This 3,000-acre ranch in South Texas is home to hundreds of Wagyu cattle, goats, sheep, horses and water buffalo who happily graze on green and golden pastures. There’s also a few real life cowboys who may ride by as we dine beneath the Big Texas Sky. The Peeler family has been raising cattle here for more than a century and take great pride in humane handling, high-quality processing and soil-healthy practices like rotational grazing. Guest chef John Brand is a big fan of the ranch and we’re thrilled to host him in the field kitchen for the fourth year in a row. The restaurant at Hotel Emma is consistently one of San Antonio’s hottest spots, with a creative farm-to-table menu that highlights the region’s multicultural foodways and its year-round agricultural bounty.
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Temecula Olive Oil Co.
The table in the grove at Temecula is among our most beautiful. It seems like every tree has been shaped to provide the most beautiful possible dining site. There is actually some truth to that. Ten years ago, when we set our first table here in the grove, many small branches needed a trim so guests could dine comfortably. The trees have now grown and there is quite a bit more room. Maybe OITF and the Temecula olive grove are growing in concert. Chef Brian Redzikowski has grown alongside the trees also; this is his eighth time as an Outstanding guest chef.
Temecula Olive Oil Co.
Olive green. You see it everywhere here, including the farm-fashionable clothing of host farmer Thom. So much love and care goes into this farm. It’s really one of the most well cared for properties you will ever see. You may feel lightheaded with intoxication from all the beauty as we dine in dappled sunlight under arching branches. If it happens you have some of your own farm-fabulous olive green somewhere in your closet it’s time to bring it out and join Thom. Guest chef Anthony Wells of Juniper & Ivy will don his green in the field kitchen. Anthony’s worked at Juniper & Ivy since it opened back in 2014, forging deep relationships with local farms and fisherpeople and helping the restaurant earn its stripes as one of San Diego’s very best. He was named a 2022 James Beard Semifinalist for Best Chef: California. Grab a seat in the grove to learn why.
Hearst Ranch
One of our most beautiful table sites. Last year was our first visit to the Hearst Ranch. Two consecutive nights brought extraordinary weather and views — warm, windless skies and a historic castle in the golden hour. As we have often experienced in Big Sur and elsewhere, the higher coastal elevation presents both a view of the Pacific and fog that arrives in the evening, pooling below the table as we float on a cloud. Needless to say, it’s quite the place to dine. And guest chef Julien Asseo will cook up quite the meal to match the scenery. Julien grew up on a vineyard in France and has worked in a number of impressive kitchens in Paris, L.A. and Las Vegas, including Michelin-starred Restaurant Guy Savoy where he climbed the ladder to Executive Chef. In 2019, he and his wife Courtney opened Les Petites Canailles, their celebrated farm-to-table French bistro in downtown Paso Robles. His Fall feast is bound to feature some French flavors and technique, plus plenty of pastured beef from Hearst Ranch.
Hearst Ranch
Here, at one of the biggest of ranches in the USA at 83,000 acres, there is a stunning range of places to set a table, from the ocean side to the mountain top. Steve’s close friends Jim and Debi Saunders of Hearst Ranch Winery will share their award-winning vintages. We are honored that the Hearst family reached out and invited us to this historic property. It’s a gorgeous place, and we’re thrilled to return, this time with guest chefs Jeff and Janet Olsson of Industrial Eats. This will be their second appearance this tour, after having worked their magic in the field kitchen at Gainey Vineyard in July. Lucky for us, this husband-and-wife chef team keeps returning to cook for us. They’re masters of the wood-burning oven and good friends with a slew of sustainable farms, foragers and fisherpeople across the Central Coast which they’ll source from for the menu.
Wattles Farm
Even native Los Angelenos don’t know about this place. Who would ever think a secret urban garden exists a few blocks from Hollywood Boulevard, just around the corner from the famous handprints at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. Wattles Farm is a busy hive of activity – a patchwork of garden plots tended by neighborhood farmers sharing tools and tips. We love it here. And we love Chef Gladys Nyoth. Gladys first charmed us with her bubbly personality and French accent when she toured with OITF a few years ago. And then we learned she can cook! Gladys wowed us last year, and she’ll bring the vibrant flavors of West Africa once again to our table at Wattles Farm.
Big Sur Secret Location
The hilltop table set above the clouds in Big Sur is an extraordinary and unforgettable experience. Anticipation builds during the steep climb to the dinner site. Upon arrival, the effort is well rewarded. High on the ranch, vistas in every direction reveal the sources of our meal: fishing boats working the cold offshore waters; cattle happily munching abundant grasses; the foraging grounds of forest and shore. Chef Jacob Burrell of Niner Wine Estates will helm the field kitchen, gathering everything he knows and loves about Big Sur right there on the plate.
Bonton Farms
We were slated to go to Bonton for the first time in 2020 with Chef Chad Houser lined up for the field kitchen. That didn’t happen. When the bus finally rolled into town last year, it was such a fabulous experience, we knew we wanted to do it again. You’re invited to mosey on over for a delicious dinner and a big dose of inspiration. Daron Babcock and son Beau run a 40-acre organic farm in the low-income area of South Dallas that was once a food desert. The farm also brings seeds of change to the community with education programs that address health, personal finance, and housing challenges, all designed to disrupt the long-standing cycle of poverty in Bonton. Café Momentum also started from an altruistic idea; it’s a non-profit restaurant and professional training facility that works with young men and women exiting juvenile detention. Chef Chad is known for his can-do demeanor and signature dish: smoked fried chicken. Not to mention charcuterie, cheeses and vinegars, all made in-house by hardworking interns. Come for a good time you can feel seriously good about.
Blackwood Educational Land Institute
Blackwood is a non-profit, 33-acre teaching farm with a variety of crops, medicinal herbs, laying hens, and honey bees. Their mission is to model how regenerative agriculture practices can positively impact the planet and improve our food system. Blackwood serves local youth through summer camps and field trips while hosting workshops, tours, and weekly volunteer events for the community. We will honor that important work with a meal from guest chef Justin Yu and his superstar team at Houston’s Hotel Lucine, Squable, Theodore Rex and Better Luck Tomorrow. His three restaurants are some of Houston’s very best — known for elevated European-American menus with creative twists, locally sourced ingredients and award-winning cocktails. Over the years, they’ve won a long list of accolades from Bon Appetit, Food & Wine and James Beard. Big talent in the field kitchen at this supremely inspiring place.
Blackwood Educational Land Institute
Night two at this inspiring 33-acre educational farm where host farmer Cath Conlon and her team tend to a variety of vegetables, fruits, laying hens and apiaries. The farm calls itself a “living laboratory,” using restorative agriculture practices to find the essential balance between land preservation and food production. Blackwood serves local youth through summer camps and field trips while hosting workshops, tours, and weekly volunteer events for the community. Our farm tour will tell you even more. Guest chef Dawn Burrel will cook the evening’s meal in the field. Dawn is an Olympic-athlete-turned-chef. In 2000, she competed in the Summer Olympics as a long jumper representing Team USA. In 2021, she competed on Bravo’s Top Chef. After traveling the world with the USA’s Track & Field team, she worked in a slew of celebrated Texas kitchens including Uchi and Kulture. Her newest venture Late August opens in Houston this summer — with a menu that aims to “bring the soul of Afro-Asian flavors to the table.”