Welcome to the world of ‘fast casual’ dining where you can enjoy high quality dishes made with fresh ingredients even if you’re under a time crunch. As downtown Worcester transforms into a bustling residential neighborhood, plenty of fast casual options are cropping up.
Take, for example, Techni Mediterranean Grill – The Grid’s spot for falafel, grape leaves, and gyros. Diners can spice things up with tahini, tzatziki, harissa, or cilantro sauce. Guests can order a wrap or bowl on the go, or enjoy their lunch at Techni and its sister cafe, Brew on The Grid. Techni is only the beginning of The Grid’s fast casual empire. In the very near future, The Grid has plans to open a ramen spot called Sticks, Pie & Pint for slices, and a beer garden that will serve pretzels and sausages.
Niche Hospitality Group’s newest venture, Nonna’s Pizza and Pasta, will also embrace a ‘fast casual’ concept driven by the development of the Worcester Ice Center. Customers will be able to order Italian fare in a low stakes environment with high end ambience. Nonna’s will appeal to large groups and offer a beverage program that will set it apart from other grab-and-go options.
It should be noted that BirchTree Bread Company, open since 2014, has thrived in the fast casual market for years. BirchTree’s warm counter service, local ingredients, and enticing ambience define the fast casual genre. Visitors enjoy hassle free pastries, sandwiches, and pizzas that are more reasonably priced than a full service restaurant. With that, the promise of swift service attracts shoppers from on site retailers like Canal District Farmers Market, Crompton Collective, and Seed to Stem.
Devouring the perfect grilled meat smothered in a hearty marinade while sipping on a glass of inspiring wine is what many food enthusiasts live for. While there are plenty of restaurants in Central Massachusetts offering this, sometimes it’s worth staying home and taking advantage of the “shop local” movement and “local farm” endorsement for an unforgettable meal. When we look at the trifecta of Open Meadow Farm, Alicia’s Homemade, and Wicked Wines, we know that food that is handled better in the beginning creates a better end experience.
Wicked Wines’ Pinot Grigio is a great compliment to Open Meadow Farm’s chicken breast seasoned with Alica’s Homemade.
Open Meadow Farm relies on their unique farming practices to produce quality meats for its consumers. “At Open Meadow Farm, our philosophy is distinct; we practice holistic and sustainable farming techniques that are accountable to the health of our animals; the health of the land and the health of our society.” As one of the popular vendors of the Saturday Farmer’s Market event at Crompton Collective, Open Meadow Farm is family-owned and provides a selection of high quality meats through socially conscious methods. Owners, Robin and Charles Dance are “committed to raising pastured-base livestock free of growth hormones, growth stimulants, artificial or antibiotic feed additives.” When applying the “happy cows” theory, almost all consumers purchasing meats at the Farmer’s Market agreed that the meats just tasted better. “The chicken products are a favorite of mine,” said one shopper. “Not only do they taste better but I feel better knowing where the meat is coming from before feeding my family.”
The notion that high quality food is synonymous with higher prices is one that can easily be debunked. Quality is an ingrate part of social and animal conscious farming practices. No two meats are alike and the theory behind raising happy cows is very much the differentiator. But the theory doesn’t apply just to cows, pigs and chickens, it is a theory that can be applied across the various elements of the food system, including seasonings and even, wines.
Alicia’s Homemade is a small, all natural food company that makes rubs, marinades, seasonings, sauces and more, providing the freshest products through the use of local and organic seasonal ingredients. “We want our customers to have the best quality products and that means making things from scratch and working with local, healthy farms and businesses,” says Alicia Haddad, owner of Alicia’s Homemade. Their motto “feed your body healthy” is integrated into the development of every recipe. Treating their ingredients with the proper care and utilizing farms like Seven Hills Farmstand, EJ Scott Orchard and Elk Creek Maple Farm gives each distinctive recipe a high-quality flavor. Elk Creek Maple Farm follows the guidelines of organic certification standards allowing them a platform to provide a product that is environmentally conscientious.
Fresh, bright and packed with intense citrus, green apple, yellow pear and lemongrass—The Wicked Bright Pinot Grigio is a blend of 40% Pinot Grigio, 60% Garganega.
The practice of being conscientious of your environment, resources and the health of your raised meats doesn’t always have to fit within the confines of being organic. At times, advanced methods and techniques of producing a product can be equally beneficial. Wicked Wines does just that. While the brand is based in Boston, the wines are sourced from famous European vinicultural regions. They are able to provide the highest quality by processing wines from estate-bottled, single vineyards in Europe like the vineyards of La Mancha, Spain and others. For instance, to pair an aptly seasoned chicken meal, the Wicked Bright Pinot Grigio is the perfect companion. Blending 40% Pinot Grigio and 60% Garganega these Italian varieties come together with fresh citrus tones that bring out the natural flavor of the chicken and intensity of the spices.
While other wine brands are sourced from various vineyards and locations to ultimately be blended together, Wicked Wines uses one vineyard for their wine recipes, giving their consumers a greater level of quality through the processing of the Wicked Wine brands. “To carry an estate-bottled label, a wine must use grapes grown by a producer on its own land or in vineyards that the winery controls 100 percent via a long-term lease, and they must be crushed and bottled at that very same winery,” says Kelsey Lemmon, marketing and promotions staff for Global Wines.
Next time you opt to stay home and are pairing a full-bodied wine with a sharply carved meat, don’t forget to read about where it all comes from. Good food is about taste and flavors and those elements are major components of the type of high-quality experience that you can create outside of a restaurant.
