Smithsonian: To Mark Twain, San Francisco was all about bushels of tiny, coppery Olympia oysters at the Occidental Hotel. The delicate, slow-growing oysters (Ostrea conchaphilia) vanished long ago from polluted Bay Area waters but have been brought back from near extinction, and cultivated as a labor of love in Puget Sound. - Glenn Collins The New York Times: Chickweed, knotweed, nettles and dock: a feast of delicious weeds may be waiting out there in your backyard. - Patrick Farrell Farmshed: An ambitious attempt to map all the local food sources in central New York State: dairies, farm stands, C.S.A."s, etc. - Julia Moskin Tasting Table: How to make breakfast sausage at home. Go ahead, it'll be fun ... Dash and Bella: ... Although maybe not quite as fun as making almond pralines with your son. - Jeff Gordinier Poor Man's Feast: A strong and funny rant about the pitfalls of American road food. - Julia Moskin Afar: A Nashville chef, Robbie Wilson, reports back from Singapore on the wonders of kaya toast, chili crab and barbecued stingray. - Jeff Gordinier Eatocracy: "This little piggie is bred for market. This little piggie can't turn her body around. While gestation crates aren't the absolute worst outcome for animals (which are spared the violent scrum of group cages), the facts aren't very savory. The animal scientist Temple Grandin likens the experience to a life sentence in a first-class airplane seat. - Patrick Farrell Food Chain Workers Alliance: A report from this advocacy organization details a grim portrait of the solvency of 20 million workers in the American food chain, from farm workers to back-of-house cooks to tractor-trailer drivers to processing-plant employees. It claims that only 40 percent earn enough to exceed the local poverty line, that barely 13.5 percent are earning a living wage, and that many are going hungry. - Glenn Collins The New York Post:: City Hall cracks down on sprawling street carts that all but block the sidewalks. - Patrick Farrell LA Weekly: Are these the most delectable French fries in Los Angeles? - Jeff Gordinier The Local East Village: The neighborhood will get a touch of New Orleans: Exchange Alley, a new restaurant planned by Paul Gerard, a former chef at SoHo House; John Harris, the chef and owner of Lilette in New Orleans, among others. - Patrick Farrell