In the off-with-my-head department, when I wrote recently about the Austin chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier International (April 11), I neglected to mention that Cathy Cochran-Lewis was one of the original founders of the local chapter, along with Joan Wood and Johanna Brown. I regret the omission. Whole Foods Market global public relations team member Cochran-Lewis is one of the busiest women we know – in addition to her work with Les Dames, she’s just returned from the annual convention of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, where she was named president for the coming year. Congratulations, Cathy!… Chado Tea Market owner Tony Ingargiola wrote to announce he closed up shop in West Lake Hills this week and is moving his operation lock, stock, and teapot to a new space in the Triangle, just across from Triangle Park. It’s no secret that the Triangle is one of the hottest shopping and dining destinations in the city these days – it should be a great spot for Ingargiola’s charming shop. He hopes to be open in early June… The recent announcement that the venerable Texas Showdown Saloon (2610 Guadalupe) is soon to close caused some consternation among Chronicle staffers with personal attachments to the longtime Drag mainstay. We’re told the Showdown, once the site of the legendary punk club Raul’s, has fallen victim to Austin’s rapidly escalating property values, and the location is destined to be redeveloped for a more profitable use… There were a couple of really good Earth Day stories that unfortunately didn’t arrive until after last week’s deadline. We were impressed to hear that HEB gave away 150,000 reusable “green” shopping bags statewide on April 22, handing them out to customers who brought in at least five plastic bags for recycling at their neighborhood HEB groceries. Last year at St. Edward’s University, the food service provider Bon Appétit Management Co. recognized Earth Day by serving a meal prepared from as many locally sourced products as possible. This year, April 22 was Low Carbon Diet Day, changing the focus from simply buying local to considering the overall carbon footprint of the foodstuffs being served. The lunch menu was conceived with an eye toward reducing the carbon emissions of the meal by 25% – an admirable goal… We’re sad to report the passing of Austin natural foods pioneer Reed Murray, 57, who died April 15 in a motorcycle accident. In the early 1980s, Murray merged two local yogurt companies to form White Mountain Foods and subsequently built one of the largest natural foods manufacturers in the Southwest. His quality natural food products were among the first locally produced artisan foods sold at Austin food co-ops, health-food stores, and the fledgling Whole Foods Market. Throughout his nearly 40-year residence in Austin, Reed actively supported sustainable, environmentally friendly technologies and resource management. He is survived by a large circle of loving family and friends, who gathered to celebrate his life at Mercury Hall on Tuesday, April 22. We extend our condolences to them all. While we regret his loss, it seems particularly fitting that Reed was laid to rest on Earth Day.
This article appears in April 25 • 2008.