Well, it's officially summer. A farmer pulled his truck up to the back door of the restaurant and asked chef if he was interested in any sweet corn. This farmer showed up last year, too, and supplied us with sweet corn and other produce all summer long. Being from the Ohio Valley, he already has tomatoes - nothing fancy, just tomatoes, which he sold to us for 50 cents a pound (no, I'm not kidding). Chef went right to work on making 2 batches of pickles with the crate of cucumbers the farmer brought in. He sliced up some cucumbers and tomatoes - still warm from the sun, drizzled them with olive oil and sprinkled with salt, and we all stood around, eating summer. It's amazing how beautiful the simple things are, when they're simple and good.
As to how to enjoy this lovely summer weekend we're supposed to have, I recommend visiting the North Market's Ohio Wine and Food festival. The event features numerous Ohio wineries (yes, we have them - some are even good) as well as local chefs cooking up local food. It seems the Market has decided to expand the event onto Spruce St. this year, which seems very wise - drinking wine in a hot crowd can be a little less refreshing than one might think. Admission is $5, which includes a souvenir glass and 2 tasting tickets. Additional tastes are 50 cents to $1.
