Four restaurants and a supplier from the New York City area took the Pride of New York Pledge at the International Restaurant and Foodservice Show of New York.
The pledge, which was introduced by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo last October, was designed to encourage restaurants and chefs to increase their usage of New York State's food and beverage products by 10 percent or more.
The newly pledged restaurants are Marlow & Daughters, Brooklyn, NY; Jolie Cantina, Brooklyn, NY; Saul Restaurant, Brooklyn, NY; and Petite Crevette, Brooklyn, NY. Dock to Dish, a community and restaurant supported fishery based in Montauk, NY, also took the pledge.
Joe Morrissey, director of communications for the New York State Department of Agriculture, said that at least 50 restaurants have taken the pledge so far. “This is a new program,” he says, “but it's gaining traction. It helps to educate people in the importance of buying local.”
Participating restaurateurs are expected to purchase local produce from suppliers and farmers across the state, Morrissey says.
“When our world-class culinary professionals prefer and use goods produced here in New York, it exposes their restaurant patrons to the high quality of our products and boosts the local agricultural sector to benefit the entire state,” Cuomo said in a statement.
Other New York restaurants wishing to take the pledge can sign up at taste.ny.gov.
Source: PerishableNews.com
