Our own Tracy Perkins was on a segment of Good Morning Arizona this past Friday! She was doing a soap making demo and promoting her eco-friendly, vegan bath and body products company Strawberry Hedgehog.

Friday morning we packed up all her soap making gear and headed down to 3TV’s studio. Once we arrived we had to wait a few mintues for a commercial break so that they could sneak us in the studio to setup. It was weird setting up all her stuff while the anchors were chatting and reporting the news just a few feet away. I was afraid we’d drop something big and interrupt them while they were on the air. We also couldn’t figure out how to get the stove on and none of the anchor’s or producers knew either! Luckily we finally found someone that knew how it worked and we got the stove on and the soap started. Everyone there was extremely friendly and made our trip down there fun. Dan Davis was great and made Tracy feel very comfortable on the air. Believe it or not they just wing the segment, no scripts or really any planning on how it will go. Sounds stressful to me but they seem to like it.

Tracy did great on her first TV appearance! Follow this link to her get her version of the story on her blog over at blog.strawberryhedgehog.com. Check out the video and below to see her in action, and be sure to visit StrawberryHedgehog.com for all your eco-friendly, cruelty free bath and body needs.

A million thanks to Jessie from Jessiebell Designs for making the awesome hand dyed and screened, 100% organic cotton apron that Tracy wore on air. It turned out amazing!

Inside The Bungalow
http://insidethebungalow.com
Yoga, Cafe, and Events
48 N. Robson Mesa, AZ  85201
(480) 844-2353
e-mail: Info@insidethebungalow.com

A charming, relaxed, eclectic atmosphere is always a plus in a coffee shop.  Add fair trade delicious coffees and teas, a variety of vegan and vegetarian friendly meals, amazing owners and barista, and to top it all off, a gorgeous yoga studio and area for massage.. sound impossible? You haven’t been to Inside the Bungalow!  I have to admit my bias here, they have just started carrying my Strawberry Hedgehog products there (another bonus!).  Honestly, even if they had hated my products, though, I would have been back again and again.

There is convenient parking right in front of this 1916 house in the heart of downtown Mesa.  Surrounded by trees there are even shady spots, a rare gem in the desert!  The atmosphere is incredibly welcoming with lovely greenery, beautiful colors, and the soothing sound of water from the fountain on their front patio.  With so much beauty it is clear why people choose this spot to have their eco-friendly weddings and receptions!  It feels more like stopping by a friend’s really cool house instead of heading to a coffee shop or yoga studio.

Inside the Bungalow is owned by a delightful mother-daughter duo, Betty Freeman and Carrie Hensley.  They were kind enough to show me around and let me take some pictures.  They have a really great dynamic with one another and are just great to be around.  At the risk of sounding like a crazy hippie, the whole place just has a really great “vibe” about it and I was happy to be there.

The food, tea, and coffee live up to the great atmosphere.  They are doing their best to be more “green” and offer the price of a small drink when you bring in your own cup and recycle if you don’t.  Also, when you request a cup for there they have washable cups to save some plastic and you can take your time enjoying the place.  Many of their teas are organic and fair trade, also great for the environment. Take a look at their tea display, any tea enthusiast would be thrilled to see the yummy possibilities. Among the great selection are some extra decadent ones that even have chocolate bits so vegans read the labels carefully and everyone else enjoy indulging!

James and I went for lunch and had the Vegan Pita Pizza and the Tofu Curry wrap with a side of fruit.  As much as I like the place and the owners, with so many other great things going on - yoga, massage, great tea and coffee, I wasn’t sure they would pull off the food. I was SO wrong.  First of all, usually when you order a side of fruit at many places it is a squishy side of melon - not here! Fresh, ripe raspberries, strawberries, and antioxidant packed blueberries were a really refreshing treat. The simplicity of the Vegan Pita Pizza was amazingly delicious.  It has a hummus base that was to die for topped with fresh spinach and tomato. Doesn’t sound like much but that is why it is so great.  The simple flavors let each ingredient shine, I couldn’t get over how great it was.

The Tofu Curry was equally great. Normally I don’t like raisins but mixed with a fantastic mild curry sauce, just enough crunch from toasted sliced almonds and tofu wrapped in a sun dried tomato tortilla and I was in heaven!  What is even better still is they use organic ingredients when ever possible.  I would highly recommend either of these dishes and the awesome barista, a vegan herself, was very flexible with making things vegan and offering up great suggestions on her favorite dishes.  She made us a fantastic smoothie for the road and we drove off full and happy.

I highly recommend Inside the Bungalow for anyone looking for a cute local place to go for coffee, tea, or great food (vegan, vegetarian, or otherwise). It is good to know that they are doing all they can to serve their customers and find better ways of conducting business in an eco-friendly manner.

While I am no yogi myself just seeing their yoga studio and meeting the owners who are also the instructors I feel motivated to give it a shot.  They have a variety of classes available from partner yoga to herbal healing that look great and I will certainly be giving a try and I hope you will, too.

Click here to view the Inside the Bungalow food menu

Click here to view the Inside the Bungalow drink menu

Click here to see what Inside the Bungalow is doing to be more “Green”

This information is from Local First AZ, an excellent resource for everything local in urban Arizona (specifically the Phoenix and Tucson areas). Their search engine is a great tool when you want to go somewhere new and be sure it is local. Not all local places are listed here as not every local business knows about it yet. If any of your favorite spots are not listed you might recommend to the management that they visit the site, LocalFirstAZ.com so they can show their local pride and be seen by more folks who care about supporting local business.

Think Outside the Big Box
Save Money, Avoid Salmonella: Go Local!

Currently, the Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers to avoid raw jalapenos and serrano peppers grown, harvested or packed in Mexico, due to fears of salmonella contamination.

With food-borne illness warnings and skyrocketing prices, providing fresh, safe and affordable produce for your lunch box has become a challenging pickle for thoughtful consumers. Once again, there are a bounty of LOCAL SOLUTIONS for your table!

1. Though visiting a farmer’s market won’t innoculate you from germs, you will be able to talk with the producer and learn about their practices - and get the freshest fruits and veggies for your table.
2. The Arizona Farm Bureau can help you find Arizona farmers that sell direct to consumers. Check out www.fillyourplate.org - where you can find what’s in season as well as tips on stretching your food dollar.
3. GROW YOUR OWN! At the start of the outbreak in June when tomatoes were the culprit, the FDA said homegrown varieties were considered safest! From classes to nurseries to containers, Local First members can help you start your own garden.
4. GO ORGANIC - Pick your poison: Salmonella vs. Pesticide or BOTH! Local First has restaurants and suppliers that specialize in organic food!
5. BE A LOCAVORE - Chef James Porter of Tapino Kitchen and Wine Bar with special guest Chef Payton Curry from Digestif are whipping up LOCAVORE 3 - a dining extravaganza of Arizona grown delicacies. So popular is this event they have added an extra night - Tuesday, August 5 and Wednesday, August 6 at 6:30 PM. Reservations required: 480.991.6887.Remember, you have a choice where to spend your hard-earned dollars, and by eating locally, you’re not only providing a healthy option for your family, but also THREE TIMES the revenue stays in-state to support our Arizona schools, parks and libraries!

Solar Chill from Tucson’s Southwest Solar is a fantastic way to cool your house completely with solar power or for less than fifty cents a day on regular grid power. This really isn’t any newfangled technology or anything, just a really efficient use of evaporative cooling. Evaporative cooling works well out here in Arizona where it is hot and dry but not so much in areas of high humidity like most places out east. Even in Arizona in late July and August it can get a bit too humid for this type of cooling. April thru July  this would be the perfect solution to using little or no power (with solar) to cool your house. According to Bill Cunningham of Southwest Solar, these can be run 24/7 for a month straight and it would only cost around $10 in electricity. The Solar Chill only uses 10-20% the power of a traditional evaporative cooler and just a fraction of what air conditioning uses.

If you live out west in a dry hot region you might consider looking into one of these coolers to save a bundle on cooling costs. To learn more about these coolers check out Southwest Solar’s website and listen to this episode of Freshly Green where they interview Bill Cunningham of Southwest Solar.

These tables show if evaporative cooling might work for you in your neck of the woods…

So now that we’ve covered our favorite local places to eat and drink, here’s a list of our other local favorite businesses in no particular order.

Stinkweeds - Best indie record store in the Valley.

Souvia - Cute tea accessories

ASU Art Museum Shop - The best gifts you will find in the valley.

Desert Botanical Garden - One of the world’s finest collections of desert plants

Judy’s Body Waxing - Judy’s Body Waxing & Harmonic Healing Center

Dr. Warwick - Chiropractor

Elijah Aller - Designs and makes flameworked glass. Beautiful!

The Back Rub Company - The Valley’s Leader in On-Site Corporate Chair Massage.

JessieBell Designs - Artwork inspired by the natural environment around us. Organic t-shirt screening.

Beads Galore - All your beading needs.

aka Green - Green Building supplies. Head here instead of Home Depot or Lowes.

Favorite local non-profits:

Hero’s Quest 2008 - Raising money for the 100 Club. The mission of the 100 Club of Arizona is to provide financial assistance to families of public safety officers and firefighters who are seriously injured or killed in the line-of-duty, and to provide resources to enhance their safety and welfare.

Arizona Animal Welfare League - The largest and oldest no-kill shelter in Arizona

Rescue a Golden of Arizona - Awesome golden retriever rescue group. We’ve had three great dogs from this group.

Local First Arizona - Supporting Arizona’s local business.