Beeside Balcony – farm raised on the beach in Del Mar

If you ever find yourself in Del Mar, CA and looking for a place for dinner or lunch you should try Beeside Balcony.  The restaurant is quite small  and the menu may be limited for some but the two times I have been here have been a fantastic experience.

From their website:

“Beeside Balcony is a hidden gem in old Del Mar, CA with a relaxed seaside chic décor where guests enjoy ocean views from the covered outside balcony. During cooler weather, Beeside’s got you covered with amazing patio heaters and an intimate inside dining room. The menu is chef-driven with every dish made to order and features New American flavors with a unique fusion of Mediterranean and California cuisine. To compliment the menu, we feature a thoughtfully designed wine list and craft beers from predominantly locally producers.

Our guests tell us that “every dish that comes out of the kitchen is a culinary delight.” Chef Costa sources produce from local farms, and features organic free-range lamb, sushi-grade salmon, prime steak, and imported cheese, salumi and olives.”

Let’s look at the menu more closely for the responsibly sourced options.  On the lunch menu there is mention of all-natural chicken (salad, skewered chicken plate), grass-fed lamb (burger), free range lamb (lamb gyro, sounds delicious will have to get next time) and  Scottish salmon (salad or skewers).  The dinner also has the burger and gyro, Scottish salmon (pan seared plate) and Mary’s “Fried” chicken.  Let’s dig a little deeper here.

Mary’s “fried” chicken

I have had the pleasure of having the Mary’s “Fried” chicken, the chicken is firstly cooked sous vide for 1.5 hours, dusted in rice flour, then lightly fried, it’s absolutely delicious.  The chicken brand Mary’s is well known as being one of the most transparent free-range poultry producers in the world. The chickens are raised in California and they follow the 5-Step Animal Welfare Rating Standards Program with Global Animal Partnership.   For more information in this program check out this link.  The program is based on 5 ranking each of which has certain standards for how the animals are raised and what they are fed.  Basically the closer you can get to being completely pasture raised and fed a natural diet then the higher the rating with the highest rating being Step 5.  The Mary’s chicken website actually has a good description of the standards required for each step for chickens here.  No mention of whether all the all-natural chicken dishes are all from Mary’s though.

Let’s take a look at the Scottish salmon.  Firstly, from what I can determine Scottish salmon is farmed and they don’t catch wild salmon off UK waters.  Got to say that there are some mixed reviews about the sustainability of Scottish salmon these days.  Wild Scottish salmon was once a prized dish but due to low population from over fishing this practice is no longer allowed.  This article here outlines some of the problems

For the lamb, the majority of domestic lamb sold in the US is grass-fed, some may be grain finished at the end. Australian and New Zealand lamb is grass-fed it whole life and almost always free-range.  No mention on the Beeside online menu of the lamb origin but they seem confident enough to state free-range and grass-fed. One time I ate there I had the lambs chops, the waiter told me they were from Australia.

Australian lamb chops

Beeside Balcony is a lovely place located in Del Mar.  Great transparency on the menu and the food is amazing!

Best responsibly sourced meals of 2019

Well it is the end of 2019 and the beginning of a new decade so I thought I would reminisce about some of the best responsibly sourced meals that I had throughout the year.  I have split them up into some categories and for some it was quite difficult to pick one.

Best burger – BRED gourmet (Boston, MA), Karl Strauss Brewery (San Diego):  A grass-fed burger is one of the easiest responsibly sourced menu items to find so I have picked one on the East and West coasts.  I have the extreme fortune to live 2.5 miles from Bred gourmet in the Lower Mills area of Boston and I have not found a better grass-fed burger to date, see my full review here.  I have had almost everything on the menu but the Maui burger with grilled pineapple, pepper jack cheese, plantains and BBQ sauce is one of my favorite burgers of all-time.  The California-grown all-natural grass-fed beef burger at Karl Strauss Brewery in La Jolla, CA is my pick for the West Coast.  Topped with a cage-free fried egg (maybe skip the pork belly since I don’t know where that is from yet) this is an amazing burger.

Best steak (East Coast) – Mooo (Boston, MA): I am splitting up the best steak category into East and West coast since I had so many good experiences. Mooo is one of my all time favorite restaurants and I have not found anything that comes close. See my review here. A source for the steaks is stated on the menu and they even give you a hint on how it was raised (grass-fed, grain finished etc).  My pick for the West Coast is Cowboy Star in San Diego, they also state which farm all their cuts are from and is a more relaxed atmosphere than other high end steakhouses.

Best BBQ – Sweet Cheeks Q (Boston, MA):  One of my favorite styles of food I thought I was resigned to cooking my own BBQ until I found Sweet Cheeks Q.  See my full review here – but think all natural chicken and heritage breed pork turned mouth-watering BBQ.

Best fried chicken – Crack Shack (Encinitas, CA): A fried chicken lovers dream, all their chicken is Jidori (see my post on Crack Shack and Jidori chicken here). Unfortunately this small chain is only in California.

Best roast chicken – Le Coq Rico (Paris):  The french take their roast chicken very seriously and I was extremely fortunate to go to this famous restaurant where they specialize in this particular dish.  Famed chef Antione Westermann focuses on sourcing heritage breed poultry from local French farmers. No review yet (but one is planned).   They also have a restaurant in NYC if Paris is too far to go for the best roast chicken you will ever have in your life.

Best seafood – Oceanaire seafood room (Boston, MA):  It can be difficult to find responsibly sourced seafood but Oceanaire Seafood room makes it easier as they clearly state the origin of almost all their seafood dishes so that you can make an informed decision.  Even though this is a chain the dining experience is top class, I have been to the Boston and San Diego locations and both were amazing.  No full review yet but coming soon.

Best Fish and chips – Rock and sole plaice (London):  You can’t beat London for fried fish and chips and there are plenty of places that use sustainable fish for this celebrated English dish.  I have been to quite a few (review to come) but Rock and sole plaice is my current favorite and is located right in Covent Garden and has been there since 1871.  Yet to find something comparable in the United States.

Best sushi – Harney Sushi (San Diego, CA):  Sustainable or responsibly sourced are not words one normally associates with sushi but Harney sushi takes pride in ensuring its seafood is just that.  I have been to the Old Town location (yes sushi in Old Town San Diego surrounded by Mexican places) and it is a funky place, expect something non-traditional but delicious and you will feel good about your food source. Review to come soon.

Best breakfast/brunch place – Farmers Daughter (South Easton, MA):  Complete transparency with the source of their eggs and meats which are all from local farms and clearly stated on their website.  Locally sourced chicken and waffles is not easy to find elsewhere and the pork belly banh mi looks delicious.  And they have a boozy brunch too!  Full review coming soon.

Best fast food place – Shake Shack (Dedham, MA): It can be difficult to find a responsibly sourced lunch particularly with kids (someone wants a burger, another a chicken sandwich, another wants nuggets) and you only have 30 mins.  Fortunately some fast food chains are make big efforts to provide good options (review coming soon).  My go to place with my kids is Shake Shack – their burgers, chicken and hot dogs are all natural (chicken is also cage-free).  Just exactly what their definition of all-natural is, not sure at the moment but in a pinch I will pick them every time over the bigger fast food chains.

Best fine dining restaurant experience – Deuxave (Boston, MA):  I don’t get to go to many fine dining restaurants so I like to make them count and my experience at Deuxave was top class.  Plenty of great options on the menu (Niman ranch strip steak, Giannone chicken) and from beginning to end was a memorable experience.

Best Sunday lunch place – Blacklock (London):  I had to create a category for this one as the meal was unquestionably one of the best food experiences I have ever had.  I am very fortunate to be friends with the owners brother and have managed to get a table on a Sunday at the Shoreditch location for lunch (have also been to the Soho location).  If you love meat you have to get the All-in which is a mountain of roast pork, lamb and beef and get the beef dripping chips as well.  Full review to come soon.

Best local farm – Copicut Farm (Dartmouth, MA):  My go to farm for when I want to stock up on local chicken and pork chops – all pasture raised.    They can also be found at the Milton and Hingham famer’s markets in the summer.  Check out my full review.

Best mail order meat – Porter Road:  I have tried a few mail order meat places and I try to buy from a local farm where possible first.  Sometimes though I need a cut of meat that is not easily bought from a local farm.  I ordered about 20lbs of pork butt from Porter Road and the experience was top class – they shipped it out within 24 hours and was packed perfectly.  I smoked that pork butt for pulled pork for a Christmas party and it was a big hit!

After writing this post about my favorite food experiences of 2019 I realized just how fortunate I have been to experience such amazing restaurants and farms.  It has been a lot of fun searching for these places and look forward to what 2020 will bring!

Who wants food transparency? Go to Sweet Green

Here is another recommendation from a co-worker so I have to give him credit straight off.  The Downtown Crossing area in Boston seems to be the center of responsible and source transparent eateries.  Within a block there is Clover Food Labs, B good, Luke’s Lobster and Sweet Green all of which operate under the philosophy of being fully transparent with their ingredients and focusing on clean food.  All are chains and two have apps from which you can order ahead (B good and Sweet Green).  Why are there so many of these types of restaurants popping up here?  Is it because of the concentration of millennials that work in the city?  I am far from a millennial (about 20 years past) but maybe going through a mid-life crisis where I am concerned with the food that I have put in my body the last 40+ years.  Wonder if this group is contributing?

Sweet Green really just focuses on two main dishes – warm bowls and cold salads made with fresh vegetables and protein if you like.  The website looks beautiful – really makes you want to eat the food!  There is a lot of information on their values and commitment to connecting with the source.  This place is busy – can be a line out the door – should use the app during lunch hour.  There is a range of suggested bowls (curry chickpea – roasted chicken, hot chickpeas, shredded carrots, shredded cabbage, raisins, cilantro, toasted almonds, warm quinoa, organic baby spinach, curry yogurt dressing) and salads (kale ceasar – shredded kale, chopped romaine, parmesan crisp, shaved parmesan, roasted chicken, tomatoes, fresh lime squeeze, caesar dressing) or you can make your own.  All the produce is right there in front of you and looks great.   There are also vegan and vegetarian options.  At the start of the line is a huge board which lists all the ingredients and the farm/source down to the freshly squeezed lime juice and raisins.  It’s an amazing display of transparency for sure and apparently they update it every day.  I decided to go for the Curry Chickpea bowl with chickpeas from Timeless Seed – Organic and chicken from Allen Farms.  You can add or subtract ingredients as you walk along the line and check them out.  The bowl tasted delicious and I couldn’t wait to try out some of the others – next time I will use the app.

Under the Food Ethos section of the website they have a paragraph on animal welfare.  Here they mention that: “In each region we source from, we demand high sustainability and animal safety standards. These include:

• Chicken: GAP Step 2 and Certified Humane
• Pork: GAP Step 1
• Eggs: Cage free and certified organic
• Steelhead: Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Green Rated”

Both their chicken and pork have a quoted GAP Step which deserves some explanation.  From the GAP website:

“Founded in 2008, Global Animal Partnership (GAP) is a non-profit organization made up of farmers, scientists, retailers, manufacturers, and animal advocates, all collaborating with a common purpose: improving farm animal welfare. GAP is making a difference by creating and managing a comprehensive 5-Step^® Welfare Rating Program for farm animals, where farms & ranches are audited every 15 months by an independent third-party. Through our 5-Step^® Rating Program and labeled product program, producers and consumers can choose to support a program that continuously improves the lives of farm animals step by step.”

There is a ton of information on the website – check it out if you want to know more. They do a great job explaining what each step means in terms of the animal’s lifestyle – diet, living conditions etc.  If we look at chickens specifically – Step 1 includes no cages, but no access to outdoors through to Step 5 involves entire life on farm and pastured.  Sweet Green says their chicken is Step 2 which is an enriched indoor environment but no access to outdoors and not pastured.  Considerably better than life on a Factory Farm but still not the natural outdoors living chicken lifestyle.  A search for Allen Farm, Delaware (from the chalkboard above) comes up with an Allen Harim chicken farm in Delaware.  There is a lot of information on this site explaining how they raise their chickens – no sign of cages and plenty of mentions of no antibiotics ever and 100% vegetarian fed. But I got to say the videos of all those chickens in those huge sheds doesn’t make me feel confident that this chicken is having a great life.  A whole lot better than crammed in a cage don’t get me wrong.  Definitely the Step 2 statement on the Sweet Green website is accurate.  Also Harim Allen is mentioned on the GAP website as being Step 2 as well so everything seems to match up.

The other animal protein available is Steelhead Trout from which I had not heard of before.  The chalkboard mentioned this was sourced from Pacific Seafoods and is quoted on the website as being Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Green Rated.  A quick search shows that this is the case and this Steelhead is farm raised on the Columbia River.

Sweetgreen has to be commended on their transparency of the sourcing of their ingredients which is at a level not seen before.  I don’t feel real great about the chickens being housed inside those huge sheds at Harim Allen Farms (but no cages) but feel a lot better about the source of the Steelhead trout and vegetables. Definitely going back but will stick to the vegetables and fish.