When someone asks you what’s the best meal you ever had in your life, what would you say?
When I think of the best meal of my life I recall a few restaurants that stand out in my mind. I remember dishes where I resisted humming “mmm” and remarking, “this is SO good” after each bite. I could rattle off a list of restaurants that make my top experiences. I even was interviewed once on what my last meal in Brooklyn would be, and I responded a chef’s tasting at one of the top restaurants a few blocks from me. Then I discovered Blue Hill at Stone Barms and this is by far the best meal I ever had.
What makes Blue Hill unique from any other restaurant is that it’s truly a farm-to-table restaurant because it’s THEIR farm(s). Everything you eat is pure, fresh, organic, natural, sustainable, eco-friendly and as a result, creative.
They own two locations: one being downtown in Manhattan and one about an hour north of Brooklyn at one of their two farms (the other located in Great Barrington, MA). The hubby and I ventured out to the latter for our 5 year wedding anniversary. It took 60 days advance notice for our reservations and having to reschedule a couple of times due to my unpredictable life as a freelancer, but it was worth the wait.
Farm-to-table food and knowing where your food is sourced from is not a new dining concept of course. Even Porlandia satirized this. The way Blue Hill’s founder, head chef and heir to the Barber family farm, Dan Barber, runs his restaurant is unique to any other. Guests are encouraged to explore the grounds, visit the animals and greenhouses and also catch a glimpse at how the kitchen / staff work.
The staff was incredibly knowledgeable about what was in harvest and how everything was grown. The food itself was not just as it seemed. Every tiny dish was well thought out, but made especially for what the farmers picked that day. I can’t even count how many dishes we had in one night, but it was impressive how each was a gem. It’s no wonder why this place is considered to some the best restaurant in New York, if not the whole country.
We arrived about an hour and a half prior to our reservation to wander the well manicured grounds. Even though I’m a vegetarian, I was pleasantly surprised to see how well the animals were kept, to the point where I actually questioned my 20-plus-year vegetarianism when the meat dishes were placed in front of the hubby.
After roaming the farm on our own, we spent the rest of our time before our meal with a cocktail at their bar. I chose a refreshing radish and vodka mixture, while the hubby didn’t get what he ordered, but he didn’t complain. I was even envious of whatever he had that included some gin, fruit and vegetable mixture, because it was as smooth as fresh juice without the taste of gin.
The hostess then brought us to our table in the main dining room, where they seated us on the same side, facing the action. We were handed a souvenier of a “field guide” with the crops that were grown and served by season. The main server asked about our dietary preferences/restrictions and I let him know that I’m pescatarian but have a severe shellfish allergy—which didn’t seem to be an issue there. The hubby is gluten-free but didn’t mention it because they make all of their own bread and it doesn’t contain the super-gluten that affects most allergies.
Almost immediately the servers came out one after the other placing dishes in front of us, pointing out the ingredients or sometimes a few word description. “The Rose Family,” was all that was said as a petri dish of rose colored water, berries and flowers was placed in front of each of us. It was hard for us to not burst out laughing at the absurdity of that, but the taste of what looked like decor made up for it.
I wasn’t able to photograph what I ate and share with you (professional photography is not allowed at this upscale dining room), but some of the standout dishes that night were:
-“Needles in the hay”, which was literally a bowl of hay and 4 insanely tasty but tiny cheese sticks to find in the dish. It was so hard to find that the server nearly cleared it before we found them.
-A plank of wood with fresh garden veggies through a row of nails. Each one made us say something along the lines of, wow, that’s how a tomato should taste.
-Charcoal tempura cucumbers
-vegetarian beet sashimi with wasabi
-fresh brioche with airy ricotta and their own honey to dip with
-a ceramic cone placed on our table with fresh blueberries tumbling out upon lifting it
-risotto with mushrooms and pea shoots
-warm chocolate cherry bread
-every meat dish, according to the hubby
At one point the server told us we were going on a field trip and escorted us to a romantic private room beyond the kitchen and bakery (which you can kind of see the opening of behind Josh in this picture above), or I should say what we thought was romantic until he informed us it is formerly the manure room. Now it’s their vegan compost room, where they use the waste of their produce to create fertilizer for the farm. Additionally they use the heat of the compost breaking down to sous vide some ingredients, including an egg shredded right in front of us in this room over potato pizza.
The server also explained that the heat of the compost is directed through an underground pipe and sent to a mini-greenhouse in the wall in front of us, where they grew vegetables like Nasturtiums, which are peppery green leaves like arugula, but I had never heard of. He let us try one straight from this room. After I remarked I had never seen this before, he ran to the kitchen to grab their edible flowers for us try.
This may have been the best meal of my life, but also probably the most expensive as well. Some may scoff at the price, but I definitely felt like I got my money’s worth after this 6 or so hour experience. It got to the point where the hubby and I were hoping the waiters wouldn’t come out with yet another dish because we were so stuffed.
I would like to say I’ll definitely be back for another meal, especially now that our waiter said winter was his favorite time. The kitchen has been pickling vegetables since January and they get even more creative during the times with less available to them. Maybe it will have to be for our 10 year—or at the very least for their $7 cup coffee and a stroll around the farm.
Parker dress(via Rent The Runway. Get $30 off here) // Banana Republic shoes (c/o) // Chloe bag // Gorjana bracelets (c/o)
On Josh: Banana Republic jacket // Lands’ End Canvas pants // Paul Smith belt and shoes