It doesn’t get any more “farm to table” than dinner this past Saturday night at Wyebrook Farm, a sprawling 300+ acre masterpiece of sustainable agriculture created by Dean Carlson. The farm prides itself on creating the best food and healthiest animals without artificial pesticides, fertilizers, herbicides, hormones, or antibiotics.
A tour of the picturesque Chester County venue led to
incredible, old stone buildings,
lush and gorgeous landscaping with fig trees, a small vineyard, flowers, and yards,
a market offering fresh meats, cheeses, and produce,
a café with fresh, organic menu offerings
a beautiful stone garden with plants, flowers, and herbs available for purchase
a pond,
grazing cattle,
snorting pigs,
a friendly farm cat,
and so many more nooks and crannies.
The place was incredible. As a wedding photographer, I couldn’t help but picture a breezy wedding with guests mingling at picnic tables and wandering around the grounds. The weather that night gave up streaming sunlight, unreal clouds, and a quick summer storm.
Jeffrey Miller led the operation which featured a five course snout-to-tail feast, a “paean to pork”. As is always the case when Jeffrey Miller Catering is involved, the presentation and execution were second to none.
Guests started with a beverage station that offered hibiscus iced tea and a Tipsy Arnold Palmer as well as passed hors d’ouevres of mini pork tongue tacos, stuffed roasted fingerling potatoes, and chicharron with pulled pork.
The dinner group was escorted inside the restored 19th century fieldstone barn that featured stone walls, exposed beamed ceiling, and long communal tables dotted with white hydrangea, mason jars, and burlap runners.
Check out the fantastic charcuterie display.
The five courses offered up
* smoked pork loin with grilled peach, honeycomb and chester county blue cheese
* salad of frisee with braised pigs ear and poached free range egg, lemon juice, olive oil
* pappardelle with pork shoulder in adobo sauce
* pork loin with oyster mushroom stuffing, summer squash, and a marsala demi
* house made epis
The porkfest was capped off with lemon and hazelnut ice creams topped with chocolate covered bacon.
I see that you’re salivating. Go ahead and clean yourself up; I’ll wait.
The evening was incredible. The venue, weather, food, and overall ambiance couldn’t be matched. Make a date of it and go to Wyebrook Farm. It really is that magical.
“It is vitally important that we can continue to say, with absolute conviction, that organic farming delivers the highest quality, best-tasting food, produced without artificial chemicals or genetic modification, and with respect for animal welfare and the environment, while helping to maintain the landscape and rural communities.”
~ Prince Charles
