‘Grown in Monmouth’ Comes to Restaurants July 28 – Aug. 4

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By Bob Sacks

It’s written right there on our license plates, but did you ever stop to wonder how New Jersey, the most densely populated state in the U.S., got its nickname ‘The Garden State’?

Abraham Browning of Camden, who served as attorney general in 1876, is credited with saying, “Our Garden State is an immense barrel, filled with good things to eat and open at both ends, with Pennsylvanians grabbing from one end and New Yorkers from the other.”

Even with the loss of open farmland due to development and industrialization, Monmouth County is currently ranked No. 7 of the state’s counties in regard to the total amount of dedicated acres of farmland.

There’s a strong movement under way to preserve as much of that farmland as possible and to acquire more, if possible. Grown in Monmouth, a program by Monmouth County’s office of economic development, has enrolled about four dozen restaurants to participate in the first Grown in Monmouth Restaurant Week, July 28 to Aug. 4. The idea is to encourage chefs to create and serve dishes that feature ingredients grown in Monmouth County.

There are many area restaurants that promote farm-to-table and locavore and publicize that on their menus. Some of the Two River area restaurants participating in the Grown in Monmouth Restaurant Week are Angelica’s, Sea Bright; Apple Street Kitchen, Tinton Falls; B2 Bistro, Red Bank; Buona Sera, Red Bank; The Butcher’s Block, Long Branch; Danny’s Steakhouse, Red Bank; Drew’s Bayshore Bistro, Keyport; Graze, Little Silver; JBJ Soul Kitchen, Red Bank; The Melting Pot, Red Bank; Piccola Italia, Ocean Township; Semolina, Red Bank; Triumph Brewing, Red Bank; and Via 45, Red Bank.

Where are they sourcing these local ingredients? From some of these Monmouth County Farms which sell their own produce to restaurants and to the public: Battleview Orchards, Freehold; Delicious Orchards, Colts Neck; Eastmont Orchards, Colts Neck; Laurino Farms, Colts Neck; McCormack Farms, Middletown; Strawberry Hill Farm, Wall; and Wemrock Farms, Freehold.

If visiting any of the restaurants or your local favorite, ask if any of their dishes feature locally grown Monmouth County ingredients. You won’t get any fresher than that and at the same time, you’ll be helping to preserve the open farm spaces that make Monmouth County one of the more scenic and downright delicious places to live in The Garden State.