The Move From Local to Hyperlocal

MarketWatch has an interesting column explaining the hyperlocal movement that is happening in cities across the U.S.

What does “hyperlocal” mean, they ask? Hyperlocal restaurants are sourcing almost all of (or all of) their food locally. Some are even growing vegetables for their dishes in the backyards of their restaurants. The National Restaurant Association rated hyperlocal food as the number one growing trend for 2018.

They list six small cities that are totally ahead of the curve when it comes to the hyperlocal food movement.

Portland, Maine, has made a name for itself in the hyperlocal food scene. Vinland, touted as the world’s only 100% local food restaurant, sources every single bit of food from Maine.

Des Moines, Iowa, is an emerging as a hot spot for millennials and is home to HoQ Restaurant, a farm-to-table establishment that uses 90% local ingredients. They are dedicated to sustainability, and they purchase whole animals and use fair-trade, locally-roasted coffee and local liquors in the bar. The menu lets you know exactly where your food came from, listing out each farm and its offerings. 

Albuquerque, N.M., is quickly emerging as a foodie destination, they say, with Farm & Table growing some of their food right behind the restaurant on a 2-acre produce farm.

Salt Lake City restaurant Pago aims for a menu of only local ingredients and in 2010, broke ground on its very own micro-farm in nearby Sugar House. The farm provides vegetables such as heirloom tomatoes, kale and beets.  

The Orlando World Center Marriott has recently debuted a high-tech solution to food sustainability in the hotel’s nine dining outlets, and it’s called the HyCube. It’s a “modular hydroponic vegetable production system.” It uses 90% less water than traditional farms and produces 150 different types of fresh lettuce, herbs, microgreens and edible flowers.  

Croc’s 19th Street Bistro in Virginia Beach, Va., sources many of its vegetables from its own garden just steps away from the dining guests to create anything from cocktails to dips—and they always look local for anything they can’t grow themselves. The restaurant even hosts the Old Beach Farmers Market, a certified Virginia green market, every Saturday in its very own parking lot.

Can you just imagine what could happen if supermarkets took a page out of this foodservice book?