3 February, 2020: We’re in the process of refreshing the branding at Clover. But you may not have noticed. And that’s by design. I’m trying to do this logo refresh in a zero-waste approach. Typically when companies decide to change their branding they tear up signs, throw away packaging, throw away menus, etc. It’s really wasteful. I got to thinking:… Read More
31 January, 2020: Farmers want to grow grain because it helps their soil. For soil, grain is like…a trip to the spa? A planting of grain (barley, wheat, or whatever) heals soil, prevents erosion, captures nutrients. It gets soil hyped to grow the next crop, and makes THAT crop better. What does that have to do with the beer you’re… Read More
31 January, 2020: Whoa, the Gonzo Gyro test at BBY was super successful. Olivia made this chart yesterday showing Gonzo crushing Bridgewater and giving Chickpea a run for its money. You guys even cleaned us out of our supply of David’s Greek inspired seitan! Problem is: we made another batch and we forgot to put salt in it. And the… Read More
24 May, 2009: When I built the truck I did a silly thorough job on the plumbing. We can carry 24 gallons fresh water, have a grey water tank, a full 3 bay sink and a hand washing sink. We have full house-hold pressure water, hot and cold on tap. But then winter hit, and I discovered there is no… Read More
29 January, 2020: David (training manager) grew up on Long Island. If you’ve spent much time in NY, you know you can’t walk a block without seeing a gyro, rotating peacefully in a stainless steel cabinet. Can you say it: “yee-ro?” Gyros are made of pork, beef, or lamb, stacked horizontally onto a rotisserie, studded with garlic, rosemary, thyme, oregano.… Read More
29 January, 2020: We’ve been privy to (and participated in) a resurgence in local grain over the past decade. More and more farmers are growing grain again in New England. Bakers want to bake with it, brewers want to make beer with it. But we’ve struggled with how to talk to customers and other chefs about why they should care… Read More
27 January, 2020: The Pushpir sandwich is leaving us soon (next Tuesday) to make way for the Venezuelan Plantain. Which means our boxes of magical, smelly chaat masala will have to be sent back to the HUB, and that is sad. Pushpir told us about chaat masala back in 2013 when he guided us through the world of North Indian… Read More
24 January, 2020: A few years back, Enzo brought us a sandwich called the Sunday Mushroom, based on the Sunday red sauce his Italian-American family would make. Super delicious but never reached the status of a JSP or a Brussels. Then the other week, Chris Strange came to Food Dev with another take. Chris was inspired by toasted ravioli he… Read More
20 November, 2014: I have no shame. Thanks, American Apparel, for providing me with a stalk-colored onesie. You can eat Brussels (the sandwich) for another week or so, before we switch to another immensely popular seasonal sandwich. Did someone say Pushpir? Don’t worry though, the Brussels will remain at MIT year-round. You can thank me for that one too. Read More
23 January, 2020: I wanted to get a picture up of the Quick Lunch from P&E (pictured). Lucia beat me to announcing the Quick Lunch because she’s so… quick! If you haven’t noticed, this is at Clover KND (Kendall Square) as of yesterday. In testing. A bowl of Hearty Vegetable Stew, a salad featuring locally grown greens, a piece of… Read More
21 January, 2020: We’ve been trying to think of ways for you all to eat more soup. Paul and Elizabeth’s is a family restaurant in Northampton that Ayr loves. They do something called a Quick Lunch – for $9.50 you get a salad, a soup, a dinner roll, and a tea! The “quick” part isn’t a lie – all the… Read More
20 January, 2020: You may have noticed that our new hats have the Clover logo, but made in Velcro so that we can stick patches to them. We made a special patch for the new crew at CloverBBY. Nobody else at Clover got one. It’s the least we can do for putting them in a brand new space with all… Read More
17 January, 2020: We sent out a few salads we were not proud of over the holidays. If you got a salad from the retail fridge that was missing dressing or had greens that were a little on the dry side, please reach out (you can write to us at info@cloverfoodlab.com) and we’ll make you whole again. We’re about 6… Read More
23 October, 2018: October 2005 I ate at L’As Du Fallafel. I didn’t know it at the time but this experience became the prototype for Clover’s most successful sandwich. This past weekend I took a trip to Paris with my father and my son (Blue, above). We’re approaching Clover’s 10th birthday (10/29/18) and I thought it would be fun to… Read More
15 January, 2020: In 2015 Paul and Bryan started talking about inventing a jalapeño popper sandwich. We were all skeptical. At that time Bryan was running CloverKND and Paul had been my intern and was running our Whole Foods account. They both grew up on the South Shore, going to a tavern in West Bridgewater called The Charlie Horse where… Read More