So, let’s say you’ve been coming to the Linkery for a while and really appreciate the joy and deliciousness of ingredients grown the right way, by people who care. How can you eat them all the time, without coming to our place every nite (not that we would mind!), and particularly within a manageable budget?
This is a question I’m asked, in one variation or another, quite often. Here are some of my answers.
* I’ve found that local farmers markets can provide almost all our personal groceries. Near me, Little Italy and Hillcrest have a lot of great farmers whose food I love, and City Heights is a place I want to check out as well. At Little Italy, we’re regulars for Schaner Farms’ eggs, and Hillcrest is the only place to buy Curtis Womach’s amazing chickens. Suzie’s Farm and Smit Orchards are at both Hillcrest and Little Italy. Spring Hill Farm is also at many local farmers markets, and I love their cheese.
* Because the farmers markets are so good, most of the folks I know who eat like we do don’t really go to grocery stores very often. But if a grocery store is required, check out OB People’s Co-op, which offers produce from a lot of local farms.
* Joining a CSA (“Community Supported Agriculture”) is a great way to always have fresh produce handy even if you didn’t make it to a farmers market that week. I can personally recommend the goods from La Milpa Organica and from Suzie’s Farm, but I know people who have Be Wise Ranch and are really happy as well. There are many more CSAs than those three, as well.
* Great local seafood is available at Catalina Offshore Products, who are mainly a receiver that sells to seafood distributors and high-end restaurants across the country, but also will sell to walk-in customers. It’s worth checking out.
* Wonderfully, there are now multiple San Diego restaurants that use local and independently grown food (and there are even more that advertise that they do).
Personally, my favorite restaurant in San Diego isn’t a restaurant at all, it’s a stand at the Farmers Market. This is Roots Kind Food and you can find them at Little Italy and at Hillcrest. To me, it’s the pinnacle of what a restaurant should be — they buy all their ingredients from local farmers, and prepare emotional, delicious food that reflects its place and people. I’m kind of an addict for them, really.
* Assenti’s hand makes fresh pasta of numerous kinds. Once you make a habit of eating hand made fresh pasta, you’ll wonder how anyone eats noodles out of a box. We usually keep a couple pounds of their pasta on hand at home.
* Edible San Diego is probably the best written resource for what’s around, and as an added bones is an excellent magazine.
* And, as always, Laja.
True, it would be great if there was a bigger culture in San Diego for this sort of food. But the good news is, what we do have is world-class and accessible. Also, it doesn’t cost all that much more than eating commodity food, as long as you don’t eat much meat and don’t spend money on processed food (both of which are pretty agreeable lifestyles anyway).
Just bought Spring Hill cheese this morning at Poway’s farmer’s market! Yay! Along with heirloom tomatoes, honey almonds, and fresh bread….
And picked up Edible San Diego at Ritual Tavern while there for the Alesmith pairing dinner, which was amazing…
Poway market got dumped on by rain today! Good on you, Donna, for braving the elements!
Some good tips here, but I’d also include Whole Foods and Homegrown Meats as sources for grass-fed beef.
Also, while I understand the love for fresh pasta, it should be noted that the authors of the Italian cookbooks I use don’t really have a view of fresh pasta being intrinsically better than dried. They’re simply viewed as two different kinds. Different flour is used to make each, and they have very different texture and flavor profiles.
Personally, while I do enjoy fresh pasta (especially from Assenti’s), I prefer dried. The texture is chewier, and the nutty flavor of the semolina is addictive. The key, as with most things, is to buy good quality stuff. One of the brands I’ve seen at both Whole Foods and Mona Lisa (I believe it’s called Rustichella d’Abruzzo) is very good, and may change your mind about dried pasta.
jay,
you are terribly sweet!!
and likewise on the complements
much love,
-h ; )