The Leader • Saturday, March 2, 2019 • Page 9A
Art Valet: Fifteen years of fun, follies and fine artwork Mitch Cohen Art Columnist
The First Saturday Arts Market opened to the public 15 years ago as Yale Street Arts & Flower Market. There are some special features to mark the anniversary at this Saturday’s market, open from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. at 530 W. 19th St. Falacos Food Truck will be on site serving lunch, and Chocolate Wasted Ice Cream Co. will have a dessert cart. Performances include singer/ songwriting duo Mark Marmon and Paul Boedeker opening the market at 11 a.m. At 3 p.m., Wendy Elizabeth Jones will host Jimmy Lee Deen, David O’Dea, Chaz Nadege and David and Alyson Fahl. To further commemorate the milestone, I’ve compiled a list of 15 fun memories and tidbits from over the years. 1. The market was first located behind Kaplan’s Ben Hur, a department store at 2200 Yale St. The market logo was a purple flower handpainted by me. 2. The first market only had a dozen artists, but more than 1,000 people came to check us out. 3. By June, word was out and more than 60 artists signed up for the market. The oppressive summer heat kept the crowds away, though.
Penny McDonald, center, is a Heights photographer who will be featured at the 15th anniversary of the First Saturday Arts Market.
A mixed-media board game of the First Saturday Arts Market, created in 2015 by T.D. Snider.
4. Martin Kaplan, the owner of Kaplan’s Ben Hur, is a humble man with a dry sense of humor. He could look quite serious in his daily attire of suit and tie, and he knew it. One day he walked up to a group of artists drinking beer and very officially admonished, “You know you aren’t supposed to be drinking alcohol on this property!� He waited a few minutes for effect before laughing it off. 5. The first summer was probably our hottest. Artists put ice packs on their heads and under hats to stay cool. 6. The first rainout, I canceled before the rain started. Several artists insisted we set up and argued with me while a massive storm blackened
to ask permission, I dropped a big container of flowers in the near-empty lobby. Returning with the second load mere moments later, all the flowers were now in the laps of half a dozen wheelchair-bound tenants. Several more containers later, there were many happy tenants with lots of flowers. The next month we delivered flowers to all the mothers in our lives for Mother’s Day. By May, we were out of the flower business. 10. I bought a keg of beer to celebrate our first anniversary. Two men, one a bored husband and the other a rambunctious artist, wanted to tap the keg early, well before noon. I said yes if they could open it. Two or three hours
the sky behind me. The market area was under water a few minutes later. 7. Coldest day: It was a December a few years ago. By the time we opened the temperature was the same as attendance, about 14. Shoppers came and the artists reported having the best sales up to that point! 8. In the beginning, I got a floral license and bought flowers to resell at the market when no flower vendors would come out on a Saturday. They never sold and I ended up a failure as a florist. I was not upset. 9. After the first market we took a van-load of unsold flowers to Heights Tower on 19th Street. Finding no one
later, both exhausted and having failed at their mission, they watched in abject horror as a small-framed woman stepped up ignoring the tools the guys had used in their failed attempts. She tapped the keg in two easy steps by hand and poured herself a beer. 11. An actress friend volunteered to wear a Victorian rabbit costume from her theater to steer drivers on Yale Street into the market. The market was hidden behind a building at the first location. She came back disgruntled and upset from all the whistles and catcalling she got instead. 12. When Gen’s Antiques was our host store, we esti-
Review: Kolache Shoppe bread makes everything taste better By Zarah Parker
ples in the filling. As for the cherry, I discovered that it is not the flavor for me. I had a small flashback of childhood medicine after the first bite, so I saved that one for the friend whose sausage kolache I ate. When she ate it, she enjoyed it. I’m already thinking about the next time I go back. I think I’ll try the peach and blueberry flavors, or maybe even grab a cinnamon roll.
zarah@theleadernews.com
Separate from the main building of Heights Central Station sits a small shop at the corner of the parking lot, facing Heights Boulevard. This is the relatively new second location of the half century-old Kolache Shoppe. I had heard great things about the made-from-scratch dough Kolache Shoppe uses. This made me excited to see what about this bread was so good. Now, I know it’s more than just good. The inside of the restaurant is small, but because of two walls essentially being windows, the natural light opens the place up and makes it a comfortable place to sit down. The white marble counters, gray and blue accents and friendly staff also make the atmosphere welcoming. There’s two small tables and window seating, but while inside seating is limited, there’s seating on the front patio as well. With all the different styles of kolaches displayed in a glass case, I had a hard time limiting myself. Eventually I settled on two small sausage kolaches, one apple kolache and one cherry kolache.
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Kolache Shoppe Small sausage, apple, and cherry kolaches from Kolache Shoppe.
I wanted to try one of the breakfast-style varieties that were filled with eggs and various breakfast meats. But I’m not a fan of cheese, and there were no cheese-less options. The Kolache Shoppe’s coffee menu is provided by Boomtown Coffee, which has a location on 19th Street. I didn’t particularly like the latte I grabbed to wash down my kolaches down, but I won’t blame the Kolache Shoppe. Lucky for me, I arrived at that time of day where people have already eaten breakfast and no one is hungry for lunch, so I easily grabbed a seat at the window. Before I go into how the kolaches tasted you may need to
know one thing: I don’t actually like sausage kolaches. Well, after my first bite of the sausage kolache, I can say the bread lived up to its reputation of being delicious because of how light and fluffy it was. And just like that, I could no longer say I don’t like sausage kolaches. The buttery goodness of the warm bread coupled with the savory sausage won me over. While the second sausage kolache was actually for a friend, I ended up eating that one, too. Next I tried the apple-filled kolache. Apple is usually my favorite flavor for anything, and while it was good, I wished there were more ap-
Food briefs: Star Fish now known as 1751 Sea and Bar By Zarah Parker zarah@theleadernews.com
The Sambrooks Management Company is reinventing another one of its restaurants. This time around, Star Fish is to re-open as 1751 Sea and Bar after it undergoes a remodel. The culinary director for Sambrooks, Lyle Bento, and his chef team have worked to create a go-to destination for fresh seafood. Some of the dishes included are crawfish soufflĂŠ, smoked duck gumbo and paneĂŠd flounder. “They have honed their recipes over the last several months in tasting menus at Star Fish to great review,â€? Michael Sambrooks, owner and operator of the Sambrooks Management Company, said in a statement. “We couldn’t be more excited to support their creations with a refreshed and rebranded concept.â€?Â
mated crowd attendance by toilet paper count at the end of the day. Forty-eight rolls was a 4,000-plus day. 13. Kicking groups out. Twice in the same day, we escorted out a religious group that marched through Gen’s Antiques with drums and tambourines giving their own impromptu performance and then through the market, even in front of the band. Another time a communist political group was asked to leave the store. Then later I asked them to leave the market area as well, but Mother Nature stepped in for me and dropped buckets of rain on them. 14. Folk artist Kiki Neumann shared a great memory: “Mitch found me selling birdhouses and garden items from cast-off wood fences on the curb of White Oak Boulevard. I wasn’t making very much money, but it was a beautiful day in the Heights. He drove by and then came back to ask if I would consider being at (the) show. ‘What? Where? You bet!’ Because of (Cohen), I found my people! (He) took me off the streets quite literally.� 15. Today the market is curated by the artists and all who’ve attended can be viewed on the website, FirstSaturdayArtsMarket.com, going back four years. Cohen is an artist and founder of First Saturday Arts Market and the Market at Sawyer Yards. Find him at ArtValet. com.
Over the next month, the interior at 191 Heights Blvd. will be changed to include an expanded bar area featuring an enlarged community table and other features designed to create an inviting and vibrant atmosphere. The bar will feature more than 100 gins along with signature cocktails crafted by beverage director David Maness. The name 1751 Sea and Bar is a reference to the Gin Act of 1751 as well as a representation of simplicity.
Sammy’s Wild Game bids farewell to Washington
Last weekend was the last chance you had to get exotic cuisine at Sammy’s Wild Game Grill, 3715 Washington Ave. The restaurant announced in a Facebook post that it would close Feb. 24, citing an unfavorable location, limited parking and increasing rent. Though this is the end for Sammy’s Washington Avenue location, it’s not the end of the concept and brand. The restaurant said it plans to continue providing wild-game meals from a different location that has yet to be determined.
Ramen and sushi for The Shops at Oak Forest
Tamashi Ramen & Sushi is opening its third location at The Shops at Oak Forest on 43rd Street and Ella Boulevard. A prospective opening date has not been announced.
Address: 1031 Heights Blvd. Hours: 6:30 a.m.–2 p.m. Tuesday–Friday, 7 a.m.–2 p.m. Saturday–Sunday Pricing: $1.79-$4.99 Kid-friendly: Yes Senior discount: No Alcohol: No Healthy options: Yes Star of the show: Sausage kolache
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