These days it’s nothing special to hear of a restaurant making their own bread or pasta, but many places are taking it one step further and grinding their own flour, as well. All over the country, notable establishments have been touting the benefits of house-ground flour, and New York is no exception. Restaurants like Faro, Semilla, and Wassail have all started grinding their own grains in the portable KoMo brand of mill –pictured below.
Other restaurants, like Hearth and the eagerly anticipated Bruno Pizza, have opted for a more substantial brand of mill, recently purchasing grinders from Meadows Mills. In fact, Demian Repucci, owner of the aforementioned Bruno, raised the hefty sum of $12,000 via Kickstarter to be able to purchase the mill for his restaurant. And these mills aren’t just for bread, either –the possibilities are really endless. Chef Marco Canora of Hearth swears by it for grinding hominy for his polenta, saying it brings out the corn’s natural oils and results in a much richer dish.
So if you’re looking for some extra tasty carbs, or even just something new and novel, hunt down a restaurant that grinds its own grains, I’m sure it will be worth it.
Lauren is a New York based actor/singer/writer. She is a graduate of the American Repertory Theater/Moscow Art Theater School Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University as well as the College of the Holy Cross. She’s a fan of beer, pasta, and academic establishments with unnecessarily long titles. Find her on stage, or online– she’s there often.
