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Talbot Spy COVID-19 Restaurants & Deliveries Update

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Restaurants & Deliveries & Markets

CARRYOUT & DELIVERY

EASTON

4 Sisters Food Truck: free delivery to Easton area and $5 for delivery to Trappe, Preston, St. Michaels, and Oxford. (410) 443-0769. NOTE: they are offering a free platter to anyone who is in need in our community due to the crisis.

Bombay Tadka, both in Easton and Cambridge, are offering free delivery to the immediate area, 443-515-0853. NOTE: Ask for the ‘Good Karma Special:’ For every two entrees purchased, they will will give one to a neighbor in need in the community. Additional ‘Good Karma Specials’ may be added to your order for $10.

Chilis: Delivery or pickup (410) 763-7077

Easton Pizzeria: (410) 822-4911, www.eastonpizzeria.com

Eat Sprout: Free delivery to your door anywhere in Talbot County. 443-223-0642

Giovanni’sPizza: Delivery or pickup (410) 770-6993

Olive Garden: (410) 763-9018

Piazza Italian Market: Open for customers, but limit 5 at a time for distancing. Offering free, same day delivery and curbside pick up. (410) 820-8281, https://www.piazzaitalianmarket.com/

Potbelly is offering free delivery through March 29 via its app, Potbelly.com, GrubHub, and DoorDash. (Plus all orders are securely packaged with tamper-evident stickers).

Rusticana Pizza: Deliver or pickup–219 Marlboro Ave. (410) 820-7422 ; 810 Dover St. (410 820-5110)

Victory Garden: (410) 690-7356

 

OXFORD & ST. MICHAELS

Awful Arthurs: St. Michaels, Friday | Saturday | Sunday 11am – ’til ?  (410) 745-3474

Latitude 38 in Oxford will deliver in Oxford for a $5 fee. (410) 226-5303

The Galley in St. Michaels: Free delivery in St. Michaels and within a five-mile surrounding area. (410) 200-8572

Sam’s Pizza Restaurant: St Michaels (410) 745-5955. They deliver from Tilghman Island to Miles River Bridge Landing and Easton Village

 

CURBSIDE / TAKEOUT  ONLY

EASTON

Doc’s Downtown Grill: (410) 822-7700

El Dorado: (410) 820-4002

Giuffrida’s Pizzaria: (410) 770-3500

Hill’s Cafe: (410) 822-9751

Hunter’s Tavern (Tidewater Inn): (410) 822-1300

In Japan: (410) 443-0681

Ledo Pizza: (410) 819-3000

Olde Mill Deli: (410) 822-9088

Olive Garden: Curbside pickup only (410) 763-9018

Osteria Alfredo: (410) 822-9088

Rise Up: (410) 822-1353

Ruby Tuesday: Curbside pickup only (410) 763-8475

Sakura: Curbside pickup only (410) 690-4773

Snifter’s: OPEN for carry out, and Hair O’ The Dog is OPEN for your beverage needs!!  (410) 690-7342

Sunflower & Greens: (410) 822-7972

The BBQ Joint:  410-690-3641

The Bagery: Call (410) 690-4188 or order online

Whole Note Coffee: (410) 204-4880

 

OXFORD,  ST. MICHAELS, & TRAPPE

Carpenter St: In St. Michaels (410) 745-5111

Chesapeake Landing: St. Michaels (410) 745-9600

Coffee Trappe: 410-476-6164

Momma Maria’s in Trappe: 410-476-6266

Ava’s, St Michaels & Cambridge is open for carry out. They also are selling their pizza kits so you can make them at home. 410-745-3081 St. Michaels or 443-205-4350 Cambridge

OTHERS

Check with Door Dash to see if they deliver from your favorite restaurant. Their info is constantly changing. They will either eave the food at your door or hand it to you. https://www.doordash.com/food-delivery/easton-dc-restaurants/

Blue Heron Catering, provides catering and personal chef services. (410) 822-8204

 

Covid-19 & Small Acts of Kindness: Kendra Sanders

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In these trying times, we hope to give you a glimpse of some ordinary people doing extraordinary things. There are many. Here is just one story.

This post caught our attention:

Easton restaurant owners, in light of the changes offered by Gov. Hogan, if anyone needs help navigating Facebook to get your page set up to promote carry out, delivery, post menus, post job openings for delivery drivers, etc., please message me. I can help. #wereallinthistogether #keepthelightson

With so many restaurant businesses in our area being impacted, this seemed to be a significant offer. After speaking to Kendra Sanders, the author of the post, the Spy agreed she would be perfect for our Small Act of Kindness series.

At first glance, you may wonder why the social media director for Curves NA & Oceania, Inc., one of the largest fitness center chain, wanted to help restaurant owners in Easton. That is until you learn that all of this global responsibility is handled right here from her desk. But her offer to give free advice is personal: “Both of my sons are in the food service industry in Easton,” she told us, “and my oldest son and their father were in food service, as well. I’m very sensitive to these folks with variable income and how quickly it could be devastated. When you shut down an entire industry that has so many storefronts across the entire state–which is quickly becoming across the country–how many people are being affected by that?”

Looking at the dynamics of the crisis, Sanders assessed that regular customers weren’t able to be normal and just get in the car for lunch or a night out at their local restaurant. She went further: What about those fine dining places? “Those places are the ones who will suffer the worse because they’re not in the stream of consciousness, like the places that normally and regularly offer curbside service,” she said.

As a media guru, Sanders knows that it’s going to take some creativity on the part of the business owners to ‘keep the lights on.’ “Everybody is looking for information right now, and Facebook, let’s be really honest, is where everybody is going. And I thought, ‘that’s where I can make a big difference because I have some experience with that.’ It doesn’t need to be hard, but It does need to be done quickly, and that’s something that I can do and do pretty readily, and I have access to a lot of tools.”

The tools Sanders speaks of are ones she’s developed and uses for work; ones she could quickly adapt to another industry. She asked her boss for permission and was given the go-ahead.

Ask what the most critical guidance she can give, and Sanders will tell you it’s all about communication. “The first thing I recommend,” she says, “is for restaurants to create a comprehensive single pinned post on Facebook with their ‘temporary services information.’ This includes delivery area, hours, menu, link to their website, and how to get in touch with them. They need to update their cover image to very boldly say ‘Currently Offering Curbside’ or ‘Currently Offering Delivery. People shouldn’t have to wonder when they hit that page: ‘are they delivering?’ The worst thing in the world is when people have to scroll to find it. It’s got to be in that cover image, and it has to be in that post.”

Sanders, an almost native of the Eastern Shore (she was born here, moved away and is now back), has a lot more practical advice for the industry. “If I know something that can help you, I’m more than willing to share. I don’t know everything about everything, but I know a little something about a lot of things.”

Sanders can be reached at kendrasuesanders@gmail.com. If you know someone who is making a difference, let us know.

St. Michaels Community Center Offers Delivery Support to Bay Hundred Food Pantries

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The St. Michaels Community Center is available to make deliveries for all local pantries in the Bay Hundred area on Tuesdays and Thursdays during the COVID-19 outbreak. SMCC will pick up food from local pantries in its blue after-school bus and deliver to people in areas west and south of St. Michaels.

SMCC is collecting a list of individuals in need of grocery deliveries, with addresses from St. Michaels to Tilghman Island. Times and locations will be announced on SMCC’s website, with those needing deliveries asked to call 410-745-6073 or email trish@stmichaelscc.org.

SMCC is also providing take-out meals and grocery pick-up to those in need from 5 to 7 p.m. Mondays, 3 to 5 p.m. Wednesdays, and 11 to 3 p.m. Fridays at its 103 Railroad Ave. location in St. Michaels.

Individuals wanting to help can donate to SMCC at paypal.me/smccmd, or drop off non-perishables at the St. Michaels Community Center, the St. Michaels Police Dept., YMCA of the Chesapeake locations, local firehouses, and area churches.

The extension of SMCC’s outreach is coordinated in part with Talbot County’s Emergency Services, Health Department, law enforcement, public schools, area churches, and other non-profit community service providers. More information and updates from SMCC are at stmichaelscc.org.

“Good Karma” Begins to Spread Across the Mid-Eastern Shore

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While increasing concerns surrounding the COVID-19 virus spreads across Maryland, the country, and the world, the closing of schools, restaurants, bars, gyms, and theatres is hitting Marylanders hard. But, something special is happening on the Eastern Shore. Restaurant owner, Rohit Shinde, of Bombay Tadka, is responding by helping those in our community who are in desperate need, living paycheck to paycheck, or finding themselves without a job during this crisis.

Shinde operates Bombay Tadka Indian restaurant at locations in Cambridge and, more recently, Easton. He immigrated to the US from Mumbai (formerly Bombay), India four years ago. He opened Bombay Tadka by himself at 1721 Race Street in Cambridge, making quite an impression on the locals by offering delectable Indian cuisine in a market that lacks international food. Regular patrons turned good friends, Scott and Tammy Saunders, helped Shinde open his Easton location at 508 Idlewild Avenue at the end of 2019 where Bombay Tadka became an instant sensation. He now has friends that help him run the two restaurants.

Like other restaurants, they are unable to provide sit down service to customers during the Coronavirus pandemic, so they are offering curbside, carryout, and delivery service. According to Shinde, “I come from a small family, and I know that times are difficult. I want to help make things better for people again by helping to ease their suffering.” He added, “Good Karma is about intention. If your intention is good, and your actions are good, then good will be returned to you in this life or the next.” That’s why both Bombay Tadka locations are offering “Good Karma Specials” to those in need. Beginning immediately until further notice, for every TWO entrees customers purchase from Bombay Tadka, Shinde will set aside one “Good Karma Special” to give to neighbors in need, FREE OF CHARGE. If, when customers order, they would like to donate additional “Good Karma Specials” for a neighbor, you may add $10 to your order to “pay it forward,” and they will add it to the specials available to give away.

Shinde adds, “If you know anyone who is need, please direct them to us. They may call as a regular carryout customer, and all they need to do is give their name and ask for today’s ‘Good Karma Special,’ and then pick it up like any other carryout order at our restaurants.”

“My wife and I are thrilled to support Rohit, and hope more of our friends and neighbors will join us by donating ‘Good Karma Specials’ to help Rohit feed people who may otherwise go without a meal during this time,” said Scott Saunders.

Visit or call Bombay Tadka at 1721 Race Street in Cambridge, 443-515-0853 and at 508 Idlewild Avenue in Easton, 443-746-2135. For more information, visit www.bombaytadkamd.com, or email info@bombaytadkamd.com.
You don’t have to believe in Karma to make a donation, or to get a much-needed meal for you or your family, but you may find the principle is alive and well, right here in our community. Namaste.

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Food: Local Restaurant Takeout and Delivery Update

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We don’t yet know the extent of COVID-19 and how it will affect us here in Talbot County. But, we were curious if local businesses are changing the way they’ve done things.

Whether you’re self-isolating, on quarantine, or too stressed to cook, we surveyed local restaurants about changes to their delivery options.

One of the exceptions, and the reason for this roundup of responses, was prompted by Eat Sprout’s email/posting from this morning: “Beginning immediately Sprout is offering free delivery to your door in Talbot County.” When questioned further, owner Ryan Groll said, “Whatever we can do to help the community. We can deliver anything from our café: bread, meals, soups, wraps, snacks, drinks, etc.” Eat Sprout can be reached by calling: (443) 223-0642.

Another change is being made by The BBQ Joint ((410) 690-3641), which said that although they didn’t deliver, they will be offering curbside pick-up service for at least the next week. A request should be made when the order is placed. Victory Garden Cafe is offering curb side pick up and free delivery to Easton. They will also deliver to Oxford with a $50.00 food order: 410.690.7356.

Coffee Trappe 410-476-6164 and Momma Maria’s in Trappe. 410-476-6266 will take your phone order with curbside pick up.

The Bagery 410-690-4188 or online offers curbside pickup.

The Galley in St. Michaels offers free delivery in St. Michaels and within a five-mile surrounding area. Latitude 38 will deliver in Oxford for a $5.00 fee.

Other services, such as Blue Heron Catering, provides catering and personal chef services. Beat the Rush Delivery offers to deliver food from groceries, farmers’ markets, or local eateries. They have special fees for seniors or those on subsidized income.

Potbelly is offering free delivery through March 29th via its app, Potbelly.com, GrubHub, and DoorDash. (Plus all orders are securely packaged with tamper-evident stickers).

Many restaurants, such as Headwaters Seafood and Grille, and Snifters, use DoorDash for their deliveries. Delivery fees vary.

In neighbors helping neighbors, 4 Sisters Food Truck have announced that they are offering a free platter to anyone in need in our community. They are located at 600 Dover Road in Easton They will also deliver free to the immediate Easton area and charges $5.00 for delivery to Trapp, Preston, St. Michaels, and Oxford.

Also, Bombay Tadka (443-515-0853), both in Easton and Cambridge, are offering free delivery to the immediate area and instituting a “Good Karma Special.” For every two entrees purchased they will will give one to a neighbors in need. Additional “Good Karma Specials”  may be added to your order for $10.00.

The Amish Market in Easton will be open this week (March 19-21, 2020), however the dining area will not be open.

This list will, more than likely change, as the days and weeks pass, and new restrictions are either imposed or lifted. One thing is probably certain in this time of uncertainty, businesses will need to redefine ‘business as usual.’

Fantastic Fungi Comes to Easton Thursday, March 26

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Temple B’nai Israel will join more than 500 locations around the world on Thurs., March 26 to host the presentation of Fantastic Fungi, a film directed by filmmaker and time-lapse photography pioneer Louie Schwartzberg. 

Schwartzberg is credited with Moving Art, Wings of Life, Mysteries of the Unseen Worlds 3D Imax, and more, with Fantastic Fungi offered as an immersive experience inspiring a shift in consciousness and a renewed love of nature. 

The film Fantastic Fungi comes to Temple B’nai Israel in Easton, Md. on Thurs., March 26, offering an immersive experience inspiring a shift in consciousness and a renewed love of nature through the world’s fungi. Mid-Shore partners will be on site during the screenings, including the Eastern Shore Food Lab, Evergreen Cove, Pickering Creek Audubon Center, Chesapeake Harvest, the Maryland Biodiversity Project, Eat Sprout, and more. More about the screenings and advanced tickets are at dockstreetfoundation.org.

Fantastic Fungi will screen in more than 500 venues across the globe on March 26, and includes conversations with award-winning Director Louie Schwartzberg, Mycologist Paul Stamets and other special guests. Screenings in host towns and cities include Easton, New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, London, Paris, Sydney, Melbourne, Sao Paulo, Panama City, Mexico City, Vancouver, Toronto, Tokyo, and more. 

The Easton screenings begin at 3:30 p.m., 7 p.m., and 9 p.m., with tickets at $15 per person, and children ages 12 and under admitted free. Tickets can be purchased in advance at dockstreetfoundation.org or at the door on March 26. 

Out of the Fire restaurant and Dock Street Foundation of Easton, Md. are sponsoring the event, with Mid-Shore partners including the Eastern Shore Food Lab, Evergreen Cove, Pickering Creek Audubon Center, Chesapeake Harvest, the Maryland Biodiversity Project, Eat Sprout, and more.

The beauty, intelligence, and solutions of the fungi kingdom, including Leratiomyces fungus, shown here, will be explored in the March 26 screenings of the film Fantastic Fungi at Temple B’nai Israel in Easton, Md. Tickets for the 3:30 p.m., 7 p.m., and 9 p.m. showings and more information are at dockstreetfoundation.org.

“This stunning documentary explores the power, beauty, complexity and importance of the often-overlooked fungi kingdom,” said Out of the Fire owner Amy Haines. “This film helps present solutions to some of the most pressing medical and environmental challenges we face.”

Academy Award-winner Brie Larson narrates Fantastic Fungi, while taking the viewer on an immersive journey through an underground network with the potential to heal and save the planet. The stories are shared through the eyes of scientists and mycologists including Paul Stamets, and best-selling authors Michael Pollan, Eugenia Bone, and Andrew Weil to build awareness of the beauty, intelligence, and solutions the fungi kingdom offers in response to some of the most pressing medical, therapeutic, and environmental challenges. 

From left: Mycologist Paul Stamets with Director Louie Schwartzberg while filming Fantastic Fungi, a film that will screen around the world and in Easton on Thursday, March 26. Out of the Fire restaurant and Dock Street Foundation are sponsoring the screenings, with three show times on Thurs., March 26 at Temple B’nai Israel. Tickets and more information are at dockstreetfoundation.org.

The film is being released in tandem with the book Fantastic Fungi: How Mushrooms Can Heal, Shift Consciousness, and Save the Planet, out Aug. 27 and available at the event. More is at dockstreetfoundation.org. 

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The Indoor Farmers’ Market From Sprout by Georgia Foster

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Being surrounded by friendly faces, good food, and people passionate about what they do doesn’t sound like a bad way to spend a Wednesday night, does it? Well, this was the atmosphere created when a local business, local farmers, and the community came together at the recent Sprout’s “Valentines Farmer’s Market”. The Spy stopped by to check it out and learn more about the event.

Sprout is a fast casual, healthy, food company founded in Easton, Maryland, by husband and wife team, Ryan and Emily Groll. Their locally sourced ingredients are a staple of their business, as is supporting local farmers and assuring that their customers know exactly what they’re getting and eating.

Last year, Sprout held a “Farmer’s Appreciation Day” at its Easton location to spotlight the farmers that they are partnered with in the area. Upon opening their much larger St. Michael’s café, the Grolls decided to host an indoor farmers market in December, and another on Valentine’s Day 2020. Sprout is now in the planning stage for a Farmer’s Appreciation Day in April and a weekly indoor farmers’ market beginning in March to be held on a weekday evening.

“We do it for the farmers”, Groll says, “It’s important to create trust and transparency between the customers and the people growing their food.” Sprout doesn’t charge a fee for farmers to participate in the market. Groll says it is a win-win situation because it allows the farmers to market themselves and benefits Sprout by bringing a new crowd of consumers into the cafe to showcast Sprout’s healthy food options.

A farmers’ market is no easy task for the farmers; packing up, driving to the location, setting up, and marketing one’s products is time-consuming work. So why do the farmers choose to participate? According to Jenna Paice from Spirit Growers, an organic eastern shore farmer, it’s about “building relationships and connecting the dots” between the people who eat the food and those that grow it. Taylor Hale, another participant, looks forward to Sprout’s farmer’ markets as an “opportunity to promote his products out of season” and claims that it is a “new market for his spice blends”. Others in attendance, included: Abundant Grace Farms, Federal Brewing Company, Lyon Distilling, among others. According to Groll, Sprout allows all farmers to attend to help grow the local economy and convey a sense of community togetherness.

 You may be wondering if an indoor farmer’s market like this is for you. According to  Carol Chisholm, a consumer in attendance, there’s no question you’ll love it. She said that Sprout’s indoor market is a great idea as she gestured to the rain and looming, dark clouds in the skies outside the cafe window.

Eating locally sourced, healthy food and knowing where your food has been before it ends up on your plate is a growing trend in the modern food business. It would appear that the Sprout farmers’ markets, in partnership with local farmers and other businesses, is a creative way to increase such understanding and also have a good time. 

Georgia Foster is a Spy student journalist. She is a senior at Easton High School and plans to attend Salisbury University in the Fall where she will continue to pursue her interest in journalism.

Lyon Rum Distillery Announces Final Batch of ESLC Black Rum

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Three years ago, in January 2017, LYON RUM partnered with the Eastern Shore Land Conservancy (ESLC) to launch a special edition spirit – one that would celebrate the Eastern Shore heritage and coastal history, and honor and support an organization dedicated to protecting it. Designed to stand apart from other LYON rums, the Black Rum has a notably heavier oak influence, is slightly lower proof, and has a soft, vanilla, earthy richness. $5 from every bottle funds ESLC programs, and custom neck tags on each bottle identify the partnership and provide info on the organization and mission, stating:
Together we are committed to protecting the land on which we work and play, and we encourage you to sip this delicious spirit soundly knowing that a portion of your purchase helps fund ESLC’s many worthwhile endeavors.

Since 1990, the Eastern Shore Land Conservancy has helped preserve nearly 60,000 acres of prime land, along with promoting sound growth practices in rural towns and working to incorporate coastal resilience measures in preparation for sea level rise.

“I feel lucky and grateful to be able to call the Eastern Shore my home, and the home of my business,” says Jaime Windon, CEO & founder of LYON RUM. “The work that Eastern Shore Land Conservancy does to preserve and conserve the natural beauty of our environment is truly priceless, and supporting that was such a natural, great fit for us. I’ve always admired partnerships like this.”

A successful inaugural batch led to multiple, seasonal releases and developed into a three-year long project – resulting in a total of eight batches, 1400 bottles of rum, and thousands of dollars for the ESLC.

On Friday February 14, 2020 the last batch of LYON/ESLC Black Rum #008 will be released at the distillery. Less than 200, 750ml bottles are available (43% abv, $40). Additionally, Hair o’ the Dog Wine & Spirits and Town & Country, in Easton will have a limited number of bottles, as will The Wine Source in Baltimore.

“At LYON we believe that we get more by giving more, and launching the ESLC Black Rum project was our first foray into sustainable philanthropy,” a core value of the company, according to Windon. To date LYON has contributed over $7000 from sales of the Black Rum, and with the generous matching contributions of fellow donors those dollars were doubled, and even tripled at times – far exceeding any initial expectations, and resulting in more than $13000 for ESLC.

The LYON RUM team is proud to have created a remarkable rum that helped fund and support the work of such a great organization, and to have had the opportunity to educate customers on ESLC in the process. Although this marks the end of this project, the company looks forward to finding new ways to work together with ESLC in the future, as well as launch other such spirited partnerships.

“I never imagined we could have such an impact by simply doing what we do best – making & selling delicious rum,” says Windon, “and this is just the beginning.”

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Maryland bill would Restrict what Foods may be Labeled ‘Meat’

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Foods made of animal tissues cultured from cells outside of the original animal, plants and insects could not be labeled “meat” in Maryland under a Republican-backed bill in the Maryland General Assembly.

Senate bill 188 is sponsored by Sen. Jason Gallion, R-Harford and Cecil, who called it “truth in advertising.” Eleven other GOP senators are co-sponsoring the legislation.

“Laboratory-grown meat will become more prevalent in the future, and this bill will proactively prevent these franken-meat alternatives from being labeled as meat,” Gallion said at Thursday’s bill hearing.

“We just think it’s unnecessary. Not only are our members in full compliance with all federal regulations on the subject, but we’ve even gone beyond that with our own guidelines,” Dan Colgrove with the Plant Based Foods Association told lawmakers Thursday.

“These products have to be very clearly marked as veggie, vegetarian or plant-based. That’s sort of the point, to offer alternatives to meat products.” Colgrove’s association represents more than 170 companies including Impossible Foods and The Tofurky Co., which make plant-based meat substitutes.

Cell cultured meat can not be purchased from stores yet, according to an email from Cathy Cochran, a spokesperson for the Alliance for Meat, Poultry and Seafood Innovation, an industry coalition representing five companies working on bringing cell-grown meat to the market.

In March, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Food Safety Inspection Service announced they would oversee the production of foods made from cells of livestock and poultry to ensure they are “safely and accurately labeled.”

The meat-labeling bill, if passed, would cost the state an estimated $66,500 in the program’s first year to hire one full-time public health worker who would develop regulations, do outreach and look into who would be affected, according to a state legislative analysis.

The analysis estimated the costs would decrease after the first year.

The Maryland Farm Bureau, a nonprofit that advocates for Maryland farmers and rural families, supports the bill.

Parker Welch with the Maryland Farm Bureau told Capital News Service on Tuesday that the bill would provide customers more transparency.

Welch said the bill would “provide a kind of consumer confidence in the product they’re buying, so when they pick up a package (of meat) at the grocery there’s no confusion in what they’re buying.”

Impossible Foods labels their products “plant-based meat,” and last year they worked with Burger King to introduce the Impossible Whopper, a burger that contains no beef, according to an Impossible Foods press release.

In an emailed statement, Impossible Foods told Capital News Service that the company, “stands for truth and transparency. That’s why our products are clearly labeled plant-based meat.”

In December, a federal court blocked Arkansas from enforcing a law that made it illegal for companies to use words like “burger” or “sausage” for non-meat products like veggie burgers, according to an American Civil Liberties Union press release.

The ACLU challenged the law on behalf of The Tofurky Co., which makes “plant-based burgers” and other meatless foods.

The Maryland bill is different from the Arkansas law in that it would not prevent companies from calling their products “burgers;” it only deals with what can be labeled “meat.”

In Thursday’s bill hearing, chair of the Senate Finance Committee, Sen. Delores Kelley, D-Baltimore County, asked Gallion what the harm is in labeling cell-grown meat, meat.

Gallion explained that this bill acts “preemptively” to protect meat industry farmers, while a milk labeling bill passed last year acted “reactively” in response to plant-based industries “piggybacking” off of the dairy industry’s Got Milk? campaign.

“I think it’s important to have some pro-agriculture bills that come out to support these hardworking farmers who are trying to make a living like everyone else,” Gallion told the committee.

Thirteen states, including Arkansas, have passed similar meat labeling restriction laws, according to a state legislative analysis.

Gov. Larry Hogan, R, signed into law Gallion’s legislation on milk labeling, which prohibits plant-based products, like soy or almond beverages, from being labeled milk — but only if 11 of 14 southern states also pass similar laws. Those states include: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.

If that law does go into effect, it tasks Maryland’s Department of Health with developing and implementing milk labeling restrictions.

Don’t miss the latest! You can subscribe to The Talbot Spy‘s free Daily Intelligence Report here

Food Friday: Chinese New Year

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We are getting ready to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year on Saturday. Happy Year of the Rat!

Every 12 years it is the year of the rat. The other 11 Chinese zodiacal animals are Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. Rats work diligently, and people born during a rat year are destined to be prosperous. Go rats! (I was born in a year of the rooster. I am destined to be punctual. Sigh.)

Rats are thought to be amiable, honest, flexible, modest, serious, with a strong sense of self-esteem. They sound like nice folks. Let the celebration begin! String up the paper lanterns, stuff some envelopes with money, and let’s get cooking because we are going to have an unforgettable Chinese New Year dinner party.

We used to live across the street from people who would have grand Chinese New Year parties every year. They would buy lots of Chinese take out, string lights and paper lanterns, pour out generous glasses of wine and send all the children out into the neighborhood on a fanciful scavenger hunt. I feel sure they did this so the adults had a chance at the egg roll chafing dish, because when the children all ran back home, flushed and excited and demanding their red envelopes of prizes (one of which was a much sought after gold Sacajawea dollar), they would fall like locust and hungry dogs on what was left of the food. Some years we would sit on low chairs on the front lawn and watch their twirling sparklers as the stars began to come out. And then we would all drift home, filled with dim sum and fried rice, egg rolls and spring rolls, dumplings and inexplicably the traditional neighborhood bag o’Cheetos. Some western brownies would be smeared across the children’s faces as they protested that they weren’t ready for bed. But never mind, the adults were, and that was enough.

We haven’t got a good Chinese restaurant nearby this year, and we don’t have that pack of roving children, either, so it is just as well that we are going to cook at home. It is surprising how many good things can be had at the grocery store these days – and not just from an Asian specialty store. I found spring roll wrappers and won tons at the basic grocery store recently. I am even going to print some of the Chinese fortunes listed below to slip into the brownie batter so we can have some memories of our children. Maybe this time I will come up with a winning lottery number, too! I’ve got to remember to buy Cheetos…

Takeout-Style Sesame Noodles

Ingredients
1 pound noodles, frozen or (preferably) fresh
2 tablespoons sesame oil, plus a splash
3 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Chinese rice vinegar
2 tablespoons Chinese sesame paste
1 tablespoon smooth peanut butter
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon finely grated ginger
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons chili-garlic paste, or to taste
 Half a cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/8-inch by 1/8-inch by 2-inch sticks
¼ cup chopped roasted peanuts

Preparation
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add noodles and cook until barely tender, about 5 minutes; they should retain a hint of chewiness. Drain, rinse with cold water, drain again and toss with a splash of sesame oil.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining 2 tablespoons sesame oil, the soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame paste, peanut butter, sugar, ginger, garlic and chili-garlic paste.
Pour the sauce over the noodles and toss. Transfer to a serving bowl, and garnish with cucumber and peanuts.
Thank you, Sam Sifton! https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/9558-takeout-style-sesame-noodles

There really doesn’t have to be much mystery in cooking Asian recipes. This is fun, and saves money. Remember, the year of the Rat encourages thrifty practices on the road to prosperity and good fortune.

10 Quick and Easy Beginner Chinese Recipeshttps://www.thespruceeats.com/quick-and-easy-chinese-recipes-for-beginners-4118330

And is homemade cashew chicken better than take out? You control the garlic. You tell me. https://www.onceuponachef.com/recipes/cashew-chicken.html

I am stuffing rolled up fortunes into the brownie batter; but you know roosters, punctual, but probably deeply lazy. If you are more ambitious, you can try this recipe from the smart folks at Food52: https://food52.com/recipes/26343-toasted-almond-fortune-cookies

And here are some fortunes!
Thank you, https://quotes.yourdictionary.com/articles/funny-fortune-cookie-sayings.html

The fortune you seek is in another cookie.

A closed mouth gathers no feet.

A conclusion is simply the place where you got tired of thinking.

A cynic is only a frustrated optimist.

A foolish man listens to his heart. A wise man listens to cookies.

You will die alone and poorly dressed.

A fanatic is one who can’t change his mind, and won’t change the subject.

If you look back, you’ll soon be going that way.

You will live long enough to open many fortune cookies.

An alien of some sort will be appearing to you shortly.

Do not mistake temptation for opportunity.

Flattery will go far tonight.

He who laughs at himself never runs out of things to laugh at.

He who laughs last is laughing at you.

He who throws dirt is losing ground.

Some men dream of fortunes, others dream of cookies.

The greatest danger could be your stupidity.

We don’t know the future, but here’s a cookie.

The world may be your oyster, but it doesn’t mean you’ll get its pearl.

You will be hungry again in one hour.

The road to riches is paved with homework.

You can always find happiness at work on Friday.

Actions speak louder than fortune cookies.

Because of your melodic nature, the moonlight never misses an appointment.

Don’t behave with cold manners.

Don’t forget you are always on our minds.

Fortune not found? Abort, Retry, Ignore.

Help! I am being held prisoner in a fortune cookie factory.

It’s about time I got out of that cookie.

Never forget a friend. Especially if he owes you.

Never wear your best pants when you go to fight for freedom.

Only listen to the fortune cookie; disregard all other fortune telling units.

It is a good day to have a good day.

All fortunes are wrong except this one.

Someone will invite you to a Karaoke party.

That wasn’t chicken.

There is no mistake so great as that of being always right.

You love Chinese food.

I am worth a fortune.

No snowflake feels responsible in an avalanche.

You will receive a fortune cookie.

Some fortune cookies contain no fortune.

Don’t let statistics do a number on you.

You are not illiterate.

May you someday be carbon neutral.

You have rice in your teeth.

Avoid taking unnecessary gambles. Lucky numbers: 12, 15, 23, 28, 37

Ask your mom instead of a cookie.

This cookie contains 117 calories.

Hard work pays off in the future. Laziness pays off now.

You think it’s a secret, but they know.

If a turtle doesn’t have a shell, is it naked or homeless?

Change is inevitable, except for vending machines.

Don’t eat the paper.

And here is a craft project – making your own red envelopes for scavenger hunt prizes. Or just give them as party favors. Enjoy yourselves! https://food52.com/blog/15769-how-to-make-your-own-lucky-red-envelopes-for-chinese-new-year

“When it comes to Chinese food I have always operated under the policy that the less known about the preparation the better. A wise diner who is invited to visit the kitchen replies by saying, as politely as possible, that he has a pressing engagement elsewhere.”
Calvin Trillin

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