From the garden to the tides, Long Island farmers are known for their produce and delicacies of incomparable quality — and their stories are as rich and unique as their bounties. A man who started out growing mushrooms in his garden, a farm family that goes back to the 1600s, a Wall Street software developer who harmonizes with nature instead of the keyboard… these are the farmers who are raising food and raising the stakes in one of the country’s most discerning culinary regions. And it’s all reachable via East Hampton Airport in Wainscott, accessible by a Tradewind charter flight. Try giving these a taste.
Open Minded Organics
Open Minded Organics founder David Falkowski recalls starting his business 18 years ago, humbly growing organic mushrooms in his backyard in Sag Harbor Village. Diversification came first with produce, flowers, herbs, baked goods, and quiches. Local chefs also seek out his heirloom and modern hybrid tomatoes, which are grown bio-dynamically and never refrigerated.
Photo courtesy Open Minded Organics
“The terroir really comes through in our tomatoes,” he says. “We take an eater’s approach to growing food.” In the last few years, Falkowski has added extracts and herbal supplements to his lineup, such as echinacea and maitake mushrooms, and the farmer was also approved by New York State to grow and process hemp. In fact, the demand for his hemp and CBD items spurred him to open even earlier last year. “That’s what’s really driving things at the moment,” he explains.
But back to the mushrooms, where it all began: Falkowski says what sets his product apart is variety and freshness. “They are picked and right up for sale, within minutes, at our farm stand in Bridgehampton,” he says. “That doesn’t happen at a grocery store.”
The OMO Apothecary in downtown Sag Harbor is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and sells hemp and herbal extracts, as well as locally made gifts. The farm stand, which sells snacks, sundries, and produce, is open seven days a week from May to October.
Milk Pail Fresh Market
Photo courtesy Milk Pail Fresh Market
Another thing you’re unlikely to find at the grocery store: long legacies. Not many farmers, in the East End or otherwise, can lay claim to a history that dates back to the 17th century, but the Halsey family of Milk Pail Fresh Market, located in Water Mill, can. John and Evelyn Halsey, along with their daughters Amy and Jennifer, are the 11th and 12th generations, respectively, of family farmers.
“It's an honor and a privilege to know we are following in such a long lineage of farming traditions,” Amy says. “We all have different approaches that complement the business and meet the demands of our vast clientele. I'm not sure the ancestors anticipated such a diverse and complex way of life, but we enjoy the benefits and challenges of life as we know it today.”
And the fruits of their labors are reward enough. Apples (from Pink Lady to Fuji) and flowers (from roses to amaryllis) form the basis of their business, but Milk Pail also carries local wines, candles, soaps, cheese boards, and children's toys. Finally, Amy provides lessons on farm culture: “It's the explaining and education to the current clientele that is so important — important not just for the instant satisfaction, but for the understanding of what it's going to take to sustain us.”
Photo courtesy Milk Pail Fresh Market
Milk Pail Fresh Market is open every day of the week except Tuesdays, and its hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Milk Pail’s farm stand on Mecox Road is open seasonally on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Widow’s Hole Oyster Company
Long Island’s offerings come from the water as well as the land. When top Manhattan restaurants need to source oysters, they come to Mike Osinski and his Widow’s Hole Oyster Company in Greenport. Osinski’s second act — the Wall Street wizard sold his software company 19 years ago — keeps the exalted chefs at those restaurants happy by giving his treasured bivalve mollusks “the spa treatment.”
As Osinski explains, the tides serve as masseur and culinary artist: “We use the tides to clean and sculpt the oysters,” he says. “The oysters are placed in baskets attached to lines rigged at high tide. The surface is closest to the sun and has the highest density of algae, which is what oysters eat.” When the tide drops, the oysters and the gear are exposed to sunlight and air, which cleans them of predators and sycophants. Then Osinski and his team attach floats to the baskets, so they roll over 180 degrees from low to high tides. “This,” he explains, “gently tumbles the oysters, which causes them to grow a deeper cup and a thicker shell.”
The process results in a flavor and texture responsible for Osinski’s top dishes: oyster stew, oyster pot pie, and noodles with burned scallions and oysters.
The biggest difference between software and oyster care? “The moon and the tides control our day, instead of the sun.”
Tour the oyster farm during your trip out East by contacting Osinski directly at mike@widowsholeoysters.com.
New York State no longer requires travelers coming from outside New York and its contiguous states to quarantine, but it recommends unvaccinated travelers voluntarily receive a COVID-19 test three to five days after arriving in the state and complete a non-mandated seven-day quarantine (10 days if not tested). Asymptomatic international travelers who show proof of a negative COVID test are not required to quarantine.
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Featured photo: Milk Pail Market
