Edible Delmarva: Fall 2019
While our region may be defined by geography (a nod to the three states that comprise our name) and landscape (beautifully bordered by the Chesapeake and Delaware Bays, the Atlantic Beaches, and the Brandywine Valley), it is our people that define who and what we are.
We are a region of depth and breadth and diversity, with a mix of “from here” and “come here” – but truly “here” in every sense of the word. As summer slides into fall, here is where you’ll find Laura Davis harvesting pickleweed on the Chincoteague Island marshes for her famous dip as well as a collaboration with locals Black Narrow Brewing.
Here is where you’ll find Darlene and Arthur, stewards of Old Pop’s Place farm in Hurlock, Maryland, that has been in Darlene’s family since 1909. They are working with rare heritage breeds of cattle, pigs and sheep, raising them on nutritious pasturing, fresh air and sunshine. Close your eyes and pick any package from the meat freezers in their one-room farmstore and get ready to experience real flavor.
Here is where Wit Milburn, partly by design and partly by fate, brought his new take on Thai food right to the people. His Wilmington-area food truck, Kapow, changed the game and elevated “food truck chef” to a whole new level. Today, he’s both on the move and in the house, with his waterfront restaurant Ubon and a Kapow Kitchen location just across the Pennsylvania border.
Here is where Christine Herman helms the Newark, Delaware, butcher shop that bears her family name. She and her late husband, Tim, bought the business in 1992 from Tim’s dad, who had owned it since 1967. There is both art and skill in the work, says Christine, who has run the store since Tim’s passing in 2008, but it’s the deep connections with the community and her customers that make her happiest.
And it’s here on Maryland’s Eastern Shore that Marvel Valdez chose to launch his Hispanic market and tortilleria in 2012. The fresh tortillas, baked goods, specialty products and produce are more than just a connection to his native Mexico – they are a way to make new connections by introducing these flavors and traditions to the community he now calls home.
Wherever you started out, it’s not necessary to be born in Delmarva to be deeply rooted in the community and call this place ‘home’. The ties that connect people and place and purpose know no boundaries. So, as we celebrate the abundance of the autumn season, we are grateful for all of you who are here with us.
Wishing you a bountiful harvest,
