Fine Farm Dining Around The World Slideshow
Blue Hill at Stone Barns, New York
Blue Hill opened in 2004 at Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture and has steadily served unforgettable meals to New Yorkers and visitors alike. That the center incorporates a working farm and education center on-site is evident even in the menu, which isnt a menu at all. A server provides a list of seasonal ingredients theyre offering at that time, which will be used to create your meal.
Finca Narbona, Carmelo, Uruguay
More than three hours from Montevideo, Carmelo, Uruguay, offers both consummate luxury in the form of a Four Seasons Hotel and a real taste of the local countryside at Finca Narbona. It is a working farm that was built around an agricultural estate founded in 1732, with a hotel (two antique-furnished rooms), a winery, cheese-producing dairy, and a small restaurant with a fixed menu serving food and drink produced exclusively on the property.
Le Garzette, Venice, Italy
Right on the Lido, where youd least expect it, youll find Le Garzette a lagoon farm growing fresh vegetables and raising animals for use in the restaurant. Complete with a five-room bed-and-breakfast, Le Garzette may be off-the-beaten-path, but it books tables for dinner well in advance.
Hackney City Farm, London
Hackney City Farm is a laid-back, rustic farm where animals are raised and vegetables grown within just a short metro ride from central London. With a heavy focus on education, the grounds host school groups and families for activities and farm projects. But their Frizzante Caf is a huge draw in itself, with fresh, homemade dishes like rabbit terrine, pappardelle with pork ragu, and steamed trout.
Shelburne Farms, Burlington, Vermont
A National Historic Landmark, Shelburne Farms is a beloved and oft-visited working farm that produces and sells their famous farmhouse Cheddar, preserves, maple syrup, and meats like bacon and sausage. The farm also has an inn and restaurant where guests education on the organic, seasonal, farm-to-table way continues with dishes like Cheddar flatbreads, butternut squash risotto, and Shelburne Farms beef.
La Chassagnette, Arles, France
Few places are as perfect as Arles for a lengthy, rambling Provençal dinner on a farm. Rich with history, Arles is quiet and charming, and is home to the Michelin-starred La Chassagnette. Guests can stroll through an organic garden peeking at ingredients to be used in their dinner, which is likely to be served on the terrace outside.
Rust en Vrede, Stellenbosch, South Africa
South African President Nelson Mandela once called on Rust en Vrede to serve the Nobel Peace Prize dinner, which should convince any fence-sitter that its many merits are sincere and that a meal on their sprawling wine farm in Stellenbosch would be unforgettable. Their wine, herbs, and vegetables are produced on-site, while meats are sourced from their property in the Kalahari Desert.
Masseria Barbera, Puglia, Italy
Producing honey, cured olives, olive oil, ricotta, salumi, cured vegetables, and wine is a major focus of the small team at Masseria Barbera, in the idyllic Italian countryside. Dinners there, though, are more romantic. Warm weather allows for dining on the terrace and, while their fresh and seasonal dishes are the draw, make sure to save room for their prized desserts.
Eigensinn Farm, Singhampton, Canada
Hidden in the Canadian countryside, about a two and a half hours drive from Toronto, one of Canadas most lauded chefs is tucked away on Eigensinn Farm with his wife and kids, serving meals to about a dozen lucky diners each night. They grow their own vegetables, raise livestock, and cook seasonal, sensational meals that consistently blow away any guest that makes the trek.
L’Enclume, Cartmel, England
Michelin-starred and constantly in search of using local ingredients in healthful cuisine, LEnclume is tucked away in Cartmel, in Englands Lake District. Undeniably rustic, the restaurant and rooms attached absorb their farm surroundings in dishes like vintage potatoes with onion ashes, carrot sacks with juniper and cress, and Potted Bessy Beck trout with radish and fresh cream, and in the quiet, modern luxury of the rooms upstairs.