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.
But if you’re a freaky ramphead looking to score ramps—they’ll only be around for a few weeks—those young, oniony harbingers of the spring season are available right by Sherman Square, at chef Cesare Casella’s Salumeria Rosi. For $9, you get a nice sunnyside up farm egg on a piece of grilled toast, and the whole thing is topped with a crisp piece of prosciutto and a handful of wilted ramps and a little salt.
It's a true cult open-faced sandwich, like 'ino's truffled egg toast, in the making; meanwhile, ramp madness continues.
