Most Chattanoogans are well aware of the importance of supporting local enterprises. But how many consider the significance of restaurants offering fresh, flavorful, mouth-watering meals made from foods and ingredients grown right here in the southeast corner of Tennessee?
Many of the city’s restaurateurs are supporting local agriculture and promoting a healthier environment by offering the freshest, brightest flavors for hungry patrons. Thanks to our temperate Tennessee climate, many food items grow and thrive here - juicy red strawberries, fragrant basil, meaty heirloom tomatoes, and even lean, flavorful bison - and Chattanooga restaurants are taking advantage of it.
212 Market
Searching for a two-course dinner that packs a punch of local flavor? 212 Market offers their Bison Rib-eye with chimichurri butter, roasted corn mashed potatoes, glazed baby carrots and Yin-Yang Tart as a taste of Tennessee summer.
This meal is truly bred of inspiration via local ingredients. The rich, flavorful bison rib-eye is a product of Flintstone’s Eagles Rest Ranch, the corn and potatoes of Signal Mountain Farm, and the carrots of Williams Island Farm. For the chimichurri, 212 Market grows parsley, garlic and oregano in its own garden. To follow, the Yin-Yang Tart highlights Wildcrafter’s Emporium’s red and golden raspberries, grown in Chickamauga, Georgia.
An 18-year veteran of Chattanooga’s fine-dining community, 212 Market, owned by Susan, Sally and Maggie Moses, also prides itself on being Tennessee’s first Certified Green Restaurant. In addition to participating in recycling, composting and energy-efficient practices, as a Green Restaurant, 212 Market buys from over 20 local vendors and artisans, offering not only produce and meats, but also locally-made cheeses and even beer. For a satisfied palate and conscience, look no further than 212 Market for your next on-the-town lunch or dinner.
Alleia
Following in the robust local-foods tradition of sister restaurants St. John’s and St. John’s Meeting Place, Alleia takes the same ingredient-driven approach to cuisine, but concentrates on Italian style and flavor. Chef and owner Daniel Lindley offers a simple, direct analysis of his approach, “All of my restaurants strive to serve food of the highest quality. We must start with the best ingredients in order to do so.”
Alleia’s House-Made Conchigle Pasta with Sequatchie Cove Farm’s sausage and Crabtree Farms’ Sungold tomatoes and zucchini offers a tasty crystallization of this philosophy. Warmed in a cream-based sauce and finished with Wildwood Farm’s fresh basil and mint, the dish highlights Alleia’s commitment to offering the finest local ingredients while supporting the local farms.
The Blue Plate
With their modern take on the traditional diner, The Blue Plate has also employed a modern take on traditional comfort fare. Their Blue Plate Summertime BLT—featuring Niedlov’s Breadworks’ pan bread, Benton’s hickory-smoked country bacon, Happy Valley Farm’s hydroponic lettuce, Mayfield Farm’s heirloom tomatoes, and a flavored mayonnaise made with free-range eggs from River Ridge Farms—offers a fresh taste of seasonal flavor and exemplifies owner Rob Gentry’s philosophy of “supporting the local economy that supports The Blue Plate.”
In addition to backing local farmers, The Blue Plate utilizes the goods of community food artisans, including baked goods from Bluff View Bakery and Niedlov’s Breadworks, Aretha Frankenstein’s pancake mix, Cold Stone Creamery ice cream, and Stone Cup Roasting Company coffee.
Canyon Grill
Canyon Grill’s commitment to local foods isn’t simply demonstrated in which farms they purchase from, but in what products they grow on-site in their restaurant gardens. Yellow squash, okra, corn, blueberries, sweet basil, French tarragon, giant dill, flat leaf parsley, and Better Boy tomatoes are farmed by the restaurant itself.
Karen Haygood, owner of Canyon Grill, says customers begin calling in early July to inquire as to whether Tomato Mozzarella, which features the Better Boys, is yet on the menu. The dish, served as a salad or appetizer, pairs the juicy fruits with fresh mozzarella, robust extra virgin olive oil, fresh-cracked black pepper, coarse salt, and restaurant-grown basil. “The acidic mountain soil produces a uniquely rich tomato taste,” she explains.
Lupi’s Pizza Pies
Lupi’s Pizza Pies is proof that a restaurant needn’t offer refined fare to support local farmers. Owner Dorris Shober offers four reasons for choosing local produce and meats for her bright, folksy pizza shops: to take advantage of their superior quality and flavor; to support local farmers and the local economy; to reduce miles in shipment and make strides toward a healthier environment; and to ensure safe, healthy products for her customers.
Lupi’s Meaty Lasagna utilizes a host of local foods to fashion an outstanding result, including 100 percent local meats from Sequatchie Cove Farm and River Ridge Farm, and a sauce with local basil and oregano from Jay’s Garden Variety and Flying Turtle Farm.
Seasonally, Lupi’s also purchases roma and grape tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and even flowers locally for a hometown inspired ambiance. For their whole wheat dough and sundried honey French salad dressing, Lupi’s buys honey from Sale Creek Honey Company.
St. John’s
Restaurant/Meeting Place
St. John’s Chef Daniel Lindley is celebrating his ninth year as a James Beard Foundation semifinalist for Best Chef in the Southeast. This success is, no doubt, founded in Lindley’s commitment to utilizing local farm goods as the basis for his cuisine.
Lindley doesn’t just fit local foods into an already-existing menu concept; he builds his menu around these items. Locally-raised meats are featured year-round, including beef and pork from Sequatchie Cove Farm, lamb and chicken from River Ridge Farm, and buffalo from Eagles Rest Ranch. Additionally, local seasonal produce includes root vegetables, greens, bok choy, kale, Jerusalem artichokes, squashes, melons, kohlrabi, corn and over 100 pounds of heirloom tomatoes weekly during the summer season.
Many of those tomatoes are featured in the Wildwood Farms’ Heirloom Tomato Salad with Parmesan Soufflé, Opal Basil, and Sherry Vinaigrette. The parmesan soufflé, which is served hot, is the perfect accompaniment for the fresh tomatoes, while the sherry vinaigrette provides ideal acidic balance.
Table 2
Tropicana, Red Fire and Tango leaf lettuces, juicy blackberries, pine nuts, goat cheese and crispy duck dressed in a Tennessee strawberry and balsamic vinaigrette: embedded within this and every dish, a diner can sense Table 2’s enthusiasm for both their local farm purveyors and the specialty varieties that these purveyors produce.
Sous Chef Joe Mears has an extra-special affection for the tomatoes grown by Burns Best Farms of Ringgold, Georgia. “This man and his wife have perfected their craft,” he says. “I relish the moments when he drives up to our place, opens his hatchback, and lets me sample the Green Grapes, Lemon Drops, Sun Drops, and Matt’s Wild Cherries.” In addition, Burns grows both Japanese Chocolate Truffle tomatoes and, Mears’ favorite, the meaty Kellogg’s Breakfast.