a conversation with – In Good Taste

A Conversation with Christine Tully Aranza

Maris Callahan — Sat, 29 Oct 2016 00:50:07 +0000

You read a lot about women who are chefs: boss ladies at the helm of the kitchen, following in the footsteps of Lidia Bastianich and Alice Waters to dominate the culinary scene one James Beard Award at a time. You don’t hear as often though, about the women who keep the ships running smoothly (I really don’t know why I’m using all of these boat metaphors right now) behind the scenes. Christine Tully Aranza has worked in almost every facet of the restaurant business: she worked her way up from hostess to server to Maitre d’ to manager throughout Chicago’s restaurants, eventually landing at Spiaggia & Café Spiaggia heading up all operations. While at Spiaggia she also shaped the marketing program and acted as the project manager for the award-winning Spiaggia Cookbook, so it’s safe to say that she understands what it takes to please diners and keep them returning again and again. So, in 2010 she and her husband John purchased a small storefront with the idea of collaborating with some of their most talented former colleagues to bring a vibrant neighborhood café to an underserved area. After a complete renovation of the space, Autre Monde Café opened in 2011 with Dan Pancake & Beth Partridge in the kitchen creating inventive Mediterranean […]

The post A Conversation with Christine Tully Aranza appeared first on In Good Taste.

A Conversation with Kit Graham

Maris Callahan — Fri, 23 Sep 2016 15:00:01 +0000

There are times when I think I’ve done blogging all wrong. I’ve changed my URL three times, which can be SEO suicide if you do it incorrectly (which I did…twice). I’ve redesigned and rebranded my blog too many times to count, uncertain as to which direction I wanted to take it. Luckily though, there are other times where I realize that without my blog, I might not have many of the friends I have now, I wouldn’t have the job I have no and I probably wouldn’t even be living in Chicago. I’ve met a lot of interesting people through my blog, including other food bloggers. Today, we’re playing a little inside baseball and chatting with Kit Graham, who writes The Kittchen, authored The Gourmet Grilled Cheese Cookbook (why don’t I own this?), and created The Windy City Blogger Collective, which is a community for local bloggers to bond and network over shared interests (i.e. the Internet, eating). Kit takes some seriously amazing food photographs and even more amazing travel photographs. Even though we run into each other at a lot of the same events around Chicago, I’m entirely certain that her life is way cooler than mine and as […]

The post A Conversation with Kit Graham appeared first on In Good Taste.

A Conversation with Stouffer’s Corporate Chef Holly Strauch

Maris Callahan — Thu, 15 Sep 2016 17:30:52 +0000

Holly Strauch is proof that when you set your mind to something, you can achieve it. Since the eighth grade, the Chagrin Falls, Ohio native knew she wanted to work for Stouffer’s and not only did she make it happen, but she’s spent her entire career testing recipes, whipping up new ideas and helping the family-founded brand keep up with trends and innovations in the food space. Earlier this year, I was lucky enough to visit the Stouffer’s Open Kitchen at the Nestle headquarters in Solon, Ohio. Stouffer’s wined and dined us for the better part of two days while introducing us to the brand’s hero products, including its world-famous Stouffer’s lasagna recipe, which was recently recreated using only the same ingredients you would make at home: handmade pasta, fresh cheese, house made sauce and the same fresh herbs you’d find in your own kitchen. Even though we ate really, really well while we were visiting, the biggest treat of the weekend was partaking in a lasagna-making class led by Stouffer’s own chef Holly. We split into groups and tackled four different Stouffer’s lasagne recipes: Lasagna Italiano, Lasagna with Meat Sauce, Meat Lovers Lasagna, Five Cheese Lasagna. If you think […]

The post A Conversation with Stouffer’s Corporate Chef Holly Strauch appeared first on In Good Taste.

A Conversation with Candace D’Agnolo

Maris Callahan — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 05:00:04 +0000

If you know me…if you’ve met me once…if you’ve seen me standing outside of my building holding a leash with a very tiny dog at the end of it, then you know that I’m all but obsessed with Henry, my little chihuahua. He’s about six pounds and full of energy and personality. He travels with me, he goes to work with me, and yes, he does sleep in my bed, sometimes squarely between me and my boyfriend and I know that’s no accident on his part. So imagine my surprise when I learned that there is someone in Chicago who is a bigger dog-a-holic than I am. Candace D’Agnolo started Dogaholics as a retail store and it has since become all things dog… connecting pet parents all over the world. Though she recently sold her Chicago-based brick-and-mortar, her company is all but going to the dogs. Candace spun her retail business into a pet parent powerhouse with retail, daycare, grooming, boarding, educational and even business consulting services to help those whom she dubs “petpreneurs” take their businesses to ‘top dog’ status. We chatted with Candace to learn more about how she (along with her lab/collie mixes, Guinness and Clover) helps retailers, veterinarians, […]

The post A Conversation with Candace D’Agnolo appeared first on In Good Taste.

A Conversation With Kim Hack

Maris Callahan — Fri, 15 Jul 2016 05:00:28 +0000

At the risk of sounding like, well, like a creep, I want to come back as Kim Hack in my next life. The Chicagoland native enjoyed a successful career as an advertising creative and marketing executive before deciding, after much contemplation with her husband, to take the leap to open Cocoa + Co., Old Town’s answer to the happiest place on earth. And have we talked about how much I love chocolate? Because we should. I really, really love chocolate. Cocoa + Co., which opened Spring 2015, is my current favorite spot for pastries, baked goods (some are recipes from the venerable Gale Gand) and confections from small to mid-sized artisan chocolate producers. The shop, which bills itself as having “Chicago’s largest collection of gourmet chocolate products,” also offers hot and frozen hot chocolate, coffee, and an array of other specialty beverages. The cafe features a a wall of more than 175 chocolate bars, plus specialty treats and the best ice cream sandwiches I’ve ever had, and I’m no stranger to anything with ‘ice cream’ in its name. If you love chocolate, you’ll love Cocoa + Co. and the woman behind the counter is as interesting as her inventory is decadent. In August, 2001, Kim was working in marketing in […]

The post A Conversation With Kim Hack appeared first on In Good Taste.