This week I am lucky enough to get away for a bit and travel through Vermont, and while I don’t have a new recipe to share (boo!), I do have a neat restaurant review with a great story (yeah!). As you may have guessed from the picture above, the name of the restaurant is The Farmers Diner and it is located in Quechee, Vermont.

Quechee is a small town located on the well traveled Route 4 that connects the I-89 to the ski region of central Vermont. It is impossible to visit the area without checking out Quechee’s claim to fame, the Quechee Gorge, or Vermont’s little grand canyon. Becoming equally famous is the Farmers Diner, with reviews in USA Today, The New York Times, NPR, and Grist Magazine. For a restaurant garnering so much praise and notoriety you would think it was something fancy, but the Farmers Diner menu offers typical diner fare with an important twist: the majority of the ingredients are local, seasonal and natural.

The man behind the Farmers Diner vision is Todd Murphy, who created the diner (and its sister company, Vermont Smoke & Cure) as a way to market directly to his customers and create a sustainable local economy. In an age where small family farms are being run out by giant agri-business (with help from the U.S. government), many farmers are looking for alternative ways to keep their farm and way of life alive. The Farmers Diner buys directly from the source (local farmers) and cuts out the middlemen (usually giant corporations like Sysco). With this model, farmers get a better price for their labor, the restaurant gets higher quality products and the customers get fresh, healthier food that has a soul and a story. Everyone wins.

After being on the road for a couple of days I was thrilled to sit down for breakfast without any worries of factory-farmed eggs that drizzle out of a carton or bread that was filled with preservatives and shipped across the country. Instead, I chose from a menu that emphasized a local bakery, local egg farm, local meat sources and local seasonal vegetables. Or, as they put it at the Farmers Diner, “food from here.” From my nervous but friendly waiter (I think it was his first job) I selected the Hash & Eggs, and for $8.50 I enjoyed a tasty, satisfying and local meal.

Not only is the Farmers Diner serving local products and helping to create a sustainable local economy, but it is also acting as a great ambassador to the local foods and organic movement. I often worry that advocating for local and organic foods rubs people the wrong way, smacking of elitism. The bottom line is organic, local food costs more than conventional processed food and with many people on a tight budget, these foods seem like a luxury rather than a necessity. However, studies show that local, organic foods are nutritionally superior, better for the earth, and strengthen local economies. In other words, they are a much, much better product. As the saying goes, you get what you pay for. At the Farmers Diner, you pay a fair price for food produced in the best possible way, starting from the field and ending on your fork. I hope to see more diners like this on the road in the future!

I am back next week with more stories from Vermont and a few Vermont-inspired recipes. All the Best!! Sue

Tagged as: local food, restaurants, vermont

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