2B — THE OBSERVER & BAKER CITY HERALD
THURSDAY, MAY 28, 2020
BUSINESS & AG LIFE
La Grande Farmers Market vendors off er preorder option
urchasing produce
and other food items
from the farmers
market is a great way to
access fresh foods safely,
at a time when many
people are looking to avoid
crowded grocery stores.
Ordering your groceries
ahead of time makes your
trip to the market quick,
further reducing risk.
Start by calling or
emailing the vendor you’d
like to purchase from. Many
have email lists or social
media accounts that tell you
what they will have avail-
able each week, how to
P
order in advance, and what
the cutoff date and time
is. Preordering not only
ensures that you can get
your groceries with minimal
exposure to public spaces,
it means that your veggies
are incredibly fresh. Many
vendors will keep them in
a cooler or bin away from
light or heat so you will take
home the safest, freshest
produce possible, outside of
growing it yourself.
Since preordering is new
for vendors and shoppers,
consider these tips:
Order early. Farmers
have harvesting schedules to
make sure their veggies are
as fresh as possible. Plus, if
you wait to order until the
last minute, you may miss
out on popular items. Clip
this directory to keep on
your fridge as a reminder to
order each week.
Specify the quantity of
each item you would like
(one bag, one bunch, or
a specifi c weight) so the
farmer doesn’t need to
follow up with questions.
Many vendors are
offering a way to pay in
advance using online ser-
vices like Venmo or Cash
App. If you would prefer to
pay by cash or check, have
that ready with exact change
to limit cash handling.
Out of courtesy to your
fellow shoppers and market
vendors, wear a mask to the
market and use the provided
hand sanitizer if you pick up
from multiple booths.
Consider shopping for
your neighbors or becoming
a personal shopper for a
person who can’t get out.
This limits the number of
people in the market space.
Be patient and be kind.
We’re all in this together.
These vendors are taking
pre-orders:
• Evergreen Family Farms: order
for Saturday markets & farm
stand pickup, 541-403-4958 or
evergreenfamilyfarmlg@gmail.
com
• Homestead Springs Farm &
Forge: order for Saturday mar-
kets, 541-605-8286 or nwskillet@
gmail.com
• Jen’s Garden: order for
Tuesday markets and delivery in
the Baker City area, 541-403-4340
or JensGarden@gmail.com
• Maria and Jose Martinez Gar-
dens: order for Tuesday or Sat-
urday markets and farm stand
pickup, 541-861-0478
• Nella Mae’s Farm: order for
Saturday markets and farm stand
pickup, 541-910-4098 or nella-
maesfarm@gmail.com
• Platz Family Farms: order for
select market dates and farm
stand pickup, 541-805-1560 or
becky@platzfamilyfarm.com
• Val’s Veggies: order for
Tuesday Markets or farm stand
pickup, 541-853-2358 or Valsveg-
gies.com
• W Bar Ranch: order for Sat-
urday markets, 541-805-5180 or
avadenton@hotmail.com
Members of the La
Grande Farmers Market
Board of Directors submitted
this column. The La Grande
Farmers Market runs from
May to Oct. 17 every
Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to
noon and every Tuesday 3 to
6 p.m. at Fourth Street and
Adams Avenue, La Grande.
Ways local restaurants are trying to survive the coronavirus disruptions
t is a crazy time to be in
the restaurant business.
Hi, I’m Sandy Sorrels,
and I have had a restau-
rant in La Grande since
1982 (Ten Depot Street).
We have faced a lot of chal-
lenges over the years, but
takeout. That proved to be
successful. But when we
tried again the following
weekend, we had little
business.
Several local restaurants
have opened again for sit-
down meals, including Bud
Jackson’s, the
Long Branch and
SANDY
Mamacita’s Inter-
national Grill. We
SORRELS
have had a lot of
RESTAURANT RAP
calls at the restau-
the coronavirus epidemic
rant from people hoping we
is proving to be the most
would be open.
challenging. That is why I
Mamacita’s is starting
wanted to write this column table service again and
from the perspective of a
moved tables to a safe dis-
small business owner trying tance inside where there is
to adapt. Future columns
good air movement and also
will have information about have many outside tables for
other restaurants in our area when the weather is good.
and what they are doing to
My restaurant is just not
survive.
ready to make the leap to
When we closed on
reopen. Since many people
March 16, we had a fully
are still staying home, it is
stocked restaurant, ready for questionable whether we
the week ahead.
would have enough cus-
Saint Patrick’s Day was
tomers to not operate at a
the next day. We had plenty
loss. Also, I have seen the
of corned beef and cabbage
illustration from the Cen-
and Guinness stout. And
ters for Disease Control and
then wham! We were quiet.
Prevention showing how the
We sold some corned
virus can spread through a
beef through takeout. We
restaurant even though there
froze some items and gave
is proper distancing. We
the rest to the employees.
have a lot to fi gure out.
We stayed closed for
There is a controversy
six weeks, opening again
over the wearing of masks
for Mother’s Day weekend
Customers and workers are
I
mandated to wear masks
as a condition of opening,
but some people refuse as
a political statement. As a
restaurant owner, I don’t
want to be the one telling
customers to wear a mask. I
also don’t particularly want
to be in the air space of
someone not wearing one.
Outside seating, however,
is deemed safe with proper
distancing. For re-entry into
the world of dining out, this
is a safer bet.
At Ten Depot Street we
are planning to have out-
side seating this summer
and maybe do socially dis-
tanced pop-up events. I
understand Side A Brewing,
which is doing takeout,
is not opening for indoor
dining yet either, but will
have seating outside soon.
Finding ways to ride
this out is the key to our
survival.
ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS
IN K-12 FOR THE 2020-2021
SCHOOL YEAR
Openings a the following grade levels:
K, 1 st , 2 nd , 3 rd , 5 th , 6 th , 8 th , 10 th
FREE PRE-SCHOOL WITH a.m. TRANSPORTATION
(August 31st, Start date)
FREE TRANSPORTATION • FREE BREAKFAST
SMALL CLASS SIZES • PERSONALIZED ASSISTANCE
(All students, plus Title I Math, Reading and Special Education)
POSITIVE BEHAVIOR SUPPORTS
RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION
CAREER TECHNICAL PROGRAMS INCLUDING FFA
desiree.mcginn@npowdersd.org
AWARDED U.S. NEWS BRONZE MEDAL FOR
BEST HIGH SCHOOLS IN THE NATION
Try the SHIP TO STORE feature at millershomecenter.com
3815 Pocahontas Road, Baker City 541-523-6404
3109 May Lane, La Grande 541-963-3113
REQUEST A PLACEMENT FOR YOUR CHILD AT:
desiree.mcginn@npowdersd.org
541-898-2244
Superintendent Dixon
PO Box 10, North Powder, Oregon 97867
Lose Weight Now
desiree.mcginn@npowdersd.org
Lose what took years to gain—in weeks...
With the right medical supervision
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COVID-19 Scheduling Options
If you’re looking
to lose weight,
to stop gaining weight
at this time, or
to stop stress eating—
take advantage of our
COVID-19 scheduling
options and book the
next available Free
No-obligation In-office or
Telemedicine Consultation.
—Dr. Kopp
In-office Visits
Telemedicine Visits
For the safety
of everyone we will
schedule a limited number
of In-office Visits.
To meet unexpected
high demand, we will schedule
Telemedicine Visits, on a
first-come, first-served basis.
Schedule the next available
Free No-obligation In-office
or Telemedicine Consultation
to get started or to learn more.
MetTrimMD La Grande
907 Washington Avenue
La Grande, OR 97824
MetTrimMD.com/LaGrandeOR
Tel: 541-663-4514
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