Gourmet to Go

It’s taken eight years.

Nancy knew back in 1999 that she was going to use the produce of Summer Jo’s farm to create great products. But what products? Jams, jellies, vinegars, medicinal herbal remedies? That was the rub: we had to find the right products and they had to be great. The beneficent climate of Southern Oregon lets us grow a wide variety of produce and our rigorous organic practices reward us with bounteous, tasty veggies. And we can and do sell them at market and use them in our restaurant.

But how could we turn excess production into high-quality products that measure up to the standard Nancy set for the farm and the restaurant? We tested out a lot of different products over the years. Research and development in the food business has the delightful advantage that you can eat your efforts. But only this year did Nancy feel confident that we could launch a line of high-quality Summer Jo’s farm-derived products.

We call it Gourmet to Go. We will be announcing additional products in the Gourmet to Go line later this year, but we’re launching the line with one product that we knew how to make and that our customers were demanding more of: artisan bread.