On Monday, October 21, Letchworth Gateway Villages and the Culinary Tourism Alliance hosted Celebrating Our Taste of Place, a forum for members of the local food industry addressing how to grow food tourism in the Genesee Valley region, at the Genesee Country Village & Museum. Municipal officials, farmers, restaurant owners, chefs, entrepreneurs, and others connected to the industry were in attendance.
Celebrating our Taste of Place Food Tourism Forum at the Genesee Country Village & Museum
The Culinary Tourism Alliance, a Canadian nonprofit that works to bridge the gap between the food and tourism industries, kicked off the forum with a talk on the role of food tourism in the development of rural destinations and shared the results of the months-long assessment and market research they have conducted in the area.
Eric Boyar, chef at SixThirtyNine, a restaurant in rural Woodstock, Ontario, Canada, that focuses on farm-to-table cuisine, was the event’s keynote speaker. With a personal background in farming, Boyar creates ever-changing seasonal menus based on the availability of local products, ranging from vegetables to meat to grains to oils. Boyar draws customers to his rural town with his highly acclaimed food, crafting engaging stories about his ingredients and their sources and introducing his guests to other places in his community: restaurants, farmers’ market stands, beverage producers, and more. After his talk, Boyar answered attendee questions on pricing of dishes, training staff, and how he helped to increase tourism to his region.
Local food innovators Elise Barnard of OSB Ciderworks, Jacquie Billings of Ration Wine Bar and the Hole in the Wall Restaurant and Lounge, and Maureen Wheeler, Deputy Director at Livingston County Development, had a panel discussion on how the region is defining itself through food and the challenges and opportunities involved in growing this aspect of the local economy. On the importance of this forum, Wheeler commented, “Food tourism development is a logical complement to our already strong agriculture and food production industries. A focused effort like this can result in increased tourism dollars, new jobs, and community pride, all of which help to grow our local economy. Bringing everyone together at an event like this is key to rounding out our offerings and further developing the experiences that will make this region a destination.”
Local chefs — Travis Barlow of Ration Wine Bar and the Hole in the Wall Restaurant and Lounge in Perry, Brian Simmons of the Yard of Ale in Piffard, Sean Wolf and Andy Zalar formerly of Farmer’s Creekside Tavern & Inn in LeRoy, and Deanna Berkemeier and Lori Houser of the Genesee Country Village & Museum in Mumford — provided a lunch meant to define the “taste of place” of the Genesee Valley and explained their menu choices to the audience. Food included braised short ribs from Butter Meat Co. in Perry, cured pork shoulder from Wilson Beef Farm in Canaseraga, “chicken” riggies made from locally foraged hen of the woods mushrooms, and maple hermit cookies with maple sugar from Welch’s Farm Market in Wyoming.
After the forum and lunch, guests had the option to go on a special one hour guided tour of the Genesee Country Village & Museum wherein museum staff explained how they use food to create memorable experiences for their guests.
About Letchworth Gateway Villages
Letchworth Gateway Villages is a collaborative initiative led by the villages of Perry, Mount Morris, and Geneseo to catalyze regional economic growth and new tourism-related market opportunities for the communities that serve as gateways to Letchworth State Park.
For more information about Letchworth Gateway Villages, visit: https://www.letchworthgatewayvillages.org/growfoodtourism
About the Culinary Tourism Alliance
By bridging the gap between the food and travel industries, the Culinary Tourism Alliance strengthens the links between the viticulture, agriculture, aquaculture sectors to the hospitality sector to promote the growth of food tourism. Their work lies in developing strong relationships between growers, chefs, processors, restaurateurs, accommodation providers, distributors, government and industry organizations. The Culinary Tourism Alliance is leading efforts in research, education and product development to promote the growth of the industry.
For more information about the Culinary Tourism Alliance, visit: https://ontarioculinary.com/