On Friday, April 26th, the Café at Wyebrook Farm, 150 Wyebrook Road, Honey Brook, Pennsylvania, opened for the season. The Café’s exciting new menu features sandwiches, salads and more, prepared using Wyebrook meat products, locally made cheese, and locally grown produce.
Guests will order through a barn window and then enjoy their meal in the barn’s courtyard area with picnic tables and panoramic views of the farm’s pastures. The café will be open Fridays from 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. and Saturdays & Sundays from 11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
“Spring is a great time of year at the farm and I’m thrilled to reopen our Café, where guests can see – and taste – for themselves what a difference sustainable farming makes,” notes Dean Carlson, a hands-on farmer who opened the 355-acre oasis of sustainable agriculture last spring after months of restoration. “Getting close to your food really allows you to appreciate the quality & freshness, and one of my greatest joys here at the farm is welcoming visitors who want to learn more about what they’re eating and why it’s important.”
Mr. Carlson has developed relationships with some of the area’s best chefs who serve his top quality meats at their restaurants. To help create the new café menu, he tapped two of the very best, Chef Josh Lawler of Philadelphia’s Farm and Fisherman and Chef Jonathan Adams, who most recently was with Wyebrook Chef Michael Baver to help implement the menu and oversee operations in the café.
New menu items at the café will include: Cheese Plate, a selection of three different local cheeses with dried fruit and candied pecans; Macaroni Salad with spring vegetables; Garden Salad with lettuce picked from the farm’s garden, pickled grapes, slices of Granny Smith apples, candied pecans, blue cheese crumble served with a whole grain mustard vinegar dressing; a selection of three Sliders, mini barbecued pulled pork sandwich with pickled cabbage, mini beef & bacon burger with a cherry bomb, and a mini beef burger topped with pickle, all served with a side of fries; Soft Shell Tacos, with choice of either chorizo or pork tongue, served three per order with a side of salsa verde; Open-Face Egg Salad Sandwich with wild watercress and side of fries; House-Made Sausage Sandwich with sautéed peppers and onions, broccoli rabe, and side of fries; Pulled Pork Sandwich, braised pork shoulder smothered in barbecue sauce with mixed vegetables and side of fries; and Wyebrook Burger, topped with a mix of garden fresh lettuce, pickled cherry tomato, house-made pickles, an onion ring, and side of fries.
In addition, Mr. Carlson has expanded the offerings at the Farm Market, which occupies the top floor of the barn and is stocked with a seasonal array of Wyebrook beef, pork and poultry, as well as produce, cheese, and other fine products from neighboring farms and local purveyors.
Guests are encouraged to stop by for a meal, enjoy a tour of the farm on Mr. Carlson’s hay-bed truck (at 12:00 noon, 2:00 p.m., and 4:00 p.m. on Saturdays & Sundays) and purchase meat, eggs, cheese, produce, and more from Wyebrook and other area farms.
Mr. Carlson’s cows, pigs, and chickens thrive in a free-range environment without the use of pesticides, antibiotics, or growth hormones. Cattle, breeds, including Devon and Red Angus, live on a diet of grass and legumes, and Carlson evaluates their rib eye for superior quality using an ultrasound machine. Pigs, including Ossabaw, Old Spot, Berkshire, and Tamworth, are bred for their skill at foraging and incomparable taste, resulting in more flavorful pork that bears little resemblance to what is raised on industrial farms. Wyebrook chickens live almost their entire lives on pasture with portable houses that are moved daily to fresh grass.
Wyebrook Farm offerings change throughout the year, based on availability, with the best interests of the animals and their environment in mind. Featured selections, as determined by the natural constraints of traditional farming, include everything from just-laid eggs to a wide variety of meats, including popular cuts such as rib steak, New York strip, pork chops, and chicken breasts, as well as specialty cuts such as oxtail, pig’s ear, and chicken liver.
Since Mr. Carlson purchased Wyebrook Farm in March 2010, he has worked on extensive renovations to the property’s stone houses and barns. He also initiated several eco-conscious improvements to the buildings and farm equipment. Today, the formerly foreclosed land, once slated for a 100 plus house residential development, is a vibrant example of how grassroots agriculture can re-energize a community and lead the way for residents and visitors alike to make healthier choices in their diets.
For more information about the Café at Wyebrook Farm, please call (610) 942-7481 or visit www.wyebrookfarm.com.
Bon Appétit!
TAD
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