Page 69 - South Mississippi Living - May, 2018

ORGANICALLY GROWN tomato plant from P&J Nursery.
false impression that what they’re selling is fresh. If pressed, they could not tell you when the produce was picked.
There are a few local restaurants that are farm and Gulf to table, and do the best they can to buy the best, freshest foods. At the top of the list is White Pillars in Biloxi. Chef Austin Sumrall insists that everything he buys is local and fresh. If eggplant is not in season, then eggplant Josephine is not on the menu.
Chef Alex Perry of Vestige in Ocean Springs is also a devotee of locally grown foods. He buys at the Ocean Springs Fresh Market (Saturday morning) and from a few local farms, such as Dale Stevens’ heritage breed hog farm, Sand Ridge. Chef David Dickensauge of C&C Italian Bistro in Bay Saint Louis is very serious about buying the best quality foods possible. His mushrooms come from Shroomdom Inc,
a field-to-forest organic mushroom farm outside of Poplarville (open to the public).
The casinos also get into the act. The Beau Rivage Casino and Resort buys
from local farms when they can, and even overnight some New England seafood
LOCALLY GROWN lemon grass.
to their restaurants for freshness. The IP does the same, and Thirty-Two, their flagship fine dining restaurant,
is in the game in a big way.
There are other restaurants that are farm to table to varying degrees; these are just a few examples.
Farm and Gulf to table is a
great idea and it’s exciting
to see better quality foods
becoming available to everyone.
But there is a down side (isn’t there always?). Locally grown and organic foods are significantly more expensive. If you’re on a budget, then this is a lifestyle that is going to be difficult to take on. But it isn’t impossible. Reduce the amount of protein you eat, make stews and soups that can
be delicious and hearty, but relatively inexpensive.
One last tip: when you’re buying veggies and fruits, smell them first. Fresh and locally grown is almost always better, but food generally tastes like what it smells. If that heirloom tomato has no smell at all, it’s probably not a good deal.
LOCALLY GROWN mushrooms from Shroomdom Inc.
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