Farm-to-table restaurants are growing in popularity, and there are many of them to choose from in L.A. No matter what type of cuisine, diners like these restaurants are finding ways to serve them all.
Manhattan House is an Italian gastropub where chef Juan Torres cooks with ingredients that are always grown at farms in the area. The meat is chosen by hand and butchered on the farm where it was kept. Many community gardens provide the restaurant’s vegetables and fruit. The only thing that is created on the premises is the sourdough bread.
Family owned and run restaurant Forage is a hotspot for lunch among L.A. residents. The restaurant works with those who maintain gardens at home. Each garden owner is guided through the task of processing their goods to be sold to the public. With a cafeteria-style approach used to serve meals, patrons place their orders at the hot counter. Its menu includes vegetables and other side dishes and protein bowls, with different flavor combinations offered each day. Other items on the menu include macaroni & cheese, kale salad, and their famous pork belly sandwich.
Malibu Farm was built out of one woman’s passion for growing her own ingredients on her farm and garden. Though the personal garden was the sole source of ingredients initially, the restaurant now gets much of its ingredients from food producers that live and work in the area. Individual ingredients are known for coming from the owner’s personal garden, including eggs, Asian pears, and persimmons.
Salt’s Cure makes it a point to obtain ingredients from various parts of California. The meat served is butchered and crafted on the grounds of the restaurant. They rely on local fishers for all of their seafood. Other ingredients they need are all purchased from the many farmers’ markets and individual farmers that produce all year round.
Some farm-to-table restaurants even use local ingredients to make their drinks. One of them is Akasha. The restaurant serves wine, beer, and cocktails, all of which rely on local wineries, breweries, and distilleries. Ingredients used in the restaurant’s dishes are all purchase at nearby farmers’ markets. The ingredients bought every week determine what dishes are on the menu.