A Chief Artisan presides over a growing realm of local and sustainable procurement and production at the headquarters of National Geographic in Washington, DC. The Chief Artisan is Matt Crudder, the Sodexo executive chef for the onsite dining operation, and his title comes from his position as the lead facilitator of Sodexo’s Local Artisan initiative at the site.
Local Artisan is a new farm-to-table, chef-driven dining concept piloted at National Geographic that seeks to influence menus in corporate cafés to emphasize and promote local products and fresh production.
The centerpiece of the initiative is a “community table” where a specially designated Chief Artisan—a chef whose primary focus is ensuring that hand-picked, fresh ingredients are at the heart of each menu—highlights local and seasonal ingredients that are used in daily menu planning. The program is designed for B&I locations with sophisticated populations concerned about local sourcing, authentic and seasonal recipes and fresh preparation.
Rather than carve out a separate selection of menu items conforming to the principles of local sourcing and fresh production, Local Artisan functions more as a way to focus on those principles across the entire café, says Crudder. “It influences the whole menu,” he emphasizes.
Customers can come together at the community table where they are greeted by the Chief Artisan, enjoy the day’s offering, learn more about the ingredients featured, or participate in healthy-cooking demonstrations. Local Artisan is also designed to create a farm-to-table experience for customers as they meet with local growers who come directly to the cafe.
For example, Gregg Keckler, owner/farmer of Orchard County Produce in Cumberland County, PA, recently hosted a farm stand at National Geographic and diners were so enthusiastic about the heirloom apples and winter crop root vegetables that this spring he started bringing fresh produce weekly. Keckler collaborates with Crudder on ways to incorporate peak-season produce into the menu.
Using a recent crop of rhubarb and lemon balm, Crudder created a very popular lemon balm scented pound cake with a blackberry–rhubarb compote. He dried the excess lemon balm to use as a marinade for local, line-caught, grilled Wreckfish, also known as Stone Bass.
While the National Geographic operation had procured local product previous to the introduction of Local Artisan, the program has formalized the approach. “Before, we may have gotten local product as part of our purchases, but there was no story behind it, no way to tell what was local and what wasn’t,” Crudder says. “Now, we have established that if a local alternative is available, that is what we would get.”
He says prices fluctuate where sometimes the local product is more expensive and sometimes not, but that it more or less evens out. Since Local Artisan was implemented, Crudder says National Geographic has seen a seven percent increase in the use of local product, mostly food.
“The Chief Artisan at each location is the bridge between the food and the local community—it’s all about the stories that the food provides at the table,” says Local Artisan Culinary Director Robert Maluso. “Providing people a way to get engaged in their dining experience is creating excitement at our locations, and customers enjoy taking the time to stop and talk with our chefs about what they are eating and how it’s prepared.”
Sodexo plans to open 10 Local Artisan locations in the coming year. The program is aligned with the commitments in Sodexo’s Better Tomorrow Plan, the company’s sustainability initiative that includes sourcing local, seasonal, sustainable ingredients; providing varied and balanced food options; and supporting the local communities where the company operates.
