Food Blog Dishes Out
April 6, 2009 • By Colleen McCarron, The Breeze
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Do you know where to get the best margarita in Harrisonburg? How about where to get recipes for March Madness snacks? Your answers are just a mouse click away.
JMUEats was launched in February as a group project for Professor Corey Hickerson’s advanced public relations writing class. Seniors Katherine Dorey, Kalee Miller, Jenny Shockley Chelsea Barkema, and junior Emily Lindamood created the blog about all things edible.
The women feel the success of the blog is because of their narrow audience of JMU students.
“We’re students and we understand what other students want,” Barkema said.
The group is open to suggestions and encourages feedback on their blog.
With this interest in mind, the blog discusses recipes, healthy and unhealthy food and tips on healthy eating. The site also features Harrisonburg restaurants that house various organizations’ proceeds nights. The group tries a different restaurant in town every week and then posts about their experience and the restaurant’s specialties.
“We try to go to places that aren’t as popular,” said Lindamood, adding that the group tries to stay away from chains. Recent ventures include Taste of India, Dave’s Taverna, Franklin’s Cafe and Wine Bar and Dukerz Sports Grille.
“We don’t grade the food,” Dory said. “We just try to get the word out that these restaurants are around for people to try.”
JMUEats has certainly garnered notice, receiving more than 5,700 hits since its launch. The group thinks some of its popularity is derived from other blogs linking to their site.
“Another blog, I May Be Cheap, a Harrisonburg blogger, featured us on one of her posts,” Shockley said. “We probably get more hits from being mentioned on other blogs.”
Bloggers have also been contacted by JMU alumni asking which restaurants still exist in Harrisonburg. The author of a cookbook also requested the group review her latest cookbook.
“It was bizarre for her to ask that because we’re not experts,” Dory said.
While they may not have gone to culinary school, these women love blogging about food.
The group tries to post something at least once a day. “We have fun doing it,” Miller said. “It doesn’t even feel like class work.”
Said Shockley: “It’s probably one of my favorite things I’ve done since I’ve been at JMU.”
Although the project will end at the completion of this semester, the group hopes its blog will live on.
“In the past, some groups have continued their blogs after the semester is over,” Miller said, “but another group might take it on next semester.”
Contact Colleen McCarron at mccarrca@jmu.edu
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Here’s a link to the “I May Be Cheap” blog mentioned in the article:
http://www.imaybecheap.com/