Easter and Passover are upon us – we will celebrate with lamb on Sunday April 8th. The special menu starts at 11AM and will be offered all day. There are other entrées as well. Ask to see the special menu.
Easter and Passover are two of the most sacred holy days of their respective religions. The Judeo and Christian traditions are so very much intertwined. Of course the early Christians were in fact Jews and Jesus was a Jew. At the time he didn’t know he was a Christian. (Just a little humor there). Both stories point to divine grace. In Judaism, Moses leads his people to freedom and divine justice is ministered to the tyrannical Pharaoh. In Christianity, an innocent Jesus dies on the cross, betrayed by his friends and by the state. His resurrection offers the prospect of forgiveness and human redemption. May you celebrate this time in your own special way.
Pink is one of my favorite colors. It’s had a bad rap lately. Bet you know where I’m going with this. The addition of Pink Sli– (I just can’t say it) to US meat as a filler is another jaw-dropping revelation in the on-going soap opera entitled, “America’s most stunning food scandals” or “America’s best disguised food additives” or “America’s unlabelled food horrors.” Call it what you will, it’s impossible to really know what’s in our food. Unless . . . you buy local and KYG (know your grower) or grow your own. The locavore movement is exploding. People are indignant that the wool is pulled over their eyes time and time again. Many are taking healthy and proactive steps. We had occasion to meet with several Homegrown New Mexico member-gardeners recently at a sumptuous luncheon created by Kate Manchester (owner/editor of Edible Santa Fe). To witness the passion of these gardeners and the many absolutely ingenious devices and inventions they use to coax food out of the New Mexico soils, was a beautiful thing! This is our most positive response to the atrocities that occur in industrial food production. Home gardening, co-operative neighborhood gardens, big city and roof-top gardens, produce stands, Farmers Markets, goat-keeping – all are booming. And you can hear the clucking of chickens in the oddest places. More restaurants are, at least in token, joining the “buy local” movement. It is so heartening to see people everywhere taking back their food supply. By doing so we take back our health, our economy and our pride in meaningful work. See www.homegrownnewmexico.org
Along the same lines, here is a sad irony. Recently a 65-yer old California farmer was arrested and detained for a week while his jailers subjected him to sleep deprivation, starvation, verbal taunts, hypothermia and involuntary medical testing. His crime – selling raw milk to customers who line up for it in a state where it is legal. His bail – $1,000,000. Say what!? Pink Sli– slides into our food without labeling, approved by the FDA and the Dept of Agriculture but wholesome raw milk is suspect of being a criminal substance. The USDA, FDA and myriad other state and federal agencies make no bones about their goal of controlling every morsel Americans consume—all for our own good, of course.
By the way, the retail sale of raw milk is legal in NM too, but most dairy farmers here understandably don’t want the possible intimidation and extra regulation. Darn. Now, I don’t advocate the consumption of raw milk. But having the choice was once my right and yours.
Speaking of milk – the best we can get in NM is now what we use here at Joe’s. We truly do try to get everything we possibly can from local growers. And we celebrate each new product we acquire. The latest two acquisitions are milk and cheese from Ed and Michael at Old Windmill Dairy and Agapao organic fair trade coffee. Yes, I realize NM does not grow coffee beans but Agapao is consciously sourced by a local entrepreneur, David. Both the milk and the coffee are the best you can get anywhere at any price.
u We are honored and excited to be roasting a goat for Joel Salatin! Joel will be visiting and lecturing soon in Santa Fe. Camino de Paz Montessori School and Farm in Santa Cruz, NM will host him on May 5th and they have asked Roland to roast the goat. Joel is a humorous speaker on what ails our modern food system. The event including a tour of the farm, luncheon and music is open to the public. Call Patty for info and directions 505-747-9717. www.caminodepaz.net/
Joel’s Salatin’s latest book – Folks, This Ain’t Normal – is available for sale here at Joe’s. Joel will be back in Santa Fe in May and again in November. We’ll track his schedule. His beautiful Polyface Farm is located in VA and is a near perfect template for sustainable food-production. He is an articulate voice for taking back control of our food and thereby our health and our economy.
Joe’s tee shirts are available for sale at $16. They are organic cotton and printed right here in Santa Fe. Also available are the latte cups, the beer pints and wine glasses – all inscribed.
Two of our favorite Santa Fe artists, Mary Olivea and Nancy Kreger, have art pieces hanging here. Mary’s are the quilted pieces and Nancy’s are the prints down the ramp to the Red Room. As well, they both offer very affordable greeting cards and small works – see them on the red counter and on the wine rack.
Joe’s is now on Twitter. It was like pulling teeth to take that step, but join the crowd we did. Go to twitter.com then @joesdining. We will try, but we refuse to promise, to keep some updates and specials tweeted there. However, Debbie (our stellar office manager) is posting the daily specials on our website – joesdining.com.
I am so glad to hear the truth coming out about dietary fat. Not too long ago, a former neighbor of ours passed in her sleep. She was too young and it was a shock to all her friends. She was admittedly dealing with some ailments that had become chronic and went through each day in pain and each night sleeplessly. I remember when we used to ride together; she was always on some no-fat diet. I’m not saying this caused her ailments, but she really deprived her self of those beautiful substances (lipids of many molecular structures) that feed our brains and keep us “lubricated” inside and out. I could not convince her to add even olive oil to her diet. She was a woman of great determination. As I think about her and miss her presence, I can’t help but wonder though, about the
wisdom of that extreme dietary deprivation. I too spent many years fighting the weight battle. (A certain image was required for my career at the time.) However, at the time I was dieting, the no-fat thing was not in vogue. So my only strategy was caloric reduction. I still ate everything – butter and animals fats included. Perhaps by default I was lucky! I recently heard a medical doctor sing the praises of dietary “good fats” the other day. And that’s a good thing. Now that these endorsements are coming out of the mouths of health care professionals, perhaps it will lend enough credence to the truth about fats thereby persuading people what a scam this “no fat” crap was/is! Would this knowledge have helped my friend avoid some of her health issues? I can’t know that. But it is true that our bodies absolutely require protein, minerals, carbohydrates (that is a subject on it own) and the beautiful FATS! We can’t thrive without any of it. So get yourself some good olive oil, some animal fat (not you vegans!), some coconut oil, some butter, some whole eggs and simply enjoy it. Fat does not make you fat. Let’s be done with that myth.
Free food! With a Joe’s gift card for $100 (when you pay with a check or cash) it is programmed to give you an additional $10 worth of food free. This is our “frequent diner” card.
Joe’s hand-made French chocolate truffles. Do you know anyone who wouldn’t love a little red bag of divine truffles? $1.99 @ or 6 for the price of 5 — $9.95
Are you on Joe’s check list? Are you using your credit cards less frequently? I know we are and somehow it is liberating. Far less paperwork and fees and more fees. Then there are the regulations – they change frequently and always in the BB’s (big banks) favor. We as taxpayers have contributed generously to the BB’s bailouts and their CEOs’ mega bonuses. Well, enough is enough. Here at Joe’s we are going retro and will do what we can to encourage guests to pay by personal check and of course time-honored cash and precious metals! So if you are a “regular” and wish to pay by check, please ask your waiter to get you on Joe’s check list.
“Political correctness is tyranny with manners.”
– Charlton Heston (1924-2008)
Joe’s
2801 Rodeo Rd (at Zia Rd) Santa Fe, NM 87507
505-471-3800 www.JoesDining.com