ALL THE GOOD THINGS
In May, at the Saturday farmers’ market in Montpelier, VT, I bought a jar of elderberry jam. My mother turned 80 in May. Long ago, she made elderberry jam, when I was a girl.
I remember those Mason jars, those clusters of tiny berries. A memento from Vermont, some hand-crafted elderberry jam from a local artisan, seemed a perfect little something to give her.
Montpelier seems cast from a different era. In the town are two bookstores, a yarn shop, a French pastry shop, a record store, the Vermont Historical Society Museum, a pancake house and a taproom. Yet Montpelier is not a relic. One of the newer restaurants, Wilaiwan’s Kitchen on State Street, serves Thai food. It is open for lunch only and offers just three dishes each day. Wilaiwan’s Kitchen was recommended by Selina Ferrandino, the studio manager at Grateful Yoga. She advised arriving early, otherwise the food would run out.
It was good advice. I was there by 11am, but folks already were lining up, the sidewalk was clogged. More than 25 people snaked down the block—construction workers and librarians, hippies and hipsters, yoga moms and college students. They were far more patient than any Jersey crowd. My noodle bowl was, as Anthony Bourdain might have said, insanely delicious.
I felt smug, in that moment, having found a jar of homemade elderberry jam and a perfect noodle bowl in Montpelier. This is our world now. This is America now. Noodle bowls and elderberry jam, could we be more lucky?
Bourdain made us feel lucky. He led us everywhere, to the basement of a train station in Japan, to the street food of Singapore. Like Ruth Reichl, he equalized the food story, and found nobility in the talents of humble, hard-working cooks everywhere. The swirl of discussion following his death is far more than prurient. We, his audience, realize our loss (Last Bite, page 88). We crave authenticity, truth in experience, truth in food. Bourdain fed that need.
In this issue, our restaurant issue, renowned chef Josh DeChellis takes us on a Jersey adventure, to Hunterdon County, his childhood home, sharing his newfound discoveries (see page 40). We share the story of Oasis farm, a unique job-training facility for adults with autism (page 33). Danny Childs (Slow Drinks, page 30) proves that the Pine Barrens are teeming with life. Is it possible to rebuild a hub for local grains? Our reporter Fran McManus details the struggle (see page 72). In Edible Health (page 21), we feature elderberries. Fishing for salmon can be brutal; Jesse McDermott-Hughes tells the tale of his summer job (page 25). Such are the authentic stories of New Jersey, could we be more lucky?
At the airport in Vermont, my elderberry jam was confiscated. It was more than 3 ounces, and was considered a liquid. On the airplane, my seatmate shared a similar lament. His snow globes had also been confiscated. It was a small moment, but it felt particularly bleak.
“All the good things,” he said.
