Food

A close up of small tomatoes on a vine and bundles of radishes.

Food Forward: The Elm City’s Food Scene

Discovering all of the ways to engage with food in New Haven is one of the most exciting parts of getting to know the city. Beyond the delicious restaurants that source from sustainable farms and suppliers, there are many ways to get involved in the community and grow your own food, shop at the farmers’ market, and dig down into the New Haven food scene. Learn more about growing, buying, and eating below.

Growing

Community gardensA close up on a raised bed with sprouting green seedlings.

Community gardens are places where different people each have their own garden plot in a large area. Each person is responsible for their own plot and takes home all the produce they grow. Request a place to garden at the New Haven Land Trust.

Planting your own garden

Interested in planting your own vegetables outside of a community garden? You should start by testing the soil. Here are directions to get your soil tested.

  • If your soil is contaminated, don’t worry! You can still plant fruits and vegetables in raised beds.
  • Do you want to build your own raised bed? Learn how to build a raised garden bed, and reach out with any questions to Make Haven, a local makerspace in New Haven.
  • Don’t want to build a raised bed on your own? New Haven Land Trust’s Growing Entrepreneurs will build one for you for a small cost. Contact growingentrepreneurs@newhavenlandtrust.org with a request.

Raising chickensFour chickens standing in a line and pecking at the ground.

Did you know that New Haven law allows you keep up to six hens in your backyard? If you like eggs, you might think about raising chickens in your backyard. Here’s a best practices manual for chicken-keepers from the Connecticut Northeast Organic Farming Association that will help you get started.

Other resources

Yale University has several great resources for people who want to learn more about food systems and agriculture.

  • The Yale Sustainable Food Program (YSFP) is an organization on campus that has a one-acre sustainable farm. They host speakers, provide internship and fellowship opportunities, and have volunteer days.
  • The Yale Landscape Lab (YLL) has similar programming, but is based at Yale’s West Campus. The YLL also has volunteer days and hosts events focused on innovation and entrepreneurship in the food system.

 

Buying

Farmers’ markets

A bundle of small articles and a bundle of carrots with tops still attached sitting on a table next to a crate with zucchini in it.Going to farmers’ markets is a great way to buy fresh produce, locally prepared foods, and get to know local producers in New Haven County. City Seed, a New Haven non-profit, organizes farmers’ markets all over the city. New Haven Farms also has a farm stand at their Ferry Street Farm on Saturday mornings in Fair Haven. And if you’re looking for a market in East Rock, the Upper State Street Farmers’ Market is also open on Saturdays.

If you are on SNAP (food stamps), CitySeed and New Haven Farms will double up to $10 of your SNAP money for you to spend on fresh fruits and vegetables at the market. Ask them at the information stand at the farmers’ market.

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)

Subscribing to Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a great way to support farmers in Connecticut and eat healthy, delicious food that’s in season. As a customer, you pay upfront at the beginning of the farming season (~April) and then pick up your CSA from the farm, farmers’ market, or another predetermined location each week. Some farms even deliver. You get fresh and diverse produce each week, and the farmer gets some security that s/he’ll have a source of income throughout the season. LocalHarvest allows you to search for CSAs available near you.

Grocery Stores

Don’t have the time to make it to the farmers’ market? There are several grocery stores in town that offer organic and local produce and products.

  • Edge of the Woods (379 Whalley Avenue) is New Haven’s main natural food grocery store. They’ve got bulk ingredients, a large selection of organic produce, and a variety of sustainable and healthy brands.
  • Elm City Market is a natural foods coop located downtown (777 Chapel Street). They source a lot of regional and local produce and carry many healthy and sustainable brands.
  • Stop&Shop (150 Whalley Avenue) is part of a chain of grocery stores in the northeastern United States. Make sure to check out their Nature’s Promise line, an in-house brand for organic and natural foods.

 

Eating

Restaurants

If you’ve spent any time in New Haven, you know that there are more good restaurant options than you can count. The restaurants listed below make a particular effort to source from sustainable and local sources as well as emphasize plant-based dishes on their menus. Check out their websites to learn more.

  • Claire’s Cornercopia– your local vegetarian eatery.
  • Harvest– a modern American restaurant serving local and organic food.
  • Heirloom– a farm to table restaurant that sources from local farms.
  • An image of a hand pouring a pink-colored smoothie onto a bowl of fresh fruit.Junzi– a fast casual Northern Chinese restaurant with many vegetarian options.
  • Koffee?– local coffee shop that offers zero waste catering.
  • Miya’s Sushi– sushi spot known for innovative rolls and sustainable fish.
  • Moon Rocks Gourmet Cookies– a cookie shop that sources from local businesses and supports community initiatives, as well as responsibly recycling shipping and packaging material
  • Ninth Square Market Too– a Carribbean restaurant offering an extensive vegan menu.
  • Oak Haven– a farm to table restaurant that sources from many Connecticut farms.
  • Roia– a French and Italian restaurant with a focus on season and local food.
  • Salsa Fresca– a fast casual Mexican restaurant with many vegetarian options.
  • And more! Be sure to explore on your own.

Personal Choices

In addition to shopping and eating at the markets and restaurants in this guide, changing what you eat can also make a difference. Eating more plants and less meat and dairy products makes a big impact on your personal carbon footprint. But you don’t have to go totally vegetarian to make a difference. Try skipping meat one day a week, making a plant-based dish your main course, or eating dairy-free products. The Reducetarian Foundation has some good tips on how to balance your diet to make plant-based foods the center piece and animal products the side dish. And here are some good vegetarian cooking blogs: Cookie and Kate, The First Mess, A Couple Cooks, and Oh She Glows.

Conventional farming uses pesticides that can be harmful when consumed. Organic farming prohibits the use of these pesticides. Some foods retain more pesticides than others, so a good first step is learning what foods are in the “Dirty Dozen” (e.g. contain more pesticide residue than others) and buying those fruits and vegetables from the organic section. Here’s the 2018 “Dirty Dozen” published by the Environmental Working Group: strawberries, spinach, nectarines, apples, grapes, peaches, cherries, pears, tomatoes, celery, potatoes, and sweet bell peppers.

Minimize food waste and compost the waste that you have. In addition to saving money on the food that you would be throwing out, you’re decreasing your environmental impact. If food waste were its own country, it would be the third largest greenhouse gas emitter in the world. Want to learn more about composting in New Haven? Check out the recycling and composting section of this site.

Bring your own coffee mug, bag, and Tupperware when possible. Most coffee shops will give you a discount if you bring your own mug. Don’t forget to ask!

Interested in getting more involved in food activism in New Haven? Attend a New Haven Food Policy Council meeting to discuss food access and policy in the Elm City. Meetings take place on the third Wednesday of every month at 8:30am at City Hall.

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