We don't know much about food, but we know what we like.

On our first date, Neil and I went to my favorite sushi place. On our second date, we went to his favorite Vietnamese place. Neither of us remembers our third date, but I suspect it might have involved tea and cookies (and making eyes at each other over my kitchen table). None of this is remarkable; people usually do eat on dates. But I never suspected that food would become such an important part of our relationship. Before long we were cooking together and eating out all over the place.

That was three years ago. Now, as cohabitors and life partners, we approach the world as an adventure in food. It's become more than what we eat several times a day to sustain ourselves. We talk about it. We analyze it. We go special places to buy it, and it plays a prominent role in our travel plans. It seems that we are turning into foodies. And how better to record this adventure than a blog?

8 Things that Inform the Way We Eat

1. We are pescatarians, or, more accurately, flexitarians. We decided to stop eating red meat and poultry in August of this year, for both environmental and animal welfare reasons. We do sometimes eat meat, though, usually because of travel (we can't visit Philly without cheesesteaks!), special occasions (we ate a ton of ham over Thanksgiving), or limited choices in social situations. We also just sometimes give in to cravings. For the most part I find it very easy not to eat meat. Neil misses beef.

2. We believe there is something seriously wrong with the food industry, and we try to eat our way around that. High fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated oils are the banes of our existence. We try to buy organic often, though an entirely organic diet is cost prohibitive to us right now. We believe in buying locally-grown foods and in sustainable agriculture.

3. I am trying to lose weight. About 25 lbs. Neil has lost quite a bit of weight in the last year or so and is trying to keep it off.

4. We support local restaurants. With such a vibrant and exciting restaurant scene in our city (Louisville), we rarely find a reason to dine somewhere that is not locally-owned.

5. We love beer. Like whoa.

6. We're living on the cheap right now. I'm finishing grad school, Neil has gone back for his second bachelor's, and we own a house that needs lots and lots of work. This means that we have not yet been able to dine at many of the better restaurants in our city. We're hoping that this will change soon.

7. We were not necessarily raised to be foodies. Both of us come from families with pretty conservative tastes in food. The only "ethnic" food I was exposed to as a child was Chinese. I was in my 20s before I had Indian, Thai, Middle Eastern, Vietnamese, or Japanese food. My mom is a great cook, but in a very down-home, not-necessarily-good-for-you way. Neil's mom doesn't really cook at all.

8. We are still learning how to cook. I had no interest in learning to cook until I was 23. What I've learned since then has been self-taught, and I think that's how Neil knows what he does about cooking as well. We have a long ways to go. We're good at making things from recipes, but we lack a lot in technique and creativity.

Join us here as we continue on our food odyssey. We plan to review restaurants, books, and products, share recipes, rant about the politics of food, and share news about special food events. We hope you enjoy it.