Atlanta etc.: Marilyn Wolf's Food Blog and Restaurant Blog

I posted an entry on LT Organic after my last visit two years ago. I am posting again because this place is seriously underhyped. The term farm-to-table does not do it justice---your table is in the middle of the farm. The dining room's picture window looks out over this peaceful scene. Every aspect of this family-run enterprise contributes to inner peace: the beautiful place, the delicious and easy-to-digest food, the gracious service. Here is the menu for the evening: some chicken, wonderful vegetables, and wonderful spices and flavors from both India and South America. Here is my palte. The chicken is underneath the sautéed spinach and coconut, with rice below that. One of the reasons this place is so peaceful is that everything is perfectly cooked. The meat and vegetables are soft enough to be very easy on your system yet still retain texture and flavor. You can work your way around the plate and find an amazing variety of tastes. I couldn't resist dessert and ...

You simply must eat at LT Organic Farm and Restaurant . It is at exit 117 on I-80, just a few miles west of Des Moines, easy to find thanks to the signs on the highway. The restaurant is a restored corn crib. The tables inside are long and communal style. As the owner explained, the food is Guyanan, which has several influences, including Indian. The menu is prix fixe . All the food is wonderfully flavored, but the only strongly spicy dish is the potato chutney. That was a pop to the mouth but nothing extreme. In the middle of the plate is a chicken thigh, cooked for 12 hours at low heat. It is on a bed of rice and surrounded by the vegetables. That isn't a cherry on top but a cherry tomato with yogurt. The owner explained that they grow some of their own vegetables and work with local farmers to procure the rest. The food was wonderful with superb flavors. And unlike a lot of today's food, it was fully cooked to be soft and very easy to eat. The chicken fell off...