In this time of uncertainty, organizations who traditionally work on behalf of the food industry—the James Beard Foundation, The Jacques Pépin Foundation, Southern Smoke, and the LEE Initiative to name but a few—have ramped up into crisis mode to provide support for the millions of America’s restaurant workers. Meanwhile the chef-led Independent Restaurant Coalition formed almost overnight to lobby in D.C. on behalf of the industry.
And one needn’t look far to find smaller and scrappier fundraising efforts on the local level—bars and restaurants around the country have set up GoFundMe’s in an effort to support out-of-work staff (here’s non-comprehensive list compiled by spirits professional Michael Toscano; shared with permission). A group of beverage and tech professionals in Chattanooga recently built ServiceIndustry.Tips, a website for bar patrons drinking at home to tip their local bartenders at random—a sort of “tip roulette”. Since its launch, the site has added multiple cities nationwide, including Chicago, Denver, Charleston, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and New York City.
But back in our homes, the socially-isolated masses find ourselves relying on understaffed and understocked grocery stores, Instacart, and Amazon for provisions.
While some restaurants are still offering delivery service or even setting up shop as makeshift retail operations, wholesale orders are dwindling to a trickle. Producers and small local vendors (think butchers, cheesemongers, and fishermen) are finding themselves up the creek. And so, as financial instability creeps across the entire food supply chain, it’s now more essential than ever that we direct our purchasing power straight to those small businesses.
We here at Saveur implore you: support our independent food suppliers. Here’s how.
Under ordinary circumstances, The Good Food Foundation—a nonprofit with close ties to Slow Food—works to empower and promote American producers who are making foods that are “tasty, authentic and responsible... in order to humanize and reform our American food culture.” This week, the Foundation published an extensive list of websites through which consumers can order directly from producers, many of whom are offering free shipping and discounts during this uncertain time. We encourage you to peruse this list and consider placing some orders if you’re able.
For other options, check your favorite makers’ websites and social feeds to find out how they’re making their wares available. I recently ordered a box of goodies directly from Wasik’s Cheese Shop—the family run shop that more or less jettisoned me into a career in food and which is now shipping their cheese and other goods nationally.
So is Murray’s Cheese in New York. While not exactly small (Murray’s was purchased by the large grocery chain Kroger in 2017), the company stocks an impressive selection of cheese and products from small farms, which are often unable to shoulder the burden of national shipping on their own. For those quarantining with family or roommates and looking for a culinary activity, Murray’s also recently launched Virtual Cheese classes. Participants can register and pay for the class in advance and are then shipped an assortment of cheeses and accompaniments to feed a group of four. Before the class, participants receive a tasting sheet, a guide for setting up the cheese board, and a link to the live-streamed class led by a Murray’s cheese expert.
Another New York institution, Zucker’s Bagels (which donates 250,000 bagels a year year to hungry New Yorkers through The Bowery Mission), is also still shipping nationwide for people craving a classic bagel and lox.
My go-to neighborhood butcher, Dickson’s in Chelsea Market, is shipping throughout New York City while national meat purveyors D’Artagnan, Snake River Farms, Rastelli’s and Heritage Foods are available across the country, too.
For those looking to up their intake of zinc-rich shellfish, cool-kid oyster company Island Creek ships their own and other Massachusetts-grown oysters (as well as caviar and tinned conservas) nationally; they are offering special prices on delivery this week.
For fresh-caught Pacific seafood, including several sashimi-grade varieties, The Honolulu Fish Co., is an excellent source. The Hawaii-based distributor has, until now, focused on supplying the American restaurant industry, but in response to so many of those businesses shutting down, they have shifted gears to better serve the home delivery market.
And If you are interested in using the extra time at home to master that complicated curry or pain d’épices, independent spice purveyors Spicewalla and Burlap and Barrel, both of which rely heavily on the restaurant business, are here to keep us all from slipping into that looming dry bean depression.