Food-o-File

Kate Thornberry and I arrived at the Down­town Farmers' Market (Fourth & Guadalupe) at 8:45am two Saturdays ago to be first in line for buttermilk at the Remember When Dairy stall. Unfortunately, we discovered there was no buttermilk and that all of the dairy's exemplary milk products would soon be disappearing from the market and local stores! A recent business dispute between Mark Ganske and his partner in the dairy has caused the dissolution of the business and left Ganske scrambling to relocate the operation so he can resume serving his loyal customers in Austin. No word yet on how soon that will be accomplished, but we'll keep you posted... My pal Kellye Rila joined me on an early morning road trip to Taylor last Saturday where we met a segment producer for the Voice of America, the U.S. government's international radio and television broadcast network. Yi Suli was shooting a two-part program about our area, contrasting the rich history of Central Texas barbecue traditions with the raw-foods movement currently blossoming in Austin. We met him at Louie Mueller Barbecue (206 W. Second, Taylor, 512/352-6206, www.louiemuellerbarbecue.com), where he videotaped a long interview about the slow-smoked brisket, signature sausages, family heritage, and civic pride inherent in Central Texas barbecue traditions. After three days on the rural barbecue trail in Luling, Lockhart, and Taylor, Suli spent a couple of days in Austin interviewing Matt Shook and some raw-foods enthusiasts who frequent the Daily Juice Cafe (4500 Duval St., 380-9046, www.dailyjuice.org). The contrasts should make for interesting television – I can't wait to see the finished product with us chatting about Texas barbecue dubbed in Man-darin Chinese... Cafe Josie (1200-B W. Sixth, 322-9226, www.cafejosie.com) chef/owner Charles Mayes e-mailed to let us know a motorist had knocked down his neon sign at the corner of Sixth and Blanco three months ago, and it has yet to be replaced, prompting some of his customers to assume he had closed up shop. Nothing could be further from the truth – they're alive and cooking and encourage all their friends to drop by!... Hot on the heels of their strong showing in several categories of our recent Restaurant Poll, the folks at FINO (2905 San Gabriel, 474-2905, www.finoaustin.com) have added a four-week series of chef's table dinners on upcoming Wednesday evenings. The chef's table seats 16 guests and can be reserved by groups or individuals. The June 17 dinner is already sold out, but offerings on June 24 and July 1 and 8 are still available. Each week, chef Jason Donoho will have a different theme for the four-course dinners, some paired with wines by wine director Josh Lov­ing, others complemented by cocktails from award-winning mixologist Bill Norris. Per person prices will vary depending on the menus. Make necessary reservations at [email protected]... And speaking of Norris, he and Austin's other award-winning mixologist, Mindy Kucan, will be going to New Orleans in July to compete in that city's annual Tales of the Cocktail event (www.talesofthecocktail.com). We wish them great success... This weekend marks the arrival of summer fruits at all area farmers' markets – look for peaches, blackberries, plums, and blueberries. I'm seriously thinking about cobbler!