It's been a while since we last talked about ramps... too long. So we were happy to find an announcement in our inbox regarding the 2nd annual Ramp Fest! Save the date: it's going down May 5th in Hudson Valley. more ›

Over the weekend we noticed that Fresh Direct was selling ramps again this year, and for $7.99 per bunch! This is a full $4 over the price you can get them for at the Union Square Greenmarket. Has RampsMania come to this—price gouging? We've reached out to Fresh Direct, who are currently sold out of the seasonal favorite, to see if they could explain the markup, and will update when we hear back. In the meantime, they aren't the only ones making a huge profit off of the foraged item—last week we spotted ramps at Forager's in DUMBO selling for $5 per bunch, and their bunches look suspiciously thin. more ›

Like an obsessed man-child crushing his pet mouse with frenzied affection, foodies' unslakable thirst for ramps is apparently wiping out the supply. In an interview with Boston Eater, wild foods advocate (yes, that's a thing) Russ Cohen says that the craze has resulted in ramps being "completely removed from the landscape…I'm observing a bit of a Gold Rush mentality, where people are just converting these plants to cash and looking at them like dollar signs." Or pesto. Or a pizza topping. more ›

Yesterday was the unofficial start to ramps season (though Roberta's has been serving up the stuff on their pizza since March 23rd!)—and this year we're seeing the traditionally "alt" ramps crossover to mainstream America. Will ramps stay relevant?! more ›

In the past we've extensively documented the most exciting season of the year: ramps season. A look back at our unrelenting coverage tells us that we should start seeing what Dirt Candy's Amanda Cohen called "the most holy of all vegetables" any day now. And the warm weather we've been having means we may just be on the cusp of the best ramps season yet. more ›

[UPDATE BELOW] Ramps are SO IMPORTANT, you guys. But springtime ramp-mania may have taken its toll, because according to a few botanists, the delicate Alliaceae (aka the "God of all vegetables") are being overharvested. James Chamberlain of the United States Forest Service told the Times, "I think we’re having an impact on ramp populations. I would say that we’re overharvesting the plants.” This could be as bad as the great Bitters shortage of 2010! more ›

Who's excited for Ramp season?! Oh, you don't know what they are? Well, the Ramp (or wild leek) is the culinary harbinger of spring, a combination of garlic and onion flavor in a shallot-like bulb. It's pretty much foodie heroin. They'll supposedly be back Wednesday at Rick Bishop’s Mountain Sweet Berry Farm at the Union Square Greenmarket, and Bishop says this could be one of the best seasons yet, telling Grub Street the combination of warmth and rain is "as if I ordered the weather." Ordering some mints after eating these would also be a good idea. more ›

Times have certainly changed since the gritty and unsentimental 1971 film The Panic in Needle Park chronicled the downward spiral of Bobby and Helen, two crazy-in-love smack addicts. "Needle Park" is the film’s nom de parc for Sherman Square, which just isn’t the heroin hub it used to be. Though Sherman Square and the adjacent Verdi Square were once filled with anxious dealers, now it’s mostly fluffy dogs in neoprene cardigans. Furthermore, young Al Pacino (who starred as Bobby) is now one of the greatest actors in all of film history. more ›