By Victor Reis, an employee at The Farmhouse Restaurant
“Are you always this busy? How do you do it?”
“Oh my gosh, look at that steak! I know what I’m ordering!”
“These desserts! Do you think they’ll mind if I get more than one?”
This is what we hear as we stroll through the aisles between the tables and booths, flanked by the massive fireplace everyone wants to sit by and our windowed kitchen everyone wants to look into. We see hungry families, business colleagues, travelers, students and friends. We hear your laughter, and see your smile and your wide eyes as you see how much food is on your plate, wondering if you can finish it all. This fine-dining experience produces the best, whether ordering a filet or one of our gourmet burgers — and we recommend both! Half of the time, we don’t know what to order ourselves when looking at the menu! There is only so much room in our stomachs, after all, and it is all amazing.
We receive everyone, no matter if they’re wearing a suit or t-shirt. We treat our guests as if they were in our home, and if you ask some of our servers they’ll tell you The Farmhouse may as well be. Please come as you are. Tell us where you’re traveling from, where you’re going, what you saw on your visit to the farm and our many attractions, from the Birthing Barn to the Crop Adventure. We took these tours ourselves and were as impressed as you are. We know the ladies and gentlemen running the natural gas plant, and how driven they are to providing the cleanest and most efficient transformation of raw material to usable energy.
Secretly, while you watch us in the kitchen, we look back and see your community sitting together. Sometimes loud, sometimes quiet, the dining room floor with its many tables and booths warmly invite everyone to sit together and cast aside the worries of the world. Servers delightfully squeal with glee, seeing young visitors stare wide-eyed at the food and big cow and pig decorations, sitting cheerfully together above our spiral staircase. You’ll find the employees are as diverse as you are, and our differences are secondary to working together, to making your experience the best we can. Never saying “no” to a request, the servers will do whatever is needed to make their guests happy and to help one another. If you love our food, which we know you will and work hard to make sure of it, you might notice you’re not the only one. “Oh, I want that! I’m ordering that after work,” is exclaimed more often than you might expect from a server gazing at what our expert cooks and chefs are preparing for you. Our servers love our food and if you ask them what their favorite dish is, they will tell you with full sincerity if it’s the ribeye or the mac & cheese. You need to try both. You also need to try our Brussel sprouts, fried then topped with honey. Our fried cheese curds or freshly cut cheese board showcase what Fair Oaks Farms produces. The chocolate milk is by far the best! Try Fairlife chocolate milk — it has double the protein and half the sugar of regular milk and doesn’t sacrifice taste.
The encouragements given by our servers to the cooks when they studiously craft your dish is what this is all about, and why people come here to work and eat. Our chefs delegate to their team with trust, are always ready and willing to patiently explain how to deliver the finest food and are somehow able to take care of hundreds of people filing in throughout the day. They simultaneously host fantastic banquets, spearheaded by our management staff that is second to none in making our guests happy. You’ll find our management walking around and laughing with guests, making sure their experience is the best because you selected to dine with us. You matter to them, and to us, more than I can accurately convey here in text. You should come by and see for yourself.
This place is different, and that’s why you came to visit instead of stopping by at a run-of-the-mill restaurant. The education on how important farming is and how few feed us all, the peaceful and pleasant settings our animals live in, it all sets us apart from other eateries. We are you, from your communities, and equally inspired by the promise of Fair Oaks Farms’ mission that has servers driving an hour to work here. I have never in my life heard coworkers and colleagues work and push themselves so hard to make the experience of someone passing by as memorable and pleasant as we do.
And if you’re tired from driving all day, spend some time at our hotel that will open soon. Yes, we will have our own hotel. I am as impressed as you are.