Monthly Archives: September 2015

Dishing Up Soup, Hot Diggity Dogs and Kombucha with a Kick

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I had the pleasure of hearing many writers recently in Missoula at the Festival of the Book. One of my favorites (aside from my darling, Marc Beaudin) was Liz Carlisle who spoke of and read from her book, Lentil Underground which chronicles the story of a group of renegade Montana farmers who were early leaders in the organic food movement. I can’t say enough good things about what a phenomenal woman Liz is.  And I’m glad to say that we now have signed copies of her book here at Wheatgrass Saloon.

The Timeless Seeds lentils  celebrated in Liz’s book, the Lentil Underground, will be the star ingredient in many of the soups coming your way as our “warm” offering here in the juice bar at Wheatgrass Saloon this fall and winter. The soups will rotate weekly, and we plan to begin serving them in October.

On the way to Missoula, I stopped in Bonner to meet Mike Hangas and pick up some super cute and beautifully designed keychains handmade at Ruana Knives.  They will make a very affordable gift for anyone on your list in the coming season.

keychain

In Missoula, I met Mallory Ottariano owner of Kind Apparel.  I love her clothing designs and I really love that all of her materials are sourced from local charity thrift stores whose missions support autism research, the fight against domestic violence, food banks, and provide food and jobs for disadvantaged members of the community. I brought back a few of her pieces for us to check out. One of my favorites are her booty shorts. Perfect for a class at Breathing Room Yoga.

The last art walk takes place September 25th, and I am delighted that Betsy Hall will be showing her “Dog Days of Livingston” new works upstairs in the Wheatgrass Saloon Gallery.
betsy and banshee
Betsy Hall has spent the past month painting one painting per day. For the show, she will have portraits of 27 dogs, two cats and three birds. She will also have available notecards sold individually or in sets of ten in “doggy bags”. If you are sad that your pet was not painted for the show, you’ll be happy to know that Betsy will be taking new commissions at the opening.

Dog Days of Livingston opens on Friday, September 25th for the Art Walk upstairs at Wheatgrass Saloon on Main St. and will be up for one month. In addition to a variety of human food treats, there will be peanut butter banana dog treats to take home to your puppies and Mark Rehder’s Geyser Farm Kombucha with of course the option to give it a kick.

4th Thursdays at Wheatgrass

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wheatgrass toastA few months before opening Wheatgrass Saloon, I took a trip to Denver with my teenage daughter. Thanks to an Expedia package deal, we splurged, staying at the Brown Palace Hotel. To balance out the indulgence of a fancy hotel stay, we spent most of a day enjoying the search for thrift store treasures on Broadway. ( I have some great up-cycled sweaters from that day.) We tried to catch a cab to get back in time for our late afternoon spa appointments. There are no cabs in Denver. So, we ran down the road, working our way through the protestors who represented the 99% for the Occupy Movement in a park near the hotel and into the spa, where I was handed a glass of Prosecco and one of those warm soft things to put around your neck.

As I sat in a dimly lit lounge area, waiting for my turn on the massage table, I thought about what I wanted the as-yet-unnamed Wheatgrass Saloon to be and to offer. After the day’s experience, I wished this: that all women had the chance to not only spend a whole day with someone they loved as I had loved spending time with my daughter, I also wanted to think that all women could have access to these ridiculous treats of bubbly afternoon decadence. I wanted Wheatgrass to be a place for a woman who was having a tough time to go to get a healthy drink, a massage, a foot rub. I thought I’d team up with Tri-County Network Against Domestic & Sexual Violence, the Sue Wicklund Fund, etc.  As usual, my ideas are a bit ridiculous, but as usual they don’t entirely disappear.

So, my tiny offering in pursuit of this idea will take place monthly at Wheatgrass Saloon beginning this month.

On the fourth Thursday of each month 10% of purchases made will go to a pre-appointed local non-profit. All purchases made in the juice bar and for non-consignment items in the boutique will qualify for the 10% donation. We will begin September 24th and continue with each 4th Thursday of the month. If you have a non-profit in mind that you would like to receive recognition and a donation please pick up an application at the Wheatgrass Saloon juice bar counter.

I am going to pick the first non-profit, and then it will be up to you, so do, please, come in and make some recommendations.

On September 24th 10% will go to ASPEN, formerly known as Tri-County Network Against Domestic & Sexual Violence, was incorporated in 2001 as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to serving victims and survivors of domestic and sexual violence.  ASPEN has continued to expand over the years to offer more programs and services to the community.  ASPEN serves the residents of Park, Sweet Grass, and Meagher Counties of Montana, but also extends services to anyone in a situation of domestic or sexual violence who are fleeing an abusive situation and need assistance.  These services include an emergency shelter, a 24-hour crisis line, crisis counseling, support groups, legal advocacy, information and referrals, safety planning, emergency 911 phones, assistance with Orders of Protection and/or law enforcement reporting, forensic medical exam support, and community outreach and educational programs.