Cutting to the chase, we are incredibly proud to still be here just about ten years later. Our actual “Anniversary” day is still a few months away, but this week marks the beginning of our 10th season of television. How can that be? Back in 2011 we put out 8 episodes, took 3 months off and then did another 8. Technically, in our book, 2 seasons. Semantics, I know. But them are the facts.
As you might imagine, I’ve seen a lot in these 10 years. We’ve had highs, lows and everything in between. It has been a roller coaster for sure. So I thought I’d share some of the more interesting tidbits and highlights from 10 years of Eating and Liking.
*I’ve mentioned many times that I’ve been very lucky at times along this journey. That goes back to the beginning. I was a news anchor working at WJCL-TV here in Savannah. FOX 28 News at 10:00. At the time the #3 station in the market. My News Director, the late, great Michael Sullivan, thought it would be good exposure for us if I was producing my own TV show about food in Savannah and Hilton Head. This was about 6 months after his newsroom had made headlines during a TV show called “Making News Savannah Style.” There was a precedent. Obviously, a huge decision that changed the course of my career. Not too many television stations would allow their 10pm anchor to run around eating burgers on TV on the weekend.
*A week or so after we announced our plans for that TV show to the public, I got an invite from someone who had just moved to Savannah from New York. This person had experience producing TV and had interest in working with us. She insisted on naming the show something locally referenced. Her favorite working title was “Sumptuous Savannah.” When I told her the show would also include Hilton Head Island and my travels around the South, she said it had to be Savannah-centric or she wouldn’t work with me. My response? “With all due respect, you called me.”
*In our first season we hadn’t done a good job vetting every restaurant. One shoot we went on a recommendation. The first time I tried their food was on camera. It was absolutely disgusting. Still, I smiled into the camera and moved along. You never knew. While I was chewing I was thinking “this is the last time we will do this.” (feature someone we haven’t vetted). It was.
*There are restaurant owners in this town that handed me a 4 figure check to get this going before we even had a website back in 2011. All we had was a laminated Denny’s menu looking thing that was going to be our home page. The best part was they did not (and to this day do not) ask for favorable treatment in exchange for the assist. We could not have done it without them.
* We had to laugh when a sushi master with experience all over the world chose to settle in Atlanta and offer the best sushi he could fly in. “I wanted to be able to play golf year round.”
*Speaking of Atlanta, I was standing right outside of Two Urban Licks during a shoot when I got the call from Miami that a close family member of mine was hospitalized after a medical episode. It was a hopeless feeling. We prayed for the best, of course, but he developed a series of issues after that and passed about a year later.
*I was recently told the story of a server who gave a table reserved for me away to someone who she thought was me. I wound up at a table that I was perfectly fine with, but not the one the owner wanted me to sit in. While I was enjoying my meal, the server was getting cussed out in the kitchen. They all laugh about it now, but that night, I’m told was an adventure.
*I’ve had the good fortune of meeting some absolutely amazing people during this journey. I’ve also met a few jerks. Just like life right?
*The list of wonderful people is far too long, but I do want to single out Paula Deen and her family.
There was a time a few years ago when I felt a little overwhelmed by a lot of what was happening in my orbit. I visited with Paula in her kitchen while she was feeding a squirrel that had fallen out of a tree outside of her house. It was a very funny scene, but the advice she shared was incredibly valuable.
*On the flip side, there were a few people who laughed at us when we launched this effort. Some of them to my face. Their motivation will always be appreciated.
*I can truthfully say I’ve had probably 3 maybe 4 meals in the last 10 years that rank among the best meals of my life. Where? One was a James Beard Dinner at the Savannah Food and Wine Festival. Another was in Watercolor, Florida. Yet another was in Charleston.
*I’ve also had some horrible meals. More than I think most people will ever know. We eat a lot of bad food in search of the good, y’all.
*Finally, a thanks to all for your support. I say it every time, but our gratitude is the only thing that will exceed our appetites.
Here’s to 10 more.
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