Hello 2016

 
It is still January, so I hope it doesn't sound too funny telling you, Happy New Year! Last month and part of this month, I struggled a little with illness but I am much better now. My energy has finally returned and I feel so blessed to feel normal again. I appreciate every day that I wake up feeling well and comfortable. 

Since it is a new year, I am making new plans for the blog. A friend of mine suggested that I make my blog strictly about food since I love food so much. I don't have any plans to do that since I started  this blog to talk about all the things I love like: Ohio travel, art and exploring unique experiences. However, I do want to start highlighting more of my food adventures. This year I am introducing a new series called Tasty Travels. It will feature restaurants and other types of food establishments all over Ohio that are worth a road trip. At the end of the year I introduced a series called Made In Ohio. It is a series that features things that are produced in the Buckeye State. I plan to incorporate more of that series this year as well. I will continue my list of 101 Cool Places And Things In Ohio. I will continue to share the castles, wineries and natural wonders in my home state. Ohio will not be the only place I discuss this year, I am currently working on some travel plans. I will share as my plans progress.

If you have any suggestions, I will happily address what ever topics you have in mind.  I get messages on social media all the time asking me about events, where to eat or places to visit. I want to continue to be that person that has at least some of those answers for you. I will try my best to give you something cool, new or exciting weekly. I will try not to let you down. Again, Happy New Year! I hope the first month of this year has already brought you joy!

Kris,

Made In Ohio

Tommy's Jerky

3461 Broadway
Grove City, Ohio 43123
614.875.0028

After a cold and rainy Saturday, I was excited to get out, enjoy the weather and explore this past Sunday. Not wanting to travel very far, my guy and I decided to check out a jerky place that was featured a few weeks ago on the show 'Out and About Columbus'. While I am not a jerky fan, I am certainly glad we stopped in.

The store was immaculate and decorated with Western style touches. There were animal skins, antlers, taxidermy and lots of barrels. We were greeted right away by a dark haired beautiful woman named Stephanie. She promptly gave us a few pieces of information about the store and told us that we could taste whatever we wanted as long as we followed a couple simple rules to encourage proper sanitation. All of the rules made sense of course and made me feel secure about tasting the samples. The barrels housed the samples and toothpicks for tasting. The samples went from mild to spicy going toward the back of the store. I tasted my way through the barrels of the smokies first.  Just as things started to get a little spicy, I found my favorite smokey. The Sweet & Sassy was sweet with a little kick.  I continued to taste and found a couple more flavors I enjoyed such as the Jalapeno & Hot Pepper Cheese and the Roasted Jalapeno Beef.  Then I swapped sides and tasted the actual jerky. The jerky had even more flavor options which weren't limited to just beef. They also carry elk, turkey, buffalo, venison, alligator, kangaroo and when available, salmon jerky. I tasted everything from the game section except for the salmon because they were out of it. Stephanie offered to put me on a list so that I would be informed when the salmon came back in.

This was such a fun experience. I loved tasting my way through the store. I especially loved the grilled warm summer sausage.  I personally never thought about cooking summer sausage since I have always seen it sliced and eaten cold on a cracker. Stephanie suggests mixing it into eggs for breakfast. Yum! What I appreciate most about Tommy's Jerky, is that the jerky is made in Ohio. If you are a jerky lover, the jerky is delicious and they have A+ customer service. With the holiday season coming, I encourage you to keep your jerky lovers in mind. Tommy's Jerky will build gift baskets onsite. I wouldn't mind getting some smokies in my Christmas stocking this year or in a gift basket mixed with more of my favorite Ohio things. They also sell hot sauce, BBQ sauce, salsas and kettle corn, all made in Ohio. Just some ideas!

 

Until next time,

Be blessed! Be free! Be adventurous!