2012 Calls for Major Shifts!

It’s here. The year 2012 is finally upon us. It’s incredible to think that when Dandelion opened in 2006 we had no idea that the next six years would bring so many major shifts. Our first black president. Facebook and it’s instantaneous news sharing of engagements, babies being born, the party happening right now. Twitter organized revolutions by the people. New Orleans. Japan. Haiti. The massive bank fiasco. Millions of people utilizing consensus based decision making through occupation movements worldwide. A vegetable garden at the white house. A massive movement to re-localize. And a Jetson’s future turned reality with facetime on smartphones. Whoa.

In Central Florida we’ve seen massive growth in the re-localization movement: the creation of Slow Food Orlando, Ourlando Local Business Alliance, the exponential growth of Homegrown Co-op, Edible Orlando, Winter Park Harvest Festival, Audubon Park Community Market, Food Truck Bazaars, Grandma Parties, the creation of mini Main Street Districts throughout the city and mini festivals held at local businesses like never before.

At Dandelion, we’ve seen our little block transform into a haven for the open minded. Our community has welcomed the Florida School of Holistic Living, Misty Forest, Shine On Yoga, Michael Arthur Acupuncture, Urban Re-Cycle, the launch of Homegrown Co-op (now in fancy quarters on Orange Ave) along with moon circles twice monthly, the planting of the Bodhi tree, a medicinal herb garden, an edible garden, walls covered in American Clay. In our walls, dozens of people have met and fallen in love, several couples have gotten engaged, one blessed wedding and countless moments of synchronistic ah-ha moments between the amazing folks who find themselves here enjoying the delicious food and tea our tribe prepares for us.

Within our tribe, babies have been born, engagements have been proposed, hearts have been opened, dreams have been encouraged and pursued.

It is apparent to us, with enough to look back at, that the close of 2011 brings The End of The Beginning. The start-up is now established. The foundation is solid. Our community has found it’s rhythm and we know the basics of who we all are and how we are connected; what we have and what we need; when to be proactive, when to be reactive and when to leave well enough alone; where to get our needs met locally; why it is important for all of us to support local. And as a community, each of us is learning how to shift with the times by re-educating, re-skilling and re-membering that we are all here to take care of one another, to share in an atmosphere of plentitude and to co-create the “more beautiful world our hearts tell us is possible.”

Welcome to the future. 2012 is here. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are one. There is no central figure come to save us, the time of the guru is gone. We are each a leader, a teacher, a student. We are each here to do our part, we are each here to change within, to dream a new dream. Thank you for being yourself, for believing in yourself, for using your power to co-create an interdependent community that is thriving, feasting, singing, dancing and doing good work that nourishes the soul of self, family and community. We are so grateful to be in this moment out of time with each of you.

May our hearts be open at the dawn of 2012 and beyond.

Happy Holidays

We hope you are enjoying this delightful holiday weather as you make your final preparation for the holidays!

Just a quick reminder that we will be CLOSED on Christmas and CLOSING EARLY at 4pm on Christmas Eve.

Even though the cafe is closed, there will still be a moon circle on Christmas Eve in the garden if you would like to join in.

Our favorite picks for last-minute holiday idea:

• Gift certificates and Gift Baskets from Dandelion are still available at the cafe
• The Ourlando 2012 Event Calendar is also available in the cafe and features the urban sketches of Thomas Thorspecken of Analog Artist Digital World. A collectors item for the local lover in your life. One is on display in the front room of the cafe for you to check out!
• Membership to Homegrown Co-op for the new year!

And here are some cool things we’ve found to make the holidays just an itty bit more enjoyable…

• Local Listen. Hey, It’s Christmas – Put this awesome album of local orlando musicians in your iPod rotation. Totally Free Download. This is volume two featuring a majority of Florida musicians. Volume one is just as awesome, see link at bottom of page.
• Gather. Around the tree – local, u-pick Christmas trees complete with hayride, petting zoo, zip lines, kettle corn at this family farm just 35 minutes north of downtown for your last minute tree needs. Trim off the branches when you are done and cut the trunk into block sized pieces – instant present for the cool kid in your life!
• Mystical Santa. We love holiday myths and legends of all kinds and we recently discovered the Mushroom-Santa Link. Should make for delightful conversation around the yule log!
• Simplify.Too often, the holidays seem to exhaust rather than uplift us. Take the 2011 Simplify the Holidays Challenge and get a free e-book full of ideas!

With love from the entire Dandelion Tribe!

Become a Patron, Get it Delivered with Your Local Groceries!

We are pleased to announce that you may now place your order for your favorite Dandelion goods through Homegrown Local Food Co-op. We currently offer Hummus, Chili, Whirled Peas and are going to be adding our dressings and more dips and sauces in the near future. With Homegrown, you place an order online, we prepare it for you fresh in the morning and it is delivered to your home that afternoon along with other local grocery items or you can visit the Farm Store on Orange Avenue and pick some up there. We are proud to be patrons and producers for this awesome local food gem!

About Homegrown: Homegrown Local Food Cooperative exists to ensure convenient access and consistent supply of locally grown foods that are ethical, organic and sustainable in production to the communities of Central Florida. Our mission is to support the production, promotion, and distribution of these foods throughout our region. Educating the community about the products we sell, and don’t sell, is our contribution to a healthier, better informed community. Inspiring and empowering our members to grow their own organic food is our commitment to a sustainable future.

Have a Fairy Happy Thanksgiving!

Today we stand in gratitude for our all those who bring the delicious food we serve to the table. From the long line of seed savers, our rich soil, the buzzing bees, the hardworking farmers, pickers, packers and drivers to the hands of our Dandelion Tribe who transform the grains and vegetables and fruits into something delicious for you to enjoy. And, of course, to you, our patrons and friends, who make eating organic and supporting local & independent a priority.

In honor of gathering around the table with friends and family, we will be closed on Thanksgiving and closing early today at 5pm. We will reopen on Friday for normal business hours.

We wish you an abundant, safe and joyous Thanksgiving!

Click for larger view of menu

We are happy to announce a delicious dinner menu available after 6pm during Eat Local Week. Dandelion is also hosting a film about the young farming movement. Click here for trailer & information.

Local Seasonal Vegetable Medley Soup featuring Jonathan’s Farms local produce including: Squash, Zucchini, and Green Beans.
Stuffed Portobella Caps featuring Zellwood Farms Portobella Mushroom Caps stuffed and served on a bed of organic spring greens drizzled with red wine demi-glace.
served with Quinoa Pilaf featuring Organic Tempeh from Gainesville’s Tempeh Shop

Local Beverage Options
Autumn Tea Blended by Local Herbalist Dawn Gates featuring 100% organic and feature biodynamically harvested Spanish Needles from Dawn’s Enchanted Garden and
Orlando Brewing Organic Beers

Pre-Order Today

For Thanksgiving, we’ve crafted a homemade feast for your enjoyment. We use delicious organic ingredients that are completely vegan and gluten free! Our gluten-free “Feast” is pre-cooked and packaged –  just reheat and enjoy when you get to your Thanksgiving destination.

Sorry, we are not able to accept any more orders at this time. Check back for a Christmas feast in December!

The Thanksgiving Feast To-Go is vegan, gluten-free, organic and homemade.  You will get a Marsala Mushroom Nut Loaf, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Roasted Root Vegetables, Cranberry Ginger Sauce and Corn. Single serving is $14.95 or $49.95 and feeds a family of four.

We Made the Top Five! Thanks for your votes!

We must learn to invest as if food, farms and fertility mattered. We must connect investors to the places where they live, creating vital relationships and new sources of capital for small food enterprises. – Slow Money Principle #3

With your support, Dandelion placed fifth in the nation out of over 600 integrity oriented businesses. Thank you for shining the light of Orlando in front of the nation. We know that light has been seen and look forward to witnessing how local investors find new ways to connect with local food producers to help our local food movement reach critical mass and long term sustainability.

Stay tuned for more Slow Money news!

Let us celebrate the new generation of entrepreneurs, consumers and investors who are showing the way from Making A Killing to Making a Living. – SM Principal #5

This $5 Deal is fresh and delicious!!! Click here to learn more about our Stir Fresh including popular variations.
This deal is so good it can’t be combined with any other offer.

Click for photos of the nursery!

Looking for a good variety of vegetables and herbs from heirloom and organic seeds for your garden? Well, look no further! My Yard Farm has a fully stocked edible nursery on our patio with lots to choose from, and several varieties of your favorites like tomatoes & beans. Sweet Potato, Collard Greens, Tomatillo, Cucumber, Okra, Kale, Chives, Basil, Mint and SO MUCH MORE! While you are picking up some veggies, check out our own garden, in phase one of development. You can’t get more local than this!!!

Click for more info on the big hug event!

We were just casting our ballot for theOW Best of Orlando and realized that Orlando is SO coming into it’s own…. there are SO many quality options to choose from this year that it is hard to decide. Of course, we hope you will consider us for the Best Vegetarianand Best Teahouse categories again this year.

When we first started the cafe, we were avid promoters of some cool stuff going on in town because there were not that many outlets to discover what was happening when. Today’ there are lots of resources to choose from and we leave it up to those folks to keep you informed about what is going down in O-town. Here is our favorite list of go to resources for the latest and greatest in this town of ours (besides the Weekly, of course). If we’ve missed something, please let us know!

• Publications: Edible Orlando * Velocity Magazine * Playground Magazine
• Blogs: The Daily City * Central Florida Green Guide * Thor’s Sketch Blog *
• Radio/Podcasts: Front Porch Radio * Out and About
• Guides: Ourlando Local Business Guide * Slow Food Orlando * Simple Living Institute’s Sustainable Food Guide

Speaking of things going down, we do have just one itty bitty thing to whisper in your ear. It’s actually big. REALLY big. So big, it’s got three big’s in the title. And it’s going to be bigger than big if you participate and invite your friends. It’s a Big Big Big Hug happening Saturday, May 28th at 6pm on the lawn at the Fringe Festival. That’s right, a gathering of folks who just get together to give each other hugs. Big Bear Hugs. One Armed Patting Hugs. Quick Squeezes. Maybe even a few high fives for those needing their space. RSVP on Facebook or stay tuned to the blog for more info as it becomes available. Collaborators and co-conspirators are encouraged to get involved.

This $5 Deal is Delicious!!! Click here to learn more about our Bean There, Done That including popular variations.
This deal is so good it can’t be combined with any other offer.

Bean There Done That with Gingerous Dressing

We hope you will celebrate your mother this Sunday at Dandelion… bring that magnificent mama in and we’ll tip our hat to her with a free glass of wine with the purchase of any entree. If wine isn’t her thing, we’ve got something to please every mom out there…. Mother & Child Herbal Tea for the expectant mom blended by local midwife Kelli Johnson, Earl Grey or English Breakfast tea for the more traditional mother, and of course coffee too.

[This article appears in the March/April 2011 edition of Velocity Magazine with the theme of “Velocity.” Read the article online in it's original format here. Or pick it up outside of Dandelion now.]

Authenticity Resonates!
by Julie Norris

We are just into the new year and it feels like someone hit the fast forward button…big shifts abound and it looks to be happening to everyone at once. Is it written in the stars? Perhaps, but I don’t need a star chart when I have the priviledge to to engage in conversations with a wide cross section of people as co-proprietor of Dandelion. Now, more than ever before, it seems that people are seeking authenticity in all it’s forms, discarding that which does not resonate anymore.
As we are able to share & readily find truthful information with a quick finger dance on our various communication devices, we are able to make informed choices by opt’ing in for more information at our own comfortable pace instead of having one side or another pressuring us in some way. Instead of backing away from additional info, as would be the natural reflex under pressure, we are able to embrace new topics, especially ones that improve our health & happiness.
I’ve never seen a more powerful motivator than one in which someone discovers (on their own, of course) that they have been duped, and it seems that more and more people are welcoming positive shifts towards a more conscious life by starting the journey towards real food and away from a national food system that is in a state of emergency. Real food is closer to nature’s design than a scientist who concocts fake blueberries for your frozen waffles in his laboratory. (True story, check the label on the Publix brand next time you are there).
All this is great news for all those in the burgeoning good food movement right here in Central Florida. Since Dandelion opened it’s doors five years ago, we’ve kept our commitment to serving whole food that is delicious, organic, vegetarian, and prepared in a healthful way. In a country where obesity is epidemic and depression is at an all time high, the vast majority of our customers are fit and have easy smiles and relaxed attitudes. From this unique environment and my own personal experience, it is obvious that food grown close to nature and prepared with health in mind, benefits each and every one of us not just physically, but mentally and spiritually on personal, societal and environmental levels.
This mass shift towards healthful food is perfectly timed – as our consciousness makes rapid new connections, our system will require a cleaner diet so that we can recognize and follow the voice of our intuition instead of the roller coaster ride that sugar, processed food, chemicals and unnatural growth hormones that bark orders at our confused bodies and minds.
Most folks who are new to healthy eating always ask: “How many calories does this have?” My response is always: “I don’t count calories, I count quality.” In my opinion, counting calories is one of the worst gimmicks introduced. I strongly believe that we must learn which questions to ask. When I think about the health of food I ponder these questions:

Who is the grower?
Where was it grown & processed (and what were the processing techniques)?
When was this grown and picked? Is this in season? What degree of ripeness am we consuming? How fresh is it?
What interference has this had from man in the form of chemicals, genetic manipulation, flavor “enhancers” like sugar and additives, or preparation methods that decrease the life force of the food?
Which life forms (people, animals, eco-system) were involved in the production, manufacture and distribution and were they treated fairly, respectfully and compassionately?
How was it prepared? Is it vibrant, crisp and delicious? Are oils, sugars and condiments of the highest quality and used in moderation? Does it look appealing? Does it smell amazing? Was it made with love?

I believe if we look at the answers to these questions, and eat according to our new understanding of the energetic nature of nourishment, we will be able to shift our palette’s away from fake food.
If you have already made a shift towards healthy eating, introduce your curious friends to the change you know has worked for you. Instead of a passionate speech about how bad this or that is for them, serve them a delicious homecooked meal, hand them a cherry tomato right off the vine in your garden or treat them to a meal at your favorite healthy restaurant.
As time seems to speed up, let’s slow down with our loved ones around a table filled with homecooked, healthy food.

Thanks to all of you who took the time to vote for us – we are officially the 9th “Slow Money” business in the nation. Joining us in the top 10 is Homegrown Co-op who ranked 5th overall. See Results Here.

That’s a huge win for Orlando & our local food scene. People across the nation will take notice that something is taking root here in Central Florida!

Tune into Front Porch Radio next Wednesday, May 26th for an on-air interview with author & revolutionary Woody Tasch to learn more about the principles of Slow Money.

• Music: DJ by day, Live Music with the Token Gamblers & Oak Hill Drifters in the evening, followed by an after party for the lively at F! The Man Fest next door at the Cameo Theater. (Free PBR with a Dandelion receipt!
• Get Stoned, Gem-Stoned: After party for the mellow amongst us at Shine On Yoga! Join Kate Ad Sach Kaur, Sacred Alchemist & Sherry Sat Prem Kaur Sacred Sound Healer for Gemstone Alchemy Bowl Meditation & Soul Dance.
• Planetary premier of Tea for Change - a limited edition blend with proceeds supporting those in the blessed unrest movement. This inaugural blend will be launched today, benefiting the Coalition of Immokalee Workers who will be on site with the Modern Day Slavery Museum. The tea is called Lemon Tree, an organic, biodynamic blend of Pine Needles, Lemon Verbena, Lemon Balm & Nettles and was formulated by Master Herbalist Dawn Gates, RN.

Many more updates to be found here. One last note: please don’t park in the Colonial Photo & Hobby Lot.

Art by Marabou * On Sale at Dandelion in March

Life is a journey, and being the ringleader of Dandelion has definitely been that. Chris & I started the cafe with big plans and dreams, not just for us, but for our entire community. So we’re dreamers, but we’re not the only ones – many of you have conspired, inspired and moved into action, and so many initiatives (Slow Food, OurLando, The Daily City, ELLA Music Festival, Audubon Park Community Market…to name a few) have taken hold to make our community more connected, fun, enlightened and informed. Orlando is the kind of place you are proud to call home. The kind of place you want to put down roots and make better for the next generation.

We started with an idea to bring people together around the table because we knew it was vital to fix our broken food system, like this guy explains so well. There’s a lot of momentum locally and nationally to start that process, thanks to good people like you who support philosophies like Sole Food and Slow Money. Even though our hopes and dreams have brought us to this place, it’s time to wake up.

The Spring Equinox marks our 4th birthday (you’re invited, of course) and we’ve committed the next four years to digging deeper into the reach America’s appetite for fuel (the kind we eat & drink + coal & crude oil) has on people & planet. Many people think the film Avatar is a fantasy, but billions of people in communities around our globe continue to be exploited, displaced and destroyed while their land is razed, their dignity & ability to sustain themselves stripped and entire cultures with rich histories and unique knowledge perish.

It’s happening right here in the United States to the people of West Virginia and Florida farmworkers. It’s happening to the people of the Amazon. We’re watching in horror to the last gasps of it in Haiti right now. As we take in environmental refugees from this long exploited people and land, I hope it serves as an urgent reminder that vibrant local economies and preservation of natural resources, including a strong regional food network are paramount to the security and, thus, sustainability, of life. If this earthquake were to have occurred in a Haiti that had not been deforested to the point of desertification, this would have been a disaster, but not one complicated by massive mudslides or non-existent access to food.

I don’t want to bum you out, and promise to continue to educate you by lifting the veils of illusion one by one in unique, artistic ways. Our featured artist in March shares his deep understanding of these issues so beautifully, you won’t even realize you are being schooled. We’ll continue to strengthen our own community and connection to food with lots of live music, poetry and opportunities to meetup while planting seeds for our garden & yours.

Thanks for being on this journey with us. It’s been up and down for everyone the last four years, and the next four are probably going to be about the same, but we’ve now had some practice at how we respond and how to prioritize when the going gets tough. We enter the next four years a bit wiser, with resilience and more appreciation for taking delight in simple pleasures because we are more empowered with each passing day to be the change we wish to see. After all, it’s become quiet obvious that WE are the ones we’ve been waiting for.

Tune into Front Porch Radio Wed, Feb 17th at Noon to listen in on a discussion about Pachamama.

You Have To Love A Place

Also coming up during our 4th B-Day Bash on the Spring Equinox (March 20th, more on that soon) we will be visited by the Modern Day Slavery Mobile Museum. It’s all connected, just like you and me.

It's About Time

We’ve had a shaky internet connection for awhile now & it’s finally, thankfully been upgraded & stabilized by one of our loyal customers, Rich Miller. Our system was formerly set up in the attic, apparently a big no-no, so now it’s been relocated to a cooler, more accessible location & majorly upgraded. Rich mentioned he was getting 4 bars out on the sidewalk & in the garden, and even I could tell it was faster when we loaded a movie up to check out the stream. Thanks, Rich, for helping us out and making us a friendly place for our laptop friends to congregate!

More photos at GaiaMama.wordpress.com

We are thrilled to announce that Julie’s little magical bebe has arrived on Earth! Maya Juniper Rose Norris was born at home (on purpose), in water, practically painlessly, with the help of amazing friends on Monday, August 24th at 10am.

She is truly blessed to be born into this community and it would be impossible to thank all of the people who have lent a hand throughout the pregnancy, birth & in this postpartum period. Many of you have been sending positive energy and well wishes – thanks for welcoming the little lady with such joy and happiness!

For all the details, including a moving slideshow of the homebirth, please check out Julie’s other blog: http://gaiamama.wordpress.com

Interesting suggestion, unfortunately, doing that would be the quickest way to put us out of business as we would be selling below cost (also would directly negate the Sustainable Business Plan). Organic, wholesome food made by hand in a small scale environment costs money and we already sell at margins that are less than most other restaurants to keep our prices affordable. (Julie discusses this topic in more detail in this podcast).

That being said, we’ve compared menus with similar cafes in the area and there is very little discrepancy in average price even though we are dedicated to organic, premium ingredients. Sadly, you can count on one hand how many places offer an organic menu in Central Florida and the majority of those places will cost you mega bucks for petite portions & fancy atmosphere.

Also, lack of customers is not the problem – we do have loyal masses who dream of devouring a Giddy Up and return over and over again. Our main issue is not having enough capacity in our small home-style cafe to capitalize on opportunities like bridal & baby showers, engagement dinners and the like & having events is risky when dealing with the weather. When a patron has to pull back from eating at Dandy three times a week to once, having these events lined up will offset the variability of individual consumption. That’s why we’ve outlined an expansion of adding covered patios to the cafe.

But back to the value of the fuel that we consume three times a day. One thing that most consumers don’t realize is the way a lot of our food in the mass marketed world is subsidized through tax money and the price on the menu at, say,  McDonald’s does not reflect the true cost of food.

If you have some time, watch this short clip to explain it & read about our food philosophy here: http://dandelioncommunitea.com/eat/our-food-philosophy/why-organic/ or go rent Food, Inc. for a detailed look at our mass produced food system.

Perhaps an organic cafe in an economic shift is what we all need to stay healthy, but some perceive that they cannot afford to invest in that. I would argue that the food you eat is the most important investment you can make. Our clientele is amongst some of the healthiest & happiest in the city – they are clear eyed, of good weight, physical shape & cheer. Some have come to eat organic food after a devastating illness and realized that proper nutrition is a foundation element to a healthy, vibrant life.

What you do not pay for up front will cost you dearly in medical bills & prescription pills, and the reduced quality of life that comes from the emotionally & physically draining aspects of heart disease, obesity & diabetes.

We welcome your comments & observations about how shifting to a healthier diet has improved your quality of life.

Question: What does long-term viability look like? That is, if business picked up to what it was a year ago, would the business be able to carry itself?

Answer: Yes, we believe it is possible to become a sustainable business in all ways, for a couple of reasons and under a few conditions.  They say it takes 3-5 years to start turning a profit in this sector & we were just on the cusp of that when the economy started downhill. Normally a trip to the bank for a credit line increase would solve our concerns quickly and we would keep moving without having to worry our customers, but the banks are not passing on the economic stimulus to small businesses like ours. In fact, the $12,00o we need is not a huge amount in the business world, but it can seem like a mountain come payday.

I believe we can make it, even in a down economy, as we still have a bustling cafe whose values people are attracted to more and more everyday. Folks in our community are making the conscious choice right now to support small & independent. They are shifting their dollars away from chains and franchises and voting to keep the businesses that add so much value to their community alive and well.

Good intentions alone will not keep our doors open, though, and we understand that we must stay on top of our game to keep customers happy when there are so many great places to chose from in the area.

How can we do that? Increasing our capacity with covered patios is an important step that will make us viable as a evening venue and allow us to cater to the many requests we get for baby & bridal showers, engagement dinners & working lunches. This measure will also help increase attendance at evening events and allow us to schedule them more regularly, as rain is one of our biggest risks when we rely on the unprotected outdoor space for their success.

Also, we recognized early this year that we were caught in a tight spot with our management: too much for one person to handle well but hard pressed to invest in bringing on additional talent to help grow the business. We took the plunge and brought Greg on, who has been with us six months now and has focused on cost controls and fine tuning our systems, which allowed me (the formerly exhausted sole manager) to focus on bookkeeping, marketing and business development. We compliment each and together work on daily management and staff development. With this match up, we’ve seen success in many areas, even while making adjustments for the economic impact of our times.

We are also in the process of creating new menu items, have some cool things in the pipeline for improving the ambiance and are working with key suppliers to get our costs down even further.

I hope this answers the question – please feel free to leave a comment to continue the discussion.

This option is now available!

Buy a Gift Card Online
or
purchase at the cafe on your next visit!

(But, why? Click here for the story.)

Check our Investors Directory to read about why these smart folks believe in making this investment!

This is just one part of a Community Supported Enterprise model of economic stimulus & a progressive approach to  grow our small business. Learn about our sustainable growth plan here.

Full of Info

It’s been over three years since we’ve opened & the communitea has grown so much we figured it was time for a makeover. We’ve added a TON of new content to the site, with lots of links to local resources and articles for further reading.

The most exciting new section is Eat where we’ve nestled Our Menu & we discuss Our Food Philosophy along with our personal journey to organic, local, vegetarian, fair trade and gluten free. All of these sections allow you to join in on the discussion, so feel free to add your own stories or recommendations.

Also interesting is the newly updated About Us section with an update on our Mission, Philosophy & Values, Our People & Our Place.

We’ve also started a VodPod Collection which features a film roll of independent films, educational shorts and special video’s featuring our cafe, all things that have helped inspire and educate us along the way.

If we’ve missed something or you find a mistake, please let us know.

P.S. We are in the process of transferring all the old blog posts over to this one, but the old site will stay active indefinitely if you are searching for something that you can’t find here.