IDig2Learn Bellies, Bins & Beauty Food Appreciation Series Returns Tuesday January 21 - You're Invited To Enjoy A Roosevelt Island Community Soup Time Meal Featuring Our Local Soup Lady, RSVP To Reserve Your Spot

Roosevelt Island resident and iDig2Learn founder Christina Delfico reports:

Bellies, Bins and Beauty is Back! iDig2Learn is thrilled to continue our food appreciation series kicking off next week our first event of 2025. Join us for SOUP TIME featuring The Soup Lady and her delicious soups on Tuesday, January 21st.

Year after year we have hosted community gatherings featuring chefs, entrepreneurs and doctors to not only enjoy a meal together but learn about food as a healing force and how to enjoy more of our food and waste less.

On our journey we are learning from each other how to consume more of our food into Bellies, capture the food scraps for Bins and then use compost processed from those scraps to create Beauty by feeding flowers, trees and food gardens to complete the circle.

Please join us and learn about other positive efforts uplifting the neighborhood.

Bellies, Bins and Beauty is brought to you by RIOC Public Purpose Funds, NY State Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright and individual supporters like you.

Click here for more info and to register for Soup Time featuring The Soup Lady.

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Roosevelt Island Saturday Farmers Market Closed This Week And Next, Reopening January 9 - Haki Food Scrap Composting Drop Off Site Will Be Open At Motorgate Plaza And You Can Order Online From Farmers Market Vendor Soup Lady Too

As reported last week, the Roosevelt Island Saturday Farmers Market is closed December 26 and January 2. According to Roosevelt Island Farmers Market operator Israel Wengerd:

We are planning a family trip to Kenya during the Christmas and New Years Holidays to be with our son John who is there with our church drilling wells for people who live out in the villages. (2 year term). 

We will be ... back Saturday January 9 at the Roosevelt Island Farmers Market.

But you still can order your favorite soup online&nbsp from Farmers Market vendor the Roosevelt Island Soup Lady.

Also, the Roosevelt Island Food Scrap Drop Off Site will be open both Saturdays that the Farmers Market is closed on December 26 and January 2. According to the Haki Compost Collective:

While the Roosevelt Island farmers market will be closed the next two weekends, food scrap collection continues! Bundle up and stop by the food scrap drop-off site during our normal hours of 9am to 2pm.

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Roosevelt Island Residents Very Happy Saturday Farmers Market Reopened After Closed Last 6 Weeks Due To Coronavirus Pandemic - Well Organized Say Residents And A Glorious Reunion Says Vendor

The Roosevelt Island Saturday Farmers Market has been closed since last March 28 due to safety concerns from the Coronavirus Pandemic. As Roosevelt Island and the rest of NYC  tries to carefully re-open, the  Roosevelt Island Weekly Farmers Market returned with their fresh fruits, vegetables and other products last Saturday at Good Shepherd Plaza.

Social distancing practices were maintained, face coverings worn by staff and customers, and gloves given out for handling the fruit and vegetables.

Roosevelt Island Saturday Farmers Market reopened today. Well organized and social distancing maintained. Good to have them back pic.twitter.com/XVbzuKYysf

— Roosevelt Islander (@Rooseveltisland) May 16, 2020

Roosevelt Island residents were happy with the Farmers Market return.

Among the comments:

• I got there at 6:30, PSD were setting up. I was thinking there was going to be a huge line. We were told that we needed ID, masks, and that from 7am -8 would be for seniors. There were no seniors except me, and 5 other people at that time. Guess they too were expecting huges lines. The other vendors were not there until later. Very glad they are all back!
• I went after 8, there was a line but moved quickly and it was very orderly!!!
• I was there at 8:05am. There was a line but it moved very quickly and people were maintaining distance. PSD staffs did a great job.
• Soooo glad it reopened. Went at 1:30 and it was lovely to see everyone. Kids loved having it back, too. Seemed very safe and low risk.
• Very well organized and the prices were good. Everything looked very fresh.
• A delight
• It was perfect. So nice and civilized. Wish all things on RI were set up this way!
• I was so happy to have them back. It was well organized and customers were patient and considerate. A bit of “normal” was good for the psyche. 
• I was nervous about going at first, but found it was highly organized. Offered gloves and sanitizer before entering. PS we’re there making sure everyone was masked and following guidelines. Welcome back Wengerd Farms!

Israel Wengerd of Wengerd Farms said they had approximately 1 thousand customers and were very pleased it went well. Mr Wengerd adds:

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Roosevelt Island Soup Lady Sells Vegetable And Vegan Soup Every Saturday At Farmers Market And Now From Brand New Online Store - Chicken Noodle & Matzo Ball Soup Too

The Roosevelt Island Soup Lady, Margo Reiss, sells her delicious vegetable and vegan soups every Saturday at the Roosevelt Island Farmers Market.

The Roosevelt Island Soup Lady

now has an online shop

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Check Out New Menu At Roosevelt Island Cornell Tech Cafe - Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Weekend Brunch, Great Smoothies & RI Soup Lady Too

Have you tried the Roosevelt Island Tech Cafe

located in the Bloomberg Academic Center on the Cornell Tech Campus yet?

It's very good and well worth the walk to the other side of the Queensboro Bridge.

The Cafe at Cornell Tech has a new lower price menu (taxes included), with a variety of food and drink offerings but reduced hours of service for the winter.

The Cornell Tech Cafe is open

for breakfast, lunch, dinner and weekend brunch.

Parliament coffee, tea and pastry offerings include

and Smoothies, Fresh Juices and Bubble Tea available too.

Enjoying tasty mango smoothie and beautiful Roosevelt Island East River Waterfront View while working on news story @cornell_tech Cafe today pic.twitter.com/axxFArqv8h

— Roosevelt Islander (@Rooseveltisland) January 30, 2018

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Check Out Roosevelt Island Soup Lady Margot Reiss Every Saturday At Farmers Market - Watch How Soup Is Made At Queens EDC Entrepreneur Space Kitchen Business Incubator

Roosevelt Island resident Margot Reiss is the Kitchen 36 Homemade Soup Lady at the Roosevelt Island Saturday Farmers Market. Ms. Reiss sells her soups rain or shine in good weather and bad.

According to Ms. Reiss:

All of our soups are made from scratch using local and seasonal ingredients, fresh herbs, fresh meat (never frozen), dried beans (never canned), non-GMO products where available, such as non-GMO canola oil, and our dairy comes from family farms.

At Kitchen 36 our soups are slow-simmered in small batches to bring out the flavor of the ingredients. We do NOT use soup starters, preservatives, additives, or any artificial ingredients. Our soups are also LOW in salt and fat, but big on flavor. There is NO SUGAR in any soup except for our Black Bean and Curried carrot, which contains a drop of raw cane sugar. Each batch we make takes about eight hours from start to finish. All of our soups are packaged immediately after cooling and frozen to preserve their freshness.

We offer a variety of Beef, Chicken, Vegetarian, and Vegan choices. The soups vary sometimes due to availability of seasonal ingredients. Please check our "News" page for updates on what we're serving up each week. Soups are sold frozen in 16 oz or 32 oz containers. Soups can also be purchased at the Roosevelt Island Farmer's Market. If you have any questions, please e-mail us at healthysoup.36@gmail.com

Check out the menu and prices here.

Ms Reiss makes her soup at the Queens Economic Development Corporation Entrepreneur Space Kitchen business incubator close by in Long Island City.

Recently, Roosevelt Island resident Frank Farance visited Ms. Reiss who shows us her operation

This is Margot's operation, she makes wonderful soups!

Also, a time lapse video of the 6 hour soup preparation in 90 seconds from Mr. Farance.



Mr. Farance has more pictures of Margot Reiss and the Kitchen 36 soup preparation at the Kitchen Incubator here.

Ms Reiss hopes to start an online ordering system soon too.

Stop by the Farmers Market on Saturday, say hi to Margo and try out the soup. Check out the Kitchen 36 web site for more information.