It’s barbecue season in Petaluma

Ribs for Kids is coming up on Saturday June 18. Presented by the Petaluma Active 20-30 Club, this event raises money to help disadvantaged youth.

I look forward to judging the event, as I did last year, when teams offered up quite a tasty selection of ribs. This year’s venue is the First Presbyterian Church, which offers space for fun and games, and allows families to bring to their kids.

Speaking of ribs, my food crew and I finally had the chance to try Roy’s Chicago Doggery’s Friday night BBQ and found it to be excellent. A limited number of plates of brisket or ribs are available each Friday evening, usually selling out by around 7 p.m. As the regular readers have read before, I spent five weeks last summer driving around the U.S. eating as much BBQ as possible and can honestly say that I never came across ribs that were any better than Roy’s.

My crew and I can’t wait to try the brisket next time around.

Thistle Meats reopens

Speaking of meat, Thistle Meats has reopened after a drunk driver plowed through the front window on Valentine’s Day. The white pig is back in his spot on out front, and the deli cases are again full of the area’s best meats. Sandwiches are available daily, and freshly grilled burgers are usually available on weekends. Welcome back Thistle Meats!

Sausage of the month

After a well deserve week off, Francesca and Johnny at Yanni’s Sausages in Penngrove have brought back their much-loved Holy Moly Spanish Chorizo as their monthly sausage sandwich special. They use their spicy sausage, topped with mango salsa, Queso Fresco cheese and Petaluma’s own F.A. Nino’s Holy Moly Hot Sauce, which is made with Lagunitas Censored Ale.

New Chinese cuisine

Fantasy Restaurant Hong Kong BBQ has opened at Round Table’s former location at 1520 East Washington St. A “Grand Opening” banner hangs over the door, but I have yet to hear any reviews. Thanks to reader Mark Davidson, who makes a pretty mean tea-smoked duck and char-siu baby back ribs himself, for this heads up.

Thai Issan update

Contrary to earlier rumors, Thai Isaan does not appear to be closing. Instead, after cooking dishes from her native Thailand for the past 19 years at this location, Bounleuth Bounson Xiong, known as “Boon” to her loyal fans, is handing the restaurant over to her daughter Samantha Xiong Arellano.

The restaurant will close for a revamp, re-opening at 4 p.m. on May 6, with a party to celebrate the changing of the guard.

“Reopening on Mother’s Day weekend is appropriate,” said Samantha, of taking over her mother’s restaurant.

Feed Mill district

J.M. Rosen Cheesecake is listed as the applicant for a change of liquor license application currently in the window at Zodiac’s Petaluma Boulevard North location. Originally interested in Thai Isaan’s space, maybe the “Brew Pub” license at Zodiac’s gives them more options.

With Buffalo Billiards next door and Brewster’s Beer Garden opening two doors down, Petaluma Pete’s dream of a distinctly recognizable “Feed Mill District” might actually come to fruition.

Along those lines, check out “Feed Mill District Park Renovation” at GoFundMe.com in order to help Petaluma Pete renovate the little space at the corner of Petaluma Boulevard North and Washington Street. It’s a simple plan, but it will go a long ways toward prettying up one of the main intersections that we, and our out of town guests pass through on a regular basis.

It would be nice to have something other than an asphalt covered space filler.

Free ice cream at Quinua

Quinua Cocina Peruana wants to treat your mom to a complementary mimosa on Mothers’ Day. Juan, the owner, has also graciously extended his free ice cream offer to Argus-Courier readers who “like” Quinua on Facebook or Twitter throughout the month of May.

I consider myself a bit of an ice cream aficionado and am fairly critical, especially of fruit ice creams. I figured we had all tasted every fruit by now, but I had never tasted or even heard of the subtropical fruit Lucuma, also known as “the last gold of the Incas,” but it mixes wonderfully with Quinua’s perfectly creamery house-made ice cream.

Juan has jumped in with both feet, getting involved in every Petaluma food event possible in order to introduce himself and his restaurant to the community.

Candy shop work

The Sweet Zone, formerly Powells, is currently hiring. Two of their employees are moving on to college so this is a rare opportunity for a young person to get some great work experience. Schedules are flexible, it pays better than minimum wage, and best of all, they offer employee discounts.

(Contact Houston Porter at houston@avant-larde.com.)