Olive Oil at the Farmer's Market

Karen Lee has an olive ranch in Carrizo Springs down near the border with Mexico. She was in Austin one summer Saturday providing tastes of extra virgin oil, infused oils and infused balsamic vinegars at the Farmer's Market in Republic Square. Stunning and made in Texas. Today is theme day on City Daily Photo and the theme is Open Air Market. This downtown market is only a block from our condo and has been featured before. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants in this theme day.

Hotter than a Pepper Sprout

Temperatures have been flirting with (and embracing) three Fahrenheit digits every day. Sometimes food can be hot around here, too, but the weather and walking around downtown looking for shade can make one long for chilled soup and salad. I took this picture of peppers on offer at Boggy Creek Farm in July four years ago. If you are in the Northern Hemisphere I hope you are finding the weather tolerable or a way to keep cool.

Monkey See

Not talking about FFP. Monkey See Monkey Do is the name of the shop on South Congress shown here with its Monkey Sign and FFP looking in. It is right next door to the barber shop (see the pole?) and it is the 'go to' place for gag gifts like refrigerator magnets and little goofy action figures. It is also near an art gallery, a restaurant that we haven't been to in its current incarnation and a tiny grocery (Farm to Market) with an emphasis on local products. We are on South Congress with our ADP picture because I didn't get out of the house at all yesterday trying to avoid cedar pollen counts that are setting off alarms in my head. Seems once you start reacting it is hard for your body to stop. I will get out soon. Promise.

Whole Foods Planet

Years ago, Forrest and I shopped at a independent health food grocery store around 10th and Lamar. It was called Whole Foods Market. Later it expanded and opened stores in other parts of towns, in other cities in Texas. The downtown store moved to 6th and Lamar and then moved out of that space into the world headquarters between 5th and 6th. I call the place 'Whole Foods Planet' because they have signs that say 'Whole Foods Whole Planet' and such. Now, of course, there are Whole Foods stores in lots of U.S. cities including one in the Time Warner Center in New York City. You need to say New York City in a certain way if you are a Texan. I think it derives from an old San Antonio brand salsa commercial. I'll have to let the italics work that for you. I read that there is now a store in London. Texans, well Austinites at least most of whom weren't born here, tend to mention London in a calm way that implies they often visit. Which they probably do. They may, if mentioning Paris, however say Paris, France. That's because while there is a London, Texas it is much smaller and less well-known than Paris, Texas. So they aren't really being hicks but, you know, being clear. I do not think, however, that Paris has a Whole Foods Market so I digress.

Anyway, this photo is of the Whole Foods Market World Headquarters which includes a store with lots of dine-in options (sort of like Harrod's in London or Ka-De-We in Germany only on a smaller scale and more, well, organic). There is also a parking garage, a culinary center, office space and a roof-top plaza that, this month, is turned into an ice rink.

Last night when we visited here we had dinner at the Vegan Bar. It was delicious. As we sat down I ask FFP how long it would be before we saw someone we knew. He said, "Oh, about five seconds," as someone we knew rounded the corner headed to the seafood counter for dinner. After eating we made our way around the store and picked up some local products like White Mountain yogurt and tofu dip and, I'll confess, a six-pack of Shiner and one of draft Guinness. OK, that last one is only local to Dublin but I became a fan in that lovely city!

It's For Kids

We don't have kids. So I normally don't pay much attention to playgrounds or kid-friendly places except maybe to avoid them. If my nieces come to town with some little ones, my perspective changes.

I have a little ritual for posting on this blog. First I look at the Daily Photo Home page and see what people have been posting. Sometimes I look at one of the sites. Then I pick out a picture and do my entry. Later in the day, I might look at Daily Photo again and locate my site's thumbnail and see some more of the day's harvest of pictures. I'm always struck by mini 'themes' that crop up whether it's birds or markets or people doing similar things. Today, though, I actually chose this picture because this site in Silver Spring, Maryland had a playground picture and I liked this one I had taken a week or so ago.

This was taken at Phil's Ice House where we showed the sign earlier. Obviously the cows are an homage to the Amy's ice cream served (and made in the building behind the playground).

Tito's Vodka

We were in the bar at Taverna on 2nd Street last week and some folks from Tito's Vodka were there. I got a free gimlet (served up in a martini glass as shown here) and they gave us hats and T-Shirts, too. You see Tito's poured all over town. It's locally distilled. That seems to be a thing now. Think Globally, Drink Locally.

Texas Spirit(s)

Daniel Barnes is making rum in Central Texas from all Texas ingredients. He was pouring samples at one of the neatest invitation only receptions of the weekend on Saturday night. (No, not for Lady Bird's mourners. This one was for the birthday of a local food writer and was held at the iconic Boggy Creek Farms and had lots of locally famous foodies contributing to one ultimate pot luck.) Daniel and his lovely companion (sorry, didn't get her name) posed with the rum they are making from raw materials sourced in Texas. It's called Treaty Oak Platinum. They were giving away samples at the party. Daniel and his company join several other Central Texans who distill here. I understand it's good to eat local food (saving transportation and such). That must go for liquor as well!

Big Red

This collection of blogs called Daily City Photo has a 'theme day' on the first day of each month. Blogs that wish to participate take a picture along the lines of the theme. Today's Daily Photo theme is red. Yes, just the color red. We have been thinking for a few weeks what to post. Then I was going through photos and found this. It is a gift basket that was on offer at the precious little grocery/deli/antiques and collectibles store called P&K Grocery a few months back. Big Red is a popular soft drink (soda pop, 'coke', pop) in the Southern United States and in Texas. Or it once was. It tastes like liquid candy if memory serves. The grocer seems to have kept more or less to the red theme with what looks like some kind of private label soap or confection and an antique painted toy.

I find that Big Red was born in Waco, Texas. Which is also famous for...Dr. Pepper. Fertile ground for soft drinks on the Brazos River.

To see red around the world, surf here:

Shanghai, China - Mumbai, India - New York City (NY), USA - Manila, Philippines - Albuquerque (NM), USA - Hamburg, Germany - Stayton (OR), USA - Los Angeles (CA), USA - Hyde, UK - Oslo, Norway - Brookville (OH), USA - Melbourne, Australia - Stavanger, Norway - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Bucaramanga (Santander), Colombia - Joplin (MO), USA - Singapore, Singapore - Selma (AL), USA - Cleveland (OH), USA - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Chandler (AZ), USA - Stockholm, Sweden - Seattle (WA), USA - Boston (MA), USA - Arradon, France - Evry, France - Baton Rouge (LA), USA - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Boston (MA), USA - Grenoble, France - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Greenville (SC), USA - Hilo (HI), USA - Nelson, New Zealand - La Antigua, Guatemala - Brisbane (QLD), Australia - Singapore, Singapore - Tel Aviv, Israel - Hong Kong, China - Sequim (WA), USA - Paderborn, Germany - Saarbrücken, Germany - Rotterdam, Netherlands - Tenerife, Spain - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Sydney, Australia - Naples (FL), USA - Cologne (NRW), Germany - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Cypress (TX), USA - Ocean Township (NJ), USA - Mainz, Germany - Toruń, Poland - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Singapore, Singapore - North Bay (ON), Canada - Jakarta, Indonesia - Montréal (QC), Canada - Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Baziège, France - San Diego (CA), USA - Prague, Czech Republic - Ampang (Selangor), Malaysia - New York (NY), USA - Kajang (Selangor), Malaysia - Sharon (CT), USA - Newcastle (NSW), Australia - Port Angeles (WA), USA - Nottingham, UK - Villigen, Switzerland - Chicago (IL), USA - Torquay, UK - Brussels, Belgium - San Diego (CA), USA - Mexico (DF), Mexico - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Cape Town, South Africa - Paris, France - Seoul, Korea - Manila, Philippines - Milano, Italy - Austin (TX), USA - Chennai, India - Madrid, Spain - Seoul, South Korea - Wailea (HI), USA - Toronto (ON), Canada - Ajaccio, France - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Silver Spring (MD), USA - Zurich, Switzerland - Sydney, Australia - Budapest, Hungary - Moscow, Russia - Auckland, New Zealand - Torino, Italy