There are so many places in South Jersey that I want to visit – stores, restaurants, wineries, breweries, markets… I know I’ll never get to all of them, but I thought I’d set a goal for myself to pick out five of them and make sure I get there during this calendar year. Five doesn’t sound like a lot, but I’ve got a family to care for, a home to manage, two blogs to write, a book in the works, and a few various one-off writing assignments to focus on. I’m in my home a lot more than I thought I would be when I chose to write for a career. ( Of course I had visions of working from coffee houses every day and joining writing critique groups and a much more bohemian style of life. Turns out it’s a job – a wonderful job, but still a job.) So I’m setting my goal at a conservative five.
- Natural Harvest Food Market in Mullica Hill – Late last summer, Darrol and Tracey Wilson, huge supporters of all things local, bought the Natural Harvest Food Market. Every time I read the market’s Facebook page, I want to jump in the car and go. Part of the store is dedicated to local foods and small producers. They sell Capogiro Gelato from Philadelphia (if you’ve never had this Gelato sourced from local ingredients, you don’t know what you’re missing), cheese from Cherry Grove Farms in Lawrenceville, pasta from Severino in Westmont, meats from Wellshire Farms in Swedesboro and much more. What’s not local is natural, organic and wholesome, and they make sure they have options for vegetarians, vegans and those on a gluten-free diet.
- Vincentown Diner – For a NJ food lover, I’m not that big on diners. They’re great at 2 am, but the rest of the time, I can make the same foods most diners make at home. I’ve heard differently about the Vincentown Diner, though. They use organic eggs, local produce, all natural pasture-fed beef from local New Jersey farms, and they serve wines from New Jersey. I’ve been told the food is really great. Even the New York Times says it’s “worth it.”
- Flying Fish Brewing – Even though it’s right around the corner in Cherry Hill, I’ve never taken the time to visit Flying Fish. I need to remedy that. They do free tastings/tours on many Saturday afternoons (see their schedule of events to find dates and times). The brewery will be moving from its current location to one that’s three times as large in Somerdale (Yay for local businesses doing so well they need to expand!), but that won’t be for a while. I hope to be able to check out their old digs and their new digs once the new location is up and running.
- (& 5.) Landis MarketPlace and Bellview Winery – I hope to tackle two of my goals in one day by heading to Vineland and visiting the Landis MarketPlace to check out the Amish market on the bottom floor and the merchants on the top floor (including Martha’s Spice Shop owned by the former principal of the school I used to teach at). Then, I’ll head to the nearby Bellview Winery for a tasting and stock up on a few bottles. And, since I’m in the area, I’ll make it a point to pop into The Sweet Life Bakery and grab a treat or two. It’s a foodie day trip just waiting to be taken.
Tell me what local businesses and producers you’re hoping to finally visit this year.
Fromage Fort - a cheese spread made from the odds and ends of cheeses leftover from the holidays. Yum!
After only two truly cold days, the 55 degrees this afternoon have me in a happy, spring-like mood. My mood might also be contributed to the fact that yesterday, the winery direct shipping bill finally made it out of committee in the New Jersey State Assembly and will be going to the floor for a vote on Monday, January 9, 2012. This is the third (I believe) version of the bill – the first two never made it to the floor for a vote. On Monday, if bill A-4436 passes, chances are really good that our wineries will be able to thrive, our vineyards will continue to exist to preserve open land, and consumers will have a freedom of choice.
It’s not a done deal, and this is where YOU are very important. If you go to Free the Grapes, you’ll find an incredibly easy way to contact your district’s representatives. In less than five minutes, you can send them emails encouraging them to vote for A-4436. They need to hear from as many of us as possible. They need to know this is important to their constituents. Please take a few minutes to do this before Sunday evening so when your representatives get to work on Monday, they’ll be inundated with our voices.
I’ve got a few odds and ends to let you know about, too.
- Mark January 16th on your calendar for the 3rd Annual Mac Off to benefit The Food Bank of South Jersey. This year, the event will be held at The Collingswood Ballroom to be able to accommodate all the great people that want to come out and support our restaurants and the food bank.
- Two of my favorite local producers Sharrott Winery and Cherry Grove Farm are teaming up on Saturday, January 21 from noon to 5pm for an afternoon of wine and cheese pairings at Sharrott’s tasting room.
- If you’re being inundated with cute little Girl Scouts asking you to buy their cookies, but you don’t want the unhealthy ingredients, my partner in food writing over at MNN, Kimi, has a recipe for homemade Thin Mints.
- Another recipe that might interest you is Fromage Fort. I read about this in my latest issue of Saveur and had to make it. You take the leftover cheeses that you have in the fridge and mix the in the food processor with white wine and butter to make a cheese spread that’s different every time. You can get the recipe for Fromage Fort on my MNN post.
- In that same issue of Saveur (which was a really great issue – I enjoyed the whole thing cover to cover) there was a list of the Saveur 100 favorite things, and oyster stout made the list. Flying Fish’s Exit 1 Oyster Stout was one of the stouts mentioned and pictured in the mag. How cool is that?
That’s it for this weekend. Things are fairly quiet after the holidays. We all need a quiet weekend, I suspect. I’ll be un-Christmasing my house this weekend. How about you?
The following is from an email I received from UnCorkNJ! This is the week that the fate of New Jersey wineries will be decided. Please read this and contact the representatives at the end of the post. Not only will a positive vote save our state wineries, it will give the consumer the right to have wines from all over the country shipped to our homes. We WANT this.
New Jersey’s wine consumers and wineries received another major boost this weekend as the STAR-LEDGER, the state’s largest newspaper, joined five other newspapers in endorsing direct shipping legislation. Additionally, the editorial went on to dismiss the liquor lobby’s misleading allegations about job losses and an increase in underage access to wine as a result of direct shipping. The editorial said, “Both arguments are fear-mongering nonsense.” Further, the editorial pointed out, “New Jersey wineries – the state’s most promising farmers – need this law because it’s good for business. It’s already law in 38 states. Direct-shipping expands consumer choice. Moreover, local wineries draw tourism, and the state stands to make millions on license fees and sales taxes.”
Momentum continues to build for direct shipping! A-4436/S-3172, sponsored by Senate President Stephen Sweeney, Assemblyman John Burzichelli, Deputy Speaker John Wisniewski, and Assemblywoman Celeste Riley, is scheduled to be considered by the Assembly Budget Committee on Thursday, January 5th! This legislation provides the Legislature with an opportunity to enhance New Jersey’s image around the country, and further establish the state as a major wine producer. Additionally, this important legislation will ensure the future of the NJ wine industry, stimulate agri-tourism, preserve farmland, create jobs and bring additional tax and fee revenue to the state. Now is the time to reach out to members of the Assembly Budget Committee and urge them to support this legislation and finally give NJ residents the same ability as millions of other Americans in 38 states to have wine shipped from wineries to their residences.
UnCorkNJ is calling on its thousands of supporters to take action today and urge members of the Assembly Budget Committee to reject the liquor lobby and side with NJ wine consumers and wine growers and pass A-4436/S-3172 on Thursday!
We thank you for your past support and encourage you to spread the word to other wine consumers. To read the STAR-LEDGER editorial, please click here.
Members of the Assembly Budget Committee:
Chairman Lou Greenwald
AsmGreenwald@njleg.org
Vice-Chairman Gary Schear
AsmSchear@njleg.org (note: the email I sent to this particular address was sent back undeliverable. I went in through Vice-Chairman Schear’s website and sent an email that way: http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/bio.asp?Leg=258)
Assemblyman Anthony Bucco
AsmBucco@njleg.org
Assemblyman John Burzichelli
AsmBurzichelli@njleg.org
Assemblyman Gary Chiusano
AsmChiusano@njleg.org
Assemblyman Albert Coutinho
AsmCoutinho@njleg.org
Assemblyman Gordon Johnson
AsmJohnson@njleg.org
Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon
AsmOScanlon@njleg.org
Assemblywoman Nellie Pou
AswPou@njleg.org
Assemblywoman Joan Quigley
AswQuigley@njleg.org
Assemblywoman Bonnie Watson Coleman
AswWatsonColeman@njleg.org
Assemblyman Jay Webber
AsmWebber@njleg.org
