A few weeks ago, I attended a wonderful dinner at a long table on an animal Farm on a warm summer night in Langley. This unique dinner featured farmers from the Langley area who supplied all the ingredients for Chef Adrian Beatty to create this wonderful local feast. At the long table members of the media were seated next to farmers and other food producers and this gave us a great opportunity to learn more about the farmers and hear their stories.

Appetizers:

Honey Barbq Central Park Farms pulled pork sliders with charred slaw on a fresh baked brioche bun

Main Dishes:

Central Park Farms pork and herb biscuits with whipped pork butter

True Grit Farm Salad with fresh herb vinaigrette

BC Buzz honey-glazed Central Park Farms non-GMO chicken, slow roasted over coals

Central Park Farms pork platter: Trading Post Brewing stout-brined ham, house-made beer sausage, bacon stout jam

True Grit Farms seasonal vegetables

Dessert:

Central Park Farms Lard-Crusted Fruit Pies with Candied Bacon Ice Cream.

Located in beautiful south Langley, Central Park Farms has a goal of helping their community make ethical and sustainable food choices. Specializing in non-GMO fed pasture raised chicken, pasture raised pork, grass fed beef, and farm fresh eggs from pasture raised hens, it’s all about making sure the animals are raised in a positive environment.

Believing in transparency over certifications, they open the farm doors and let consumers see exactly where their food comes from, how it’s raised, and who the farmers are behind it all. Growing from farm stand sales to farmer’s markets, Central Park Farms has become a favourite of top chefs and restaurants throughout the Lower Mainland.

True Grit Farm is owned and operated by Gaby Naranjo and Ashlee Brillert. Their main focus is to provide restaurants with high-quality microgreens grown using organic practices. In addition to microgreens, they grow a modest amount of mixed field vegetables for their CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program and their restaurants, and they raise a small amount of lamb.

This was a great way to meet some of the farmers in the Langley areaa as well as the products they produce, it is a great chance to see where our food comes from and it’s all pretty much a 45 minute drive from Vancouver.

By: Richard Wolak