Finding local, sustainable food can be challenging, especially in the winter months when fresh produce might not be available in your area. Luckily, there are resources to finding places abundant with sustainable foods.
I recently came across a website called the Eat Well Guide. The Eat Well Guide is a search engine for sustainable food sources. You simply type in your location and what kind of food you want, and it produces a list of restaurants, farmers markets, and stores where you can find what you are looking for. The Eat Well Guide personally vets every business before it goes on the Guide to ensure that the food available there meets their standards.
I used the Eat Well Guide to find new places in Rochester to check out. Here are just a few places listed on the guide:
- The Small World Bakery– Fresh milled, locally grown, organic grain makes tasty whole grain flavored breads, bagels, cookies and other sweets. They also offer milled flour and gluten free breads.
- The Owl House– The Owl House specializes in fresh, made-from-scratch New American food prepared with ingredients sourced from local providers whenever possible. The Owl House menu also includes an uncommonly large selection of vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free dishes. Discerning beer drinkers will be pleased with The Owl House’s selection of 12 draught lines and over 20 bottles of specialty beers, each carefully chosen from local, national and international craft breweries.
- Lento– Lento is committed to encouraging “green” thinking. The restaurant focuses on using local, sustainable, organic, biodynamic, and seasonal foods for a minimal impact on the environment. Lento follows the great Alice Walters ideas of seasonality.
- Lori’s Natural Foods Center– The goal of the store is to provide the community with wholesome food, minimally processed and containing no unnecessary preservatives or dyes. The store carries foods for individuals with food sensitivities, including wheat free, gluten free, low sodium, sugar free and dairy free. Lori’s support local organic farmers and tries to increase consumer awareness about sustainable agriculture.
- Green Hut– At Green Hut you can find healthy food including bulk, personal care, cleaning and supplement products. There are natural and organic foods for people who are vegetarians, vegan, lactose intolerant, gluten intolerant or just interested in being healthier in various ways. The store also has supplements, personal care products, cleaning products, and compostable items, and books all with minimal packaging.
To find more “green” stores through the Eat Well Guide, simply type in your location in the search engine and browse the results!
Written by Alyssa Lemire, Class of 2017