213533 Fri Aug 27 01:15:29 -0700 2004 8 18 Manhattan 0 1137051 i am a regular lurker on this board, but this is my first post in a long time. i had the most delicious tomato today. i bought it yesterday at the union square greenmarket, at the corner stand with all of the different heirlooms. it was purple and green, and big, with a loopy shape like a flower. i wish i could tell you the name. i cut it up tonight, and ate it with salt and pepper and good balsamic and olive oil. it was most intense tomato experience of my life. and it was a bit strange - i'm a cook at a high-profile 3-star, and our current menu features an heirloom caprese salad that requires me to prep tons of heirlooms every day for service. i've been living and breathing tomatoes every day for the past month. so it was strange that it almost felt like i was tasting that tomato for the first time. i also had a scrumptious macaron yesterday. it was my first visit to financier on stone street, after reading several glowing reports about it a year or so ago. i got one pistachio and one lemon. both had that crucial eggshell-like crust and cakey inside that i crave so often. to give a fair critique, i should add that they were maybe a touch too soft, and that the lemon was a touch too sweet. i wouldn't say that these rival the ones at herme or mulot (my favorite), either. but they were delicious. this is very big mews for me, because i've found that it's surprisingly hard to find a real french macaron in downtown manhattan. i was so happy. Fri Aug 27 01:15:29 -0700 2004 0 apple 1 1137081 Do you know which vendor you bought the tomato from? Fri Aug 27 10:58:25 -0700 2004 1137051 0 swingline 2 1137256 i'm afraid i don't. i am pretty sure that they were the main heirloom tomato stand, if you know what i mean (they weren't selling anything else). they were also situated at the corner of the greenmarket "L" shape. Sat Aug 28 11:34:21 -0700 2004 1137081 0 apple 3 1137400 "Cafe Tartine" in the Village makes very good chocolate macarons. Mon Aug 30 13:05:45 -0700 2004 1137256 0 Jon 2 1137275 It sounds like Tim Stark's, Eckerton Hill Farm - Pennsylvania, stand. He has been growing heirlooms for years now. His stand is almost entirely tomatoes, and some unique ones at that. If I'm not mistaken, he was one of the first tomato vendors at the Greenmarket. Yum! Sat Aug 28 15:51:20 -0700 2004 1137081 0 Suger 1 1137105 i've also been on the heirloom kick! can you tell me how much per pound they are at Union Sq? I've been getting them from a great farm in Columbia County for $1.29 a lb (info on where the farm is located is in the link below) also looking for a good city source... bwt - tried several varieties and like "brandywine" which is green and pink best. I throw a tomato in my bag, pick up a toasted bagel with a smear of cream cheese and throw thick slices on top for a quick office lunch. Link: http://cityrag.blogs.com/main/eat_this/index.html Fri Aug 27 12:22:37 -0700 2004 1137051 0 elvislives 2 1137132 they are about 3-4 a pound in union square but beware - this season has produced some real losers. Check out Regina Schrambling's Gastropoda website for some very pithy heirloom bashing and warnings. When you have a cool wet summer you get mushy, woody and flavorles tomatoes. Link: http://www.gastropoda.com/ Fri Aug 27 13:35:12 -0700 2004 1137105 0 the emperor's new clothes 2 1137258 i bought mine for $2.75/lb. it adds up quickly if you pick out the big and happy looking ones, unfortunately. i'm going to find out the name of the one i liked so much. can you believe that bayard's heirloom tomato festival has been canceled? i'm very disappointed. Sat Aug 28 11:37:50 -0700 2004 1137105 0 apple 3 1137760 I don't mean to be a damper, but I feel sorry for New Yorkers (and me, a soon-to-be-New Yorker), because I just ate a whole bunch of delicious, sweet heirloom tomatoes from a San Francisco farmers' market that cost $0.50/lb. Wed Sep 01 12:35:42 -0700 2004 1137258 0 AppleSister