It’s majorly spring, and even folks with little in the way of a green thumb are happy to get their hands in the dirt and eager to taste new vegetables poking their way through it. If you can’t grow stuff yourself, or your squash remains a few leaves slowly crawling their way across the ground, the Athens Farmers Market returns this weekend, operating Saturdays at Bishop Park from 8 a.m. to noon and Wednesdays (beginning Apr. 11) at Little Kings from 4 to 7 p.m. Sure, there are other places to get local produce, but there’s no question the AFM is the largest collective of growers in the area, and it will continue to accept credit/debit cards this year (as well as doubling EBT).
In other vegetable-oriented news, Chuck Ramsey (ex-Five & Ten), will be covering the kitchen this month at Gymnopédie, the tiny, virtuous vegan restaurant with a soul, while owner-operator Sarah Dunning is out of town. Ramsey is known around town for his BBQ, so it boggles the mind to see him turning to the light side, but he loves his veggies, too. The menu for April includes: smoked pecans with sea salt; a salad of massaged kale, kohlrabi, shaved carrot, apple, mustard seed and fenugreek vinaigrette; braised greens in dashi broth with pickled jalapeños; a dish of braised escarole, roasted baby vegetables, toasted pecans and shaved radish; an entree of smoked mushrooms, pickled ramps, ramp puree, Red Mule grits and fried sage; and two desserts, a pecan panna cotta with candied beets and carrots and a chocolate pudding with whipped tofu and candied pecans. Make your reservations on the restaurant’s website.
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