Flavors of Northwest Arkansas

Pleasant Counter- Ahren Boulanger

In this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas, we visit with Ahren Boulanger, co-owner and chef of the Pleasant Counter in Springdale.

Tontitown Winery- Heather Ranalli Peachee

For this episode, we interview Heather Ranalli-Peachee, co-owner/operator of the Tontitown Winery.
She’s a 4th generation winemaker that learned the art of making wine in her Dad’s basement where he made it.
Tontitown used to be known for their wineries, but the last one closed in the 80’s. Heather and her husband David decided with her father that they would revive the Tontitown tradition of commercial winemaking and they’ve been going for a decade now.
Heather’s family almost lost the farm years ago. Hear how it was saved! We’ll also hear about their long-standing role in the Tontitown Grapefest, what kind of grapes grow best here in NWA, growing a local small business, and as always much more. Our conversation with Heather Ranalli Peachee is next, right here on the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas.

Meiji- Darwin Beyer

On this episode of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas, we sit down with Darwin Beyer, owner, and chef of Meiji in Fayetteville. Like several people we’ve interviewed, he never thought about getting into the restaurant business until he needed some part-time work back in the day. Darwin is originally from Kansas City and has a great story about how he ended up in Fayetteville. He started Meiji in 2010, and it wasn’t easy for him to get it off the ground. Speaking of 2010, procuring fresh fish back then wasn’t what it is today. How does he do it? It’s all in this edition of The Flavors of Northwest Arkansas!

Ozark Beer Company- Lacie Bray and Marty Shutter

On this edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas Podcast, we head to Rogers and the Ozark Beer Company, where we talk with co-owner Lacie Bray and marketing “do-everything guy” Marty Shutter. They were the first brewery in Benton County, and they tell us what it was like being the first and how they got there. Also, how did they stay afloat during Covid? They were VERY nimble. They tell us the lessons learned from that time– some of which they still use. And what was Ozark Beer doing at the Smithsonian last year? So many stories in this one! Thanks for checking out the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas!

Cobblestone Farms- Nikki Ringler

On this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we head to the west side of Fayetteville to Cobblestone Farms where we visited with Operations Director Nikki Ringler. They provide over 20,000 of produce for the food insecure in Northwest Arkansas and do it on just 2 acres of land!
 
They practice organic and regenerative farming, which isn’t the easiest route when farming. Instead of using pesticides, they focus on soil health, biodiversity, and natural pest management.
If you or your kids want to learn about farming, volunteering there is a great place to start. We hope you check it out!

Nellie B's Bakery- Priscilla and Danielle Wright

On this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we head to Nellie B’s Bakery in Elkins, who are about celebrate one decade in business! We had so much fun visiting with mother/daughter combo Priscilla and Danielle Wright. Priscilla used to manage 9 gourmet bakeries in the Bay Area and has been perfecting her family recipes for a long time. Danielle swore in high school that she’d never get into the food business 
They moved to Arkansas from California and Priscilla will tell you why they did- you’ll LOVE this story. Finally, have you ever tried to deliver multi-tiered wedding cakes down dirt roads with no GPS? Well they certainly have and have some great stories about it.
Finally- don’t forget that Thursday, April 4 is NWA Gives Day. There’s a local farm providing hunger relief to those that need it. We’ll tell you more about them. We hope you check it out!

Conifer- Matt Cooper

Welcome to this week’s Flavors of Northwest Arkansas Podcast, where we sit down with James Beard Award Semifinalist for Best Chef of the South, Matt Cooper of Conifer. The son of a Methodist Minister and a food technologist, he lived in 30 different places in Arkansas before heading off to culinary school in the Pacific Northwest.
After working there for a while, he moved back to Little Rock to help open a restaurant before coming to NWA to help ramp up the hospitality arm of the Ropeswing Group, before opening his own place.
In this episode, he talks about what he learned coming up through the profession and what he learned not to do after tough experiences. He also details Conifer’s sustainability model and speaking of that, he has BREAKING NEWS about what’s next for them.
Also, we’re debuting a new segment to help you frustrated home cooks, like my Dad.

Crepes by Paulette- Paula Jo Chitty Henry

On this week’s edition, we talk to Paula Jo Chitty Henry of Crepes by Paulette. She grew up in Bentonville and moved to New York (where she met her husband) and France after college. Once she and her husband Fred had kids, they moved back to Bentonville. With no culinary background, they set out to start a food truck (not their original plan) and have now grown to two restaurants. Hear how they did it, and what their future plans are on this week’s edition of Flavors of Northwest Arkansas.

Bienvenue- William Mauk

This week, we visit with William Mauk, chef & owner of Bienvenue in Downtown Springdale. Mauk was classically trained in New Orleans where he worked for some of the best chefs in the U.S. He tells us his story about how he ended up in Northwest Arkansas, and specifically, Downtown Springdale! We also get an INCREDIBLE recipe for Beef Bourguignon and hear about fresh saltwater shrimp FROM ARKANSAS. *Mind blown* William was fun to talk to and has some opinions!

The Blackberry Brasserie- Hunter Thomason and Bernie Martinez

John sits down with owner Hunter Thomason and chef Bernie Martinez and learns about their career paths and menu influences. Why did they choose elevated southern food? Also, they recently kicked off new service. They'll tell you all about it, and much more this week on The Flavors of Northwest Arkansas.