Slow Food NYC News

Looking for a little bite of something good, clean and fair? Check out the Slow Food NYC Snail of Approval website to find out what’s local, sustainable and delicious in the Big Apple. Our newest Snail of Approval winners are: Smith Street favorite Lunetta, Ditmas Park outpost The Farm on Adderley, Williamsburg winners Diner, Marlow and Sons and Marlow and Daughters, Park Slope newcomer Get Fresh Table and Market, East Village eateries Momofuku Noodle Bar and Momofuku Ssam Bar, and green restaurant innovator Rouge Tomate. Congratulations and thanks for everything you do.

And if you don’t see your favorite Slow foodists on the list, nominate them! Slow Food members can nominate any food enterprise that contributes to the quality, sustainability and authenticity of our food supply for a Snail of Approval by simply filling out the online nomination form. You’ll be helping them to get through these tough economic times, and you’ll be helping your fellow members to find the food that’s best, cleanest and fairest.

Over 50 Restaurants, Over 25 Nations Represented

New York, NY (March 17, 2009) – The second annual Village Voice “Choice Eats” tasting event is now officially sold out. The event, which takes place on Tuesday, March 31, 2009 at the 69th Regiment Armory in Manhattan, features only restaurants reviewed by celebrated resident food critics, Robert Sietsema from his column “Counter Culture” and Sarah DiGregorio from her weekly column “Fork in the Road.” This year, the amount of restaurants has doubled with over 50 restaurants and over 25 nations being represented under one roof for only one night.

Last year, hungry New Yorkers gathered at the historic Puck building to navigate through over 25 restaurants from all the five boroughs where they experienced a diverse culinary landscape and enjoyed tasty treats that would otherwise require days of travel. New York Magazine proclaimed it “…a global cheap-eats summit. No self-respecting New York gastronaut should consider doing anything else that night.”

“Choice Eats” will be benefiting Slow Food NYC, who will also serve as host of the event. The New York City chapter of Slow Food USA is a non-profit, member-supported organization dedicated to counteracting the industrialization of our food supply. A portion of ticket sales will go to their new program, Harvest Time which promotes programs of good food and nutrition education, including hands-on food preparation and communal dining, edible school gardens, and student operated farm stands offering local farm-fresh produce at three schools in East Harlem and Williamsburg, neighborhoods identified as food deserts by the City’s Health Department with high rates of food related diseases like obesity and diabetes.

Official sponsors for “Choice Eats” 2009 include Whole Foods who will be setting up a storefront and serving local mini brownie sundaes, Southern Wines featuring Antinori, Castello banfi, Pallini Limoncello, Gosling’s Rum, Boru Vodka, Chateau Ste. Michelle, Ramazzotti, Distillerie- Brusnel, Nando, Francis Ford Coppola, Frederick Wildman, Palm Bay International, Partida tequila, Prairie Organic Vodka, Tommy Bahama, Michael Collins, Cognac, Svedka Vodka, Fcognac Ferrand, Union Beer featuring Victory Brewing Co., Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Magic Hat Brewing Co., Brewery Ommegang, Left Hand Brewing Co., Samuel Smith, Lindeman’s, Chimay, Smuttynose Brewing Co., Allagash Brewing Co., and Blue Point Brewing Co., Volvic natural spring water, Likeme.net, New York Bartending School, The Brooklyn Kitchen, Extremely Hungary, Smart Car, and Action Carting who is the official green sponsor.

All utensils, cups and compost bags are made from annually renewable plant derived plastic resins; all plates are made from sugarcane fibers; napkins are made from unbleached, recycled paper.

“Choice Eats” tickets will not be sold at the door. You must be 21+ to attend, the event starts at 6:30pm and concludes at 9:30pm. The 69th Regiment Armory is located at 68 Lexington Avenue between 25th and 26th streets in Manhattan.

For More Information Please Contact:
Christina Pettit / The Village Voice
cpettit@villagevoice.com
212-475-6836
choiceeats.villagevoice.com

Guiliani-era design proposal threatens unique green space

March 12, 2009 – Two Coves Community Garden has done everything right, from securing a city license through Green Thumb to building huge neighborhood support, but this beneficial addition to Astoria could be lost forever.

“We were recently notified by Parks Department of plans to change the nature of Two Coves Community Garden,” said Renee Edwards, gardener and resident of nearby Astoria Houses. “But the waterfront neighborhood surrounding the garden is already blessed with several parks and recreational areas. What this community needs is healthy food, grown locally.”

At the first of two emergency meetings to discuss the news that an antiquated proposal might be resurrected, gardeners were passionate in their commitment to saving the largest community garden in Western Queens.

“We want the garden to maintain its ability to allow local residents the opportunity to garden and grow together,” said Stacey Ornstein, gardener and Astoria CSA President. “Two Coves Community Garden provides space for hundreds of people to cultivate their own food, reverse damaging obesity and unhealthy nutritional trends, interact across cultures and generations, and harvest a lifelong love of urban gardening—all while reducing municipal costs, crime and pollution!”

Two Coves Community Garden is located in Astoria, Queens at the intersection of 8th Street and Astoria Boulevard. Although a fence was installed, grass was sown and paths were paved in 1998, the site was eventually left vacant and quickly filled with weeds and trash from illegal dumping. In late 2006, a vibrant grassroots movement turned the neglected lot into an urban oasis that today sustains and nourishes its members while beautifying the surrounding neighborhood.

“Public parks require significant funding for development and maintenance,” said gardener Garrett Ramirez. “But Two Coves is maintained by volunteers who not only garden, but do everything from pick up trash to shovel sidewalks in the winter. We’re a public space that pays for itself, that the entire community can enjoy.”

One member tossed out the idea to contact First Lady Michelle Obama who recently told the USDA that she is “a big believer in community gardens, both because of their beauty and for providing access to fresh fruits and vegetables to so many communities across the nation and the world.”

Others mentioned that community gardens are known to increase property values, reduce waste through composting, provide access to healthy food, and serve youth as an outdoor classroom teaching math, science, the environment, health, nutrition, social skills, leadership, responsibility, and more.

Those are among the many points gardeners will make as they contact the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation and local elected officials in the coming weeks. For more information, or to get involved in the campaign to save Two Coves Community Garden, visit www.twocovescommunitygarden.org or call 718-512-8649.

The meeting closed with words of inspiration spoken by gardener Vanessa Jones-Hall, a resident of Astoria Houses: “As I sit under sunshine, I smile lilies, daffodils and roses. The scent of my breath hints fresh vegetables, herbs and fruits. My body curves, outlined by beautiful tress and sunflower stems. Collecting sweet sounds of individual chatter and laughter.

You turn to see who am I? Two Coves Community Garden, welcome!”

About Two Coves Community Garden
Two Coves Community Garden is a diverse community of more than 200 active urban gardeners including the elderly, the disabled, and young children (even babies). Gardeners come from all over the neighborhood and the world, including a large number of Astoria Houses residents, those born in Armenia, Bangladesh, Costa Rica, French Guiana, Greece, Hungary, India, Ireland, Jamaica, Mexico, and Peru.

SlowFood NYC is proud to be a sponsor of the upcoming Brooklyn Food Conference coming up on May 2nd.

So, we thought that you might like to know that there’s a nice article in the Indypendent all about it:

A Taste for Change: Brooklyn Food Conference Organizers Step up to the Plate.

Enjoy!

(This Article came to us from Slow Food USA and was written by By Kris Kohler and published in the Linewaiter’s Gazette – A Brooklyn Food Coop Publication)

High-quality farmland is already scarce enough in the western Catskill Mountains where Lucky Dog Farm produces vegetables that end up in the Park Slope Food Coop. But the level flood plain along the West Branch of the Delaware River, a source of Brooklyn water, is at constant further risk from unwise commercial development.

“If you’re a contractor thinking of building a service station or a sewer plant, your eye’s don’t’ wander up the mountainside,” says Richard Giles, the farmer who is beginning his 10th year at Lucky Dog in Hamden, New York. “The impulse is toward cheap and easy—and once the farmland is gone, it’s gone for good.”

Even as we in this community enlighten ourselves about the values of eating local food, more and more “local” farmland goes under concrete. This is a nationwide problem, but when the farmland in question is so near so many eaters, the result is tragic.

Help may be on the way. The State of New York purchases the development rights on some at-risk farmland and is currently considering an easement on some of the valley farmland leased by Lucky Dog Farm. These easements are a highly effective way of keeping farmland from being covered in concrete. Many easement grants require matching contributions, and this is where was as eaters need to step forward.

Farm Catskills, a regional farm advocacy nonprofit group, is leading the effort to raise the funds (something in the range of $40,000) required to match a state grant. Amy Kenyon, president of the organization, adds, “The State Department of Agriculture and Markets needs to know this issue matters to downstate eaters.”

There will never be a better chance to put your money where your mouth is. Applewood Restaurant in Park Slope will be hosting a fundraiser auction on February 8. (For more information, contact 718-788-1810/info@applewoodny.com).

If you can’t attend the fundraiser but sill want to help, call Farm Catskills at 607-643-1724, or Lucky Dog Farm at 607-746-9898. Or, simply send a check to Farm Catskills, 87 Sal Bren Rd., Suite 1, Delhi, NY 13753-1440.

We want to welcome seven new recipients of the Slow Food NYC Snail of Approval: Blue Marble Ice Cream, Astor Wines and Spirits, O Ottomanelli & Sons Prime Meat Market, the catering firm Great Performances, and restaurants James, The Green Table, and Hundred Acres.

Thanks for all you’re doing to contribute to a good, clean and fair food supply; thanks to our nominating members for bringing those contributions to the attention of the rest of us.

As the dark and cold of winter sets in, and eating locally seems near impossible, Underground Food Collective, Slow Food New York City, and Astor Center invite you to celebrate the bounty of winter with a Pre-Industrial Pig dinner. As you feast on succulent heritage breed pork you’ll hear from farmer Henry Morren about raising the Red Wattle pigs under Sumac and Apple trees on his family farm. Listen to Underground Food Collective chefs, brothers Jonny and Ben Hunter, speak about their dedication to serving good, clean and fair food to all as you enjoy their delicious transformations of rich, earthy vegetables. Besides the pigs raised at Morren Fruits and Vegetables, Jonny and Ben will be bringing along a few Wisconsin delights including award-winning Wisconsin cheese and sweet winter spinach from Snug Haven Farm. The meal will be rounded out with vegetables sourced from local farms. The dinner will feature eight courses, served family style, with wine pairings.

Location:
Astor Center

Price:
* $65 Slow Food Members  (use purchase code SFMEMPIG)
* $80 Non-members (use purchase code SFNONPIG)
Be sure to use these special purchase codes to receive this pricing.

Date:
January 13th, 2009 (Tues)

Time:
6:30 – 9:30 PM (Dinner at 7:00 PM)

To Register:
Visit Astor Center Web site

Our annual potluck lunch meeting at the Astor Center was a great success. While sharing delicious covered dishes, over ninety members celebrated the accomplishments that our chapter made in 2008 and discussed the challenges that will face us in the upcoming year. The meeting was a resounding call to action and Slow Food leaders spoke about how we, as members, must get out into the streets and work to create a world where good food is not a privilege, but a right. Josh Viertel, our new SFUSA president emphasized this, saying that “Our work begins in a world where that right isn’t recognized, and it will only end when everyone has access to food that is good for them, good for the planet, and good for the people who grow it.”

Our raffle was a success! Thanks to you, we raised over $1000 for our Harvest Time program and thanks to the generosity of our donors, the raffle was filled with enticing offerings making it easy to participate.

In 2009, we will be shouting out “calls to action” to all members. We hope that you will respond by jumping in with your hands and giving us some time. Do you want to work in schools in underserved neighborhoods? Become a Harvest Time volunteer. Do you want to get your hands dirty?  Please join me in our brand new edible gardening project “Ripe” and help shape this new initiative.

We all know that change is in the air, so let’s make change happen in New York City. It will take many hands and a lot of time, but I know that by working together we can do it. Keep your eyes open for our first volunteer meeting. In the meantime if you have any questions about the Harvest time program contact Yuri Asano at yuri@slowfoodusa.org or Ed Yowell at eayowell@hotmail.com. If you want to get involved in Ripe, contact me at Sandra@slowfoodnyc.org. If you want to find out about other volunteer opportunities and/or want to volunteer at events contact Nora Geraghty at geraghtynora@yahoo.com.

Humanely raised, pastured animals not only make for good eats, they are good for you and the planet. Shake the hands that feed you, join Greenmarket farmers Dan Gibson, of Grazin’ Angus Acres in Ghent, NY, and Mike Yezzi, of Flying Pigs Farm in Shushan, NY, to learn about the animals they raise, their production practices, and the health and environmental reasons to eat sustainably and humanely raised pork and beef. Mike and Dan will be joined by Executive Chef Caroline Fidanza, of Diner and Marlow and Sons in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Caroline will explain the culinary advantages of pastured meats and provide some tasty samples to make the point.

Location:
Astor Center

Price:
* Slow Food Members $20 (use purchase code SFNYCMEM)
* Non-members $30 (use purchase code SFNYCNON)
Be sure to use these special purchase codes to receive this pricing.

Date:
Wed, Jan 14th, 2009

Time:
6:30 PM – 8:30 PM

To Register:
Visit Astor Center Web site