Reader mail

A very busy week - along with a sick day - has kept me from regular posting. So sorry!

I hope you get a chance to look at the 55 Hours cover story on local farmers' markets. The "buy local" craze is just getting crazier. And that's great news for "locavores" and for Delaware farmers who need our support. Always buy local whenever you can.

And here's a side bar on U-pick places. Picking peaches at Bennett Orchards in Frankford is one of my favorite Delaware experiences. A family member recently picked blueberries and blackberries at Strawberry Lane Farm in Frankford and brought an unbelievable sweet homemade blackberry cobbler to our beach house. I love summer foods!

Eric Ruth chows hot dogs at the new Johnnie's on Concord Pike.

Here's what's in the mailbag. (If you sent me email while I'll was on vacation, my apologies if I haven't gotten to it yet! I hit the ground running when I got back into town and I'm still not yet caught up.):

QUESTION: Dear Ms. Talorico,

I've seen several lists of U-Pick farms in the area and am always surprised that no one ever mentions our family's favorite, Walnut Springs Farm, off of Blue Ball Rd. in Maryland. My husband and I started going there for U-Pick strawberries when we were still in graduate school (10 years ago!) at the University of Delaware. We've been there this year for strawberries, cherries, blueberries, and black raspberries (with a 7-, a 4-, and a 1-year-old, no less). We're pretty serious about picking fruit and are not fans of the entertainment extravaganza that is Milburn, so we like the quiet of Walnut Springs Farm. It deserves to be mentioned in any future U-Pick articles--we hope you will do so.

Thanks for your time,

Libby Jonczyk

ANSWER: Thanks Libby. I didn't know about this place. Thanks for the suggestion. I just checked the web site and it shows that the last picking day is this Saturday. We'll keep it in mind for next year, though.

QUESTION: Hi, Patty. Every few years I hear a rumor that Cavanaugh's on Market St. in Wilmington is still open. Recently I heard this again, but that they're only open for lunch -- and my source said that lunch was actually very good. Can you confirm this? I enjoyed dinner there, maybe during a city art loop, about 20 years ago. I thought they closed down years ago and am always surprised to hear they're still open. If the food is decent, why is it that we don't we hear more about it? Just curious. Maybe I'll have to get over there one of these days.
Nancy

ANSWER: Hi Nancy. Thanks for the letter. Cav's is still open and last time I was in downtown Wilmington it seemed to be thriving at lunchtime. Haven't stopped in there for some time, but I will soon .