John (Jack) Morrison Joins B-K
We are pleased to announce that a new team member is joining us February 1st as an outside sales associate. Jack Morrison is a 4th generation Oregonian, raised in Southern Oregon and now living in Portland.
He earned his BS in Anthropology (Archeology) at Portland State University and his BA in Music at Southern Oregon University. He has a Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Systems, Portland State University.
Jack has 20 years’ experience as a restaurant cook, professional chef and baker. He was most recently Catering Chef at a Portland catering business and was Prepared Foods Lead and Bakery Production Manager at a Northwest high end grocery market chain. His extensive skills in food production translate to a working knowledge of our represented gourmet housewares products.
After initial training and product familiarity Jack will be responsible for our business in an assigned Northwest Territory.
Jack and his young daughter live in Portland, Oregon.
Happy Birthday Vitamix
We are happy to be part of the VitaMix celebration of its 100 year anniversary. This American brand has been making high performance food processing equipment since the 1920’s and continues with upgrades and improvements to this day. Often imitated, never equaled these machines are used in many commercial kitchens as well as many thousands of homes.
Contact us for available programs and specific models suitable for our customers.
Happy Earth Day
Today we celebrate a world-wide phenomenon when the world is actually getting together and doing something about correcting our planet’s direction.
We are surrounded by evidence even in our industry that people and companies are getting it right finally. Here are a few examples from some companies we are proud to represent:
OXO International
OXO has contributed over $280 million to organizations worldwide.
ScanPan
Sustainability through waste reduction has been part of our DNA since 1956. Our products are made in Ryomgård, Denmark, under the strictest environmental standards. Combining artisan processes with high technology in our production to reduce our carbon footprint is part of our present and our future.
Vitamix
Vitamix FoodCycler® - New introduction from VitaMix makes kitchen food scraps into dry garden compost.
The Food Cycler FC-50 takes kitchen food scraps, including chicken bones, produce, fruit skins, etc. and makes a soil amendment or garbage refuse in 2.5-5 hours. This is the ideal home composter that turns food waste into garden compost. Eliminating more garbage and waste.
The Everything Guide to Shopping for Knives
Starting with the chef’s knife. If you only have room for one blade in your life, make it this one.
By Nick Marino Photo by Bobby Doherty
The only knife you really need is shaped like a torpedo. It is 100 percent stainless steel, unspoiled by even a particle of plastic, but still made for just about any kitchen, anywhere. After consulting 25— chefs, restaurateurs, cookbook authors, James Beard nominees, and an iconic knife dealer — I can confidently say that if you’re going to buy one knife, it should be the Global G-2. It’s a chef’s knife, which means it’s an all-purpose tool in a category of five- to eight-inch blades that cover just about all of your chopping needs. You can spend less than $10 and more than $1,200 on a chef’s knife; this one costs $100. That price buys you something that feels like a piece of engineering in your hand, when it feels like anything at all.
To be clear, our panelists didn’t unanimously pick the Global G-2: Some cooks prefer heavier knives or shorter knives or knives that cost as much as a sofa. Actual chefs describe what they expect of their knives in a few ways. “Really, what you want is a knife that’s durable, that holds its edge a long time,”says restaurateur Tim Love, who owns several meat-centric restaurants in Texas, including Lonesome Dove Western Bistro in Austin and Fort Worth, and who likes Global’s products. Deb Perelman of Smitten Kitchen says almost the exact same thing: “My favorite knife is the Global G-2; it holds a sharp edge very well.” Other chefs more quickly refer to the size of the blade as the most essential quality: “If you’re using a knife constantly, you want it to feel comfortable,” adds Amanda Cohen, the chef-owner behind New York vegetarian restaurant Dirt Candy. “It should be your friend,” and your friend, Cohen says, won’t be too long or heavy for a petite chef.
Global G-2 Chef’s Knife 8” Global knives are made in Japan, in an explicit homage to samurai warriors. The G-2 has an unusual dimpled handle that feels like a bicycle grip. This same handle is hollow, which explains the knife’s mere 7.84 ounces. These attributes — samurai-inspired and hollow — mean the whole thing feels like it disappears into your hand when you use it. And when you’re done with it, it’s forgivingly easy to clean and handsome to display.