Page Reader AI | Fresh from R.I.’s shores and fields, the Farm Coast offers a bounty of local food

Fresh from R.I.’s shores and fields, the Farm Coast offers a bounty of local food

The article highlights the flourishing Farm Coast region of Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts, showcasing several restaurants and markets that prioritize locally sourced ingredients.

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Little Moss

Little Moss may illustrate the most emblematic manifestation of the “Farm Coast” name. Led by chef-owner Lisa Lofberg along with her husband John, the contemporary, cozy restaurant is tucked in the heart of Padanaram Village in South Dartmouth, a postcard perfect coastal enclave. The longtime locavore has celebrated the yield of local farms and fishermen since opening the restaurant a decade ago, crafting Little Moss’s menu daily based on what’s in season and in stock; the majority of what you’ll find on your plate grown, caught, raised or harvested within a 30-mile radius. Lofberg said it’s the region’s abundance that inspired the restaurant’s concept and philosophy. “I get so spoiled here. There’s just amazing farms everywhere that you can just go grab produce so easily, and we just want to support that in our community,” she said. “It tastes amazing, it’s healthier and it’s just so special.”

Padanaram Oysters harvested just steps from the restaurant, cheese from Sweet & Salty Farm, fungi from Hillside Mushrooms, dairy from Arruda’s Dairy Farm, pasture-raised chicken from Copicut Farm, beef from Rhody Butcher, cut flowers from Little State Flower Co. and Weatherlow Farms, herbs and produce from Skinny Dip Farm and Ivory Silo Farm, tomatoes, cucumbers, root vegetables and lettuces from Wishing Stone Farm; carrots, sunchokes, and zucchini from Gidley Farm, and regional chefs’ favorite, Eva’s Garden, are just some regular purveyors.

This time of year, Lofberg said she’s eager to dive into the riches of the coming seasonal harvests. And while the menu typically has housemade pastas, fresh local fish and shellfish, a burger and often a duck dish of some sort, vegetables never cease to inspire.

“I do love vegetable dishes, that’s probably my favorite thing — just seeing what I can do with just vegetables to make them special and different,” she said.

Farm & Coast Market

Across the street, Farm & Coast Market has revealed the first phase of an extensive renovation to increase its footprint — and offerings — ahead of the busy summer season. The restaurant-meets-marketplace-meets-prepared foods emporium will debut with roomier, better defined spaces for their whole animal butchery, cheese and charcuterie counter, coffee and fresh baked goods section, smoothie menu, wine shop, and dining area with more a proper restaurant vibe.

“When we first started, we were supposed to be just a cafe,” said Jody Cote, general manager and a South Coast native. “You were just going to go to the counter, get a cup of coffee and a muffin maybe, and sit down. Quickly, we learned that that wasn’t just what Padanaram Village wanted.” Since opening in 2016, the market has become the de facto culinary heart of the village; the kind of place where local kids home from college take a summer job and friends and neighbors discuss headlines over morning joe.

Despite the changes, Cote promised stalwart favorites; crispy thin crust pizzas (with from scratch dough and sauce) and poke bowls, plus heartier dishes like house-ground meatballs, will remain the same. Championing area purveyors of everything from honey and eggs to produce and fresh-cut flowers, the market also makes its own label ice cream and quickly empties out of daily breads baked by neighboring Little Moss (both establishments are owned by members of the Lofberg family).

Cote expects customers to be pleased with expanded prepared food offerings, including housemade pasta, pointing out the house-ground Italian sausage, sweet sausage, and hot sausage. While Farm & Coast’s one-size-fits-all approach makes it a natural go-to, the fact is, they churn out solid dishes. Cote touted a new supper menu (early supper, as they close by 7 p.m.) that will showcase the spoils of the region. She added, “You get a hamburger at Farm & Coast, it’s from a fresh, local cow that we have gotten in that we are cutting, grinding and making the burger for you.”

Groundswell Cafe & Bakery

Groundswell has lured those with an affinity for languishing with a latte in aesthetically stimulating spaces since it opened in Tiverton, but the cafe’s offerings are anything but surface level. Executive Pastry Chef Mia Dobies, a Johnson & Wales grad, has perfected pillowy buttery croissants, muffins and scones, but Groundswell’s heartier dishes equally deliver. Inspired by French cafe dining, the croque monsieur and the from-scratch quiche Lorraine are staples, but seasonal specials here are worth departing for stalwart favorites. Springtime’s addition of the duck fat potato and bacon bowl is a delight of duck fat poached fingerling potatoes, sautéed asparagus, roasted pearl onions, crisp bacon lardons, and roasted garlic aioli topped with a sunny side up egg and edible flower petals.

“The Farm Coast is a rare juxtaposition of a serene coastal community and beautiful farmland. It’s a testament to natural beauty and the hard working individuals that bring local ingredients to our tables,” said Groundswell’s owner, David Fierabend.

Westport Sea Farms

Come opening day on May 23, lunch and dinner patrons will return to Westport Sea Farms on Westport Point to seat themselves at simple picnic tables and feast on oysters harvested just hours before. Oyster farmer Kerian Fennelly grows his Riptide-branded oysters a stone’s throw away in the East Branch of the Westport River using a methodology designed after the Australian “flip-bag process” in which oysters are aggressively tumbled in a mesh bag as they grow to yield deep cups.

Unlike widely distributed Riptides, Fennelly’s Taber Points are exclusively sold at Westport Sea Farms. Bottom-planted on the river, Taber Points have a minerally, umami-rich flavor. “They’re a more robust, earthy oyster. People who are foodies go nuts for them,” said Kristin Fennelly, who started Westport Sea Farms with her husband in 2009.

But their most coveted are the Beach Plums, grown 10 feet below the ocean’s surface 45-minutes offshore. “We sell an astronomical amount of them nationwide,” said Fennelly. “There’s only a handful of ocean raised oysters in the United States — it’s bigger overseas, like in New Zealand and Australia. In my opinion, it makes a phenomenal oyster. They’re really clean and they’re really briny because of being in full salinity all the time.”

The restaurant’s menu includes clam chowder and a lobster roll brimming with meat tossed in a lemon-chive mayo, heaped on a toasted seasoned bun (or get it “naked,” sans mayo and served with warm seasoned butter made with paprika, parsley and garlic on the side). This season, the restaurant will add a menu of frozen cocktails (daiquiris, margaritas, a Dark n’ Stormy and more) in addition to the wine and beer offerings. Kids will likely gravitate toward the Rhode Island Saugy Dog, while the takeout crowd can get lobster roll kits or lobster meat by the cup or quart. Plan ahead to book a tour of the oyster farm aboard their Navy whaleboat, scheduled every Friday of the summer at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

The Commons Restaurant

Despite being for sale for the past year, The Commons Restaurant (better known to locals as The Commons Lunch) continues its 58-year legacy. A fixture on Little Compton’s town common, the weathered, cedar shingle-style, cash-only eatery is known for diner-style favorites, mostly all made from scratch.

Comfy booths and plenty of tables are available, but belly up to the formica counter and perch yourself on a swivel stool for an even more nostalgic experience. Clam cakes, fish and chips, a stack of fluffy pancakes, are all reliables, but it’d be a crime to miss out on their authentic Johnny cakes, served at breakfast. Light and thin with crispy edges and a hint of cornmeal grit, savoring this uniquely Rhode Island delicacy at The Commons feels like a step back in time.

Boat House

Rising above the Sakonnet River in the shadow of the Mount Hope Bridge, the Boat House in Tiverton has become a pillar of the Farm Coast’s dining scene over the past two decades. Executive chef Marissa Lo, a Johnson & Wales University alum, has been at the helm for nearly six years of the restaurant’s two decades. She crafts seasonal, seafood-centric menus that bring local catches to the forefront, including Breakwater Oyster Company oysters from neighboring Portsmouth, Narragansett littlenecks, wild caught scallops from off Point Judith, and once summer hits, locally caught tuna, striped bass, flounder, Jonah crab, fluke, haddock, and cod.

For still-cool spring days, the restaurant delivers a solid New England clam chowder, but the “Hall of Fame” chowder is an outlier; its red broth base elevated by mildly spicy chorizo, Maine shrimp and sweet corn topped with a corn bread crumble. Though part of the Newport Restaurant Group, which has more than a dozen restaurants throughout Rhode Island and Massachusetts, the Boat House maintains a close-knit community feel.

As the Farm Coast shakes off the quietest time of year and reenergizes with the promise of New England’s most abundant seasons on the horizon, so do the flavors of the region, bringing with it a little more attention than in the past. “I would say [the Farm Coast] has been off the radar for a long time, and it does seem like people are discovering it for whatever reason,” Lofberg said. “I feel like in the past few years, people have just become more interested in food and seeking out food. It’s more important to people than it was before, but yeah, I do feel like this area is becoming more known.”