Speaking through food

The minuvida dinner is a weekly performance at quinta minuvida orchard lodge.
​Played by João, who expresses himself through his food, not his social skills.

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Post by João

João is not the most social person, but he expresses himself through his food. Those are the words of my dear wife Rimi, often spoken as I stand stone-faced, sweat dripping from my brow, when we are about to dish out five courses to an expectant, albeit small, audience, cozying up to one another on our banco corrido or wooden bench.

​This is the minuvida dinner, a weekly performance at the quinta, and yes, I'm, perhaps, not a social buterfly. At least not until I know someone fairly well... which doesn't bode quite so well in a industry of quick friendships and frozen smiles. I hope the food makes up for it.

The dinner started as a food lab experiement back in the U.S. We invited friends and family to test some ideas as we planned to move to the Azores and start a business in hospitality. We wanted travelers to come to love the Azores through the food, not just all the beautiful scenery, hot springs, whale watching, yada, yada, yada. We wanted them to connect somehow. The dinner is now a standard offering in the minuvida experience package.
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​The dinner presents a journey through Azorean flavors, reinterpreted.

Since I lived a good chunk of my life outside the islands, I experienced food in many new ways, in many new shapes, from many origins -- from gourmet experiences to ethnic bodegas, or at home with friends from far corners of the world. Had I stayed living in the insular world of the remote Azores in the 90's and 2000's, I would have never obtained that kind of exposure.

The minuvida dinner is an Azorean food journey tainted by the rest of the world. The Portuguese have been doing it for centuries, blending cultures and foods. It's also a challenge of using mostly local and in-season ingredients to pull off a five-course dinner (And yes, you should try this at home.) Or it is a sensory experience of taking a moment to savor food without the distraction of chit chat.

I hope that speaks loudly enough.

Photos by Darlene DeVita,
​www.darlenedevitastudio.com

The minuvida dinner is an Azorean food journey tainted by the rest of the world.