During the pandemic, local chef Steve Browning challenged himself to land the ‘no comply’, a skateboard trick he’d wanted to learn since he started skating as a teenager back in the 90s. His eventual success, which Steve attributes to YouTube, became the inspiration behind the name for his new Great Barrington-based endeavor, No Comply Foods.
The business was born out of Steve’s personal interest in a healthy coffee-alternative to aid with his digestive issues. Like many, he found himself with some extra time when the pandemic started, which he used to experiment with a golden milk recipe—a turmeric-based milk drink. He shared it with some people in the community, who started selling the product at their coffee shops and farm stores. The golden milk base gave Steve a taste of the freedom that came with owning his own business and implementing his own ideas. And the community loved it too.
If you’ve visited the Great Barrington Farmers’ Market on Saturday mornings, you’ve seen the following that No Comply’s delicious creations have garnered. The duo—made up of Steve and his life and business partner Julie—regularly serves up their signature golden milk lattes in original, chai, and ‘dirty’ options, iced turmeric tonic, and also sell the packaged golden milk base. If you show up at the right time of year, you might get lucky to find No Comply hot honey, cilantro chutney, garlic scape caesar dressing, and more!
Steve had wanted to start a similar endeavor many years ago, but the idea took a back seat while he helped to open Prairie Whale, a beloved Great Barrington restaurant (and BerkShares business). That is, until he rediscovered his love for skateboarding a few years ago. “Without skateboarding coming back into my life and opening up that part of my mind creatively, I don’t think No Comply would be happening right now—as funny as it might sound,” Steve shares.
It’s also what convinced Julie, Steve’s life partner, to accept the additional role of business partner. Though Julie remains teaching full-time—a detail she’s quick to emphasize.
Skater culture is part of how Steve and Julie first connected in high school. “Steve was a skateboarder and listened to punk music, and I listened to punk music and liked skateboarders,” Julie shares. So it’s only natural that skateboarding is also what brought them into professional partnership decades later. They each bring something different, but important, to the business. Steve, unsurprisingly, handles the food production, while Julie serves as administrator extraordinaire.
What does the future hold for No Comply? According to Steve and Julie, it’s a brick-and-mortar space where they can truly carry out their vision of ‘non-compliance.’ “A spot that is as sustainable for workers in the restaurant industry as possible,” adds Steve. This headquarters will allow them to expand their line of shelf-stable products for home cooks, but also serve as a site for pop-up restaurants, cooking classes, small food business incubation, and more. In other words, it’ll be a hub of creativity for local chefs and food producers who are lacking a space to grow and experiment: a much-needed community resource.
Visit the Great Barrington Farmers’ Market on Saturdays from 9am to 1pm and get your No Comply golden milk latte for $1 cheaper when you pay in BerkShares. And keep an eye out for new developments from No Comply — as they fill a necessary gap in the Great Barrington food economy, the whole community will benefit.
