Surviving, Then Thriving During COVID
Uncommon Ground's Inspiring Seasons of Change Kickoff
In This Issue
• Surviving, Then Thriving: Seasons of Change on Uncommon Ground’s Rooftop Farm
• Farmer’s Fridge-Frontera Collaboration Benefits Farmers
• Medicinal Plants Workshop Saturday
Surviving, and Thriving: Seasons of Change at Uncommon Ground
Uncommon Ground was founded in 1991 in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood (a few blocks from Wrigley Field). Owners Helen and Michael Cameron were pioneers in the local farm-to-table restaurant community even before Helen launched her passion project: a grow space atop the couple’s other location farther north in Edgewater, which gained acclaim as the nation’s first certified organic rooftop farm.
Well known for her sunny personality, Helen was tested as never before last year when the COVID pandemic pushed Uncommon Ground to the brink. Yet the rooftop farm (and a sidewalk farm at the Lakeview location) provided her with focus, purpose and hope — which was rewarded when the restaurants rebounded later that year.
We welcome Helen Cameron and the rooftop farm to our Seasons of Change series. Please enjoy her inspiring story.
— Bob
On March 16, 2020, we shut Uncommon Ground down and laid off a staff of more than 100 people. Our hearts were broken.
For nearly 30 years, we were open almost every day of the year at our Lakeview location and for 13 years at our Edgewater location. Up until that point we were poised to have one of the best years in the past decade at both places.
Cubs baseball would be back soon, as well as the Wrigley concerts; our Greenstar brewer had all of our tanks full of certified organic and super-delicious beer; our new Music Program Director was hitting his stride and had so many great concerts scheduled at both locations; we had fundraisers, weddings and events scheduled, as well as local artists set to hang their fantastic works on our waiting walls; and we were preparing to order a huge heap of compost for our rooftop farm while getting ready to hire our next group of urban ag interns to help grow more than 1,000 pounds of organic produce for use in the restaurants.
It was all not to be.
The unceremonious end of our thriving business and community center was a shock to my husband Michael and myself. Fear of contracting COVID-19 or being responsible for its spread created intense anxiety, and the uncertainty of our Uncommon future kept us up at night. We were on the razor’s edge.
Together we decided that we would do everything in our power to survive the pandemic and thrive in its aftermath. We went through all the applications for EIDL loans and PPP, studied the CDC guidelines, and as soon as our PPP funds arrived, we brought back as many of our staff who were willing and able to return safely, and were open for carry-out, delivery and outdoor dining in early May.
One of the biggest blessings for me in 2020 was our rooftop farm at Edgewater and caring for the sidewalk farm at our Lakeview location. Despite our inability to pay Allison Webb, our Farm Director, while we were shut down, she came in to start our seeds indoors, and with a few volunteers we managed to clean up and reset for the 2020 season. We used seeds and fertilizers we had in stock and didn’t add our usual compost to the beds as we couldn’t afford it. Sadly, we couldn’t hire and train our yearly team of interns.
It’s a tiny farm — .015 acres or about 800 square feet of tillable soil — but it requires a great deal of care to produce the spinach, arugula, kale, lettuces, mizuna, parsley, chives, carrots, tomatoes, parsnips, cucumbers, cauliflower, peppers, onions, basil, chard, beans, turnips, radishes, garlic, okra, mint, thyme, sage, oregano, lemon balm and verbena, tarragon, lemongrass, many varieties of flowers for our pollinators, hops for Greenstar Brewing, currants, gooseberries, raspberries and grapes — and manage our beehives and monarch butterfly sanctuary. Allison and I agreed to do what we could to have a good harvest.
I’m generally a happy and optimistic person, and 30-plus years of very challenging restaurant work has made me somewhat unflappable, but I admit that I struggled with depression last year. It was a dark time. I felt like the floor was removed from underneath me and I was in free fall — not having any real control over the future and being unable to plan more than one day in front of me.
Having the two farm spaces to care for gave me purpose. Digging in the dirt and planting seeds is an act of hope. The sunshine lifts your spirits, it’s grounding and therapeutic, and boy, did I get some great exercise. I haven’t been that fit since I did a sprint distance triathlon eight years ago!
Watching the seedlings grow and mature into delicious, nutritious food and spending a great deal of time outside brought the light back into my soul. As the summer progressed, both restaurants were being ultra-safe, our communities really supported both Uncommon Ground locations and we harvested our beautiful produce and shared it with our guests. That’s what hospitality is all about!
As the weather changed from autumn chill to winter cold we put our farm to bed. Hoping to reopen indoors in late October, we had all of our ductwork cleaned, ordered air purifiers for all of our dining rooms and did massive deep cleans in every corner of the restaurants, but the virus surged and ended that plan. So we remained open for carry-out & delivery and outdoor dining for our more intrepid and cold-hardy guests.
We went back down to a skeleton crew and carefully managed our resources to make sure we could survive the slowest time of the year. Michael sent out email newsletters asking for help and our uncommon community responded by ordering take-out liberally and picking up howlers and growlers of our organic Greenstar beer. I’m sending out a huge heart and soul felt THANK YOU to everyone who kept us afloat! We are eternally grateful for the support we’ve received from our communities.
I spent January perusing many different seed catalogs — seed PORN. I just want to grow everything. Farmer Allison seems quietly amused by this and I put her in charge of keeping my enthusiasm in check so I’m not buying more seeds than we can plant. We put our 2021 farm plans together and hired Amanda Berry, a new Farm Assistant, and now we are off to the races.
Seeds and supplies are ordered. We had a huge load of bio-activated organic compost delivered and dumped into our parking lot and at the end of March we put a call out for volunteers to help us distribute it bucket load by bucket load all over the farm. We had so many people show up to help that we got the job done in a few hours. (In the past we did the work over two days.)
Our first batch of seedlings are getting ready to harden off and many more seeds have been planted both indoors and out. The farm looks tidy and ready for life to burst out and require our loving care and, in return, we will harvest the tastiest treats — our reward for a job well done.
Once we received the second round of PPP funds, I knew we would survive the pandemic. When the money suddenly landed in our almost empty bank account, I felt a major shift in our uncommon universe. Coupled with reopening indoors at 50 percent capacity and the arrival of the vaccinations, all of us feel as though we can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
And we can hire people! Lots of people to be ready for a great summer!
Uncommon Ground will be holding events celebrating its 30th anniversary this June. Local Food Forum will provide information about the events schedule, along with Helen’s next contributions to Seasons of Change.
Farmer’s Fridge-Rick Bayless Collaboration Benefits Farmers
Farmer’s Fridge has a new ready-to-eat dish, a Red Chili Braised Pork Bowl, that is designed by Chef Rick Bayless. It is not only good for your taste buds, but for your soul too, as part of the proceeds go to benefit the Frontera Farmer Foundation.
An early advocate of local farmers since he launched Chicago’s Frontera Grill in 1987, Chef Rick created the Foundation in 2003 and each year provides grants to regional farmers to help each buy equipment or build a facility that will help them grow. The Foundation’s 2021 grantees will be announced very soon and Local Food Forum will share the list with you.
Farmer’s Fridge has been one of the biggest Good Food startup stories in our region over the past decade. Founder Luke Saunders saw a need to make healthy, delicious meals more accessible to people on the go and built the business around refrigerated vending machines selling at first salads and then adding sandwiches and bowls. Their tech-driven ordering and fulfillment system also allowed them to make a quick pivot to home delivery last year after the pandemic kept people at home and away from the fridges.
As described on the Farmer’s Fridge website, the Red Chili Braised Pork Bowl was “developed by James Beard Award-winning Chef Rick Bayless and executed in partnership with Chef Rishi Manoj Kumar [of the Frontera Group’s Bar Sótano]. This dish encompasses the simple pleasures of a casual & comforting meal in Oaxaca, featuring chile braised pork in a rustic red sauce, studded with caramelized plantains, black beans, cilantro rice and cheese.”
Sounds yum.
Hands-On Plant Medicine Learning Saturday
Black Oaks Center and Urban Growers Collective are presenting a three-hour plant medicine propagation workshop this Saturday, April 17, from 2:00-5:00 p.m. central. The event will take place at the Black Oaks Center Eco Campus in Pembroke Township, Illinois (near Kankakee).
Attendees are requested to wear work attire and bring food and drink to share. To learn more and to register for free, click the button below.
