From June 23rd to June 30th, thousands throughout New York, New Jersey and Connecticut will participate in Eat Drink Local Week; a celebration of regional food, hometown artisans and sustainable practices. Meatless Monday and its mission are an integral part of the events and dining opportunities taking place during the fest.Now in its fourth year, Eat Drink Local Week is put together by Edible Manhattan, Edible Brooklyn and Edible East End: three magazines focused on the best bites in the Big Apple. The week-long fest includes prix-fixe menus at hundreds of restaurants, in addition to tours, tastings, farmers’ market demonstrations, fund-raisers and children’s events. Many Meatless Monday restaurants are included amongst the Eat Drink Local Week participants, and many more will be offering a special Meatless Monday meal in celebration of local, seasonal ingredients.
Jason Weiner of Almond restaurant
“Most restaurants participating in Eat Drink Local Week will be serving a meatless prix-fixe on Monday” note the editors of Edible Manhattan. Edible East End offers readers a complete list of local businesses that go meatless every week, along with a profile on Bridgehampton’s renown Almond restaurant. “It’s expanding our clientele, challenging our cooks, and supporting our local growers,” says Almond chef Jason Weiner. “Put simply—Meatless Mondays is win, win, win.”
If you’re in the area, stop by a neighborhood Eat Drink Local restaurant this Monday to sample their meatless options. You can also celebrate by encouraging new eateries to take on the campaign! Simply print out and share our Meatless Monday kit with restauranteurs in your town.
Finally, you can celebrate Eat Drink Local Week and Meatless Monday at home by adding some of the fest’s “Ingredients of the Week” to your Monday night meal. Edible Manhattan proudly states that this year’s menu was selected with the movement in mind. “When we chose the ingredients of the week — the eight often-overlooked seasonally available and locally sourced ingredients we highlight each year–we made sure all but one of them was meatless.” So try your hand at a locally-sourced meal with the help of Spinach, Eggs, Goat Cheese, Radishes, Rose Wines, Fava Beans, and Hops.
