Summer Dining at the Farm
It’s always exciting when two of my passions come together in one place. In my life, good food and sustainable local farms are inseparable. You simply cannot have one without the other.
A few months ago, quite by accident Jim and I stumbled upon a small authentic Mexican Restaurant called Juanita’s Kitchen. We had been searching for authentic Mexican food for some time and had been unable to find a place we really loved. But on that warm summer afternoon, through google, we found it. All of the yelp reviews online seemed positive and I figured it would be worth a shot to see what the food was like. From the minute we walked in and saw the menu written on the blackboard I knew we were in the right place. We placed our order and sampled a variety of dishes that excited us. Our selections included, empanadas filled with chicken, beef and cheese, crispy fried tortilla chips with house made guacamole, and huevos rancheros that had the perfect balance of flavors. At the end of our fabulous meal the chef/owner herself, Juanita, came out to say hello and chat with us. I took that opportunity to ask her how she came to start her restaurant. She said that she and her husband had come to the US after an earthquake had destroyed everything, they had built in Mexico City. Determined to put her 5 kids through college, Juanita then become a nanny, a position she held for 25 years, as a way to put her kids through school. When that job ended, she began cooking her traditional Mexican recipes for her daughters’ friends. Over time her following grew and before she knew it, she had expanded to the point that she needed a building, that’s when Juanita’s Kitchen was born. Juanita’s is a relatively small restaurant complete with a children’s play area. The walls are brightly colored and the atmosphere upbeat. You can order meals either to stay or to go. The day we were there, her daughter Julissa was helping take orders in the front while her mother was cooking in the back with a few helping hands. Here is my favorite part about dining at Juanita’s, you can actually feel the love! It feels the same as the love my Italian grandmother put into her dishes for our family. That is simply, what sets her apart, there is no other way for me to describe it. As a patron you can feel the love emanating out of the kitchen and into the food on your plate.
At the end of our conversation Juanita mentioned she was catering a dinner at Glynwood Farm on August 10th and that we should go if we could.
It had already sold out on the website, but she said, “she could fit us in”. Lucky for us we were able to secure a few spots and I am so glad we did!
Our evening began with a variety of appetizers including cheese quesadillas with an avocado puree, sopes with a light green salsa, shaved radishes and shredded lettuces, vegan and cheese pinto bean puree with small pieces of bread for dipping and a fresh summer shrimp ceviche.
All of this set against the backdrop of rolling hills and farm animals grazing in the distance. The weather was the perfect summer day with very little humidity and lots of sunshine. After about an hour of enjoying the appetizers we moved to a long farm table along with 70 other guests to enjoy several more dishes served, family style. My personal favorites included the slow cooked lamb, cactus salad and of course rice and beans.
Along with enjoying all of the delicious food we heard from Kathleen Finlay, the president of Glynwood Center for Regional Food and Farming. Currently at the farm, they are working to secure government funding so that people on public assistance can have better access to the CSA program. It would work this way: The government funding would pay farmers upfront for the CSA shares and then families on assistance would pay back that fund over time. This initiative would make Glynwood the first CSA in the US to be able to provide low income families with access to fresh grown organic vegetables in this way.
It was truly a magical experience eating food prepared with such care in a place with such an important mission. Glynwood hosts monthly farm dinners throughout the year as a way to help subsidize many of their educational programs. They also are having their biggest yearly fundraising Gala event on September 7th. If you are interested in finding out more about Juanita’s Kitchen OR Glynwood Farm, please click on the links below. OR if you are have another farm in your area you currently work with, find out what events or dinners they offer. It is a great way to spend your money, time and energy helping to support your local community!
