Robert's Market Report

Shad and Rack of Peaches

A surer sign that spring will eventually arrive than any groundhog's shadow vision is the first shad of the season at local fish markets. Here, roe and buck shad are displayed at John Yi at the Reading Terminal Market. We're three months away from Delaware River shad.

Over at Iovine Brothers Produce, Brother Vinnie was raving today over the quality of the Chilean stone fruit (where it's mid-summer now). I tasted a slice of peach Vinnie offered, and while it doesn't compare to fresh local orchard fruit from the peak of our season, it was plenty good; better, in fact, than the IQF slices I purchased at Wegman's last week. The Chilean cherries I picked up a week-and-a-half ago weren't bad, priced at $1.99 for a one-pound bag, the same price as the seedless green grapes. Vinnie said the Chilean plums and nectarines were also pretty good.

If you're in the market for Thai ingredients, Katie Loeb notes in this eGullet post that Little Thai Market is more than just a lunch stand: they offer a planoply of necessary goodies if you wish to cook in the Thai style. The search for kaffir lime leaves led Katie to this discovery.

Until today, I always stuck with the roast pork with provolone and greens at DiNic's, but today I experimented with the brisket (with rabe, which I consumed as a kind of first course before digging in the sandwich, but no cheese, though I topped it with a helping of hot peppers from the containers on the counter). It was a tender, beefy sandwich, and one Tommy said he personally prefers. Still, as good as the sandwich was, it's hard for me to order anything but the pork, though I've got friends who swear by the sausage, too.