Memorial Day Asado at Salt Water Farm

By Lizzy Ott (Salt Water Farm apprentice)

The layered smell of salty air and aged wood, the gentle sounds of cleansing waves and birds’ soft songs, a reflexive eye blink and a glance towards the window through a misty fog and varying shades of green tree tops. The inevitable just-woke-up-in-a-new-place confusion encroaches. Where am I? Ah, yes, the coast of Maine.

This is how my mornings have started over the past two weeks. I’m the new apprentice at Salt Water Farm, diving into everything from the farm to the restaurant to the cooking school. After four years of student life in New York, this Northern migration has offered a very welcome breath of fresh air.

My first day at Salt Water Farm was the annual Asado. An asado is a traditional South American barbeque. The SWF asado was done true to form, with sustainably slaughtered lamb and rabbit, tasty side dishes made by friends and family in the cooking school kitchen, and a keg from a local brewer. We enjoyed the feast on a huge picnic table by the sea. It was the perfect introduction to the Salt Water Farm experience. I felt so thoroughly charmed by the camaraderie, the exceptional food and drink, and the backdrop of rows of vegetables. I immediately sensed the special quality to this place and the people who inhabit it.

Post-asado feast, my tasks have ranged from harvesting sage flowers from the garden, to making sure restaurant patrons are promptly served their farm to table meals, to cleaning up the cooking school in preparation for the season’s classes. I feel part of a vibrant team of hard working local food lovers, and I’m thrilled to see how the Salt Water Farm experience unfolds.