Well it’s May and though we didn’t have as much April showers, the May flowers are starting to bloom, nevertheless!! Our daffodils have been in full blossom and just yesterday, last of the tulips have now opened. The COVID-19 thing isn’t slowing down nature and it’s good to see some things like Mother nature keeps truckin’.
It’s interesting to note, FOOD continues to be one of the major focus. Recall from past columns, our family started the Takeout Tuesdays and couple of weeks ago, I tried to order takeout from our favorite Chinese restaurant, Chins in Akron to find, they are temporarily closed. About the same time, someone posted on the West Akron Neighborhood page, they were experiencing similar problem with their favorite Chinese place and asked for recommendation. OMG – the flood gates opened and people started responding with all kinds of recommendations and sharing personal experiences – last count, over forty replies! It was wonderful to see, so many folks chiming in to show support for their local favorites.
So tomorrow is Cinco di Mayo and obviously, our focus this week is on Mexican. I am planning to make chili rellenos for the whole extended family so I’ll need a lot of poblano peppers. Sorry, no takeout Tuesday, this week. Perhaps we’ll do sushi take out on Friday. We will also be sending a Mexican buffet lunch to the Akron Canton Foodbank to feed the National Guards and Foodbank staff on the community distribution day – May 7th. Daughter Alison suggested we get Moe’s SW Grill in Wallhaven to cater this but, alas, they too are temporarily closed. So, I googled Mexican restaurants in Akron and came up with five suggestions. Taqueria El Paso seemed to have the most favorable reviews and the words El Paso drew my attention – I grew up in that sun city! so I called them and discovered, they have very limited operations and wouldn’t be able to handle the volume. My second choice was Rancho Taqueria. I spoke to David, the owner and decided to give him a shot. I told him, I’ll come and try his tacos and enchiladas, the next day. To my delight, his food was excellent and he agreed to do the buffet within our budget, when he learned it was for the Foodbank, at substantial discount off his regular pricing.
Everyday, I hear about others in the community, rolling up their sleeves to help out, wherever they can, whenever they are able. I learned from an associate who works at Rockynol, their COVID-19 unit with room for 12 patients and once filled to capacity is now down to only 4 patients and they just got a bunch of hamburgers from Swenson’s. So it’s not just individuals – businesses are joining in the benevolence!! That’s the real NE Ohio and Akron spirit.
I’m delighted to see and learn, “We’re all in this together”. This too shall pass, hopefully soon. Thanks for reading.
Bill Melver
Akron, Ohio
“Bill Melver is an interesting local personality, having founded the Akron Life & Leisure Magazine in 2002, ran for mayor of Akron in 2015 and now an aspiring author with his first book “An American Samurai: Born to Righteousness”, will be released soon. You can also learn more about Bill on his website www.BillMelver.com
