Farm Fresh

This all began in 1971 when Alice Waters opened Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California. Cited as one of the most influential figures in food in the past 50 years, Waters has been called the mother of American food. Following in the footsteps of this farm-to-table pioneer are many southern Rhode Island chefs including Matthew McCartney from Jamestown Fish, who sums it up nicely:

“Before, we were living in this homogenous world where everything was available to us at any time and in any season,” he says. “Farm to table was the only option. I am very happy to see that we are waking up to the fact that there is something to be said for being close to your food source and for eating with the seasons. These foods should be nutritionally better, fresher and more cost effective.

“The unfortunate truth is that close to home does not always mean better or less expensive, which is something I need to consider as a restaurateur when making a choice,” he adds. “I have a responsibility to my customers to serve delicious food because we eat with our taste buds as well as our hearts and minds. I must also consider price. If the greatest apple on the planet is grown a mile down the road but is wildly cost prohibitive, is it worth it to me or the customer?

“Seasonality is something we have to learn in this country because on any given day you can find almost anything in your grocery store, unlike Europe, where I learned about seasonality. I remember working at Cibreo in Florence where the market was right across the street from the kitchen. There was one merchant, Cecco, who was ‘the guy’ for certain things at certain times of the year, such as artichokes and porcini mushrooms. When either of these things were in season, he had his whole booth stacked eight feet high with cases upon cases of perfect purple artichokes or freshly picked porcini. When they were there, they were in season; when they weren't there, they were done. The difference is that in Italy everyone knows the seasons and would not dream of looking for a fresh porcini out of season because it has been that way their whole lives.

“Italy is blessed with a perfect climate, while here in New England we need to be realistic. It’s cold, and certain things are going to have to travel unless we are content eating from our root cellar from November until May. What we must do is think about it and do our best to make what we feel is the right decision for ourselves, our businesses and our customers.”