I get asked all the time how far out in advance do we discuss topics for Eat It and Like It. The answer can vary. We discuss potential topics all the time. All. The. Time. Some topics we’ve discussed for years and have yet to execute. They are some good ones, too. Some topics come up and within a matter of months they are on television. Timing is everything.
Bacon came up earlier this year. A no brainer, really. I honestly don’t know anyone who doesn’t love it. We set out to fill in the holes for the show and came up with a restaurant in Atlanta that did everything with bacon. They promised bacon sandwiches with bacon as the bread. They offered bacon desserts. Bacon, bacon, bacon. It immediately went on the “to do” list. Three months later when we were going to make a call and book them for a shoot? We found out the entire concept was made up. The articles and research we had done were all written on or about April 1st. The restaurant didn’t exist. It was an April Fools Day joke.
Good thing we didn’t try to find them while we were in Atlanta over the summer.
So much fun this stuff is. I never in a million years thought we’d play cat and mouse with some bacon. All of that said, here is who made it into the show.
True story about Savannah River Farms. A few years ago, at a local farmer’s market, they gave me a package of pancetta. I put it in my freezer and figured I’d use it another time. A few months later, I whipped up a pasta and cream sauce using that pancetta. It was fantastic. So much so, a week later, I wanted to have it again so I bought some pancetta at the grocery store. I made the same dish. Same everything except for the pancetta. The dish was 30% of what the first one had been. Great ingredients make a huge difference. They really do, I can’t stress that enough. I love Savannah River Farms pork products. We’ve used them at a number of Eat It and Like It events and demos, including the 2015 Foodie Awards.
He’s less than a year into his journey, but Jon Moore has something great on his hands. A food truck that specializes in bacon and pork butts. The beauty in this is he can change the menu as often as he wants to. Though the Pork Mac ‘n Cheese is unlikely to go anywhere. The Big Country Bacon isn’t either. They are both fantastic and well worth a stop if you are in the Jacksonville area. Find them on Facebook. Tell them Eat It and Like It sent you.
22 Square – Andaz Hotel, Savannah
The candied bacon at the bar at the Andaz hotel is the stuff legends are made of. About five years ago, the original chef at the property took at a promotion and moved to Chicago. When Chef Lauren Teague moved in she was essentially told she would have free run on anything she wanted to do, but she had to keep the candied bacon bar snack. Yes, it is that good. Just remember, they put it out once a day just after 4:00pm seven days a week. When it is gone, it is gone.
Thanks for joining us on Savannah/Hilton Head Island’s highest rated television show! Every Sunday, 7:30am on WSAV-TV.
See you on TV.
Jesse
