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Mary’s at Baldwin Creek
Doug Mack is the James Brown of buying local. He’s been doing it a long time. Over the years he has developed longstanding relationships with some of the oldest producers in the region. His menu changes by the season and focuses on what he grows in his four-season garden. If you’re ever looking for him he’s in the garden: picking, pruning, and thinking about what to serve that evening.
Sustainability is something that resonates at Mary’s. It’s not always about the easiest product to find, it’s about making sure the product is raised in a manner that maintains farming for future generations. From the garlic soup to the Sunday Brunch, Mary’s is a great place to stop by for a quick bite and a drink or a five-course meal and a bed to sleep in.
www.innatbaldwincreek.com
Click here to view a video clip of Chef Doug preparing Fried Zucchini Flowers with Smoked Zucchini Tomato Sauce.
VT Herb and Salad
If you buy herbs and greens at Price Chopper you’ve probably seen Vermont Herb and Salad’s products. About seven years ago Jared and Heather McDermott took his family’s old dairy farm, added a few greenhouses and began growing herbs and greens for distribution throughout the state. They now distribute throughout New England with Black River Produce and Burlington Food Service, and grow from April to Thanksgiving if weather permits. Their philosophy is simple: If you offer a high quality local product, people will always choose you over someone else.
Vermont Herb and Salad Company
1204 Money Hole Road
Benson, VT 05743
802-537-2006
vtherb@vermontel.net
www.vermontfresh.net/member.php?ID=1139
Fresh Network Annual Forum
People see the little green VT Fresh Network signs all over the state at some of their favorite restaurants. These signs mean the restaurant is committed to buying local and focused on supporting the farms within their community. Every year their biggest fundraiser is held at Shelburne Farms. Year after year chefs, farmers, and people committed to buying local get together for a grazing dinner to talk about the future of farming and to create new relationships between chefs and growers.
Over 20 chefs team up with at least one farmer and create a dish unique to the night. This year the theme of the event is Restoring America’s Farming Traditions. The food is always unique, fresh, and the company can’t be beat. Instead of having dinner at home go to the forum for something different. It’s a memory for life.
www.vermontfresh.net
Taylor Farm
John Wright is the head of the Vermont Cheese Council and makes cheese in Londonberry, VT. Taylor Farms produces some of the best Gouda on the east coast. Gouda is originally a Dutch cheese with a high milk fat content and an incredible creamy texture. John’s cheese comes in a variety of flavors like caraway, chipotle, and maple smoked. Taylor Farms cheese can be found all over the state in cheese shops, co-ops, and specialty stores. John spends most of his free time dragging his kids around to events promoting artisan cheese making in VT. John’s cheese is on some of the best menus in VT and you should definitely get out there and try some yourself. If you don’t see him down on the farm he’s busy planning the American Cheese Society’s (ACS) Artisan and Farmstead Cheese Conference being held in Burlington, VT August 2nd-5th. This is an event not to be missed. If you love great artisan cheese contact the VT Cheese Council for more information.
www.taylorfarmvermont.com
Vermont Cheese Council: www.vtcheese.com
Deerhill Inn
The Deerhill Inn is a place where everyone should stay at least once in his or her life. Every room breathes romance and every meal brings satisfaction. If the point of getting away is to get away then the Deerhill Inn is the right place for you. It’s the type of place where you bring a good book, snuggle up next to the fire, and feel no rush at all. When it comes time to eat you are treated like royalty. Sustainable agriculture is important to most great chefs and Michael is no different. The menu changes when he pleases and is based on what he can get his hands on. His style is rustic European with the emphasis on high quality ingredients. Too many chefs are wrapped up in image and they forget how important the taste and the dining experience needs to be. When the wine is poured and dessert is served you’ll know exactly why you came to this little inn.
www.deerhillinn.com
Vermont Products Dinner
Addison County Fair and Field Days is right at the heart of Addison County and one of the most anticipated events of the year. With the tractor pulls and lawnmower races it’s what we think of when we think of America’s rural heartland. The Vermont Products Dinner serves about 400 people in a few hours and has been around for so long nobody can remember when it wasn’t. Served by chefs, politicians, and good-hearted people it’s a place where people just feel at home.
www.addisoncountyfielddays.com
Michael’s Good To Go
Most chefs who use the farm to table template are in the fine dining scene. Everything costs more, it takes more time, and it takes more energy. Why work so hard and sell your food for a reasonable price? Michael and Jewels do it because they know it’s the right thing to do, and they know how important it is to know when your meal comes from. Making locally inspired food affordable is the biggest obstacle in the restaurant business today. These two do it like it’s second nature. Whether it’s the stonecutter salad, favorite of the two stonecutters who built the BBQ pit, or the fatty wrap still bringing smiles to those young and old, everyone gets their favorite at Michael’s Good To Go. Some say it’s the best food in VT. If you stop by, you’ll be glad you did.
Michael’s Good to Go
Village Square Shopping Center
Waitsfield, VT 05673
802-496-3832
See their menu at: www.madriverbytes.com/menu.php?cocode=3&assoc
Cavendish Game Birds
When you think of game birds you probably think of early morning hunting and a dinner that always leaves you hungry. No longer must you put in all that hard work for a couple of tiny birds. With a state of the art processing facility and hatching operation, Cavendish game birds can ship boneless quail and pheasant to your doorstep. Now when you dream about grilled quail you can hop on the Internet and make that dream a reality. Restaurants from New York City to Las Vegas use Cavendish. These guys raise what some may argue are the best quail available. With an excellent product, Cavendish Game Birds always makes mouths water and dinner a little more memorable.
www.vermontquail.com
Kitchen Table Bistro
Steve and Laura Atkins met at New England Culinary Institute years ago and have one of the best restaurants in VT. People always look forward to something new on the menu, with the restaurant serving dinner seven nights a week and Steve at the helm. Whether it’s strawberries coming into season or lamb finally fattened, customers always leave with smiles.
As Steve’s food takes you blissfully through the meal, be sure to leave room for dessert. Laura is a pastry guru. With everything made from scratch, each dessert is a little bit of old school favorite with a refined decadence. They also offer private dinner rooms and have a great bar area with an expansive wine selection.
www.thekitchentablebistro.com
VT Cranberry Company
Not too many think of Vermont when they think cranberries. But Bob Lesnikowski is starting to change people’s minds. In Fletcher, VT, on an old dirt road you can find his cranberry bogs. First by dry harvesting and then by the traditional flooding almost all these cranberries are picked, shipped, and processed during the harvesting season right before Thanksgiving. With product found in almost every co-op market across the state, Bob has his work cut out for him and makes sure that no cranberry is wasted. From jams to wine, if you can put cranberries in it VT cranberry company has already done it for you. So start a new holiday tradition with Vermont Cranberry Company.
Vermont Cranberry Company
Robert & Elizabeth Lesnikowski
2563 North Road
Fletcher, VT 05448
802-849-6358
vtcranco@surfglobal.net
www.vermontfresh.net/member.php?ID=1150
Inn at Weathersfield
In this state there are many chefs who know how to buy local. For Jason Tostrup at the Inn at Weathersfield his passion for local ingredients shines bright like a beacon of culinary hope for all who dine. The inn is a perfect place to get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and the type of place you can unwind and eat. And eat, and eat. Maybe chase some of his delicious food with a great wine from their incredible wine list. If you get the chance ask to see the cellar; it’s marvelous. Jason is active in the VT Fresh Network, the American Culinary Federation, and spends his free time cooking at events throughout the state focused on showcasing Vermont’s best products. Even if it’s not around the corner take a trip, it’s worth it.
www.weathersfieldinn.com
Capital City Farmers Market
Everybody in Vermont has their favorite farmers’ market. Capital City is Montpelier’s and is one of the most unique there is. If you’re in the mood to shop you can always find what’s growing that week, as well as fresh meats, flowers, and some of the best grab and go ethnic food that you can find this side of Boston. The diversity of produce, local meats, cheese, and crafts makes Capital City Farmers’ Market perfect for everybody. Whether it’s Pete’s cipollini onions and Japanese eggplant or the best chicken and chanterelle mushroom eggroll ever made there’s always something to make you smile.
Capital City Farmers' Market
60 State Street parking lot
Saturdays 9am-1pm, May - October
Jessie Schmidt (802) 685-4360
montpelierfarmers@yahoo.com
www.vermontagriculture.com/farmmkt.htm
Champlain Valley Apiaries
Champlain Valley Apiaries has been making honey since World War II. They sell a wide variety of products from honey to bee venom online and around the state. The flavor ranges due to the bee’s diet and the weather. The crystallized raw honey seemed to be the big hit for the film crew. If your local store doesn’t carry it you can always have it shipped to your door. If you want to give a Christmas gift that never gets returned or ends up in the closet, give honey. Is there anyone who doesn’t like honey?
www.champlainvalleyhoney.com
Snow Farm Winery and the Middlebury Inn
Snow Farm was the brainchild of Harrison Lebowitz who studied to be a chemist, became a lawyer, and turned into a winemaker. Snow Farm is not just a winery in South Hero. It’s become a destination for summer travelers who want to taste some wine and listen to great music. That’s right, Snow Farm offers a free summer music series open to the public. You’ll see families, college kids, and farmers hanging around during these Thursday evening events, sipping wine and listening to great music.
People have mixed emotions about wine from VT and the truth is every season the wine tastes a little different. Remember that it took California and Australia years to become the powerhouses they are today. Maybe in 40 years people will think of Harrison as the Robert Mondavi of the east. South Hero has a growing cycle similar to certain areas of Oregon. So, the grapes grown here are grown because they can handle the rough winters and the inconsistent weather Vermonters so revere. From Pinot Noir to Chardonnay, Snow Farm creates a lot of different wines. They tend to be young and even though they drink well right away, they can be stored for a few years. And always keep your ears open because when the ice wine comes out, it goes quickly. So, always have a full tank of gas and remember Snow Farm Winery is only 30 minutes northwest of Burlington.
www.snowfarm.com
www.middleburyinn.com
Riverview Cafe
Brattleboro has been a real shocker in the last few years. This industrial town seemed to slide away into obscurity until a few years back. Now, the streets are lined with shops, restaurants, and live music venues. Brattleboro is back on the map as a place to visit, to see, and taste Vermont. The Riverview Café gives people a great view of the Connecticut River. Serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner this place never seems to slow down. If you come and the weather is good sit on one of the best roof decks ever built. With two full bars and a whopper of a view the Riverview Café is the place to be.
www.riverviewcafe.com
Jasper Hill Farms
What makes cheese different? How it’s made, the care that goes into it, and the milk. Jasper Hill Farm has taken an old dairy farm and rebuilt it into one of the most unique cheesemaking operations on the east coast. Run by two brothers, Mateo and Andy Kehler, the cheese is raw and tastes of their land in Greensboro, VT. The raw earth and grass come through in every bite of their Constant Bliss and Bayley Hazen Blue. With Frank Zappa playing in the barn the cows almost seem hipper than most. They seem to be “on the level”. With a new cheese cave expansion in the works this farm will allow more future artisan cheese makers a chance to take back the family farm.
www.jasperhillfarm.com
Elements
You may have spotted this restaurant on the National Geographic map of the Northeast Kingdom, and if so it’s there for a reason. Great local food, lots of good wine by the glass, a great chef who really knows what’s available and how to work with it. From the homemade bread to the mushrooms foraged by Chef Ryan O’Malley, Elements is the total package. Don’t be surprised to see people driving hours to dine in this converted mill. The restaurant is hip and could be in any big city, it just happens to be in our very own St. Johnsbury. The décor is modern with a bit of neighborhood bar and a slice of American farmhouse. If you’re looking for a trip head on up to St. J, the food can’t be beat.
www.elementsfood.com
