Most of us are in denial that school starts in a few weeks, the days are getting noticeably shorter and the year is almost in its final quarter.
Alicyn Hart is already looking ahead to 2014 – and thinking about what it holds for her and her restaurant.
Hart, executive chef and owner of Circa New American Bistro/Market in Cazenovia, has decided not to renew the three-year lease on the space at 76 Albany St. (Route 20), that Circa has occupied since 2006.
In the seven years Circa has been there, her rent has doubled, Hart says. It’s ironic, she adds, that she sends a check each month to an overseas landlord to pay for a space that shines the light on local farmers and locally grown foods.
Hart made her plans known last month, in a short article she wrote for an advertising supplement to The Cazenovia Republican. Circa’s lease is up May 31, 2014. After that, the future is unwritten.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do and I’m not really worried about it,’’ Hart said Friday (Aug. 2). She said she is exploring options and has had several “interesting discussions’’ with people about possible spaces and locations for a new restaurant. She is open to having conversations and hearing ideas, but is not making any plans at this time.
Hart added that she is in excellent health following the successful removal of a brain tumor in March of 2012, but noted “an experience like that does change you.’’
“It’s time to simplify,’’ Hart said. “I feel like I have fulfilled our mission of introducing the community to local food and putting local out there.’’
Hart, a native of New England, has worked all over the world as a chef and taught culinary arts classes at BOCES before opening Circa in 2006. Her son, Owen, was born the same year.
Circa’s menu changes weekly and focuses on seasonal, locally
grown produce, meats and other ingredients, prepared simply to play up their freshness
and flavor. Some of her purveyors, such as Ingallside Meadows Farm, have been
on board since day one. The restaurant is local down to its tables and bar,
made from reclaimed barnboard and other wood by Hart’s husband, Eric Woodworth.
A chalkboard in the restaurant, which seats about 45, gives
a shoutout to Circa’s local purveyors, as does her menu. The greens with the
Nicoise salad I enjoyed for lunch were from Smitty’s Market Farm, Morrisville; the
tomatoes from Emmi’s in Baldwinsville. The scoop of ice cream on top of your
blueberry cobbler? It’s from local favorite Kimberly’s.
When Hart introduced Main Street Cazenovia to the concept of a restaurant that sources almost entirely from its own backyard, “local’’ was far from the buzzword and growing movement that it has become today, Hart says.
Today, some of the farmers Hart has supported over the years have found a market for their products in major retail markets like New York and Boston – and in some cases outgrown the need for wholesale customers in their own communities.
“Going to a farmers market is cooler than going to Wegmans now,’’ she says. “Local food is being recognized for its sustainability, its health benefits and because it tastes good.’’
Whatever the future holds for Alicyn and Circa, I wish her success and salute her for being a trailblazer in Central New York’s local food movement.
Circa is at 76 Albany St. in Cazenovia. The restaurant is open 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday. Information: Call 315-655-8768.
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