When you’re a little kid your preference for dining out may begin and end with McDonald’s.
For the majority of adults, however, eating a meal at a restaurant is made much happier when we’re presented with a little variety in our fare.
The Greater Madison area has variety to spare in its dining establishments, many of them homegrown. And it’s the Madison Originals restaurant group that’s been promoting the local restaurant scene for nearly 13 years.
Madison Originals was founded in August 2003 by then husband and wife and business partners Marcia Castro and Patrick O’Halloran, who owned Lombardino’s together at the time. They visited Kansas City and discovered a local restaurant movement there, Kansas City Originals.
Together with a small group of local restaurateurs, including Susan Breitbach of the now-closed Fyfe’s Corner Bistro and Craig Kuenning, general manager of Quivey’s Grove, Castro, who now owns The Old Fashioned, and O’Halloran began the association with more than 40 member restaurants.
The group’s first event was held at Quivey’s Grove in October 2003 and since then the organization has built on its goals of joint marketing, fundraising, and public education through a variety of events, including Restaurant Week and the Flavors of Madison events.
According to Holly Tierney-Bedord, Madison Originals ambassador, the local restaurant scene might have evolved over the past 13 years, but the group’s mission hasn’t much changed.
“We’re still working to promote our community’s local, unique, independent restaurants, but I think it’s easier now for the general public to understand the importance and value of a group like ours,” Tierney-Bedord explains. “Dining culture is always evolving, and in the years since Madison Originals started the farm to table movement has gotten big, and events like Small Business Saturday have helped bring awareness about keeping it local.
“People are more cognizant of how their buying power affects our local economy,” continues Tierney-Bedord. “For the local restaurants in our group, though, and for our founders, they were ahead of the curve. Many of our members had working relationships with local farmers even before this way of thinking was popular.”
That’s something Cheri Martin, president of Kessenich’s Ltd., a Madison Originals associate member, has seen firsthand.
“Kessenich’s has been in business for over 87 years,” says Martin. “At that time chains were nowhere on the horizon. Then restaurant chains became very popular due to their marketing power, but they lost their creativity and use of fresh ingredients.
“We love the farm to table movement,” Martin notes. “Local chefs use ingredients that are in-season. They’re fresh, healthy, and more delicious. Local chefs also change their menu frequently and create new dishes all the time. By their very nature chains must serve the same menu items and often need to freeze or prepackage to maintain consistency from store to store.”
Tierney-Bedord says while dining trends change and the whole country strives to keep up, there are things about the local food culture here in Madison that stay the same and make dining in Madison unique.
The people in Madison are especially creative, like to have fun, and have high standards, she notes. “I feel like you really see this and taste this at our restaurants. It’s in the décor, the people, and the menus. Madison’s unique culture is a big part of the reason that a group like Madison Originals makes sense here. Because food, of course, is a huge part of a restaurant. But the personality of the space is just as critical.”
Adding to the local economy pot
Tierney-Bedord notes the Madison restaurant scene only continues to grow, and the changes she’s seen are mostly positive.
“There’s more awareness of the importance of supporting local businesses now than there was when we were founded,” Tierney-Bedord explains. “I feel like people are more community-minded than they used to be, which is wonderful. They see how much can happen when we work together, which is exactly what our group is about. This kind of thinking is great for our members and local restaurants in general.”
People are also dining out now more than ever, and are more open to trying different kinds of foods. The standards set by local restaurants have resulted in chains raising their standards, says Tierney-Bedord, which only serves to improve the entire local dining scene. “People have high expectations when they dine out, and they’re dining out more and more. It’s no longer a once a week thing or just for special occasions. With all that restaurant traffic, there’s room for plenty of restaurants to thrive.”
Local restaurants aren’t the only ones thriving when more people dine out either.
Many locally owned businesses rely on the success of local restaurants, including Kessenich’s, notes Martin, including restaurant supply companies, food wholesalers, farmers, liquor wholesalers, craft breweries and distilleries, HVAC/electrical/plumbing/construction contractors, tourism, employment, insurance, accountants, attorneys, and even the government with property, sales, and employment taxes.
There are huge benefits to a community when people choose to spend their money at a local business, adds Tierney-Bedord. “Some studies suggest that dining at a locally owned restaurant creates almost four times the economic benefit for that community as dining at a chain. These local restaurants are more likely to have used local architects, interior designers, and construction companies during their inception. They are more likely to use local printers, graphic designers, and marketing companies to create their menus, signage, and websites. And during their daily routines, they’re more likely to have connections with local farmers, distributors, and suppliers. Not to mention, independent restaurants are a tourist draw in a way that chains are not. They’re destinations, and a big part of the reason tourists come to our city.”
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Cooking up something for the community
Tierney-Bedord says one of Madison Originals’ goals coming into 2016 was to do more for the local community.
“We wanted to partner with an organization that was big enough to make a difference, but small enough that what we could do for them really mattered,” Tierney-Bedord explains. “After all, Madison Originals is not a huge organization and our members are already busy. Our members’ time and resources are limited, yet we all want to connect with and give back to our community.”
After much deliberation the group decided to partner with The River Food Pantry, since its focus is on fighting the hunger epidemic in and around Dane County.
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Madison Originals is working with The River Food Pantry on the latter’s Feed the Need event, June 5 at The East Side Club. |
“The food connection resonated with our board of directors and it was settled,” notes Tierney-Bedord. “The River Food Pantry was already planning its Feed the Need event in collaboration with Ale Asylum, since they’re both celebrating their 10-year anniversaries this summer. It worked out great for us to team up with them.”
“We’re very excited to work with local organizations like the Madison Originals restaurant group to raise awareness about hunger in our community,” says Amy Lord, development director of The River Food Pantry. “We hope Feed the Need will engage a new audience with our message of mercy and hope to those in need by providing nutritional basics and encouragement.”
Once Feed the Need, which takes place on June 5 at The East Side Club on Monona Drive, wraps up, Madison Originals will continue working with The River Food Pantry on other fundraising and awareness-building efforts throughout the rest of 2016, says Tierney-Bedord.
Over the years Madison Originals has also held its Flavors of Madison events, golf outings, established scholarship funds, and held dueling chefs competitions as ways to interact with the community. The group was also instrumental in starting Restaurant Week.
“These days we frequently donate to local silent auctions and fundraisers, sponsoring events like the 12 Months of Dining Out for the Rainbow Project, or participating in worthwhile local events like Dine Out for DAIS to help raise awareness about domestic violence,” says Tierney-Bedord. “And last summer you may remember seeing us handing out gift certificates to restaurants in our group at the Bike for Boys and Girls Club of Dane County event.”
Recipe for continued success
With nearly 50 local member restaurants and dozens of associate members, Madison Originals continues to go strong more than a decade after its inception.
That’s not to say the group isn’t always on the lookout for new members.
“We’re looking for members who want to be actively involved with our group,” says Tierney-Bedord. “We have four yearly all-member meetings, as well as board of director meetings, committee meetings, and community outreach projects and events. We need interested participants to help our group make the difference we envision.”
Restaurants that would like to join Madison Originals need to be locally owned and located in Dane County or a contiguous county. Interested restaurateurs can reach Tierney-Bedord at info@madisonoriginals.com to receive more information on membership and to apply.
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