Best Served Whole is a Q&A show where we celebrate the Unsung Hospitality Heroes. Join Chef Jensen Cummings as he talks to industry leaders about the people that have been there through the trials and triumphs of their lives and careers. On this episode of Best Served Live, our host Jensen Cummings sits down with Jenny Smith to discuss Butcher Crick farms, the propagation of heirloom tomato transplants for sale by consumers, her humble beginnings on a farm in Des Moines Iowa, transitioning from serving to farming, leaving home to follow her dreams and what it takes to build a network in a new place and the importance of making sure your team shares passion with you.

Top Five Takeaways

1. “When you get bitten by the bug, you get bitten hard. When you get the desire to served others, look out world, because that’s what you are going to be doing for the rest of your life.” (2:37)

2. “Stop trying to be everything for everyone. Just grow one crop and grow it well.” (6:01)

3. “Farmers and chefs need to get together far before the growing season starts. Agritouism - come see how we do the farming.” (11:57)

4. “Remember those questions in school on tests that had those critical thinking skills. That’s where we messed up as a society, because all of those questions should have been problem solving questions. You learn in a restaurant rapid thinking, problem solving skills, and humbleness.” (15:11)

5. “Nutrition happens when you take the tomato from its life source, it is the most nutritious that it will ever be. As soon as its picked its a time bomb.” (22:58)

6. “Please don’t give excess produce from your home gardens to restaurants. You are devaluing the market for that product and for the individual farmers.” (25:37)

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