26 | VIPDestinMagazine.com
T
he restaurant industry—or, more
accurately, the food industry as a whole—
has undergone a shift in focus, a desire
to know that ingredients are not only the highest
in quality, but also the freshest and the purest. We
want to know what’s in the foods that we’re eating
and where it came from. We want its timeline and
lifeline tracked from start to fi nish.
From seed to spoon.
From farm to fork.
From dirt to dish.
We want to know its pedigree—where it was
raised, what it ate (or didn’t), what extra curricular
activities it enjoyed. When we order a steak, we
want to know that before Bessie
became dinner, she was a local gal;
and that, should we have taken it
upon ourselves to gambol about a
nearby cattle farm, we might have
made her acquaintance.
It’s not a case of snobbery but
rather than a concern for the bigger
issues: the impact our food supply makes on the
environment as well as the way that what we’re
feeding our faces affects our bodies. We want to
know that our fi sh has been caught in local waters
and was still enjoying the good life until a few
hours ago and that our fried chicken habit is not
loading our systems with harmful chemicals and
hormones.
We want our food to do more than just taste
good—we want it to be good. And for that reason,
we’ve turned our attention to the local farms and
fi sheries that can feed our hunger with products
that feed the local economy, reduce environmental
impact, and cut down on waste.
“I believe that the whole concept of farm to
table cuisine refl ects a sense of pride and passion
that we take in our work and really instills a sense
of community and connection within the food
industry,” says Tyler Jarvis, founder and operating
partner of Jackacuda’s and Brotula’s restaurants.
“Having the opportunity to meet the farmers,
see their practices, and learn their philosophies
on their crops and animals helps ensure that
the product we are receiving is of the highest
quality and handled properly,” he continues.
“As a restaurant owner or chef, that’s extremely
important because it allows you to fully showcase
your talents and knowledge of these amazingly
fresh ingredients and turn them
into memorable experiences for
the guests. When we’re creating
our signature items, it’s paramount
to us that we have the freshest
produce available to complement
our amazing local Gulf seafood—
and the plate of food that results
Purity
on the
Plate
story by
Liesel Schmidt
26-27 CoastalCuisine.indd 1
4/24/17 11:02 AM