A note from Hayley . . .

For many years, as a yoga teacher, I noticed a similar pattern among many of the students that walked through the studio door: they had come to escape. Their world, really, our world, is so fast-paced, chaotic and rest-prohibitive, that the way we live typically only allows for a small, carefully-allotted amount of time each day to unwind, recharge or simply be.

Throughout my life, and especially now as an adult and a mother, I’ve noticed the world of food to be the same. We are inundated with drive-thrus, prepackaged meals, frozen dinners, “fast-casual” everything. Our way of life, and our way of eating, seems simply too busy to slow down, savor or turn our daily routines into ritual.

Our ultimate goal with The Napa Table is to change the way we approach what and how we eat. To remove the lens of “food is fuel,” or just another busy, necessary part of our mundane daily tasks, or even a way to numb, escape or dampen our feelings and emotions. What if we took back our mealtimes, the way we taste, chew, smell? What if we brought back the joy, attention and care of the special ritual that is a beautiful meal? What if we could learn to slow down, around the table and in our lives?

In our tastings and classes, we narrow down this approach into three different topics:

What we eat: We start here to begin with basics. From the ground up, literally. The health of the soil, the health of the animals, the well-being of the workers and farmers, the ethics and sustainability of the source. The impact of buying local and shortening our food travel and chain supply. All of these make a difference when it comes to the quality of the food and the choices we make with our consumer power.

How we eat: From eating standing up, over the sink, to desk salads on a lunch break, our culture has turned the beauty of mealtime into an often rigid, task-based part of our daily routine. We take time in our tastings and classes to move slow. To see what happens when we chew thoroughly and pay attention to every bite. To focus not just on taste but mouthfeel, texture and aroma. Meals become magic when our eating routines become eating rituals. Sacred and special.

Who we eat with: Some of the most important conversations of my life have been held around a table, sharing an unhurried meal. From family to friends, we need time in our lives to meaningfully connect and regroup. When we take the time to slow down, to eat without rush and to really listen to those around us, we learn so much more. Food has the power to connect us. It strikes conversation, invokes the senses and provides nourishment to create friendship and intimacy between each other.

The slow-food movement has changed the way I see the world and not only how I eat, but how I live. Making mindful eating choices, from the time I buy a food product to the conversations had at the table where it’s served, has helped me in my quest to be intentional and meditative in my day-to-day life. My hope with The Napa Table is to instill this rest and peace within you, too.

“Because only slow food can teach us the things that really matter - care, beauty, concentration, discernment, sensuality, all the best that humans are capable of, but only if we take the time to think about what we're eating.” - Alice Waters, founder of Chez Panisse and the Farm to Table movement