Among many other things – including the flawless flavors coming from his kitchen at Legume that garnered his prestigious James Beard Award nomination in 2013 – Chef Trevett Hooper has been known for his vision of sustainability that tends to precede the trends locally in Pittsburgh. His restaurants have served antibiotic-free meat since 2009, long before touting the practice has been the politically-correct conventional wisdom. He has been both a leader and a skeptic of the farm to table movement and caused a stir when he wrote in his newsletter earlier this year that he was reconsidering his hyper-local ethos. Indeed, Trevett’s beautiful food comes with conviction. I would say Legume is one of our best restaurants not because of hype but because of the skill and care—and heart– that goes into every plate that comes out of the kitchen. He’s not the only chef doing so. Dan Barber, chef of the groundbreaking Blue Hill restaurants and one of Time Magazine’s Most Influential People, wrote in his new book, The Third Plate that “the local food movement has failed to change how we eat.” And that “even the most enlightened eating of today is ultimately detrimental to the environment and to individual health….And it doesn’t involve truly delicious food.” Perhaps it was the pursuit of maximum flavor that spurred much of Hooper’s initial skepticism. But his insistence on using only responsibly farmed animals and utilizing the whole animal are hallmarks of The Third Plate’s sustainability argument. My readers know that I encourage a (mostly) plant-based diet. I believe that it is the most sustainable and health-promoting way to eat. However, I do believe that if you are going to eat meat, you must seek out sources that are MOST ecologically and humanely raised. Is this option more expensive? YES. But it is so for a reason. For one, maybe because it was meant to take up much less of the real estate on your plate (vs. vegetables.) So with Legume’s menu moving the range of familiar steakhouse cuts to more obscure parts such as tripe and offal, I often wondered how Trevett Hooper eats at home. The answer surprised me. To find out more, read about spending Sunday dinner with Trevett, his wife Sarah and their super cute kids. Head on to The Brazen Kitchen on Pittsburgh Magazine! And photos from the evening below.
