This article is as much about a fantastic upcoming restaurant as it is about a community farm in the heart of Long Beach.
Natalie Gutenkauf is the maniacal brains behind The Factory Gastrobar (her card reads “the rule breaker”), which will feature only locally grown produce and meats, including grass-fed beef and, of course, sustainable seafood. Even their wine selection will be restricted to the West coast. “It’s easier,” says Natalie, “I tell vendors to only let me know what they have available from this area.” She has teamed up with Jimmy Ng, Program Director of The Growing Experience to get local greens into her kitchen. It doesn’t get much more local than this – it takes us a matter of minutes for us (Natalie, me, and her chef, Peter Dopulos) to get to Jimmy’s farm.
Jimmy’s plots are located within the Carmelitos community, a trim public housing neighborhood. Above, you can see that the apartments are just across the street from the farm’s shaded plots. Jimmy was originally educated as a landscape architect and was hired by LA county’s Community Development Commission to design the facility twelve years ago. He then stayed on to direct the project, training community members in traditional landscaping. In its first 10 years, The Growing Experience provided job training to over 138 community residents in cooperation with the University of California Cooperative Extension. Now, taking advantage of the increasing demand for local, sustainable, and community-sponsored agriculture, Jimmy is turning his landscaping skills into producing edible assets. The farm is visible from above on Google maps, where you can see how urban the surrounding area is. In this green oasis, even the chickens are well-nurtured – Natalie and I noticed they were happily feasting on pomegranates. Chilis, melons, bok choy, and whole plots of unknown (to me) plants surrounded us. While I snapped this photo, Jimmy’s workers were collecting something we mistook for grey rosemary: curry plant. This well-named herb had the remarkable taste of a mild curry sauce, sparking Peter’s idea for an innovative pesto.
Many times, we talk about “local” food with an ill-defined idea of how distant “local” can be, and the extent to which local products actually benefit our community. Here, the measurable benefits conferred to the community extend far beyond keeping money in the Long Beach economy. Natalie, Peter, and Jimmy are forging a connection that is going to strengthen the Long Beach community for all residents – even the ones who don’t go the The Factory or know where the produce comes from. The relationship is no small commitment; it fundamentally changes the way that Natalie and Peter offer food at The Factory. They’ll rotate the menu according to what Jimmy has available, even offering a salad called “Jimmy’s Farm Box.” On this trip, Peter and Natalie were actually shopping, and Peter constantly pointed at plants saying, “I can use that.”
This is not the first time Natalie has educated us on the value of locally grown produce. She started her own Community-Supported Agriculture cooperative, operating out of her own home and giving the proceeds to the school attended by her kids.
If you’re in the area, stop by The Factory for Octoberfest on Saturday October 24th, 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 a.m. This is the pre-opening opening to The Factory’s official launch in November. Check out Natalie’s website for updates.
