out. 

When I was 11, my parents and I were having a nice dinner in a tiny local place in Cyprus.  As the meal droned on, I grew antsy, and just wanted to get back to my new friends at the resort.  My father looked at me and simply said “it’s not a good meal unless it involves great company, great conversation, great food and lasts more then 2 hours”.  At the time, I dismissed it as his normal “I just want to spend time with my daughter” ramblings.  But he was right.  Food brings people together. 

Think of the last dinner party you had, or the last time you dined out with a group of close friends.  Odds are, it involved an amazing conversation and a lot of laughs – and hopefully great food!  I get annoyed by the Olive Garden commercials when the cousins all get together for an amazing dinner, but the message is that same.  From street food to fine dining, make sure you take time to appreciate and enjoy whom you are sharing it with.

My father and I manning the grill for family and friends

My other vivid memory was a few years later in Turkey.  My father ordered food and when it came, it just looked like all other fried foods.  I asked what it was, and he said “just try it”.  I did, and I loved it.  Turns out that was my first experience with calamari.  I pretended to be disgusted, but that started my journey with the motto “if you don’t try it, you’ll never know”.

Granted, I have taken the “try everything you can” to the max, eating rat and bugs in Thailand and Guinea pig in Peru.  

cooked rats in Thailand

I’m proud of this, and will continue to sample anything I can.  I make not like it all (who really does?) but I can say that I’ve tried it.There is a local specialty everywhere you go, and you are doing yourself an injustice if you don’t take the time to try it.  

My heart breaks a little every time I ask my 4-year-old cousins to try something and then say they don’t like it. When I ask, “have you ever tried it?” the answer is usually no.  The response to “how do you know you don’t like it?” is always the same – “I just know”.  But the reality is you don’t know.  And I will make it one of my missions in life to teach them that.  We are actually making progress – I got Bella to eat some pork chili verde yesterday.  Granted, she only tried it because I was gushing that her younger sister seemed to like it.  But I’ll take it – she tried something new and enjoyed it.  That’s what it’s all about.  

My approach to food was shaped largely because of these two experiences.  Always enjoy with others, and take advantage of every opportunity to try something new.  You might end up with great new friends and a love of something that you once found disgusting.