FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 17, 2021
Contact: Tamar Russell Brown, Sitka Creations — 978.425.6290
How many take-out places can brag that the food they serve is “farm fresh”? Not many. Famer Matt’s is one of those few dining establishments that can make that particular boast.
“We use local produce of all kinds,” says proprietor Matt Koziol proudly. “We have local sugar pumpkins, local apples, local honey, local butternut and acorn squash, and locally milled flour.” Matt recounts how he met a young farmer growing lettuce hydroponically just a couple of miles away — a mere stone’s throw in terms of what many people refer to nowadays as “food miles.” Many area farmers are now associated with Farmer Matt and his take-away dinners. It’s almost a cooperative effort among them to provide various ingredients for each dish on the menu.
Matt has been farming for 12 years now, having started out with no fewer than five internships at numerous farms. He is even the Agricultural Commissioner for his own town of West Brookfield, as well as on the board of The Hardwick Co-operative Exchange, Inc. He has extensive experience as a farmer, at one time owning some 200 head of cattle. Now managing a smaller herd, he still sells beef to Wegman’s and Stop & Shop, as well as offering steak and other beef dishes on the menu, which is updated weekly. (Vegans and vegetarians will also be interested in items such as Veggie Stew, which features so-called “ancient” grains, those known to farmers for centuries.)
There is indeed some time and effort required of the customer—but not much. Matt’s patrons need only order their dinner (via the QR code found at https.//farmermatt.clickandcollection.com) and drive over to the farm in New Braintree to pick it up. You’d probably need a farm of your own to get a full-course meal that competes with this one for old-fashioned, country freshness.
Even in the practical terms of how the farm is run, it is grandly old-fashioned in the best way. A good portion of Matt’s 400 acres have been certified organic since 2015. The 21st century concern with health by using only natural fertilizers and pesticides here meets the 19th century world that simply didn’t have toxic chemicals ending up in the food that people ate. Matt’s cuisine is as pure and hearty as diners are likely to find nowadays.
Now offering take-out dinners on Fridays and Saturdays, Farmer Matt sells beef and certified hay, supplying the food industry and nearby farms. The establishment has a new menu of delicious culinary adventures every week.
“We’ve only been at this for eight weeks,” Matt confides, describing how the whole project came together. He only recently took over this farm, which the previous owner had equipped with a commercial kitchen. Chef John Marty has almost 40 years of experience, notably at the prestigious post of chef at the Hilton at Logan Airport in Boston. Over his distinguished career, he specialized in classical French cuisine. But now the menu at Farmer Matt’s includes St. Louis Ribs and Lemon Rosemary Chicken, making the fare frankly American, with a New England accent.
Farmer Matt’s is strictly take-out just now, but come the summertime there will be picnic tables and Adirondack chairs to allow customers to enjoy outside dining.
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