This post was written by Brian Hoffman, an Urban Oyster tour guide who regularly leads our Food Cart and Brewed in Brooklyn tours. Brian also has a food blog, Eat This NY, about his search for the best foods in the city, and he produces a web video series about this quest.
I'm still relatively new to this whole blogging thing. I started my food blog just over a year ago and up until now, it's just been me and my Wordpress (with a quick meaningless fling with Blogspot). But now that my blog is getting more attention (and I'm a tour guide with Urban Oyster), it might be time for me to see what else is out there. And I love my blog so much (I'd never leave it), but there's no harm in looking and testing the waters, right?
So that's why I decided to write a guest blog post for Urban Oyster's blog. Andrew had asked me a while ago to contribute something, but I was so busy with my own posts and my own blog that I deflected his advances. But it got me thinking about the whole blogging culture.
When I was younger I tried keeping a diary, but I was never any good at it. At first, I would write to the diary as if it were a person and even referred to how much fun it (the diary) would have had if it had been present at one of my plays or T-ball games. And then as I got older, I kept a journal but always put off writing entries. Ultimately, I'd be filling in what I did weeks later. I had the same problem with a planner when I discovered I was sort of just documenting past appointments rather than entering in things to be done in the future.
I'm still relatively new to this whole blogging thing. I started my food blog just over a year ago and up until now, it's just been me and my Wordpress (with a quick meaningless fling with Blogspot). But now that my blog is getting more attention (and I'm a tour guide with Urban Oyster), it might be time for me to see what else is out there. And I love my blog so much (I'd never leave it), but there's no harm in looking and testing the waters, right?
So that's why I decided to write a guest blog post for Urban Oyster's blog. Andrew had asked me a while ago to contribute something, but I was so busy with my own posts and my own blog that I deflected his advances. But it got me thinking about the whole blogging culture.
When I was younger I tried keeping a diary, but I was never any good at it. At first, I would write to the diary as if it were a person and even referred to how much fun it (the diary) would have had if it had been present at one of my plays or T-ball games. And then as I got older, I kept a journal but always put off writing entries. Ultimately, I'd be filling in what I did weeks later. I had the same problem with a planner when I discovered I was sort of just documenting past appointments rather than entering in things to be done in the future.
So I never was attracted to the idea of starting a blog. I didn't know who would want to read my entries and as I had learned from previous documentation experiences, it ended up being more of a hassle than a pleasure. But a few years ago I had this scheme (I always have some hare-brained scheme) to start an ice cream business. I loved making the creamy stuff and I dreamed big about having my own ice cream shop somewhere in Brooklyn. And I thought the more ice cream I sampled, the better and more savvy I'd be at starting a business. The easiest way to keep track of all the ice cream I tasted was by writing entries and I soon turned this into a no-frills ice cream blog.
I didn't tell anybody about this blog and when I read it back now, the writing isn't very good. I'm contemplating whether I should even tell you the name of it. I think I'll decline (although you could find a link somewhere on my current blog if you really want to know).
Brian searches for New York's best ice cream:
I didn't tell anybody about this blog and when I read it back now, the writing isn't very good. I'm contemplating whether I should even tell you the name of it. I think I'll decline (although you could find a link somewhere on my current blog if you really want to know).
Brian searches for New York's best ice cream:
Then in late 2009, I approached a producer friend of mine with another of my schemes: an idea for my own TV food show. He agreed it was a great idea, but who would produce a show starring me? I was nobody. Just a guy who liked to eat. And how many of those are out there?
So he suggested I start small with a web series and a blog to build up credibility and a fan base. There it was again. The blog! I guess I would have to take the plunge and make this thing happen. So eatthisny.com was born. Some people blog for fun, others blog to document their meals or concerts, and some people blog for their business goals. And I'm amazed to discover that Eat This has become all three of those for me.
And much like a relationship (or a job), this blog seems to eat up all of my free time. We have moments together where we gaze into each other's eyes, the words and pictures flowing to create a beautiful post. Other times, we have yelling matches where everything I type is wrong. But mostly, I stare at the screen and it stares back at me - comfortable in what we're doing together and how this journey to world food domination is coming along.
I was never "a blog person", but when I took the leap of faith and made a commitment, I've found the rewards to be rather rich and fulfilling. Just don't tell my blog I've been writing for this one. Just when things are starting to get good, I don't want it to get too jealous and run away with all my content.
Brian tries a variety of salted, cured meats:
Brian is currently counting down his top 100 dishes of 2010 (mentioned earlier here), and he recently included five of his favorite food items from some of the vendors featured on our Food Cart Tour (click here for tickets and information).
For questions or comments about this blog post, please contact Brian Hoffman or post a comment. If you would like to follow the Urban Oyster blog, subscribe to our RSS feed or sign up for updates via email in the box above on the right (this is separate from the Urban Oyster email newsletter). Photos courtesy Jennifer Strader Photography.