Every farm trip to the Big Island, we always stop in to visit Dick Threlfall at Hawaii Island Goat Dairy. It is always a ritual, I put the gloves on and try to milk the goat. Of course, they do it all by machine with the rest of them, but one by one, all of our staff members on the trip line up to give it a try. They all have a great time and will never forget that moment. It is not easy, you've got to get the right 'mojo' going to get the milk out, and into the pot, not on yourself----what you don't see is all the milk on the pants. It's also important for our staff to understand where our food comes from and to know who is producing it. A young waiter and waitress who went with us both acknowledged that they now understand more than ever before about the food that we buy and prepare for our guests. It came full circle for them. We always talk about them, quiz them about it, but to be there on the farms and talk with the farmers------priceless for the staff. We hope that when our guests order a dish, and our servers have been on the farm, that they will speak with confidence and explain what story goes behind the producing of the food ingredients. The commodity might be a delicious dish, however, the product really is about TASTING HAWAII, and our culture.
