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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (July 31, 2003)
BabyCakes Cafe A Unique Child Friendly Experience NOW OPEN! Breakfast • Lunch Espresso • Baked Goods Prince Puckler’s Ice Cream KATIE BECKMAN PU Thai Time News and mini-reviews of the local food scene. Mekala’s 1769 Franklin Blvd. 342-4872 I hadn’t been to Mekala’s since they moved to their Franklin Boulevard loca- tion, but a balmy summer evening makes Thai food most appropriate. Hand painted umbrel-luminaries in every hue suspended above our heads drizzle an ambient glow, making even the most sunburned or pasty- faced person look their most alluring. The hot night inspired snacking: the vegetarian spring rolls with a slightly spicy plum sauce, pad Thai with generous amounts of chicken and the decep- tively spicy massaman with rice were highly palatable and not unreasonably priced. While these dishes are fairly traditional Thai, and were not fabulously presented, the taste and quality were definitely a cut above Eugene’s stan- dard. The liquid refresh- ment ranged from Rogue’s Dead Guy Ale (my preference) to insanely imaginative mixed drinks. All will quench even the most Thai-tormented tongue. It seems as though Mekala’s, with their spacious seating and attentive servers, has made a home away from 5th Street Public Market and will continue to be a Eugene institution. Restaurant: 11 am-10 pm M-Sa, noon-9 pm Su. Lounge: 5-11 pm M-Th, 4 pm-mid- night F & Sa, 4-9 pm Su. $$. — Erin Lusk Of course, even if this variety of banana is doomed, another variety may be found. But finding this variety will take more time with bananas than with a fertile crop like tomatoes or corn: It takes about three years to get fruit out of a new mutation of bananas. Genetic manipulation could be the answer with the development of fungus- resistant genes. Or we may have to resort to artificial flavoring for those nut muffins and cream pies, and supplements for the potassium. SA PP T. ET AU G. SH 2n O d 1 W 2:0 ! 0 760 Blair Ave Eugene, OR • 484-CAKE • 7am - 5pm daily Novella Café Espresso Coffee Granitas Bagels Pastries Teas A percentage of all sales is shared with the Eugene Public Library 100 W. 10th Ave. Located inside the Eugene Public Library Entry Garden. Open Daily • Weekdays Open at 7AM • 683-7070 There’s bad news going ’round these days for the humble banana. We can survive in a world without bananas, survive and even thrive, but it really isn’t just about bananas. Each time we buy a conveniently seedless watermel- on, or a cheap fresh ear of GMO corn, we are narrowing the options for genetic diver- sity. — Marina Taylor Banana Blowout Leftovers: There’s bad news going ’round these days for the humble banana. You may have heard the dire predictions: extinction of the popular commercial variety of the fruit. Robert Alison, a Canadian biologist, has written the latest chapter, via the news site www.commondreams.org. It’s not an opti- mistic picture he paints: the banana is a fruit without seeds or pollen, identically cloned by grafting and basically without any resist- ance to most diseases. Which has been fine for the past fifty years when it was intro- duced after the last variety succumbed to disease. However, now a stubborn fungus has decimated 50 to 70 percent of banana yields, and reduced the trees producing life span from 30 years to about two years. The Pavilion, the latest commercial development on Coburg Road, is well under construction, and should be ready for move-in by mid September. The businesses should be up and running by the end of the year. It will house, at this point, a Baja Fresh Mexican food restaurant, another Ben & Jerry’s scoop spot, owned by Gary Bertelsen (who runs the one by campus), Early Rise Coffee and Tea Co., a phone shop and a bank. The breakdown sounds a lot like Oakway Center, interestingly enough, and maybe it will work as well. Apology to Beverly, owner and producer of the delicious Upper Crust pies at the Saturday Market, who was misnamed in the 7/17 morsels column. — Marina Taylor ew Fisherman’s Market Fantastic Seafood Entrées Entrées change weekly. Fresh U-Bake Sea food Fresh Crab Dinner $11.95 Good Inexpensive Wine Variety of Microbrews Orders to go: 484-CRAB 7th & Blair • Open 11-8 Mon.-Sun. JULY 31, 2003 27
