Images of pumpkin flavored and baked goods usually come to mind when I think about fall. However, fall isn’t just about the sweets, it also includes a wide variety of harvest foods. Because of this, I decided to venture out to The Grocers Table, a relatively new restaurant located in Wayzata, Minnesota. All of their food is extremely healthy and uses fresh and local produce and ingredients. They offer entrées ranging from pizza to sandwiches and even charcuterie boards. Although they didn’t have a specific fall menu, I decided to try their Seasonal Soup, Seasonal Pizza, and Veggie Harvest Sandwich. 

Out of the three items I ordered, the Seasonal Pizza was by far my favorite. The pizza consisted of a sweet pepper puree, a layer of cheese, chicken, and spicy hot honey drizzled on top. I don’t have a particularly high tolerance for spice so after I took my first bite I thought it was way too spicy. However I still ended up eating most of the pizza because the spice made it almost addicting. Additionally, the sweet pepper puree helped to balance out the pizza as a whole. 

The next dish I tried was the Veggie Harvest Sandwich. Unlike the pizza, the sandwich was super sweet from the wide variety of vegetables. It had a red beet hummus spread on the bottom and avocado spread on the top with carrots, mushrooms, sprouts, cheese, and onions in between both slices of honey wheat bread. Eating the pizza and sandwich together was perfect because the sweet sandwich really complimented the spice of the pizza. I’m not going to lie; I don’t love most vegetables and I normally wouldn’t have chosen this sandwich but overall I would definitely get it again. 

Lastly, I ate the minestrone soup, which I had never tried before. My mom always orders it as an appetizer at different restaurants but it was never something that piqued my interest. The Grocers Table makes a classic minestrone soup consisting of tomatoes, celery, onions, beans, carrots, and pasta. When I tried the soup, it totally reminded me of fall with the numerous vegetables and warm broth. I can’t wait to go back and get it again.

Seasonal food from a local restaurant is so different from a chain restaurant. Instead of eating the unhealthy, sweet foods you might associate with fall such as pumpkin bread, apple pie, or candied popcorn, local restaurants offer a wide variety of fresh, homemade cuisines. Although a spicy chicken pizza, minestrone soup, and veggie sandwich might not have been what people typically associate with fall, I contend that harvest produce is a key ingredient to a true fall meal.