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500 Market St, St # 110
Santa Fe, NM 87501
Phone: 505-216-3939
Website: www.flyingstarcafe.com
Hours: Sun-Th 6am-10pm, Fri-Sat 6am-midnight

Fine cuisine in a friendly scene. We open early and stay open late for breakfast, lunch, dinner and everything in between.

Why is FLYING STAR CAFE a Farm to Restaurant participant?

Owner Jean Bernstein tells us that her Santa Fe chef, Ann Minty buys directly from the Santa Fe Farmers Market. Very convenient considering they are right across the tracks. What a great location! Executive Chef Michael Giese directs all the Flying Star Cafes and acquires some producers food, like Old Windmill Dairy via La Montanita's Coop Distribution system and regional produce from R&C Distributors. They are based out of Albuquerque, and have a variety of producers who come and go from their back door at their commissary on a seasonal basis. They then use their own delivery system to distribute to their locations in Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Lastly, Eagle Rock, a local meat company in Albuquerque delivers directly to Flying Star on a bi-weekly basis.

Does this method work for them?

They have always maintained a large variety of purchasing relationships based not on convenience but quality and uniqueness of ingredients. At times, they wish for a more centralized purchasing, but are set up to handle many vendors.

Any plans to increase the amount of local food they purchase?

They are working on some new relationships with a large, local grower in the east mountain area. They have connected some local growers to a small, local distributor they use. They belong to the MRCOG and have made a few connections there. Plus, this helps them stay in the dialog of the business of developing local agriculture throughout the region.

What barriers do they encounter purchasing local food?

The size is such that they often require enormous amounts of produce - beyond many local growers capacities. For the sake of meeting their  demand, they find themselves using standard distribution channels for a lot of produce. They would like to see larger farms with better distribution. They tend to use local produce for specially featured menu items.

Why is purchasing local food important to you?

"We support returning to a more sane agricultural system of local and regional growing. The dependence on factory farms for animals and vegetables has a terrible price to pay - even if in the short term food seems cheap. A slow, consistent recreation of our agricultural network is a necessity.

At the core of our cooking at Flying Star is a commitment to feeding people responsibly as well as deliciously. There is plenty of really cheap food and ingredients out there but we do not buy them. Our most important commitment is to farm animal welfare and we are very proud of the relationships we have created with all sizes of producers."

What do they buy that is regional food and who do they buy from?

Goat Cheese from Old Windmill Dairy • Honey from Buckin' Bee Honey • Red Onions • Napa Cabbage • Broccoli • Bell Peppers • Sweet Potatoes • Turkey Sausage • Shredded Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses • Green Chile • Tortillas • Fruit from Pat Montoya's Orchard • Rancho La Jolla • Rancho Chonito • Romero Farms • Monte Vista Organic Farm • Eves Farm

The above represent very high volume, core items purchased in the thousands of pounds each per year. They also have seasonal, smaller producers which we'll get the names of. Please let's not forget that apart from basic commodity ingredients, Flying Star Kitchens produces EVERTHING, except for a few condiments, from scratch. They are their own, largest purveyor.

“This season we are excited to offer two unique specials designed with Farm to Restaurant in mind. The first will be the Farmer’s Market Salad which will change and evolve with the Market’s seasonal produce.   The second is our Fresh Fruit Tart which will feature fruits and berries of the season. Buckin’ B’s is still our honey all year long, Old Windmill Dairies goat cheese is our favorite plus other produce, too good to pass up, will end up ‘a la minute’on lunch/dinner plates as well.”

Ask the staff!

In addition to monthly training of featured items, Flying Star provide to their staff a matrix of their "high value" ingredients which includes definitions of LOCAL, ORGANIC, NON- GMO, WHOLE GRAIN, HUMANE, ETC. plus descriptions of flavors and culinary terms.