A Recognition
Monday is Indigenous People’s Day. To highlight this, we will be doing a couple of things this week. First, a land acknowledgement of the land on which we operate and the land from where the food was sourced or prepared.
Happy Birthday - to us!
We have a lot to celebrate here at Family Dinner!
It is our 4 year anniversary and our one year anniversary at our space in Woburn. Add to that our expansion to Maine AND that there's a new episode of Ted Lasso dropping tonight and we are simply buzzing with excitement. (Seriously, if you haven't yet watched Ted Lasso, allow our encouraging voice to join the chorus urging you to do so. It's like hugging a puppy while simultaneously eating a warm chocolate chip cookie.)
Mushroom Puns!
"Mushrooms are a fascinating crop! They’re not plants—they’re members of the fungus family. Unlike wild mushrooms that spring up only when seasonal conditions are ripe, cultivated mushrooms can be grown indoors year-round, provided the climate conditions are right.
BIG NEWS!
Today we are launching a fundraising campaign with NuMarket to help build out the expansion, we are hoping to raise $75,000. The campaign will help us build out essential infrastructure for the expansion such as a refrigerated truck, warehouse space, and a team based in Portland, serving their own community. When folks contribute they will get back 120% of their contributions in credits to use towards Family Dinner’s offerings in Massachusetts and Maine!
Tuna at Sunset
For our side we will be stealing from the menu of the Sunset Club in Newburyport. This is the newest gem from the great folks who own Trina's, Paddle Inn, and Parlor Sports (the bar responsible for the genesis of Family Dinner! We spent WAY too much time there 4 years ago, noodling over ideas, crushing cheeseburgers, and planning out this crazy venture). The Sunset Club is a beautiful spot to sip rose, delight in delicious nosh, and watch the sun go down. If you have a viciously competitive streak, they have all the yard games you need to ruin your friendships while you sip cold beers in the sunshine.
CAN You Believe It??
Throughout history, humans have been preserving foods for lean periods via drying, salting, and fermenting; however, canning is a relatively new food preservation method. It wasn’t until a “small” general in France needed to find ways to feed his constantly moving army that canning became prevalent.
Veggies With a View
If you have ever been to Crane Beach in Ipswich, MA you may recall the stunning grandeur of the space, the majesty of the views. (The grill at the snack shop also makes a stellar hot dog, which is its own majesty in my eyes. Extra relish, please.)
As you navigate the serpentine curves of Argilla Road toward the beach you are greeted by the expansive marsh on either side. You take it all in and slowly, steadily the rest of the world slips away, taking your to-do list and your piles of unfolded laundry with it.
Quiche, Coffee, and a Whole Lotta Lox.
Sounds like the perfect summer lunch/brunch, doesn't it? Sure does, especially to someone like me who is growing more and more abjectly lazy with cooking by the day. (Do I live off dry cereal? Maybe. Did I have peanut butter straight from the jar with a side of string cheese for lunch last week? That's none of your business.)
Surprise! New Add-ons!
It turns out that every six years, Erin's and my (Shannon's) birthdays fall on consecutive packing days, and this happens to be one of those years. And who doesn't love giving presents on their birthdays?? This year, we are gifting you not one, but TWO new add-ons! (And a short newsletter!)
KEEPING IT FRESH!
Shannon here! If you've come to us at Family Dinner, I have to assume that you care about your food. You want to make sure that it's local, healthy, and that it's good for you, the community, and the environment. And we love that about you and love serving you all this local, seasonal bounty! Sometimes, though, you may not get to that beautiful bunch of kale right away or are questioning what fruit is okay to leave on the counter or the fridge.
Still loving you.... a latke.
Over the past year we started doing pop-ups in our Family Dinner store. We wanted to bring some of our favorite places, makers, and doers right into your home, to have a little fun and enchant your tummies during grey times. They have been the brain child of our teammate Olivia who carefully curates the collections and manages all the madness on the back end. For this week's Pop-Up we wanted to return to one of our favorite restaurants and the place where the Pop-Up Party began, Mamaleh's Delicatessen.
Shout Outs!
This week the Boston Renegades headed to Canton, Ohio for the Super Bowl of the Women's Football Alliance. They're on mission THREEPEAT after taking the Championship in 2018 and 2019. This team gives us the warm fuzzies for sure given that many of the players (and both owners!) are Family Dinner customers. Several members of the team are also Family Dinner packers and drivers. (You may have seen them pulling a swim move past your dog to get your share on the porch and then doing high knees back to the car.)
Texachusetts in the House!
Chef Amanda Escamilla is the founder of Tex Mex Eats and the maker of the incredibly delicious tamales that pop up in the vegetarian shares, much to everyone's delight. We have known Amanda for many years, her professionalism, perfectionism and wonderfully infectious laugh never cease to amaze. Oh, and the tamales are out of this dang world.