Penny Zimmerman-Wills

When August Jones moved back to Springfield from California three years ago, he immediately went to work farming his grandparents’ land. During that first summer, he was selling organic tomatoes and other fresh produce at the Old Capitol Farmers’ Market. The market not only provided an outlet to sell his crops but also introduced him […]

When Coz’s Pizza and Pub moved from Curran to Springfield nearly five years ago, it brought with it cold beer, sports memorabilia, and, most important, its thin-crust Chicago-style pizza. It also brought several traditions to the capital city, such as the bowls of salted peanuts at each table for patrons to snack on as soon […]

Shanita Auxila and her two small children, Zaria and Darius, are sharing a plate of smoked ribs, which she describes as amazing. “You can tell they’re smoked — they’re perfect,” she says. They’ve already shared a fried-oyster poorboy sandwich, courtesy of Sebastian’s Hideout, and chocolate-dipped strawberries from Coco-Bon. They’re pondering their next snack — perhaps […]

Spring means warmer weather and flowering trees. But for me, the harbinger of spring is asparagus, that delicious edible member of the lily family that usually bursts forth from the cool ground this month. Sangamon County is a great source of asparagus, with plenty of farmers selling their produce at the downtown farmers’ market and […]

If you’re one of the lucky 600-or-so people who paid $500 to eat a piece of Mary Todd Lincoln’s white cake, don’t read any further. But if you already know the menu or you didn’t want to fork over that much dough — even if it is for a good cause — then read on […]

When spring rolls around, Chef Michael Higgins thinks of crocuses, but not the kind sprouting up in our yards, adding a purple haze to the landscape. Rather, Higgins’ mind is on the flower that produces saffron, the most precious and expensive spice in the world. During a demonstration at Greenview Nursery’s annual spring garden show, […]

Many foods are associated with the Easter holiday — ham, coconut cake, marshmallow-chocolate eggs — but one of the most traditional of all is lamb. Even so, it usually doesn’t top the list of most popular dishes and is not typically found on local restaurant menus, even at Easter. In fact, even though rosemary leg […]

Several things make a steakhouse a steakhouse: a slightly smoky piano bar, comfortable seating, and thick, juicy slabs of steak. Gallagher’s reminds me of the restaurants I visited as a child when I went out with my parents and their friends for a nice meal on a Saturday night — a white-linen-tablecloth kind of place, […]

The celebration of St. Patrick’s Day begins early at D’Arcy’s Pint. The staff begins the day at 7 a.m., serving several hundred people a breakfast buffet of homemade corned-beef hash, potatoes O’Brien (fried potatoes with peppers and onions), and traditional items such as bacon and sausage. At 11 a.m., lunch begins, featuring a mouthwatering special […]

I prefer to see animals running through the woods rather than stuffed and mounted on a wall. That’s a big reason I never bothered to visit the Westwoods Lodge Pub and Grill. It sports a hunting-lodge theme and décor with — you guessed it — many, many trophy animals on display. Perhaps an avid reader […]

On a recent Wednesday night I sit down to enjoy mousseline of broccoli with mushroom sauce, salmon baked in heart-shaped parchment paper, and a lemon tart with fresh raspberries, all of which I’ve prepared myself — well, sort of. As one of a group of 10 attending a cooking class at the home of caterer […]

Every once in while, you discover a small-town café or corner diner that just feels like home. You don’t mind if the menu doesn’t change much — there’s just something about the place that makes you happy. That’s how I feel about the Morning Star Café in Salisbury. Although the chicken crêpes and apple pie […]