Add Medina’s Sushi on the Roll to the fleet of local food trucks hitting the streets.
Owner Ken Oppenheimer, who owns the Medina sushi restaurant and wholesale supplier of the same name, said his mobile sushi bar will be parked at Blossom Music Center for every concert this summer and also at Cedar Point in Sandusky when it opens on Saturday.
Oppenheimer will be serving his traditional sushi rolls, as well as salads and specialty burritos. (Yes, it is the unorthodox combination of sushi ingredients wrapped inside a wheat tortilla.)
Am I the only one who is still frustrated that the city of Akron refuses to be more welcoming to food trucks? When Norton holds a food truck meet-up before Akron does (it was April 26), we should all be disappointed. Never mind that we’re years behind Cleveland with our thinking on food trucks.
The city will not allow them to operate freely on Akron streets because they provide competition to bricks and mortar restaurants. So do food carts, but the city permits them.
The only way food trucks can operate in Akron is if they are invited to park on private property.
It just isn’t right.
Alton Brown is coming
Mark your calendars for 7:30 p.m. Nov. 5, when the Food Network’s favorite science guy, Alton Brown, will be bringing his show to Akron.
Brown’s 90-minute show will be at the University of Akron’s E.J. Thomas Hall. It features comedy, food experiments, a multimedia lecture, live music and other family-friendly antics.
Tickets go on sale May 13. The show is part of E.J. Thomas’ Broadway In Akron series. For more information, contact the E.J. Thomas ticket office at 330-972-7570 or visit www.BroadwayInAkron.com.
Organic plant sale is set
Crown Point Ecology Center is hosting its annual plant sale May 18 and 19 at its farm, 3220 Ira Road, Bath Township.
More than 230 varieties of organic vegetables, herbs and perennial flowers will be available, all of which were grown at Crown Point, a certified organic farm. Organic seeds and fertilizer also will be on sale.
The sale is 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. Get there early for the best selection.
At 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Mari Keating, founder of the Cleveland chapter of Food Not Lawns, an organization that advocates for edible gardens to make healthier communities, will offer gardening design tips. Other garden and food vendors will be on site throughout the weekend.
Crown Point members are invited to a presale from 4 to 7 p.m. May 17. Anyone interested in becoming a member of Crown Point may join prior to the presale or on site that day. Memberships begin at $50. Visit www.crownpt.org for details.
For more information on the sale, including a list of plants that will be offered, visit the website or call 330-668-8992. Crown Point farm is a ministry of the Sisters of St. Dominic in Akron.
Farm market opens season
The Countryside Farmers Market at Howe Meadow, 4040 Riverview Road, Cuyahoga Falls, the Akron area’s largest farmers market, opens its season Saturday with a lineup of 59 vendors. The market will continue from 9 a.m. to noon every Saturday through Oct. 26.
We’ll run a full list of area farmers markets May 22.
Leave food by your mailbox
Saturday is the annual Stamp Out Hunger campaign when mail carriers collect nonperishable goods for the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank.
This is the 21st year for the event, which has become the nation’s largest single-day food drive.
In 2012, 39,726 pounds of food were collected in the Akron area, the equivalent of more than $65,000 of food donated to the local food bank.
To participate, leave a sturdy bag of nonperishable foods, such as canned soup or vegetables, pasta, rice or cereal, next to your mailbox prior to your regular mail delivery on Saturday. Local letter carriers will collect the donations along with the mail and deliver them to the food bank.
For more information about the food drive, visit www.helpstampouthunger.com.
Event celebrates market
Les Dames d’Escoffier, the Cleveland area’s association of female culinary professionals, is holding a benefit from 6 to 8:30 p.m. May 16 to celebrate the women who help to make the West Side Market a northeast Ohio culinary treasure.
The event will take place at Market Garden Brewery, 1947 W. 25th St., Cleveland, next door to the market. The evening will include a discussion of stories from market vendors moderated by Marilou Suszko, co-author of Cleveland’s West Side Market: 100 Years and Still Cooking.
Dishes featuring prepared foods and artisan products from women-owned stands at the market will be served along with a special cocktail created for the event. The evening will include a brewery tour by Market Garden brewer Jennifer Hermann, a book signing by Suszko and a raffle of culinary-themed prizes.
Tickets are $45 and can be purchased with PayPal at www.cleveland.ldei.org. To pay by check or ask questions, email diningwithdames2013@gmail.com.
Proceeds will benefit the organization’s Northeast Ohio Green Tables Initiative.
Chipotle serves margaritas
As if the cilantro-lime rice weren’t reason enough to visit Chipotle Mexican Grill, the burrito chain has just added premium margaritas to most of its area locations.
Chipotle has served margaritas before, but wasn’t happy with the mix they were using, so the chain is converting to all individually made cocktails crafted with Patron Silver tequila, triple sec, fresh lime and lemon juices, and organic agave nectar.
Chipotle started serving the new drinks on April 29 at locations in Kent, Fairlawn, Medina, Jackson Township, Akron, Cuyahoga Falls, Green, Wooster (but not on Sundays), Stow, Streetsboro (not on Sundays), Hudson, Brunswick, Wadsworth and Canton.
The drinks sell for $6.95.
Lisa Abraham can be reached at 330-996-3737 or at labraham@thebeaconjournal.com. Find me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter @akronfoodie or visit my blog at www.ohio.com/blogs/lisa.