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Restaurant Success workshop provides free guidance for entrepreneurs

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The Seattle Office of Economic Development’s Jennifer Tam welcomed the first Restaurant Success workshop of 2018 with a realistic, but optimistic, idea of what it’s like to open a food service business in the city. “There are about twice as many restaurants per person in Seattle as the rest of the state,” she explained. The information participants learned in the following two-hour class helped prepare them to succeed in this competitive, growing industry.

The Restaurant Success program is an effort between the City of Seattle, King County, the State of Washington and the Seattle Restaurant Alliance to improve the experience of opening or expanding food businesses in Seattle. The program provides online resources to clarify various requirements that entrepreneurs will face as they prepare for their first customers. Over-the-phone interpretation support is also available in over 200 languages.

Restaurant Success Orientation workshops, held at various times throughout the year with different partner organizations, are an opportunity for those interested in starting or expanding a food business to get information, ask questions, and meet peers who are facing similar situations. Hosted this month at the Greater Seattle Score offices, the class was attended by a small group of people interested in the food industry.

Over the course of the orientation, participants learned the basic first steps to opening a business and were guided through the various regulatory processes they would have to complete to open different kinds of food businesses. Farmers market vendors, for example, go through different processes and agencies than brick-and-mortar restaurants.

As Seattle’s economy booms, our restaurant industry is doing the same. Top view of Ethiopian injera - a spongy sourdough flatbread made of fermented teff flour, spread flat over a communal pan (a large platter) and topped with several kinds of wats (stews) and vegetables.The Restaurant Success program makes the process of opening or expanding a new food business accessible to those who may have little experience or resources, with the goal of creating a more equitable industry in which those from all backgrounds can succeed.

If you missed this workshop, mark your calendar for Thursday, February 15, when another Restaurant Success Orientation will be held at the Rainier Beach branch of the Seattle Public Library. You can also check out the Restaurant Success website, or reach out to Jennifer Tam at jennifer.tam@seattle.gov or (206) 684-3436.

Help feed salmon at Carkeek Park with the Carkeek Watershed

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There are 30,000 Chum salmon eggs incubating at Carkeek Park right now, and another 35,000 salmon fry will be arriving on January 16! Carkeek Watershed salmon program is in need of volunteers, and lots of them, to help feed these very small salmon.

Support our local ecosystem and help restore wild salmon runs to Carkeek Park! The Carkeek Watershed is in need of volunteers who can offer a once-a-week commitment of 30-45 minutes from January to May to feed the salmon. Volunteers will need to take a 90-minute training; however, no particular experience is necessary. Friends and family are welcome to join you during your volunteer shift. See this link for a basic rundown of what your volunteer duties would entail: carkeekwatershed.org/fish-feeding-procedures/.

For more information or to sign up to volunteer, contact the Carkeek Watershed at CWCAP@CarkeekWAtershed.org or 206-235-7431.

New Campaign Calls on McDonald’s to Hold the Antibiotics from Their Meat Supply Chain

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The consumer and public health advocacy organization WashPIRG Foundation is calling on McDonald’s to commit to a concrete timeline to phase out routinely using medically-important antibiotics in its beef and pork supply chains. The WashPIRG Foundation is singling out the iconic fast food company because McDonald’s has an outsized influence as the biggest purchaser of beef in the United States, and it has a vague long-term antibiotics plan. Health experts, including the World Health Organization and American Academy of Pediatrics, warn that the routine use of antibiotics on animals that aren’t sick fuels drug-resistant bacteria, a major health threat to humans.

“Protecting antibiotics requires action, not reaction. If we don’t act now to preserve the effectiveness of these medicines, we’ll face a world in which common infections once again kill” said Elise Orlick, Director of WashPIRG Foundation. “The Big Mac can make a big dent in stopping the misuse of antibiotics in our food system.”

“We are seeing an increasing number of patients with multi-drug resistant infections, which are difficult to treat due to limited antibiotic options,” said Dr. Afrah Sait MD, Infectious Disease Fellow at Tufts Medical Center. “In order to prevent bacteria from becoming resistant and ensure our antibiotics remain effective for patients who need them, it is critical for all of us to carefully consider when and how antibiotics are used and employ them only when absolutely necessary for saving lives.”

As part of the national campaign launch, U.S. PIRG Education Fund has started gathering signatures on a petition urging McDonald’s to take action on its beef and pork supply chains. Nearly 10,000 people have already signed on in support. The message is clear: a commitment from McDonald’s to stop selling beef and pork raised with the routine use of antibiotics will help protect our ability to treat infections and save lives.

McDonald’s recently released a vision for phasing routine antibiotic use out of its entire meat supply chain globally, but it has yet to commit to a timeline for making that vision a reality.  

To McDonald’s credit, the company stopped serving chicken raised with medically-important antibiotics in 2016, ahead of schedule. At the time, consumer and health advocates, including WashPIRG Foundation and partners, applauded the company’s actions and influence. Now, 14 of the top 25 restaurant chains in the U.S. have committed to no longer source chicken raised with routine antibiotics, according to the Chain Reaction report.

“We convinced McDonald’s to stop serving chicken raised on life-saving medicines,” noted Orlick. “Now, it’s time for the biggest burger chain in the country to make the same commitment for all the meat they sell. Doing so will help protect doctors’ ability to treat infections and save lives.”

The latest numbers from the Food and Drug Administration show sales of medically-important antibiotics to use on food animals decreased from 2015 through 2016, marking the first decline in year to year sales on record. The decline suggests that restaurants’ new attitude toward antibiotics is making an impact. The FDA data also separates antibiotic sales by species for the first time. It shows significant differences among the percentage of medically-important antibiotics going to chicken, cattle and swine — chicken accounts for only 6% of sales, while beef accounts for 43% and pork for 37%.  

Some companies including Chipotle, Subway, Panera Bread, Niman Ranch and Applegate have already moved away from all meat raised with routine antibiotic use, or are in the process of doing so. If McDonald’s, which sells a billion pounds of beef in the U.S. each year and a significant amount of pork, commits to only purchase beef and pork raised without misusing antibiotics, we can take a significant step in ensuring that antibiotics are preserved for treating sick people.

Background info on antibiotic overuse on farms:

Millions of Americans get sick each year with antibiotic resistant infections and at least 23,000 of them die. A recent study estimates that by 2050, drug-resistant bacteria may kill more people worldwide than cancer kills today. Some of the biggest users of antibiotics are large, industrial farms, many of which routinely give antibiotics to livestock and poultry even when animals aren’t sick. Approximately 70% of medically-important antibiotics sold in the U.S. are for use on food animals. To keep antibiotics working, we need to limit their use to situations when animals are sick, or to control verified infectious disease outbreaks on the farm.

Free African Heritage Cooking Classes Spearhead Oldways’ Black History Month Celebrations

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February is Black History Month, and here at Oldways we celebrate the month the way we celebrate most things: With a focus on food. It is the perfect time to discover why its savory flavors and naturally healthy features make African heritage cuisine the next big food trend.

To commemorate Black History Month, Oldways is challenging everyone to enjoy at least one dish, at home or at a local restaurant, that is inspired by the cuisines of African American ancestors and Oldways’ African Heritage Diet Pyramid. There are numerous ways to get involved, such as:

  • Attending a regional A Taste of African Heritage (ATOAH) cooking class series, which addresses increased rates of heart disease, diabetes, and obesity in African American populations and is having a significant health impact in communities around the country: 62% of students have lost weight, 30% have reduced blood pressure, and 53% have lost inches from their waist. Boston, Houston, Dallas, and Philadelphia are just a few of the cities hosting classes in February—our directory has a full list, and this video provides a wonderful overview.
  • Venturing out to a new restaurant serving healthy, traditional food; from Ethiopian to Ghanaian, Jamaican to Cuban, and even Southern style. Our up-to-date Dine-Around-Town guide lists African heritage restaurants across the country.
  • Preparing meals at home, whether it’s trying a brand new recipe or using simple food swaps to incorporate the flavors and benefits of traditional ingredients.
  • Teaching others about the health and nutrition of the African heritage diet. Anyone can sign up to teach an ATOAH class, and health professionals can earn 2 hours of CPE credits by taking Oldways’ African Heritage & Health Course.

 

AFRICAN HERITAGE DIET

The African Heritage Diet is a way of eating based on the healthy food traditions of people with African roots. This healthy way of eating is powerfully nutritious and delicious, and naturally meets the guidelines experts recommend for supporting good health.

AFRICAN HERITAGE DIET PYRAMID

The ancestors of African Americans brought many wonderful food traditions to parts of the Caribbean, South America, and the southern states of the U.S. Maybe these were your great, great, great grandparents. Over the generations, many of these food traditions have been lost, with the influences of modern American eating habits. And our health has suffered because of this loss.

As the African Heritage Diet Pyramid illustrates, this diet is based on whole, fresh plant foods like colorful fruits and vegetables, especially leafy greens; tubers like yams and sweet potatoes; beans of all kinds; nuts and peanuts; rice, flatbreads and other grain foods, especially whole grains; healthy oils; homemade sauces and marinades of herbs and spices; fish, eggs, poultry and yogurt. It’s naturally low in processed sugar, unhealthy types of fats, and sodium, and includes only small amounts of meats and sweets.

Whether we look to Virginia or Jamaica, Nigeria or Brazil, we find this overall healthy eating pattern shared by all of their culinary histories, with distinct foods featured by each region. It is this “big picture” framework of the African Heritage Diet Pyramid that all people can use to claim their best health. We invite you to take a new look at your heritage and your health, and to enjoy the foods, and the ways of cooking and eating, that are a part of your healthy heritage.

King County Executive seeks moratorium on Atlantic salmon net pens

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Executive Dow Constantine is seeking a six-month moratorium on non-native salmon pens along King County’s marine shoreline on Vashon and Maury Islands. New rules will be developed to eliminate the risk of farmed, invasive species to our native salmon and serve as a model for other jurisdictions across Puget Sound.

Citing the threat to native salmon populations, King County Executive Dow Constantine today called for a six-month moratorium on allowing any new Atlantic fish farming facilities along marine shoreline in unincorporated King County.

“The hundreds of thousands of farmed, invasive Atlantic salmon that spilled into the Salish Sea in August threaten our native fish populations and our way of life,” said Executive Constantine. “Atlantic salmon don’t belong here. Beyond a six month moratorium, we need to ensure these operations can never again pose a threat to indigenous salmon already struggling to survive.”

Legislation enacting the moratorium will be transmitted to the King County Council on Monday, Nov. 27.  Indian tribes including the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe and Suquamish Tribe reviewed and approved the proposed moratorium to ensure it did not interfere with their local fisheries and treaty rights.

In the State of Washington, commercial net pens are required to obtain federal and state permits. Local governments like King County can also require permits as part of implementing shoreline master plans.

While the state has issued a moratorium on permits they administer for net pens, an applicant could still apply for and receive a county shorelines permit.

The moratorium announced by Executive Constantine will enable King County to review and strengthen its shoreline regulations to eliminate the risk of harm from non-native salmon farming to native salmon runs and sensitive shorelines.

King County rivers are home to seven native salmon species, including chinook, steelhead, and bull trout populations that are protected by the Endangered Species Act. Puget Sound is where these and other salmon species spend much of their lives, feeding for a year or more, before returning to their home streams to spawn.

King County and a host of partners, including treaty Indian tribes, cities, counties, and state and federal agencies have invested heavily in salmon-habitat preservation and restoration efforts.

Executive Constantine’s proposed moratorium coincides with a state-mandated review and update of King County’s Shoreline Master Program. The program includes policies, regulations and plans that manage the shorelines within King County’s jurisdiction, and is incorporated into the County’s comprehensive plan.

The Shoreline Master Program must be reviewed, updated and delivered to the Washington Department of Ecology by June 30, 2019.

You Have To Try Korean BBQ… You Can Thank Me Later

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Unlike sushi or Thai food, Korean BBQ has only recently hit the mainstream. The dining style has been quietly rising in popularity for the last decade.

Diners at Korean BBQ restaurants usually grill their own tender, marinated meats on a small tabletop grill, making each meal entertainingly interactive. Recently, though, the traditional cuisine has gotten a boost simply by changing the cooking surface.

If you haven’t already,You have to take the family and friends out for Korean BBQ. At most Korean BBQ restaurants, the “any way you like it” angle isn’t limited to grilling your own meats. Once diners take a cooked morsel off the grill, they can add rice, soybean paste, chili sauce, or whatever catches their eye. All that gets piled on top of a lettuce or cabbage leaf, making a little lettuce wrap known as a ssam. The All You Can Eat is always the way to go. The little cold plates, called banchan, that accompany Korean BBQ entrees are filled with mostly vegetable-based dishes and condiments such as fermented cabbage (kimchi), cold-boiled bean sprouts (kongnamul), and seasoned spinach. Though people often dig in as soon as the myriad little plates hit the table, banchan are actually side-condiment hybrids meant to be savored alongside your meal. As a bonus, they’re also usually bottomless, so they’ll be refilled when they run low.

If you and the family are ready for a fun and entertaining dining experience try Chung Ki Wa  at 8601 S Tacoma Way in Lakewood, WA (253) 588-5976.

The food and service is good plus the price is always right. If available the lunch special is the way to go.  

Like alil PORK on your Fork 

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Smoked half pig head Radiator Whiskey at Pike Place Market

Grab a few friends and call ahead for this one, ‘cause you’re going to be busy all night taking down this cutting board full of meat. Aside from the title character, which is presented as bluntly as the name implies, this porcine bacchanal comes with crispy fried ear, braised tongue, and roasted loin, plus hot peppers, aioli, and stone-ground mustard for dressing.

Radiator Whiskey is a brewpub in Downtown that’s dishing out barrel-aged, gravity-poured cocktails as well as American classics that may or may not include Fritos.    94 Pike St, Ste 30,  Seattle, WA  98101   206.467.4268

 

  New Scorecard Grades Top Restaurant Chains on Antibiotic Use in Meat Supply

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    Seattle Based Starbucks Gets a D+ Grade

More than half of the largest 25 chain restaurants in the U.S. have taken steps to restrict routine antibiotic use in their chicken supply chains, according to a new scorecard released today by a group of consumer, environmental and public health organizations. That’s good news given that the misuse of antibiotics in meat production puts our health at risk by breeding drug-resistant bacteria.

The third annual Chain Reaction III report was produced by Consumers Union, Natural Resources Defense Council, Food Animal Concerns Trust, Friends of the Earth, U.S. PIRG Education Fund, and Center for Food Safety. This year’s report, which grades the companies on their antibiotics policies and practices, found that 14 restaurants have taken action, up from nine just one year ago. While restaurant chains made great progress on chicken, the groups found that there were no new commitments to limit antibiotic use in beef and pork.  

“Nothing less than our health is at stake when comes to misusing antibiotics in the food system. That’s why restaurants moving in the right direction, including Subway and KFC, deserve high praise and those that lag behind such as Olive Garden need a bit more of a push,” said Elise Orlick, WashPIRG Foundation Director.

Starbucks, based here in Washington, moved up a grade this year to a “D+” for its recent commitment to no longer serve poultry raised with the routine use of medically important antibiotics by 2020. That’s a major step forward, but Starbucks should go further in cutting routine antibiotic use for the rest of its meat supply chain.

Health experts including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the World Health Organization warn that the widespread overuse of antibiotics is pushing us closer to a time where the medicines no longer work, and common infections can once again kill. 

Although antibiotics can be misused in hospitals or doctors’ offices, approximately 70% of the medically- important antibiotics sold in the U.S. are for use on food animals. In many cases, the drugs are given on a routine basis to animals that aren’t sick to compensate for unsanitary conditions. This routine use creates the ideal conditions for drug-resistant bacteria to flourish.

“Imagine going to the doctor with an infection and being told that there is no cure. Actions from some of the largest restaurant chains in the U.S. are helping to prevent that scenario from becoming the new norm,” said Orlick. 

KFC earned recognition as the most improved restaurant chain in this year’s scorecard. The fried chicken giant jumped from an “F” to a “B-” this year after announcing a commitment to no longer purchase chicken raised with medically-important antibiotics in U.S. operations by the end of 2018.

“Consumers have grown more aware of the ties between antibiotic overuse on animals and the risks to human health,” said Orlick. “Millennials especially are choosing brand allegiance based on more than taste and price, and restaurants are responding. We hope that this report educates even more consumers.” 

In addition to restaurant actions nationally, some states have moved to fill the gap left by federal inaction on this critical health issue as well. California and Maryland passed laws in the last two years that prohibit the routine use of antibiotics on animals that aren’t sick.

“If we’re going to preserve our ability to treat dangerous infections and save lives, we need action on antibiotics from all sectors. More restaurants, more states, and our federal health officials, should move swiftly to eliminate the routine use of antibiotics on industrial farms,” said Orlick.

Background and key findings of the report:  

  • Panera and Chipotle remain industry leaders and earned “A” grades for having comprehensive policies restricting the use of antibiotics in nearly all beef, pork, turkey and chicken served in their stores.  Subway has made a commitment to implement a similar policy by 2025.  
  • While more than half the top chains have made commitments on chicken, 22 out of 25 restaurants have not adopted time-bound commitments for limiting use of antibiotics in pork and beef.  McDonald’s recently outlined a global vision for reducing antibiotics in beef and pork, but has not provided any details or set a timeline for achieving it.
  • KFC is the “most improved” restaurant in this year’s scorecard, earning a “B-” compared to the “F” it received last year.  In March, KFC, which only serves chicken, made a commitment to only purchase birds raised without medically important antibiotics by the end of 2018.
  • Six restaurants, all with strong antibiotics policies for chicken, received grades of “B+” to “C-” (Subway, Chick-fil-A, KFC, Taco Bell, McDonald’s, and Wendy’s).  
  • The sweeping changes in chicken antibiotics policies in the restaurant sector have contributed to big improvements across the poultry industry.  Close to half of U.S. chicken is raised by suppliers that follow responsible antibiotics practices or that have pledged to do so in the near future.  
  • Six restaurants received a “D” grade for a number of reasons, including having limited policies, lack of implementation, and/or insufficient auditing of suppliers to ensure compliance: Pizza Hut, Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts, Jack in the Box, Burger King, and Papa John’s.
  • Eleven restaurants earned “F” grades for failing to adopt and disclose effective antibiotics stewardship policies:  Sonic, Cracker Barrel, Olive Garden, Applebee’s, Domino’s Pizza, Chili’s, Little Caesars, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dairy Queen, Arby’s, and IHOP.