Looking for a CSA?

The Prospect Lefferts Gardens Community Supported Agriculture program has, once again, sold out for the season. But if you're looking to get fresh produce and support (relatively) local farms, there are several other options. I don't know much about the differences between CSAs, other than where they're located, but feel free to leave any recommendations or other observations in the comments.

Flatbush Farm Share
Pick-Up: CAMBA office on site at Flatbush Reformed Church (map)

Ditmas Park CSA
Pickup: Third Root, 380 Marlborough Rd

Crown Heights CSA
Pickup: Georgia's Place (at Bedford Avenue & Prospect Pl.)

Central Brooklyn CSA
Pickup: Hebron SDA Church, 1256 Dean Street (at New York Avenue)

Grand Opening: Lincoln Park Tavern

Remember back in early March when we told you that Whiskey Sunday was reopening as a bar later that week? Um. Sorry about that.

But now, via LinRoFORMA, we are advised that the Lincoln Park Tavern is opening tonight! At 6:22 - a time that I do not know the significance of - the Tavern will open its doors and drinks will be served. Dynishal must have gotten a sneak peek because she reports that "the space feels open with a couple of cozy nooks, a pool table and best of all, a game console with Ms. Pacman!"

And with that, western* PLG has a bar again. Sweet.

Thanks, Dynishal!

*I don't want to insult Maximillian Bell's, The Inkwell or anyplace else on Rogers or Nostrand that I'm unfamiliar with.

Lefferts Volunteers Get Credit at Park Slope Food Coop

I know a lot of people in this neighborhood that don't want to join the Park Slope Food Coop because they don't want to have to do a work shift. But now they've got another option: by volunteering for the Lefferts Farm Co-op in our neck of the woods, you can get credit for doing Park Slope Food Coop shifts. Help build a local community group and get excellent, cheap groceries at the same time: win win!

The first step is to join the Lefferts Farm effort, if you haven't already. You can find out about meetings on the group's Meetup site. There are a bunch of tasks people can do for Lefferts Farm, and you can read about those on the pdf below.

In order to get PSFC credit, you'll need to become a PSFC member, and you do that by first attending an orientation session. There you will learn the arcane do's and don't of Coop membership, the store's curious mores, and what it has to offer. In order to stay active as a PSFC member, you need to work 2 hours and 45 minutes every 4 weeks. Arranging to get credit for work done for Lefferts is a bit complicated, and the instructions won't make much sense until after you know something about the PSFC, but here they are in pdf form for the so inspired. 

Also, one thing people may not realize about the PSFC is that it's pretty easy to get there from here: you can walk through the park, or take the B41 or a dollar van to Grand Army Plaza. (The Coop is at 782 Union St.) If you've got a ton of groceries to carry on the way back, you can get one of the Coop workers to walk with you with a cart to Grand Army Plaza; that way you don't have to carry the groceries the whole way.

(Photo: Joel Zimmer)

Where to buy organic food in PLG

UPDATE 8/2/09: The Associated now has an organic foods section (in the back of the store) that easily rivals the selection at Little Papa and Sons. Details here.

So you've got money to buy food without pesticide but don't know where to spend it? You've come to the right place. In my hours lost wandering PLG with baby Sidney, I visited the grocery stores in the neighborhood to see who had what on the organic front. All of the three large grocery stores had at least a couple of staples. Prices varied, with no one a clear winner, but there are a few generalizations I feel comfortable setting forth:

Papa & Sons has the most organic options, with not only staples such as rice, cheese, orange juice, and tofu but my new favorite thing, Baby Mum-Mum. Pioneer had a greater selection of frozen foods, however.  Western Beef, the biggest store of all, offered the least variety of organics.  

Before I go into more detail, keep in mind that some foods are more important to buy organic than others. Onions, avocados, pineapple, and mangos, for example — all of which are plentiful at any number of bodegas in PLG — have such low pesticide loads that the difference between organic and non- is scant. On the other hand, you want to buy your peaches, apples, and bell peppers organic if eating bug spray bothers you. For a full list of which fruits and veggies are safe to eat even when grown conventionally, see the Environmental Working Group's Shopper's Guide to Pesticides (more info here).

Ok, so here, in order of organic-friendliness, is a rundown of local options:

LITTLE PAPA & SONS (1141 Washington Ave. - at Lincoln)

Little Papa & Sons (which is actually called J.H. Little Papa & Sons) carries most of what Associated and Pioneer carried, but a lot more: Organic Valley Orange Juice (6.89), rice (5.29 for 2 lbs), cheese (4.79 for 8 oz.), beans, etc. I started writing down the various products but stopped when I realized you should just go check it out for yourself. When I visited on Wednesday, gallons of Farmland Milk were on sale for 1.99 - bargain! (Technically, Farmland isn't organic, though the store advertised it as such. The cows are hormone and antibiotic-free, however). This small shop doesn't have any organic frozen foods, though. The main Papa & Sons (across Flatbush) also has some organic items, including baby food, mac & cheese, and a frozen veggie or two.

PIONEER (184 Parkside, near Ocean)

Pioneer has the most frozen offerings: many Amy's products (hot cereal, burgers, baked ziti for kids, mac & cheese, shepherd's pie, cheese pizza pocket sandwich), Earth's Best Chicken Nuggets (4.39 8 oz), spinach & artichoke bits, buffalo wings, green beans, Soupman squash soup, mixed veggies, plus various nonorganic veggie burgers and gourmet meals. Pioneer was also the only place I saw that carried fresh spring mix (4.49/5 oz.). Other stuff includes: Tostitos, Eggs (2.99 doz.), Organic Valley Milk (4.99/half gal.), Silksoy (4.69 half gal.), and Stonyfield Yogurt (5.29),

ASSOCIATED (Flatbush at Hawthorne)

Middle of the road, in terms of offerings, though they did have Applegate smoked turkey (4.99 7 oz.) and BGH-free Applegate Muenster (4.99), which I didn't see at the other large stores. Milk (5.19 half gal.), Lactaid (!), Silksoy (4.39 half gal),, Eggs (2.50 Nature's Yoke - cagefree vegetarian, doz), Tostitos, and, like Pioneer, some (nonorganic) Garden & Boca Burgers.

WESTERN BEEF (44 Empire Blvd., at Washington)

The biggest store has the smallest selection of organics. What it does, offer, however, is an off-putting stench upon entry and a huge, refrigerated meat room that you really should visit at least once. Every grocery store needs a huge refrigerated meat room. This one also carries staples in party-sized packages, so if you're looking for a 5 pound bag of shredded cheddar, here's the hookup.

Western Beef also has the widest selection of international foods and it's fun browsing the aisles looking at all the exotic goods. In terms of organics, pretty much all I saw was milk (Organic Valley, 4.69/half gal.), Silksoy (4.29/half gal.), eggs (on sale for 2.88 doz.), and a box of dry cereal (Health Valley multiflakes, 5.19). 

OTHER OPTIONS 

The bodega on Lincoln and Ocean (14 Lincoln) has a few dry goods—rice, pasta, mac & cheese, canned beans and soups—as well as eggs and milk. In fact, you can find milk at a number of bodegas around here.

Of course, if you have anything to add or notice any errors here, please leave a comment.

Billy Sunday ... the first review

I was going to write a review of Billy Sunday's - the new Lincoln Road BBQ joint - but, alas, they will not be starting full service until tonight. Something I wish I had found out after trudging through the snow when I tried to order for pickup but did not because nobody answered the phone. It's OK. I'm over it now. I'll probably go back tonight.

However, Lena from God, That's Good went on Saturday and got the free samples treatment. Which I would have loved, but I had to bring back food for four people and we've been told that we are not allowed to leave a baby sleeping alone in the apartment even if we are 100% positive that he won't wake up.

Lena writes:

I'm from California, which is not exactly a BBQ haven of excellence. But as far as I could tell, this meat was good. It was nice and tender, fell right off the bone, and had a lot of flavor. It came with three sauces that I forgot to take a picture of - a mustard/vinegar type sauce, a more traditional BBQ sauce and my personal favorite (although it freaked Ana out), a berry infused sauce that was a little bit sweet and tangy. ... I could have had about a billion more of those biscuits. They were buttery and flaky. Other highlights were the breaded mac and cheese, the sweet potato (or maybe butternut squash? yams? I don't know) mash, and collard greens. I also liked the red cabbage coleslaw.

With a bit of luck, I'll let you know what I think tomorrow.

Billy Sunday's Menu

Billy Sunday's, the new BBQ joint on Lincoln, opened its doors for the first time last night and the spouse managed to snag a menu. They're not serving meals yet (that'll be another couple of days) but were offering free sample portions last night. Anyone try the food?

UPDATE: The menu previously posted was being handed out during the samples-only period. It has been replaced by the current menu.