Oklahoma Agricultural Cuisine – Lisa Becklund

Welcome to Tulsa Talks presented by Tulsa Regional Chamber. I’m your host Tim Landes. You just heard Lisa Becklund. She’s a chef turned farmer back to chef. Friends have told me she offers one of the best dining experiences they’ve ever had. I have yet to enjoy it for myself. It’s like trying to land a seat at a Saturday Night Live taping. Nearly impossible. We talk about the sudden and continual success of her farm to table dinners she describes as agricultural cuisine of Oklahoma. Her operation is Living Kitchen Farm and Dairy located in Depew. That’s about 45 minutes from Tulsa headed down the turnpike to Oklahoma City. The good news for us Tulsans is she’s bringing that experience to 18th and Boston when she and her business partner, Linda Ford, expand their operations to a restaurant setting with FarmBar. The only thing missing will be live goats. 

Lisa was born and raised in Seattle. She started working in restaurants as a teen and in early adulthood found success of her own. That success plus her ambition led to failure as she attempted to grow her business. She fled the Emerald City in search of a safe haven on Oklahoma farmlands in the early 2000s. A sort of John Steinbeck story in reverse.

As she turned dirt and grew produce, Lisa learned a lot about herself. She accepted her past and kept pushing forward. She’s had tough days along the way, but she continues to grow. To be a farmer it takes grit. As you’ll hear in this conversation, Lisa has a lot of it. 

I didn’t know Lisa before she sat down across from me, but as soon as we started the conversation, I knew I’d really enjoy our time together. She dove right in and talked about her successes and failures that put her on the path she finds herself today. She was open and honest about how her experiences impacted her mental health and how aging has impacted her work. I admire her candidness. After having a long chat with her, it’s no surprise she’s once again finding success. She’s driven. She’s passionate about what she does. She’s authentic. 

This is a good one. I’m extremely thankful for her sharing her story and have to say, I’m extremely excited to soon enjoy a dinner at FarmBar.

Following that conversation, city editor Morgan Phillips calls on Tulsa fashion consultant Kelly Mize Holley to find out what the what can be done in her closet to help her start 2020 better organized and more fashionable.

Closing out the episode The Voice’s Kyra Bruce is back to share a favorite track from The Lukewarm’s 2019 album “Cycles.” More on them later.

Let’s get this going. 

This is Tulsa Talks.