Editor’s note: Below is the Thursday, July 23 edition of the Food & Culture newsletter. If you want to receive it in your email inbox every Thursday (it’s free!), subscribe at captimes.com/newsletters.
A vigil on Willy Street
By Lindsay Christians, food and culture editor
I had a plan for this week’s newsletter. I was going to talk about cell phones at concerts, inspired in part by Ashley Rodriguez’s rocking gallery of AC/DC fans at Camp Randall. I wanted to take you inside the Madison Public Market, which was supposed to open this week.
Plans change. I was having a picnic on a blanket before Concerts on the Square when protesters made their way to the Capitol. To quote a local florist in the 1200 block of Willy Street, “There’s no business as usual when a man was killed outside your doors.” Madisonians are mourning the death of Corey Ruiz to police violence, just a block away from where Tony Robinson was killed 11 years earlier.
Community members march into the weekly Concerts on the Square event outside of the Wisconsin state Capitol following the fatal police shooting of Corey Ruiz on Williamson Street in Madison.
Neighbors have rallied. As of this writing, the Willy Street Co-op’s east side location remains open, despite a street closure stretching from Few to South Dickinson. The co-op closed early on Wednesday, allowing employees to attend the protest. My colleague Erin McGroarty, who is covering the vigil, heard that the co-op offered organizers $500 worth of supplies from the store, and Ian’s Pizza donated pizza.
Other businesses remain closed during an ongoing vigil on the street. These include Green Life Trading Co., Grampa’s Pizzeria and Gib’s Bar (“we hope to be open as a gathering space for our neighborhood soon”) and Lily Forest Designs, at the corner of Williamson and Baldwin.
Tammy Schreiter, owner of Hatch Art House and Hazel General Store, confirmed that her stores remain closed. The Madison Greenhouse Store has reopened because of the living plants inside; the owner noted via text that St Vinnie’s across the street is closed. Further down the street, Meep Meepleton’s chose to stay open, to offer a place to “gather and mourn.” On my way home today, I spotted signs of solidarity in front of The Victory (“educate yourself”) and Harmony Bar & Grill.
Ahead of the grand opening, the Madison Public Market is still under construction as merchants build out their booths.
Joe Loehnis, CEO of the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, canceled last night’s concert in solidarity with the protesters. And the Madison Public Market has rescheduled its official opening day to July 29. “We are grateful for the compassion, patience and understanding shown by so many,” the market statement read.
Sending those things to you, too. With gratitude — Lindsay
PS Since this newsletter went out on Thursday evening, AtwoodFest has also decided to cancel in solidarity with protesters. The statement reads in part: “Now it is vital to support our neighbors, particularly those who have borne the brunt of this pain and injustice, by taking time to mourn and reflect on our role in these broken systems, so we can create a community that truly lives up to our values.”
What we’re reading
The two primary men in Clare Leslie Hall’s “Broken Country” are too-good-to-be-real romantic leads. Our narrator is married to a humble farmer with a heart of gold but pines for the dashing, now-famous author she had an intense fling with as a teenager. This is a fairly juicy summer read, but I couldn’t get past the fact that neither man apparently had a single flaw.
Maine author Elizabeth Strout is so confident in her skills and so well-established (she won a Pulitzer for “Olive Kitteridge”), she freely references one of her own novels in “The Things We Never Say.” This slim novel follows Artie, a beloved high school teacher with a passion for sailing who is nonetheless deeply lonely. A brush with death and a revelation from his grown son change his trajectory in ways both predictable and unexpected. Strout is still at the top of her game.
My former newsletter co-writer Beck Henreckson already recommended Anthony Horowitz’s “Magpie Murders,” a cozy mystery set in the English country town of Saxby-on-Avon. I’m told this is a mystery within a mystery, nesting-dolls style, but I’m still deep in the first tale of a manor house murder at Pye Hall. (And like Beck, I’m loving this!)
Forage Kitchen at Hilldale.
Restaurant news
Madison-born mini-chain Forage Kitchen, known for salads and grain bowls, has signed a lease on a space in the Eastern apartment complex at 1868 E. Washington Ave. This will be Forage’s sixth Madison-area location.
According to a story this week in the Wisconsin State Journal, the family behind Mooyah intends to open a Layne’s Chicken Fingers franchise at 7501 Mineral Point Road by the end of August, in a former KFC location.
Recent obsessions
Eating: Bunky’s sea salt lavash chips ($5.99 at Woodman’s and the Vitruvian Farm Store), sort of a paper-thin pita chip, are my new favorite salty snack. Stick to a thinner dip with these, as they really are that “shattering” crisp texture.
Watching: As Christopher Nolen’s “The Odyssey” makes waves in IMAX, I’m headed to the live-capture filming of “Hadestown” by Anaïs Mitchell. Inspired by the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, this musical has an incredibly catchy score and a timeless message. Catch it July 23-30 at Marcus Palace and Marcus Point.
Listening to: Some of us could use a refresher on how to act at music festivals, and Pop Culture Happy Hour has some tips this week. Among them: put your phone down; abandon the idea of staying together as a group of 12; and don’t camp out in the front row so long, you need a change of clothes before the show is over (ahem).
In this week’s newsletter exclusive $20 Dining feature, Ashley Rodriguez expands on a roundup of 19 happy hour options around the city. Subscribe to the free Food and Culture newsletter to get these features at captimes.com/newsletters. (Shown here: the bar burger at Rare Steakhouse is $12 during happy hour.)
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