A Taste of Farm-to-Table Dining in Connecticut
an array of lettuces, hand-picked strawber- ries and blueberries, colorful peppers and eggplant, and succulent corn on the cob… you can’t beat it if it’s local. And what’s even more exciting for me, as I love to eat out, is that I’m seeing more and more restaurants offering farm-to-table menus. Even better is that the reason these chefs are choosing these menus is because they want to use local foods and produce. Not only does it taste better than something that’s been trucked for thousands of miles, but it’s also more sustainable and it supports our local farms. So, Natural Nutmeg hit the road this month to check out and interview some of the best farm-to-table restaurants in the state. We couldn’t get to all of them, so some are just listed at the end of this article for your reference. If you live in the Farmington Valley
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you’ve got a few amazing choices. From Papacelle Ristorante in Avon to Farm Res- taurant in the Avon Old Farms Hotel to the Mill at 2T in Tariffville, you’ll find delicious and unique options on the menu. If you live and/or work in downtown Hartford, stop by The Market at Hartford 21, the first urban grocery store in the city that offers local foods prepared daily. And if you live down- state, try the Good News Café or Zeeburger in Woodbury where Carole Peck has been dishing up farm-to-table cuisine long before it was popular!
ome of my favorite things about sum- mer are the fresh fruits and vegetables right off the farm. Heirloom tomatoes,
Our first stop took us to Papacelle Ris-
torante owned by Dave, Adam and Mama Pianka and located in Riverdale Farms in Avon. Their philosophy, inspired by Dave’s grandfather who owned a hotel and restau- rant in Napoli, is to take what you have and make something with it while being true to the ingredients. All his dishes have only 3-4 ingredients and every item is made in-house. “In Italy, we have different dishes based on what kinds of foods are available depend- ing on the season, so I brought this idea to our restaurant says Pianka.” Their principle regarding cooking is down-to-earth…keep it fresh, keep it local, keep it simple. They visit local farms scouring for the best ingredients weekly, which allows them to be creative and offer an ever-changing menu. One of the most unique things about Papacelle’s menu is that it’s recently changed to an ala carte style where you can mix and match your en- trée by choosing a meat, pasta and vegetable and basically customize your entire meal. And Dave is always looking for ways to take classic dishes and make them healthier. My favorite item on the menu…the grilled romaine, which we featured in the April issue of Natural Nutmeg. A spin-off from the traditional Caesar salad, Dave adds garlic, vinegar and olive oil to the Romaine and lightly tosses it on a wood fired grill. Another dish you won’t want to miss is the cavatelli (which literally melts in your mouth) with braised rabbit, carrots and broccoli. And you can enjoy your amazing meal on their patio with a beautiful view of Avon Mountain. Visit
www.papacelle.com.
A short drive down the road brought us
to Farm Restaurant in the Avon Old Farms Hotel. Under the direction of Chefs Carl and Ian Rynecki, the mission is to provide the finest refined farm cuisine as possible by utilizing free-range, humanely raised beef and fowl; sustainable seafood, both wild and farmed; and certified organic produce sourced exclusively from Jude Hollow Farm. In fact, Jude Hollow actually lays out their beds specifically to the chefs’ requests so that they can plan their menu in advance based on what produce is being grown. This also allows them to be creative and change the menu every few days so there’s always something new and fresh to choose to tempt your palate. Chef Ian, originally from Sims- bury, traveled throughout the country refin- ing his talent at many different restaurants before settling at Farm. He calls the cuisine here “refined rustic food” and his goal is to take one item and pair it with what naturally goes well with it – but, typically it’s not what you would expect! For example, my favorite item on the menu…local day boat scallops with braised short ribs (that will melt in your mouth) and cauliflower puree. It’s not often you see seafood paired with beef (other than filet mignon) on a menu but it definitely works and the combination is absolutely delicious. Instead of mashed potatoes, he chooses a cauliflower puree that gives the il- lusion of a starch and is quite tasty. His next spin on the traditional for summer…a classic New England lobster roll – but with pickled red onion, mayo and hot smoked paprika – can’t wait to try that!
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