Mark Hartstein "Shades" - Local Chef [7-21-18]

Mark Hartstein, known by many as “Shades”, has been a long-standing figurehead in the Champaign-Urbana food scene for almost 3 decades. In that time he has become one of the leading cooks in utilizing local and hyper-local food products with a focus on seasonality and in some instances foraging for wild foodstuffs. He sat down with Jim Lewis to discuss what got him to this point in his career, what he sees as the some of the pros and cons of the current state of the local foods and farm-to-table movements, and what he’s got going on now and in the future. Although not particularly active on social media, you can find him by way of Bacaro in downtown Champaign or by standing on a street corner and shouting his name (he’s probably close enough that he’ll hear you).