Category Archives: Food
Cohn’s Cafe to Open in Repurposed Historic Temple Building on September 1
Tracy and Kathy Dancer purchased the Scottish Rite Temple at the Bourbon County Tax Sale in January 2022.
Since the purchase of the historic building in downtown Fort Scott, the Dancers opened a Mercantile and Market at 110 S. Main in February 2023 and in the next few weeks will be opening a cafe in an adjoining room.
“The shop is called Mercantile and Market and Cohn’s Cafe,” Kathy said. “It was run from 1926 to 1948 by Sidney Cohn and his wife as a cafe, in the exact space.” The cafe is adjacent, south, to the mercantile.
For many years, the space was used for fundraisers for Kiwanis and Rotary Clubs.
This week, they will have a reservation only preview, no walk-in patrons, from August 22-26.
The grand opening to the rest of the public is September 1.
The preview this week is to train new staff.
“This will be to train new staff on the menu,” she said. “To give our staff a chance to adjust things before we open. This is practice so when we do our grand opening, we will be prepared.”
There are 10 employees, not counting Tracy and Kathy.
The business phone number is 620-418-6209.
Hours are 8 a.m to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, with cafe table service.
From 2-6 p.m. (during the mercantile hours)one can order take-away food and drinks.
On Sunday the cafe will be open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
“Customers will be able to call or text for reservations,” Kathy said. “We will also accept call-in orders for grab-and-go from the cooler.
Customers will be able to pick up these orders until 5:45 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.”
The cafe will use locally sourced ingredients to make fresh breakfast and lunch dishes: quiche, crepes, bakery items, salad, soup, sandwiches, and other featured meals, plus drinks.
The meats, eggs, and veggies are lined up from local suppliers and the menu will be adjusted based on seasonal availability, she said.
On the horizon for the cafe are syrups made from local orchards and additionally a tea service.
“It will be a pot of tea that comes with scones, biscuits, and tea sandwiches,” she said. “We will be starting a tea pot collection for our tea service.”
People will pay for the meal in the mercantile section, much like a Cracker Barrel Restaurant.
Following a conversation with a downtown resident, the cafe will be selling milk, eggs and bread from a cooler she purchased.
Food Truck and Country Music in Uniontown Park Starting at 5 p.m. Today
The Hot Pink Heifer food truck is setting up at Uniontown Park tonight, before the Road Runnerz Band from 7-8:30 p.m., who will be playing classic rock and country music.
The band music is free. Bring a lawn chair.
Brickstreet Slim Specials are New on the Menu
Healthy Bourbon County News July 2023
Top Tips for Grilling Month
By Clara Wicoff
Southwind Extension District
Grilling with family and friends is a classic summertime activity, particularly during the month of July which is designated as National Grilling Month! Keep foodborne illness off the menu by following these tips while grilling:
- Wash your hands. You should always wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds before handling food. This is roughly the same amount of time it takes to sing the “Happy Birthday” song twice.
- Marinate food in the refrigerator. Never marinate food on the counter or outside!
- Avoid cross contamination. Never use sauce that was used to marinade raw meat on cooked food and do not put cooked food on a plate that was used for raw meat. If you want to use some of the marinade as a sauce on your cooked food, set aside some of the unused marinade ahead of time for that purpose.
- Keep cold food cold. If you are transporting food in a cooler, use an insulated cooler and include enough ice or ice packs to keep the temperature at 40°F or below. Place your cooler in the shade or under shelter to keep it out of direct sunlight.
- Cook food to a safe internal temperature. Once food is on the grill, be sure to cook it to a safe internal temperature as measured by a food thermometer. Color is not an indicator of food safety! According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), whole cuts of beef and pork (such as steaks, roasts, and chops) should be cooked to 145°F and then allowed to rest for 3 minutes. Hamburgers made of ground beef or pork should be cooked to 160° All poultry (including ground poultry) should be cooked to at least 165°F.
- Keep hot food hot. Once you have grilled meat or poultry, keep it hot (at 140°F or above) until you serve it. This can be done by setting it to the side of the grill rack.
- Keep food safe. Do not let raw meat or poultry, cooked food, or cut fresh vegetables and fruits sit out at room temperature for more than two hours before placing them in a refrigerator or freezer. (If the temperature is above 90°F, this timeframe decreases to one hour.)
For more information from the Partnership for Food Safety Education, visit https://www.fightbac.org/grill-master/. You can also find information from the USDA at bit.ly/grillsafely. Contact me with questions at [email protected] or 620-365-2242.
Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service
K-State Research and Extension is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
Special Hunting Access this Fall Through Free Draw
KDWP to Offer Special Hunting Access this Fall Through Free Draw
PRATT – Exclusive access to land not normally open to hunting and above average success rates… Sound like an expensive hunting lease? Well, it’s not. The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks’ Special Hunts program provides hundreds of such hunts each fall and winter, and what’s even better? There’s no charge – all you have to do is apply and be selected.
KDWP’s Special Hunts program offers hunting opportunities with limited access to public and private lands, including select refuge areas, for deer, upland game, waterfowl, doves, turkey and furbearers.
Applications must be made online here, https://programs.ksoutdoors.
This fall and winter, KDWP is offering more than 350 individual “Special Hunt” opportunities.
The application period opened July 8, 2023, with the application draw dates as follows:
- First Draw Hunts (hunts occurring in September and October) – Aug. 7, 2023
- Second Draw Hunts (hunts occurring in November and December) – Sept. 25, 2023
- Third Draw Hunts (hunts occurring in January and February) – Dec. 11, 2023
Resident or nonresident hunters may apply, though some hunts are restricted to residents only. When applying online, hunters will select hunts by species, date and category, which include “Open,” “Youth,” or “Mentored” hunts. All applicants are eligible to apply for Open Hunts, regardless of age or hunting experience. Youth Hunts require parties to include at least one hunter age 18 or younger, accompanied by an adult age 21 or older (who may not hunt). And Mentored Hunts are open to both youth and novice hunters supervised by a mentor age 21 or older (who may also hunt).
E-mail notifications are sent to both “successful” and “unsuccessful” applicants within two business weeks of the drawing. Successful applicants will also be emailed their hunt permit, as well as area maps and other pertinent information. Hunters are responsible for purchasing necessary licenses and permits required by law.
For more information on KDWP’s Special Hunts Program, visit https://ksoutdoors.com/
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Taco Azul Food Truck Moves to The Twin Mansions
The Taco Azul Food Truck has moved to a new site with more seating and shade for their customers.
“We’re excited about this move because there’s more seating, more shade, more room for kids to move around, and altogether a great atmosphere,” Erin Macik said. “Seb set up a really neat outside dining area, and it will be a lovely gathering place for the folks of Fort Scott.”
“Our only regret is that everyone at the Washateria was very accommodating and pleasant to work with, and we’re sad to leave them,” she said.
The reason for the move: technical reasons.
“The generator for the trailer has a carbon monoxide detector and automatically shuts off when levels get high,” she said. “Unfortunately, it was shutting off about every 20 minutes, so we needed to find a place with a plug-in. We were able to install one easily at the mansions, and Seb is starting there today!”
“After a year of planning and setting up, we opened at the Good Ol’ Days festival this year,” Erin said.
Seb Macik spent some time teaching in Mexico City before he and Erin were married, and discovered Mexican street tacos during that time.
“Ever since then, he’s been working to make the perfect street taco, and the result is Taco Azul: real-deal Mexico City tacos in Fort Scott, KS,” she said.
The Twin Mansions are located at 742 National Ave., Fort Scott, they are in the parking lot behind
.
Regular hours are Wednesday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
“We post the week’s schedule on Facebook every week, and there are slight changes occasionally, but in general, those are the hours we’ll be open,” Erin said.
Young Entrepreneur: Rinley Holly
This is part of a series highlighting young entrepreneurs in our community.
If you would like to nominate a young entrepreneur, please submit their contact info to [email protected].
Rinley Holly, rural Fort Scott, is five years old and likes to bake.
Katie, her mom, said she would bake everyday if she could.
Her parents, Katie and Ethan, own Still Waters Farm and sell beef and pork at the farmers market on Saturdays. She is with her family on Saturday mornings, along with her brother, Stetson, 3.
“Last year, she kept asking me to let her sell cookies,” Katie said.
So, Rinley baked and sold her product once last year at her family’s booth at the Fort Scott Farmers Market.
This year when Katie heard that other entrepreneurs were going to be selling products at the farmers market on June 3, “We asked her if she wanted to make some cookies.”
She did, and she has a helper.
“Stetson likes to taste test for her,” Katie said.
Rinley tells the process of making her cookies:
“You make dough, roll it in a ball, and flatten them with a cup, then put them in the oven on a rack,” she said. “Snickerdoodles are my favorite.” She also makes chocolate chip cookies.
Rinley likes to bake, “Cause it’s fun,” she said.
She is planning on attending the Acton Children’s Business Fair, later this year, her mother said, to learn more about the business side.
“Kids develop a brand, create a product or service, build a marketing strategy, and then open for customers at our one-day marketplace,” according to https://www.childrensbusinessfair.org/fortscott-ks
“We will host children’s business booths at the 2nd annual event that will be held at the Farmer’s Market located at Skubitz Plaza near the Historic Fort on September 30th, 2023 from 8 a.m. to noon.”
The Fort Scott Farmers Market is at Skubitz Plaza, directly in front of the Fort Scott National Historic Site on Tuesdays from 4-6 p.m. and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon.
Uniontown Independence Day Celebration: July 3
The Independence Day Bash will be held on Monday, July 3rd in the Uniontown City Park.
“We love celebrating our nation’s independence with our friends and neighbors and hope to see YOU there,” according to Amy Holt, Vice President – Loan Administration at Union State Bank.
The bank has funded the annual event for 18 years.
Events start at 6:30 p.m. with a free hot dog and chips meal, that the bank provides.
Uniontown’s Baptist Church will be selling soft drinks for a camp fundraiser, the Uniontown High School Cheerleaders will have a bake sale and sell glow sticks, and the Old Settlers Day Committee will have a bake sale to raise funds for the annual event in Uniontown on Labor Day.
There will also be inflatables (bounce houses, etc. )for the kids and kids at heart, she said.
There will be live entertainment by Trevor Holman and the Haymakers.
This band is a Red Dirt and Classic Country Band from Southeast Kansas, according to its Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/HAYMKRZ/
The fireworks begin at dusk, this time of year around 9:30 or 10 p.m.
Farmers Market Vendor Spotlight: Mack and Michele Houser
Mack and Michele Houser have been growing and selling vegetables at the Fort Scott Farmers’ Market for several years now! They find great self accomplishment in producing fresh, homegrown vegetables for spring, summer, and fall. You can find them at the Farmers’ Market on Saturday mornings and Tuesday afternoons. They are also available to make deliveries in and around Fort Scott. For more info, stop and visit their booth, or give them a call!
Kolby Martinez Lands a 50 Pound Catfish from Lake Fort Scott
Kolby Martinez, 21, is born and raised in Fort Scott, according to his cousin Alexis Wilson, Fort Scott.
“He enjoys fishing at Fort Scott Lake, and Gunn Park pond,” she said. “On June 16, 2023 he caught his new personal record of a 50-pound catfish at Fort Scott Lake, using bluegill for bait.”
“He loves fishing and does it as a hobby,” said Wilson.
Kolby is open to helping newcomers learn how to fish, she said.