I was sifting through a drawer back in early December and came across a fascinating piece of technology.
The kids would look at it right now and say “what the heck is that?” Those of us that are old enough, remember a time not all that long ago when it was cutting edge entertainment. Of course, I am referring to the iPod Nano.
I found mine. It’s about 10 years old. It’s green and it still works. I know this because we used it to play music at a Christmas party just 2 months ago.
When I found it, I smiled and I cherished. I looked at it like an old photograph of great times gone by. Funny how things happen when life decides throw you for a loop.
As the story goes, in Summer 2010, I had shot some cooking demos for an idea a friend had in May of that year. The segments were highly polished and great quality. We were actually very proud of them. I made Grilled Chicken, Grilled Shrimp and Rice Pilaf.
The segments lived on my iPod Nano that Summer. As a goof, I was showing them to co-workers in the newsroom where I worked at WJCL-TV. At some point late July, I shared them with my friend Senea Crystal. At the time she was the marketing manager at the Savannah Mall.
She watched them, and like everyone else was impressed with what she saw. She suggested I start a blog about food in Savannah. Three days later, the idea became a blog about food around the South so as to not exclude not only the South Carolina Low Country, but anywhere else that was a drive away offering great eats.
She named it “You’ll Eat It and Like It” not only as an homage to Moms across America, but also a reference to our guide to good food in the region. A year or so later, we dropped the ‘You’ll.”
Of course, you don’t just start a blog without help. We needed a logo, some branding, a website and all of that stuff. Things that were much harder to come by in 2010 than they are today. So we called in favors across town. Paid what little money we had to put it together and tried to make a go of it.
The website -eatitandlikeit.com-debuted February 3, 2011. Eight years ago today.
My first interviews were with Matt Roher, who at the time was Executive Chef at Cha Bella in Savannah as well as Kelly Yambor at Elizabeth on 37th.
Eat It and Like It with Jesse Blanco first aired months later, Saturday morning, September 24, 2011 at 7:30am on WJCL-TV with an episode on chocolate. Three years later, I left my career in TV News behind altogether to focus on this and make it what we all knew it could become.
Since then the journey has been equal parts amazing, difficult, brutal, fun, satisfying and terrifying. Given all of the set of circumstances to do over again, I would probably tweak a few things here and there, but I wouldn’t change any of it.
Today, Eat It and Like It is the most ‘healthy’ it has ever been. We just wrapped up a very successful Restaurant Weeks campaign in Savannah and we have partnered with the Greater Bluffton Chamber of Commerce to produce their 1st ever Bluffton Restaurant Week in April. April 8-12 if you are scoring at home.
We are the title sponsor of the Cooking Stage at The Southern Women’s Show at the end of March and we will be hosting our 5th Annual Eat It and Like It Foodie Awards in the Spring.
Yeah, I think it’s fair to say the idea worked.
No birthday cake or candles today. Nah. I am testing a new lasagna recipe for a few friends and family ahead of the Super Bowl. I may have a glass of wine or 2, but otherwise, I will just thank my lucky stars that I carried that iPod around and found a way to make the best of a great idea.
Thanks to everyone for all of your continued support. Here’s to EIGHT GLORIOUS YEARS! Thank you!!!!
Go Rams!! 31-28.
See you on TV,
Jesse
