The seasonal menu at Reserve features flavor profiles from winter, spring, summer, and fall. And careful sourcing of local ingredients creates an authentic dining experience that spotlights some of the best farmers and growers in our community. But what happens when winter takes hold? And the sun retreats? Keeping our menu fresh and full of local produce becomes a challenge. Here’s how our team innovates alongside local vendors to give you a fresh, seasonal menu even when snow is on the ground:

First, we use hardy storage crops.

Things like beets, brussels, carrots, cabbage, cauliflower, celeriac, kale, onions, potatoes, parsnips, radishes, rutabagas, and turnips. These crops are packed away by farmers during the harvest season, and we’re grateful for their resolve.

Second, we get creative.

Winter is a marathon, and not everyone makes it to the finish line. Our team has to get creative with our cooking and to find new and interesting ways to present the same few winter staples. Some our favorite current seasonal dishes include:

Roasted Beets: toasted hazelnuts, arugula, blue cheese, grapefruit marmalade, burnt honey
Calamari Pakora: sweet potato, cilantro chutney, scallion, lime zest
Pansotti: ricotta, crispy kale, pesto, caramelized walnut, fennel
Butterball Gnocchi: crispy potatoes, onion soubise, Castelvetrano olives, piquillo pepper crema, Vertical Paradise Farms greens
Dry Aged Bone-In Black Angus Ribeye: cauliflower purée, beef fat potatoes, pickled garlic & pink peppercorn, spinach
Carved Beef Sirloin: shallots, capers, parsley, arugula, maionese verde, grilled lemon

Our local farmers get creative too, doing what they can to stretch the seasons and combat Mother Nature. Some examples:

Vertical Paradise Farms in Dutton, Michigan

Tim is able to grow fresh greens year round through a series of greenhouses.

Green Wagon Farm in Ada, Michigan

Heather and Chad have focused on sustainable, organic farming. They put field crops into storage and also maintain greenhouses throughout the winter to offer a variety of produce.

Visser Farms in Zeeland, Michigan

Visser Farms is family-owned and operated. It’s a larger farm, operating on more than 250 acres. They supply Reserve with an ample quantity of staple crops throughout the winter months.

Kessler Family Farm in Byron Center, Michigan

Kessler Family Farm is a new addition to our local farmer and grower team. They’re certified organic and work on a 40-acre parcel, focusing on unique varieties of cold weather crops and adding some fresh colors to our winter palette.

Do you know a farm we should bring into the Reserve fold? To elevate our seasonal menu in the winter, spring, summer, and fall? Send them to Chef Luke via email. You can also view Reserve’s seasonal menu here and then make a reservation.

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