London-born Farmer J, which opened its first United States outpost in New York City earlier this year, is based on a build-your-own model. But the fast casual bucked the bowl trend from its start 10 years ago.
“When you put everything in a bowl together, it all ends up tasting the same,” said Alice Henderson, Farmer J's U.S. managing director, addressing the backlash against so-called “slop bowls.” Instead, Farmer J offers chef-curated dishes that customers build into a Fieldtray, choosing a base, one hot main and two sides, each of which stands in its own compartment. Kind of like a three-year-old who doesn’t want the vegetables touching the chicken.
“With a bowl, you can't distinguish between the two elements you're tasting, whereas our dishes all pack a punch on their own,” Henderson added. For example, a guest may choose Harissa Chicken as a main, which is house-made from a recipe that includes pickled red onion, coriander and fennel seed. A popular side is Broc + Kale Cacio e Pepe Mac, which is seasoned with nutmeg and black pepper, filled with gooey cheese and incorporates grated kale and broccoli “for an added health element,” said Henderson.
Kale and broccoli boost the nutrition profile of mac and cheese.
Other sides, all made from scratch, include Maple-Spiced Sweet Potatoes with shawarma spice, maple, soy sauce and sage tossed with chili peppers and scallions; Miso Eggplant with charred eggplant and cabbage in ginger-miso dressing; and Chickpea + Pickles, a combo of za’atar-roasted chickpeas, parsley, pickles, cucumbers and peppers in a creamy lemon tahini dressing.
Back-of-house logistics
These are complex recipes developed by the fast casual's Global Head of Food Nitai Shevach, who works closely with Farmer J himself, founder Jonathan Recanati. They’re prepared in the restaurant’s open kitchen, with house-made marinades, seasoning blends and sauces. But in order to keep up to speed, the dishes are cooked in batches as needed and brought out to replenish the line rather than being cooked to order, said Henderson. Lunchtime can be especially hectic.
The menu changes seasonally, about five times a year, with three to five new dishes rotating in. Best sellers, like the mac and cheese and harissa chicken, remain, and there’s always a count of four bases (brown rice, grains, greens or cabbage), five mains, five hot sides and four salads, she said. Flavors skew Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Asian. “We develop new dishes around seasonal ingredients and produce sourced from farmers we work with,” said Henderson. Tomatoes are cycling in this month, and we’re planning a take on a Greek salad as a side, with butter beans, fennel and tomatoes.
In the winter, those farms may be down South, in Mexico or in California, but the team hopes to source more produce locally as the weather warms up, specifically watermelon radishes, eggplant, beets, tomatoes and peppers.
In the United Kingdom, Farmer J is a bit further along in its journey, Henderson added, and “we have specific supply partners that work to our specifications. However, in the U.S., I think as we scale, we might look at a commissary, but at the moment, we're cooking all the food from scratch at our New York City location. Everything goes in the Rational ovens apart from our steak, which goes on the grill.”
Solving the vegetable and protein puzzle
In addition to Harissa Chicken in the main or protein category, the NYC Farmer J’s offers Gochujang Salmon, Lime Leaf Tofu, Amba Chicken + Green Tahini and Grass-Fed Bavette Steak. Henderson is particularly proud of the aforementioned steak, which comes in cooked in sous vide from famed butcher Pat LaFrieda.
The steak is finished on a grill to medium-rare and sliced for service, showing off a nice pink interior and charred exterior. “It’s pretty amazing what we’ve been able to accomplish in a fast-casual setting,” said Henderson. She also mentioned that the steak sells much better in the U.S. than in the U.K. Across the pond, Farmer J offers a lamb and beef mix instead, which may not fly stateside.
Farmer J's steak comes in sous vide and is cooked on the grill to medium-rare.
Choosing steak as a protein option also ups the cost of a Fieldtray to around $18.50, as opposed to around $15.95 for chicken and $16.95 for salmon. Four house-made sauces, including J’s Aïoli and Green Tahini, are gratis, as are toppings such as Sesame Cucumber and Pickled Red Onion.
Since Farmer J is a lot further along in the U.K, the team has discovered hits and misses with a few other items. “A couple of years ago in London, we launched a charred zucchini dish, which was delicious,” said Henderson, “but zucchini releases water as it stands. So while it was beautiful out of the oven, it was releasing too much liquid when it stayed on the counter [line] and cycled through customers.”
After discovering that a hot zucchini dish wasn’t a go, Farmer J created a salad made with very thinly sliced yellow squash.
What’s next?
Farmer J is clearly aimed at the NYC office lunch crowd with its Midtown location near Rockefeller Center. But Henderson said breakfast is in the works and will launch soon, patterned after the menu in the U.K.
“People choose with their eyes, so we’ll have a counter full of ingredients to create tartines, for instance … whipped feta, tomatoes, avocado, chili flakes, etc. to build on an open toast,” she said. “We’ve also done poached egg pots with a variety of toppings, such as wilted spinach, whipped feta, avocado and za’atar.” Individual baked goods will also be on the menu.
Henderson is currently ironing out sourcing, making sure the right ingredients are coming in from local farms in a timely fashion. And Farmer J is looking at opening more sites in New York City, seeking neighborhoods with potential breakfast and weekend customers.
“We also haven't yet gone onto delivery channels, and we’re planning that as well,” said Henderson.
Wherever the concept lands, the goal will be the same: To elevate common ingredients and beautiful vegetables with punchy flavors, she added.