Lettuces at East Hampton Farmers Market
The story of Invisible Green at the Mill House Inn started with an earlier blog post. Now let’s talk about supporting green initiatives. It’s one thing to say you will be green. It’s another thing altogether when you sign a pledge to let your supplier select and deliver the best local products every time you place an order. And that is exactly what Chef Carolyn did with Baldor, one of our favorite vendors.
Edible East End tells the story of this trendsetting food purveyor. Vendors like Baldor and Sid Wainer are the ties that bind the growers to the end-users. We place our trust in these vendors and their promise to care for the planet.
Our Promise
We promise to feed you the very best the East End has to offer.
Many small farms wish to be organic. Unfortunately, some lack the resources necessary to comply with the high cost of certification. They are unable to abide by a set of rules that change often and, by design, benefit big agriculture. These farms are already using sustainable, chemical-free methods of farming.
In that spirit, we research and visit the small growers and support their efforts.
News From the Farm
Green Means Healthy!
Eat well and live long honestly means just that, stay healthy. As chefs, we promise to do our part in helping keep you well.
Green is all in the details – some are almost invisible!
- Our menu is designed to reflect local, fresh, green and healthy.
- Our vendors design their products with you in mind, REALLY just ask Chef.
- 90% of our food is local within 150 miles, most is zip code hyper-local.
- 100% of food waste is composted back to the farm.
- 0% is the amount of food waste we work to achieve every day.
- Just-in-time delivery minimizes freezers, coolers and energy use.
- Smart ordering prevents trucks from running almost empty.
What’s on our really bad list?
- Foods that have ingredients we can not pronounce
- White sugar, white flour, and artificial anything
- Everything that requires excessive packaging or delivery methods
- Junk food and soda
What do we do in-house that’s on the really good list?
- Our water is filtered and bottled in-house: High ph – low free radicals
- 7-stage reverse osmosis – uv – re-mineralized – alkaline
- Water is bottled in sterilized medical quality glass bottles
- The result is the best H2O with the lowest carbon footprint
- The bubbly variety is made using Soda Stream
We make all our Great Tasting beverages in-house:
- Plain and sparkling water
- Local, fruit flavored iced tea
- Seasonal lemonade
- Key limeade
- Real green juice
- True, cold brewed coffee
All our Snacks are – Local & Healthy:
- Kale and fruit chips – just flavor, not sugar and salt
- Fresh air popped popcorn
- Local ice cream
- Local cheeses
A Trip to Maine Re-Imagines our Vision of Hyper-Local
Several years back Sylvia and I visited with our friend Costas Christ and his wife Sally in Harborside Maine. While enjoying dinner and a few bottles of wine, my green education was instantly expanded.
This evening re-defined my take on hyperlocal; most of our food came from Costas’s farm and his friend Eliot’s who lived down the road. That would be Eliot Coleman of Four Season Farm, a nationally recognized model of small-scale sustainable agriculture. This is what Dan Barber had to say about Eliot!
Costas shared a story and his theory on finding local food. “Once we arrived in Maine, it took a few years to locally source the best of everything. Each new farmer proved to be an essential guide in the journey. All of a sudden we had a family of farmers. fishermen and makers. We were eating local and living sustainably from land and water.” We can all learn from this lesson in truly being green. Thank you Costas.
Greenhouse at Four Season Farm
Lagniappe [lan-yap]: Cajun for a little something extra
Thank you for taking the time to follow my story. Every week I will add an extra link to my articles, one that I hope is worth a few moments of your time.
This week, watch the comedic style of John Oliver as he comments on food waste. It’s a very scary, true story.
Please send me your thoughts, a picture, or a question. We invite you to come experience invisible green with us. Call us or email us to book your stay.
It’s been my pleasure,
– Gary
Fruits and Vegetables at East Hampton Farm Stands
