Wildflower Farms Partners With Gramercy Tavern Chef Michael Anthony For Farm To Table Culinary Experience

Wildflower Farms, Auberge Resorts Collection guests and Hudson Valley residents were in for a treat this past weekend when renowned Chef Michael Anthony brought his signature flavors and cooking style to the resort. Working with the hotel’s Executive Chef Rob Lawson, Friday and Saturday were a celebration of fresh and locally-sourced ingredients featuring two dinners and a cooking class. Helming New York City restaurant institution Gramercy Tavern, Anthony has always worked close with farmers and producers in the area making the event somewhat of a culinary homecoming.

The weekend started with an a la carte dinner where guests could select from a special menu for the evening showcasing the vegetable-forward dishes Gramercy Tavern is famous for. The tangela salad was a tasty winter appetizer featuring a variety of cooked root vegetables, gem lettuce and romano cheese. Anthony also served his beloved roasted carrots which were adorned with spiced nuts and yoghurt. Then the signature main dishes came out — roasted chicken and potato dumplings, sunchoke chowder with monkfish, and cauliflower and kabocha squash curry. Each dish highlighted the simple beauty of seasonal produce and farm-fresh ingredients.

If you couldn’t make it for this special weekend, the in-house menu of Clay helmed by Chef Rob Lawson is also absolutely worth a visit. The milk bread is a small work of art where each slice reveals an unexpected delicate tomato slice served with a miso butter that’s so rich you almost wouldn’t know it’s plant-based. The tangy tamarind lamb ribs are also a must. The ambiance at Clay is rustic meets chic, with warm lights illuminating the wood-clad room and a large fireplace as a focal point of the space.

For those who didn’t just want to eat Chef Anthony’s food but also wanted to learn more about how he cooks, there was an insightful cooking lesson to get to know his approach to food. Housed in the property’s Marigold event space, guests gathered as Anthony explained how he prepares and cooks vegetables and seafood. Onlookers had a chance to sample freshly-cut slivers of local trout on crackers while Anthony discussed that he would like to see the American consumer eat more local seafood, especially when there were so many tasty regional options like this one. Everyone had the chance to help prepare the dishes served for lunch and participants refined their peeling and chopping skills of vegetables such as celery root, kohlrabi and alliums.

During the demonstration Chef Anthony gave local farmers the floor to explain how they grow and harvest their produce. Living in a city, our refrigerators are filled with produce (or not, for those who always eat out) but we rarely question how vegetables grow. The cooking class wasn’t just about learning new techniques but also gaining insight into where food comes from. Chef Anthony also peppered the session with personal anecdotes from working in Japan, France and, of course, New York City. After everyone pitched in to prep, guests sat in a sunlight-filled room to enjoy celery root soup topped with hen of the wood mushrooms and kabocha squash bread with a note of curry.

Winter is an excellent time to visit Wildflower Farms as the warm cabin-style rooms and ubiquitous fireplaces create a perfectly cozy ambiance. The surrounding woods and abundance of trails are perfect for exploration. If you’re feeling chilly, it is upstate New York after all, the spa features a sauna and hot tub to warm you up. You can also unwind even further by selecting a Swedish or deep tissue massage in one of their treatment rooms to attain ultimate zen.

If you couldn’t make it to Wildflower Farms this past weekend, fear not, there will be many more culinary pop-ups coming to the property this year. Each season will bring a new look (think spring flowers, abundant summer greenery or color-changing fall leaves) and the menu will reflect the fresh local produce celebrating the farms of the Hudson Valley.