9 Local Farms In Your Favorite Kitchens

You can find the bounty from our region’s fertile lands in farmer’s markets, stands, and grocery stores throughout the year. As conscious eaters, we can make sure our own kitchens are stocked with only the best ingredients. But so many Pittsburgh restaurants are equally, if not more, conscious of the food that they serve, and source their meat and produce from the region’s purest farms. Here are some of the top suppliers of the city’s restaurants — and a few of the restaurants who support them — leading by example of respectful, sustainable practice.

1. Churchview Farm — Pittsburgh, PA
An organic farm in the South Hills, Churchview is a third generation family farm that employs sustainable agriculture. Free of chemicals, pesticides, and herbicides, its bounty is present on plates all throughout the city. 

Restaurants: Root 174, Spoon, Casbah, Soba, Willow, Grit & Grace, Avenue B, Thin Man Sandwich Shop, Station, Dish Osteria, Coca Cafe, Independent Brewing Company, Smallman Galley

2. Elysian Fields Farm — Waynesburg, PA
Elysian Fields Farm’s purebred lamb is raised with care and respect, an attention to natural and humane methods at the center of their practice. The meat’s choice flavor — a favorite for many restaurants — reflects the happy, content life that the farmers ensure the lambs lead.

Restaurants: ELEVEN, Casbah, POROS, The Twisted Frenchmen, Spoon, Grit & Grace, Point Brugge, Mezzo, Willow, Cioppino, Savoy

3. Heritage Farm — Ridgway, PA
Heritage Farm supplies some of the best meat in the region. Grass-fed beef and lamb, forest forage-fed pork, and pastured poultry are products of its commitment to natural farming, and preserving the earth as it is. 

Restaurants: Casbah, Cure, Legume, The Vandal, Morcilla, The Supper Club, Bar Marco

4. Jubilee Hilltop Ranch — Bedford County, PA
Jubilee Hilltop Ranch raises its cattle to offer all of the health benefits of grass-fed beef, including vitamin E, omega-3 fatty acids, and beta-carotene. The Ace Hotel’s brand new Whitfield is heartily embracing the ranch and its delicious beef.

Restaurant: Whitfield

5. Jamison Farm — Latrobe, PA
The natural, free-range lambs and sheep on Jamison Farm appear in some of the city’s top restaurants — especially those with lamb specialties. Stay tuned for an exciting partnership with upcoming Block 292, a new sustainable market and restaurant coming soon to Mt. Lebanon.

Restaurants: Sonoma, Block 292, Whitfield, Legume, Poros

6. Emerald Valley Artisans — Scenery Hill, PA
Emerald Valley Artisans’ exquisite cheeses are produced without the use of added artifical hormones. Artfully and uniquely crafted, the variety of cheeses — feta, ricotta chiesi, and mozzarella are just a few — are excellent ingredients in some of the city’s gourmet dishes. Read more about the farm’s philosophies and successes here.

Restaurants: The Porch at Schenley, Altius, Bistro 19, The SpringHouse Country Market and Restaurant

7. Penn’s Corner Farm Alliance  — Pittsburgh, PA
More than just a farm, Penn’s Corner is an alliance of farms that connects farm-fresh food with local buyers. Many of the buyers include some of the city’s biggest restaurants, who relish the high quality of food and support the farmers and their practices.

Restaurants: Root 174, Senti, Soba, Casbah, Eleven, Kaya, The Porch at Schenley, Cure, Eden, Six Penn, Legume, Dish, Franktuary, Whitfield, Dinette, Bloomfield Station, Bar Marco, Prairie, Vivo, Thin Man Sandwich Shop, The Vandal, Morcilla, Stagioni, Avenue B

8. Yarnick’s Farm — Indiana, PA
“Fresh” is non negotiable at Yarnick’s Farm, where produce is sold in its market at peak ripeness, right after being picked. Hailed for its superior products, the farm recently won Eat’n Park Hospitality Group’s Award of Excellence, presented each year to an outstanding outside supplier.

Restaurants: Lidia’s Pittsburgh, Eat’n Park Hospitality Group

9. Ron Gargasz Certified Organic Farms — Volant, PA
Certified organic, grass-fed beef has been raised with care for 30 years at Ron Gargasz Certified Organic Farms. That means you won’t find anything genetically modified, artificial, or less than the best in this beef.

Restaurants: Legume, Sonoma