June 21st, 2012
evaatprosserfarm

Picnics in the park

Okay, folks, the elusive unicorn, the seasonal narwhal, the one-who-shall-not-be-named, SUMMER IN SEATTLE is officially upon us.  Now, granted, we all know better than to call this spade a spade before July 5th, but the soil in Prosser is hot enough to burn your paws, and rose consumption is officially up by 375% according to our very scientific surveys of patios all over town.  So, let’s just roll with it.

At Tom Douglas Restaurants, summers mean the kickoff to a series of events that are very near and dear to our heart—Salmon-Chanted Evenings in Victor Steinbrueck Park.  This series of dinners is an effort to raise funds for Seattle parks and Recreation, in hopes of maintaining beautiful, safe, downtown community spaces.  In its third year, this series is gradually becoming a downtown tradition, and we would love to see you there. 

For anyone who cares about our city parks, who wants to show our best side to visitors, or just wants to get a plateful of beautiful food, including whole grilled salmon, Tom’s green beans and potato and collard salad, and Dahlia Bakery blueberry crisp, we want to extend the invitation to join us in support of this wonderful cause.

Tickets are available here: http://tomdouglas.com/calendar.php?calendar_id=20

We hope to see you down at the waterfront!

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About Prosser Farm
In 2006, Tom Douglas and his wife and business partner, Jackie Cross, bought a house with a little acreage in Prosser, Washington, in the lower Yakima Valley. The farm is 2½ hours east of Seattle, right smack in the middle of Washington wine country—and conveniently right next door to their pals and Chinook Winery winemakers, Kay and Clay.

At the time of the purchase, the chefs in Tom and Jackie’s joints were already using everything local they could get their hands on--whole pigs and lambs, handmade cheeses, foraged mushrooms, and Washington wines—but the new Prosser Farm would represent a commitment to narrowing the gap between the land, its producers, and the restaurants, all the while continuing to educate their chefs about the effort dedicated to creating the best, from seed to table.

Today, Jackie runs the roost as Farmer-in-Chief, with indispensable help from her Dad, Jim, who built all the raised beds, and her Dad’s wife, Sharon, who works the farm daily with a team of dedicated support staff, including a stellar team of women from the Prosser area who are now returning for their third season. The farm is managed by the ever-creative and zealous Dev Patel—a chef who continues to wow us with both his dedication to the careful selection of tomato varietals in the field and the clearest tomato water on the table.

After a few years struggling with the new farm’s learning curve, the first big year of production was in 2010. On average, 2,400 pounds of produce a week during growing season is trucked in from the farm for distribution to all the Tom Douglas Restaurants. Mellow green garlic, perfect beet greens, baby rainbow chard leaves, beautiful crisp heads of lolla rossa, and lush bunches of spicy red and white radishes are generally the first to show up in our restaurant kitchens. Later in the season, the Seattle-bound truck is filled with sweet apricots, ripe heirloom tomatoes, and a small mountain of spicy peppers and eggplants, irrigated by the Cascade Mountains’ snow-melt and ripened in the hot Eastern Washington sunshine.

Dev and Jackie work closely with the chefs when choosing which crops to plant each year, learning every season more and more about what produce works best for which menu. From the late spring until early fall, the fruits and vegetables from Prosser appear everywhere on our menus--from the tomatoes in Lola’s Greek salad to the roasted peppers on Serious Pie’s pizza to the chard in Dezi’s Meatless Monday creations at palace Kitchen. Many of our chefs have started canning and preserving in order to keep Prosser Farm produce on their winter menus.

It is our goal at Prosser Farm to continue to learn, to continue to grow, and to deliver deliciousness, served with graciousness, from our fields to your plate. Let’s eat!

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