We continue to trend toward going local and knowing the source of our food. Many of my clients are in the agricultural business, and I was recently educated on food that goes straight from the farm and onto the table.
Farm to table limits the negative impact on the environment and lessens the eco-footprint. Rather than going from farm to trains/planes/automobiles to packaging plants to additional trains/planes/automobiles to stores to table; straight from farm to table reduces if not practically abolishes the travel time, fuel usage and more. Many chefs are cultivating this earth-loving trend and here is just a sampling of restaurants that practice farm to table:
- AR Valentien in La Jolla, CA
- Manresa in Los Gatos, CA
- Montagna at The Little Nell in Aspen, CO
- Woodfire Grill in Atlanta, GA
- North Pond in Chicago, IL
- Ten Tables in Jamaica Plain, Cambridge and Provincetown, MA
- Cinque Terre in Portland, ME
- Tupelo Honey Café in Asheville, NC
- Meriwether’s Restaurant in Portland, OR
- Trellis in Kirkland, WA
Another interesting trend is from Rooftop (gardens, that is) to Restaurant. There are some hotel chefs catching on to this trend:
Fairmont Royal York in Toronto’s roof has a garden with tomatoes, mint, spinach, strawberries and more. As well, the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel in Vancouver, British Columbia is ripe with alpine strawberries, rose blossoms, lovage and calendulas, all utilized for guests dining pleasure. If you will be dining at The Fountain Restaurant at The Four Seasons in Philadelphia, many of the veggies and herbs gracing your meal were grown on the roof. Keep an eye out for this trend to show up in the city holding your next meeting!
Jill, I love the content of your blogs! You continue to be super creative and most important, your content is relevant. I just planted my first herb garden (in a container!) and have plans to try my hand at growing some veggies in my yard – so reading your blog made me all the more “proud” that I have contributed (in a very small way) to a healthier approach to eating for my family and reduced a smidgen of my carbon footprint!!! Thanks for keeping it “fresh”!