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Local vs. Big Box - The Taste Test
Hi, I'm Kristen Crowley and we’re here today at Todd Jurich's Bistro in Norfolk, Virginia
and were going to see what the real difference is between locally sourced protein and produce
and the items that we purchase from big chain grocery stores. Now what Todd's going to do
is prepare two exact dishes one is going to be made with locally sourced goods and the
other one is going to be made with items purchased from the big chain grocery stores. Then, we
are going to get our panel of judges to do a blind taste test to see if they can actually
taste the difference. Let's go ahead and get started. While Todd's in the kitchen preparing
the dishes, I'd like to take the time to introduce our esteemed judges here with us today. First,
we have Mr. Patrick Evans-Hylton who is a food journalist and author, and also the editor
of Hampton Roads Monthly Magazine and Virginia Wine Lovers Magazine. Thank you for being
with us. Thank you. And Miss Lorraine Eaton who is the food editor for The Virginia Pilot,
thank you for being here. And Frank Morgans who is our food and wine blogger, thank you
for joining us today. Now Patrick I’d like to ask you a quick question on behalf of the
panel, what do you guys expect to get from the taste test today? Overall, big performance
of local foods and local flavors. Knowing the caliber of Todd, I think that we're really
going to taste some foods today that are just smack your mama good. I like that. All right
we're going to go ahead and see after our judges have tasted both salads, what their
votes are and how they feel about this first round. Now Patrick, which one do you feel
is the local produce? I have a feeling that this one is which I believe is B. Number one,
the appearance, it starts with the actually appearance, it's just so much more appetizing
when you look at it. It says fresh to your eyes before it even reaches your pallet. Then
when you do taste it, it's just really remarkable, the flavors that do come out. Not only the
execution from Todd, but just from, you know, the local produce that he was able to prepare.
Well there we go, unanimous decision, the B's have it. All right Todd we're on to round
two so what are we tasting now? In honor of our new restaurant at the oceanfront, our
burger joint, we're doing burgers. I cooked them medium well, I hope you like them that
way. So, Bon apatite. And of course while they're trying the burgers, we're throwing
in a little twist with beer as well so they have a mass produced American beer and then
we also have a beer from a local brewery right here in Norfolk, Virginia. We’re going to
see how well our judges do. Dig in. All right we finally wrapped up round two and it looks
like the decision is fairly unanimous. We're going to check in with the judges and get
their comments on each plate. So, Lorain moving on to you, it seems to kind of be the same
boat. Tell me your overall winner please. I would say it's this side, side B. One thing
I would like to point out is I've heard that this side is the local side and grass cut
beef is really different. If you try it, it's like the difference between cheap bourbon
and really smooth bourbon or you know, a store bought cake and one your grandmother makes.
It's just so different, it's denser, and it has a much richer flavor. To me that was the
giveaway right from the start. Also the pickles, you need to come here and have a pickle. Yeah,
that's what she came for is the pickled pickle. Well we love that and thank you for your comments
on that, very, very good points on the A versus B. The last unanimous decision looking like
B. Definitely B, much like Lorain said, the grass fed beef, just the taste and the texture.
The pickles visually gave it away right from the very beginning and the cheese was just
spectacular. Also, we do want to point out which of the beers your seemed to have enjoyed
a little bit more with the burger. I did enjoy this one a slight bit more than, I’m not
sure if that's beer, but yes I did enjoy it. More than the colored water. We'd like to
point out that the beer that we have here is also the Red Nan Red Ale, it's from Connor's
Brewery, which is right here in Norfolk, Virginia. Once again Patrick is showing you, he doesn't
even have any red beer left to show you. You're having a good day so far. Alright we'd like
to thank the judges for this round, we've got one more round to go and it looks like
the B's have it. Okay guys I know you've been savvy up until now, you've picked them all
right but we're really going to test you here. This one is going to be the hardest out of
the bunch; this is crème brulee. One is made with organic eggs and cream. The other is
made with generic heavy whipping cream and generic eggs. All right, enjoy. Patrick hold
on, hold on. Now this is our last and final round the with crème brulee. Obviously everyone
still has this plate in front of them and there's not much left. Is your choice B? Yeah
this is really great. Can you tell me some of the differences between the two, why you
picked this one? This one is richer and creamier, its fresher tasting. There's absolutely no
comparison. You can actually taste the freshness in the cream and taste the freshness in the
egg. This is remarkable. All right we wrapped up three rounds of amazing food and our esteemed
panel of judges have tasted everything and I wanted to get everyone's last comments on
all the dishes and what made the difference for you. Well I think I wasn't really sure
what to expect and I honestly wasn't really sure if my pallet would be able to discern
the differences but it was really remarkable. And I think it really showcases how important
it is to support local, to support for independent because time and time again it is so apparent,
the craftsmanship, the time, the consideration that was put into each ingredient. I could
tell the difference in every single course that we had today. I think it would be fun
for people to try this themselves at home. Just go and buy some grass fed beef that's
grown 50 or 100 miles from you and some supermarket beef. Makes some burgers, try it yourself,
you will be surprised also. And a lot of big surprises here. Mr. Morgan, you are the food
and wine blogger so what are you going to write tonight when you go home? How good the
food was. Of course I’m going to write about my support for Independent We Stand. Coming
into this, I knew I would be able to taste a difference, but visually, it was interesting
to see right away how you could tell the local versus the commercial. So it looks like you
need to support your local produce and your local restaurants and of course, everyone,
eat local and eat well. Cheers. Now what most people don't realize is the impact that their
purchases can make on their local community. Purchasing locally, you get better taste,
and that money comes back to help the quality of the community that you actually live in.
For example, if you spend $100 at a local independent business, $68 of that will stay
in your local economy. Take that same $100 to a big chain grocery store and that number
drops down to $43. Now, some studies have even shown that the number can drop down to
20 bucks when you buy from any big box retailer.