The MICHELIN Green Star is awarded to restaurants who are at the forefront of the industry in sustainability. From community gardens and residencies aimed to explore the dynamic between humans and food to transforming recycled bags into plates, these restaurants prove that being green can be just as tasty as their counterparts.
That’s why, every week, we will be highlighting a Green Star restaurant across the United States to share their sustainability story and why it means so much to them.
The ideology behind One MICHELIN Star and Green Star Restaurant Pearl Morissette's sustainability efforts, according to chef/owner Eric Robertson, is to support and refine a sustainable food community and significantly reduce our footprint. Through efforts like their 2-acre regenerative garden, foraging locally, preservation (fermenting, pickling, drying), and educational workshops/tours, the sustainability initiatives here are spread across all aspects of the place.
"Our aim is to use our creativity to discover efficient ways of interacting with the ecology around us that gives back more than it takes," adds Robertson.
The result is a 42-acre destination complete with a restaurant, winery, orchard, farm, and bakery along with delicious tasting menu filled with seasonal dishes fueled by local and Canadian ingredients.
And if you want to check out our Inspectors' take, click here.
What is your philosophy on sustainability? How do you view the intersection of gastronomy and sustainability?
The central purpose of the restaurant is supporting, empowering, and translating the work of small regional producers to a wider audience. We encourage farmers to inform us when they have excess product that isn’t selling that we can take on and utilize to ensure it is not wasted. Our philosophy on sustainability is spread across all aspects of Restaurant Pearl Morissette. It’s in everything we do.
Not only do we source directly from local farms with organic practices, but we also grow most of the vegetables, herbs, and flowers we use (including all of the florals in the dining room). This means no delivery trucks, warehouses, chemicals, or packaging are involved.
We commit to foraging in our region which serves to educate our team and guests about what grows wild and can be sustainably harvested. Given that we don't use any imported ingredients (meaning no chocolate, citrus, vanilla, etc.) we rely on the dynamic range of flavors and aromas from wild ingredients to fill out our pantry.
We work with suppliers to reuse containers to avoid waste. Our water bottles are refilled with sparkling water from a local source and candle votives are cleaned and refilled locally each week.
Preservation is a large part of keeping the menu expansive and exciting after the harvest season. We are utilizing reusable glass containers where we will preserve ingredients at the height of the season to tap into during the winter months. These techniques range from drying, freezing, pickling, and fermenting, to storing in alcohol, confit, syrups, or vinegar. We’ll use these preserves to build depth in sauces throughout the menu.
Our farm team hosts workshops and tours to educate our community and guests about regenerative agriculture, how to grow a small garden, how to utilize botanicals at home, and how to source ingredients from farmers' markets.
We aim for those moments when all of the above is able to come together harmoniously, and our ethos translates into a delicious gastronomic experience for our guests.
What was the impetus/turning point for you in being more sustainable/green-minded?
Our journey toward sustainability at Restaurant Pearl Morissette began while honing our craft as young cooks in renowned culinary regions abroad. We noticed that the most exciting restaurants celebrated local produce and the passionate people behind it. This realization prompted us to look back at Canada and discover the incredible farmers and artisans working hard to grow, raise, and fish for quality ingredients.
We have both seen firsthand how sustainability can be overlooked in favor of aesthetics and operator ease in fine dining. This motivated us to build our restaurant with the intention of showcasing local talent and produce. I credit our rebellious spirit, influenced by punk music as youths, that drives us to not simply accept the norms in the culinary world but also highlight the beauty of what’s grown right here at home. Ultimately, we aim to create a dining experience that connects diners to the land and the stories behind their food.
Tell us about a few of your most impactful initiatives.
Our pivotal initiative is allowing our farm to determine the menu each week. The farm, being an extension of our kitchen, puts the power in the hands of the growers.
So often it’s the chef creating a dish, but in our case it is the ever-changing ingredients that inspire our imaginations and creativity. Our garden teams take the lead as the first step in each menu we create at the restaurant, which means, like the growing seasons, things can change from day to day and week to week. This flexibility within the kitchen empowers our growers to be more intentional, reach for higher quality and adapt to other things growing in the region. This approach influences many aspects of what we do at the restaurant from changes in our weekly juice pairings, adapting to feedback, and educating our curious guests.
The above initiatives are rooted in food but beyond that, we raise awareness and fundraise for local charities, donate excess food to shelters, and assist local culinary schools through seminars and donations.
Is there a specific component of your sustainable practices that you enjoy most? Why?
What I truly love about our sustainable practices is the collaboration with our regenerative herb, flower, and vegetable farm right outside the kitchen. Working with Shane Harper and Deirdre Fraser is a joy—they’ve created spaces that not only yield incredible ingredients but also allow us to shape the menu with the gardens being the first step of the creative process.
Their dedication to understanding our kitchen’s needs and their thoughtful planning help us minimize waste, communicate effectively, and get better each year. This partnership brings our two acres of gardens to life, ensuring we have the freshest vegetables and herbs all year round - which is quite the feat given the Canadian climate and growing seasons. It’s incredibly rewarding to see how this connection influences our dishes, the guest experience, and fuels our passion for sustainability.
What’s the most sustainable dish on the menu? Why?
I would have a hard time to name our “most sustainable” dish on the menu as each menu is created with sustainability in mind. Every ingredient we source or grow is selected with this consciousness. It sounds overly simplistic but if the product isn’t available within our region or suppliers it’s simply not on the menu. This results in a menu that is a window into what the people actually growing the food, deem to be the best offerings and reflect their growing practices. The way our garden team operates is indicative of this approach as well. We essentially create a hypothetical pantry months in advance, even well before those seeds go into the soil.
This flexible approach allows us to adapt quickly to what’s available, reducing waste and supporting the sustainable food community we find ourselves within. It’s all about honoring what the land provides and making the most of it, which ultimately leads to some special dishes for our menu.
What would you say is the biggest challenge in utilizing sustainable practices?
Balancing sustainability with the realities of running a fine dining restaurant is definitely a tightrope walk...and a complex issue. When looking purely at environmental sustainability there's always further to go, and more work we could be doing. At times this can make it tough to balance the other aspects of operating a business. The labor-intensive processes required to minimize waste can strain both staff and resources.
Moreover, the expectation of delivering exquisite meals can conflict with sustainable practices, especially when it comes to sourcing ingredients. It’s a constant juggling act between limiting waste, being a good employer, managing costs, and creating a delicious experience for the guests.
The pursuit of those “wins”—finding creative solutions, innovating with waste, or sourcing from local farms—can be incredibly rewarding. We fail sometimes, but each small success or new discovery not only contributes to sustainability but also fosters a sense of purpose beyond food service within the team.
Hero image: John Cullen / The Restaurant at Pearl Morissette
