You know when it’s Forkin’ Good.

As soon as it hits your mouth, your brain shuts down except to let that taste fill your entire consciousness. You don’t think. You are caught up in the moment. Your being is consumed by what is being consumed. You can’t say anything except something like, “Ohhhhhhh. Mmmmmm. Ahhhhhhh.” Then the moment passes.

“Shit,” you think. “That was Forkin’ Good!”

Think about your favorite foods that you miss. Maybe it’s your mom’s meatloaf. Maybe it’s your dad’s famous five alarm chili. Or that Twinkie from the gas station. Whatever it is, think about it. You can already taste it, right? Think about how happy it makes you when you eat it. These are the things that stay with you, that haunt your dreams.

But these transcendent moments don’t just belong to the fancy schmancy restaurants that cost a month’s salary to eat at, though there are experiences to be had in places like that. A simple dish, well made sometimes makes more of an impression than the most exotic, overwrought monstrosity.

When I was maybe three, I remember tasting one of the cherry tomatoes right off the vine that my parents grew in our back yard. The sun was out. It was hot. I had on some godawful 70’s style denim overalls, with an apple shaped patch on the chest, I think. I took a bite and the taste of tomato almost blew my head off! The taste was so sweet, so fresh, so alive, and so intense. I could even taste the bright greenish, slightly bitter taste of the stem where it connected to the fruit. It was the Platonic ideal of the way a tomato should taste. I ate all the ripe ones I could find.

Years later I’m continually disappointed by what passes for tomatoes in our supermarkets and restaurants. They’re often no more than gritty cardboard. But when I do eat a great tomato, I get a flash of that sunny moment from my childhood years ago. That’s how powerful the memories are.

So I’ve created this blog as a place to share and catalog these moments with you. I’ll share some of my favorite places and recipes. I’ll have guests share their favorite things. I hope you will share yours, too. Together we can create new Forkin’ Good memories. Food is not the only nourishment we need. Eating is more fun with friends.

The formula for creating Forkin’ Good moments is pretty simple. It boils down to this:

Real food. Prepared well. Appreciated fully.

And, I would also add, share it with friends. I look forward to sharing more with you in the future.

Eat well,
Mr. Lamb Shank