Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Farm to Table

Its been a while and I'm sorry for that but the holidays were extra busy and extra frantic this year. There was travel, parties, cooking, hosting and attending all within a mere 31 days. That did not leave me much time for blogging. However, throughout all the madness I was fervently thinking of my next topic. 

Since its the new year, I bet many of you have renewed interest in your health and well being. Maybe some resolutions to remove processed food from your diet? What about fake sugars? Or refined sugars? Its easier said than done especially when these types of foods are an integral part of your diet. But now is the time to make the changes. If not now, when?

When making food choices at home, its easier to control what goes on your table. You know where you get your meat from (at least I do), your eggs and produce. But what about when you eat out? Are you making conscious choices in your restaurants? Do you ask the chef where they procured their meat? I would bet no. And that is because I never did either. I always put eating out in a separate category from my "green" lifestyle. I felt that it was a treat and who really cares where the food comes from or how its cooked. As long as it tastes good, right? Well, not really.....

All the E.coli and salmonella outbreaks of 2010 have me pretty weary of any large scale operation, even restaurants. I have never been one for fast food so we are not even talking Micky D's or Taco Bell. I'm speaking more about sit down restaurants from the cheap eats to the upscale reservations only type. Many of these establishments use less than acceptable quality meat, poultry and produce. Its pretty rare that you would even think to ask where this food came from. I once asked the waiter at Chops if they served grass fed beef and he looked at me like I just landed here from Pluto. Why bother, I thought and just ordered the lobster.

Well there are solutions to this diet dilemma and if you really care about what you eat and want to keep your cheating to a minimum then start looking into farm to table restaurants. They are gaining in popularity as the desire for locally grown has increased. What's even better is that these restaurants are keeping the small local farmer in business. I know this first hand as I wait in line at my farmers market to buy my milk and eggs. Chad sells dozens and dozens of eggs to these small entrepreneurs who value his commitment to organic sustainable farming. Its great to see and makes me want to eat at these restaurants.

For those who are interested in such places, I have put together a small list of some farm to table restaurants here in the Atlanta area (ITP). I will add more as I find them. Its worth checking one out the next time you decide to make reservations. You will be doing your body good as well as the environment and we all know how fabulous that is!

ATLANTA
Dynamic Dish - Edgewood
Radial Cafe - Candler Park
The Shed at Glenwood
Miller Union
Farmburger - Decatur (grass fed burgers)
Cakes and Ale - Decatur
Parish - Inman Park


NYC AREA
The Farm on Adderley - Flatbush Brooklyn
Blue Hill - Greenwich Village
The Green Table - Meatpacking/Chelsea
Back Forty - East Village
ABC Kitchen - Flatiron
MAS Farmhouse - West Village

Happy Eating for the New Year!

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