Top 5 Farm-to-Table Restaurants in NYC

Though the idea of healthy eating is nothing new, only recently have restaurant-goers become conscientious of not only what they are eating, but the source of their food as well. As people have become more concerned about their food being environmentally friendly, they have started seeking out restaurants serving locally grown and unprocessed foods. The result: a surge in popularity for farm-to-table restaurants. Now that they are all the rage, dozens are popping up around New York City. Here are the top five:

1. ABC Kitchen
35 E 18th St, New York, NY 10003 / (212) 475-5829

Presenting a seasonal menu that is locally focused and globally artistic, ABC Kitchen cultivates a healthy relationship between their dishes and the planet. Headed by Michelin-starred chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, the restaurant serves award-winning cuisine with a menu free of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, insecticides, antibiotics, hormones and GMOs. All ingredients are naturally and humanely sourced from regional farmers and fair trade cooperatives to celebrate and support local producers.

2. Blue Hill
75 Washington Pl, New York, NY 10011 / (212) 539-1776

Opened in 2000 and located in Greenwich Village just off of Washington Square Park, Blue Hill is a veteran among farm-to-table restaurants. Showcasing local food and a wine list with producers that respect artisanal techniques, the restaurant gets its ingredients from nearby farms, including Blue Hill Farm in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, and Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, which is about a 45-minute drive from New York City. Guests can choose from the regular menu or opt in to the “Farmer’s Feast,” a five-course tasting featuring the week’s harvest.

3. Back Forty
190 Avenue B #1, New York, NY 10009 / (212) 219-8570
70 Prince St, New York, NY 10012 / (212) 388-1990

Back Forty oozes Americana. With two locations featuring family style cuisine, both restaurants preach organically and responsibly sourced food. Among Back Forty’s specialties are crab broils that are served every Tuesday night. Crab broil tickets go for $74 and run out fast, so be sure to sign up a few weeks in advance. Seatings take place every half hour between 6:30 and 8:30 and last for up to two hours. The event includes spiced crabs, stone ground cornbread, corn on the cob, boiled new potatoes, string beans, fruit cobbler and pitchers of craft beer.

4. Telepan
72 W 69th St, New York, NY 10023 / (212) 580-4300

Featuring high-end New American style cuisine, Telepan serves up the very best and freshest of seasonal foods paired with hand-picked and reasonably priced wines. Headed by acclaimed chef Bill Telepan, the restaurant caters to dining enthusiasts with a taste for an ever-changing seasonal menu. With a vibrant interplay of textures and tastes, the dishes combine flavor with flair.

5. Mas (farmhouse)
39 Downing Street New York, NY 10014 / (212) 255-1790

Mas (farmhouse) showcases simple yet elegant New American cuisine blended with modern French flavors, all the while honoring classical cooking techniques. Prepared using locally grown and sustainably raised foods, the dishes at Mas (farmhouse) feature ingredients from small organic sustainable farming operations just outside of New York City. Trained in France, winner of the James Beard award in 2001, and a firm believer in the adage that a dish is only as good as its ingredients, head chef Galen Zamarra changes the menu daily and always uses what is in season.