Celebrated Detroit Chef Couple Take Over the Menu at Gilchrist Farm
From classic comforts to elevated farm-to-table dishes, Gilchrist Farm launches a new menu with the help of award-winning chefs Jennifer Jackson & Justin Tootla.
They’ve worked in kitchens across the U.S. and have launched some of Michigan’s favorite restaurants like Voyager in Ferndale or Bunny Bunny in Detroit’s Eastern Market. Jennifer Jackson and Justin Tootla felt the pull to return to Northern Michigan, and popping up at The Cooks’ House and Little Fleet in Traverse City in recent years made that desire grow.
Partnering with Gilchrist Farm in Suttons Bay, Jackson and Tootla are taking over creative control in the kitchen. Their goal is to help the team at Gilchrist assemble a menu that focuses on seasonal dishes, hyper-local sourcing and utilizing what is being grown at Gilchrist’s own farm off French Road. Their 15+ years of local partnerships and deep roots in the area will help take Gilchrist Farm’s menu to the next level with a new twist: farm-to-table comfort food.
“We’re focused on providing crazy good food that is approachable for our local community and visitors alike. This menu is fun, comfortable and what we feel is a true taste of Northern Michigan,” says George Brittain, who heads up Gilchrist Farm.
This menu features snacks like whitefish dip, corn ribs, smoked fish chowder and a variety of main dishes like a BLT, farmer’s cut steak and seared lake trout. Truly unique to Gilchrist Farm is a 100% Leelanau cheeseburger with ingredients only from Leelanau County and a salad that is made up completely of what is being grown in-season at their farm.
This new menu will have staples that regular diners can find comfort in, while remaining inventive, fresh and local. Jennifer Jackson and Justin Tootla will be changing the more seasonal items on the menu quarterly, but you can expect to get things like the Leelanau burger or local Northern Michigan whitefish (or whitefish chowder) year-round.
“Gilchrist Farm started with a mission to connect people through wine, food, and family but most importantly the land. We are incredibly fortunate to be given the opportunity to carry on these traditions and continue to explore what ‘locally sourced’ can truly be. In our first few weeks we have met some of the most kind and sincere professionals, from the farms, to the kitchen to the dining room. It’s an amazing time to be ‘up north’ and we are excited to be in a place that feels like home working with people that feel like family. Party on.” - Justin Tootla
We invite the community to explore this new menu during our new hours:
Gilchrist Farm Hours
Sunday: Brunch | 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Monday: Wine and Snacks | Noon to 5 p.m.
Tuesday: Wine and Stacks | Noon to 5 p.m.
Wednesday: Lunch & Dinner | Noon to 9 p.m.
Thursday: Lunch & Dinner | Noon to 9 p.m.
Friday: Lunch & Dinner | Noon to 9 p.m.
Saturday: Lunch & Dinner | Noon to 9 p.m.
# # #
About Gilchrist Farm
On a mission to grow and serve the best food and drink Northern Michigan has to offer, Gilchrist Farm is a farm, winery and restaurant focused on sustainable farming and warm hospitality. The location downtown Suttons Bay features wine tastings, a full lunch and dinner menu and Sunday brunch. The farm, located on South French Road, is where the team at Gilchrist is practicing regenerative farming according to the soil food web to grow both fresh produce and grape vines. These pioneering efforts will yield memorable, complex and incredibly drinkable wines unique to Northern Michigan.
Learn more at gilchristfarmwinery.com
