July 27, 2011

Hope and Olive- Greenfield

When I first walked in to Hope and Olive, I was greeted by a blackboard advertising the names of all the local farms that sell to the restaurant. Clearly, I thought, supporting local agriculture is not simply an afterthought for a restaurant like this—it is the very core of their operation.
Jim Zaccara, his sister Maggie Zaccara, and Evelyn Wulfkuhle, opened Greenfield’s Hope and Olive in September of 2007. From the very beginning, they were committed to sustaining their values of good, quality food and community by offering seasonal dishes made with local ingredients. 
“We do have a reputation as being ‘farm to table’ in our approach to the menus, and people respond really well to this,” said Jim. “Some are even okay with the occasional bug in their salad greens because they appreciate that it was cut and delivered so recently that the little sucker is still alive!”


For Jim, buying locally is a no-brainer. When I asked him why he chose to run his restaurant this way, he responded, “Why not? We live here in the Pioneer Valley. It's not the longest growing season, but it is one of the most farm-rich regions in New England.”
            As the blackboard shows, the list of farms that Hope and Olive supports is impressive and includes Old Friends Farm of Amherst, Red Fire Farm of Granby, Mapleline Farm of Hadley, Clarkdale Farm of Deerfield, and The Kitchen Garden Farm of Sunderland among others. Hope and Olive also buys from local beverage vendors like West County Cider, Harmony Springs Beverages, Green River Ambrosia, and Katalyst Kombucha.
           "[It is] Evelyn who buys all the produce and is the primary contact for our farmers," Jim added.

            One thing that I found distinguishes Hope and Olive from other locally focused restaurants is its commitment not simply to farms, but to the community as a whole. The restaurant hosts two events throughout the year that help contribute to the notion of community-local agriculture.  
“The first is our Free Soup & Game Night,” Jim explained. “We use our food and donations from other locally oriented cafes and restaurants to benefit different non-profits and social organizations throughout the year. The other is The Free Harvest Supper [which is] the premier community organized celebration of local food and economy.  It is a meal for up to 1000 [people] on the common in Greenfield, and Hope & Olive and Magpie produce most of the food for the meal.”
“I think that our association with these two ongoing events helps continually establish us as a community center, as well as constant participant in the localvore movement,” he added.
Jim spoke of the challenges in maintaining such a model, mentioning that it is hard to “find farmers that are good at what they do, as well as being able to deliver clean, consistent products. It can really be a challenge to pay a farmer substantially more money for product that is dirty, full of bugs, and delivered in the middle of dinner.”
Clearly, a restaurant such as Hope and Olive puts a lot at stake by placing their trust in local farms. But the benefits substantially outweigh the challenges. Among these, Jim particularly reiterated the importance of keeping the money in the community and the value of fostering close relationships with the people who produce the food they buy. “There is something wonderful about knowing the people who handle our food,” he said. “These people are our friends and customers.”
            And Jim has seen progress in the way in which the community has begun to respond to and appreciate efforts towards localism.
“Over the past decade, via CISA and Pioneer Valley Local First, customers’ awareness of the quality and economic impact has really changed,” he said.

Buying locally certainly affects taste, and the incredible tastes Hope and Olive’s chefs cultivate manifest on the restaurant’s creative and ever-evolving menu. 
“We do two summer menus,” Jim explained, “One in late May, including asparagus and strawberries, for instance, and another feature ingredients such as corn and tomatoes, which we just started in mid July.”
            So what should you order if you decide to dine at Hope and Olive in the latter months of summer? You might want to try the Kale Salad with kale and scallions from Atlas Farm and carrots, beets, and radishes from The Kitchen Garden. You can also order the Vegetable Curry again, but don't expect it to be exactly as you remember it in May; the vegetable constantly changes based on what’s in season. (“Right now eggplant and zucchini are coming in locally,” said Jim). The meal is made additionally delicious with paneer and yogurt from Ashfield’s Sidehill Farm. 

Some other delectable dishes:
Orange and Beet Salad
Roasted Eggplant with Beets, Cucumber, Tomato
Vegetable Curry 

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