Area restaurants are fighting to support locally grown food

FORT WAYNE, Indiana (WANE) – Local chefs and mixologists selected their best dishes Monday night at the Local Food Throwdown event.

The lineup included 12 contestants from places like Copper Spoon, Mercado, and Penny Drip. Mercado co-owner Johnny Perez says supporting this event was a must.

“It’s a great network to see the growers and the people who make the food on the farms come together,” Perez said.

The Throwdown featured nine dishes and three cocktails for guests to sample. All ingredients used come from regional farms in the area. Janet Katz, founding director of the Northeast Indiana Local Food Network, says it’s important to promote local foods here in Northeast Indiana.

“Local food is something everyone can enjoy and it’s a deep connection you have with the farmers who grew it, the land it came from and it just makes the food taste better,” he said Katz, “This is us. We want everyone to enjoy local food and we’re so grateful that people are coming here to support us tonight so that we can really promote that and really get more local food from our country onto our tables.” across the region.”

The event also featured live music from the Farmland Jazz Band and a silent auction. The raised proceeds will benefit the Northeast Indiana Local Food Network. More information can be found here on their website.