"Fast, Cheap, and Easy"

...or so Alice Waters likened our fast food nation to the old adage "you are what you eat." Great to see all of you at the Alice Waters talk at the IMA. I'd say something profound about what it means to be an evangelist (and how it helps to have the power to get people to listen); or about her amazing ideas (even though they raise $500,000 per school per year for the Edible Schoolyard); or even how important it is that she's making people listen (even though some of her ideas are, well, idealistic.) But honestly, we all know how important to the food community Waters, Chez Panisse, and her visions are.

Even so, what a treat to see her in person. (And you already knew I wasn't a crack photographer.) We cut out early so missed the crush for the food prepared the Thom England's program at Ivy Tech. (Chef England heads Slow Food Indy.) I hear Thom and fellow Chef Neal Brown enjoyed a terrific lunch with Ms. Waters -- basking in the glow of how we *could* and *should* be eating. And if you're looking for a great gift, I hear she signed a whole bunch of copies of her newest book, The Art of Simple Food: Notes, Lessons, and Recipes from a Delicious Revolution, so check with the IMA bookstore.

Next up? Mark Kurlansky, author of Salt: A World History, Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World, and The Big Oyster: History on the Half Shell
as part of the Butler Writer's Series on March 2.