Tucked away in the mountains of Vernon NJ lies 170 acres of farmland known to locals as "The Farm at Glenwood Mountain." For around 30 years this land was left unattended and seemingly in disrepair.
"You couldn't even see the farm from the road. The fields were so tall." Although they had little, actually, no experience in farming, Steve MacLean and his wife Candice decided to embark on a new adventure.
Steve, formerly a chef in NYC, always had a love for following the path of food, cooking and using the freshest ingredients available for his preparations. Then he changed directions in his career from NYC to become a chef on a working farm which had plans to become a restaurant and market in Hopewell NJ. It was there that he was inspired and enlightened by the farmers who managed the farm. He fell in love with the entire process from the seed to the ripened vegetable, from the egg to raising the chicken and then the finished part where the meal is prepared and served. The ability to use what was grown and raised there in his preparations was a new an exciting experience for him. Getting to know the farmers and how they treated and respected the animals was a game changer for him.