RESTAURANTS WHICH SOURCE FROM LOCAL FARMS
WORDS BY KIMBERLY SUTA
Photo by Pharm Table
The chefs and restaurants that go above and beyond to source from local farms and ranches do so for a myriad of reasons, but generally, it’s because they care about the food they put on their plates and want it to be the best it can be.
Eating and buying local is about far more than the economic impact it has on the community, although that’s certainly a key factor. Without our independent restaurants, farms and ranches, we’d be living in a sea of homogenized franchises. But beyond that, it’s about flavor and freshness. It’s about our health. The moment produce is picked, it starts losing its freshness (measured in brix), which greatly impacts its nutritive value.
Some local farms, like Green Bexar Farm, practice regenerative farming, which supports soil health, something that also affects the quality of the food we eat. Sadly, our soil has been so depleted by over farming and poor growing practices that experts forecast we may have only 30 more years left before it’s completely spent. This is perhaps the most important reason to support local farms and ranches who do care about their soil, their animals and the food they grow.
Photo by Peaceful Pork
“We started farming because we saw there was a lack of good organic produce. We’re a non-traditional farm,” says Cody Scott of Green Bexar Farm. “We have a ten-acre pecan orchard where we practice agroforestry. We have a microclimate where we get shade, which helps with the heat. We also have greenhouses and rotate our crops. The way we treat the soil and our environment is directly correlated with how we treat our bodies. What you put in the soil ends up in you.”
Green Bexar Farm, which also offers a CSA, sells directly to Pharm Table and Pullman Market as well as The Farm Connection, which is a local wholesaler that supplies numerous local restaurants. They are growing everything from lettuces and other greens (including their own in-house salad mix) to cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers like habanadas (a milder habanero pepper), which are a rare find.
Pharm Table, an apothecary kitchen and restaurant, which incorporates Ayurvedic practices, tops our list of restaurants dedicated to sourcing ingredients locally and providing guests with the freshest, healthiest meals possible. Its globally-inspired menu includes dishes such as salmon escabechado, masala corn chaat, braided wagyu short rib with roasted root vegetables and rutabaga puree. It even offers healthy desserts like a pecan almond shortcake.
“We are a mission-driven restaurant and our focus is on beingpart of the solution to try and help heal people on the planet,” says Pharm Table chef and owner, Elizabeth Johnson. “People who are not cooking and sourcing this way aren’t thinking about the future. For me, it’s a non-negotiable. The only people that work harder than chefs are farmers, so we respect that and try to translate that to my team. We have a social responsibility to treat this product with the utmost care.”
Johnson procures the highest quality meat, produce and other products from numerous local and Texas farms including Pure Pastures (pork, beef and lamb), Garcia Street Urban Farm, Enchanted Garden, Cedar Ridge Egg Farm, and even the San Antonio Food Bank Farm at Mission San Juan. With the help of Stephen Lucke of Gardopia Gardens, Johnson even maintains a private garden that she grows for the restaurant.
Photo by Pharm Table
Another restaurant known for their impeccable, locally-sourced ingredients is Supper, located inside Hotel Emma at The Historic Pearl. Chef Ned Elliott is now at the helm of Supper and its new focus on serving premium steaks sourced from Texas farm, Beeman Ranch. They source everything from sweet corn to peppers and melons from over a dozen Texas farms in total, such as J&B, Gundermann Arches and Engel Farms.
“We just like to cook with the seasons,” says Elliott. “The fall menu launches mid-October and will feature fresh produce like cabbages, hard squashes and beets. It’s one of the fun things for me … to try and bring in new items for our cooks to work with, even if we’ll only have it on the menu for two weeks. It just energizes everybody.”
Peaceful Pork is one of my favorite local ranches that sells both directly to the public (through Farm Connection and Pulp Coffee) as well as to restaurants like Sanchos, Southerleigh and Cured. Peaceful Pork is a sixth generation ranch run by beloved owner, Loncito Cartwright. He produces a succulent variety of products, including ground pork, shoulder roasts, country-style ribs, breakfast sausage, chorizo, bacon, smoked ham and more.
“Everyone really loves him and Peaceful Pork. Loncito encourages chefs to use the best and teaches us how to use it. He also takes very good care of the animals. They’re raised very naturally and grass-fed in the open fields,” says chef and associate, Jessica Rivera, a self-titled meat lover.
Photo by Pharm Table
While the list is thankfully too long to include everyone in detail (and hopefully there are many more out there), please also support Rebelle, which sources from Grandma’s Garden; Mon Ami, Whiskey Cake, WC and Southwest Elixirs (which source from Gardopia Gardens); The Vineyard near Natural Bridge Caverns (which sources from 529 Meats); and Cappy’s, which sources local produce.
Our passion at Edible SA is to support and promote local and it doesn’t get any better than this!
About the Contributor
Kimberly A. Suta is editor of Edible San Antonio, a filmmaker, food writer, event planner, culinary tour guide and has a media company called Homegrown Chef. She loves nothing more than sharing the phenomenal food, chefs and restaurants that San Antonio and Texas have to offer.
