Farms2Tables Expands From Wholesale To Retail At The Epicurean and Locavore Markets
Rhinecliff locals Patricia Wind and Cliff Platt launched the app Farms2Tables nearly a decade ago. The idea was straightforward but game changing: farms create profiles where they post exactly what they have available at any given time, and local restaurants and markets can buy what’s in stock right away.
But it’s much more than an app, as Farms2Tables, through parent company Transparent Food Co., also has a major distribution component, a warehouse, and trucks that deliver goods straight from the farm to wholesale customers. The business has helped hundreds of farms move fresh products fast and aided restaurateurs in making their menus as hyper seasonal as possible. They also help get farm-fresh product into supermarkets. Now Wind and Platt have created a physical manifestation of the app, quietly opening two market cafes in Dutchess County that connect local farmers and makers with the small communities, at The Epicurean in Rhinecliff and The Locavore Market in Red Hook.
In 2020 the couple opened The Epicurean across from the busy little Rhinecliff Amtrak train station and Hudson River. A portal to the Hudson Valley for many New Yorkers, the location offers grab-and-go coffee and food. It’s become a go-to for locals as well and is filled with high-quality staples and gourmet meats, cheeses and everything you might need for a dinner party. The Epicurean is also home base to Radio Free Rhinecliff, which has grown significantly over the past year and will soon be established as an independent 501(c)3.
A board of featured farms at The Locavore
“Some people just stop in, and we have our regulars who spend a lot of time here,” says Cris Hedges, who manages both cafés. “We are all just family at this point.”
On September 29, the enterprise expanded again with the opening of The Locavore Market on Market Street in neighboring Red Hook. But this shop will not be a carbon copy of The Epicurean; the need in Red Hook is different than Rhinecliff. Here, they offer the same high-end, grab-and-go fare but there’s also emphasis on coming to shop casually, grabbing a baked good and a coffee along with a moment to relax.
There is a small produce section, a cooler of local meat and a varied selection of other specialty pantry items and gifts. Soon The Locavore will be getting a tavern license, so customers can pick up a beer or cider, brewed at one of the many nearby breweries and apple farms, and drink it here.
“One of the biggest demands people told us they wanted was to have more grab-and-go items,” says Wind. “We are trying to not be competitive with other businesses in the village. We want to add, not compete.”
The Locavore is still just softly open — as of this reporting it wasn't fully stocked and the dining room was incomplete. On Friday, October 21, however, there will be a grand opening celebration and Hedges says she hopes to show community members their commitment to bringing everyone the products and service they want.
Red Hook didn’t see as much business growth as other Hudson Valley towns post COVID surge, due in large part to the limitation of village sewer infrastructure. But with those problems recently, finally, resolved, there has been a boom of new businesses opening or coming soon. The Locavore is a foretelling that sleepy Red Hook could soon see the expansion that other valley towns have recently experienced.
At Red Hook’s main intersection of Main Street (Route 9) and Market Street (Route 199), autumnal signage has been erected directing travelers to a dozen farms in every direction. It’s a quaint but salient reminder of how central to regional agriculture the village is. The Locavore was smart to situate itself at this nexus as it aims to position itself as a meaningful new member of the community.
The Epicurean
11 Shatzell Ave, Rhinecliff, NY,
7 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday
The Locavore Market
29 West Market Street, Red Hook, NY
9 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday
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