Outstanding In The Field (OITF) is a traveling feast that organizes farmers, chefs, ranchers, cheese makers, fishermen, winemakers, foragers, and the people they sustain around a communal meal in order to celebrate and better understand the group effort required to produce a quality dinning experience. OITF has been at it for over 15 years now, visiting all 50 states and organizing more than 600 dinners, each one focusing on a particular farm and locale.Recently OITF visited Even Star Farm, where our friend Bret Grohsgal helped host a lucky bunch of diners who had the chance to check out his beautiful farm and then dine in the tranquil landscape. Black Restaurant Group Chef Mallory Buford and Chef Danny Wells of Takoma Park restaurant favorite, Republic, lead the way in the pop-up kitchen producing savory meals using local ingredients like wild bluefish, War Shore Clams, and a bevy of Bret's most delectable produce. Local producers such as Chapel Hill Farms, Pipe Dreams Fromage, Black Ankle Vineyards, One Eight Distilling, Denizens, 38 Degree Oysters, Black Rock Orchard, and Locust Grove also pitched in to make the evening under the dimming sun one to relish. If you missed this event, you can follow up with OITF through their website to find out more information about future events. If you want to taste more of Bret's produce, you can visit Republic restaurant in Takoma Park, MD, where Danny can take you on a virtual tour of the Chesapeake in just a few delicious plates.
