Once the designated hangout spot for legends like John Lennon and Yoko Ono, this 19th-century townhouse has since gone through a delicious transformation. From a seasonal tasting menu to sourcing ingredients from their upstate farm, One MICHELIN Star One White Street and Chef Austin Johnson have become a pillar of sustainable gastronomy in New York.
"Sustainability is our identity," explains Chef Johnson. "We want to give our clients not only delicious cuisine, but a better future for our planet—less trash in our oceans and landfills."
Below, he takes us on a deep dive on the biggest challenge behind being a sustainable restaurant, the future of zero waste in gastronomy, and what others can do to contribute to a better tomorrow.
What does zero waste/sustainability mean to One White Street?
Just as important as what’s on the menu at our restaurants is how we get it there. How do our farmers, fishermen, foragers, and makers prioritize sustainability? What does our impact look like from seed to table? What container is best used for us and the environment at the same time? For us, things start to really make sense when you look at the sustainability relationships between One White Street, Rigor Hill Market, and Rigor Hill Farm. The three entities work together to create a significantly more sustainable restaurant and farm partnership.
Why is this important?
I think the restaurant and farming community has adapted to the idea that it’s important. I believe the idea of sustainability is no longer a question of why and when, but rather now and how?
When did One White Street start implementing sustainability changes?
We made small steps in the very early days of the restaurant (we would compost for our farm, use very little to no plastic, etc.). As I mentioned before, when we opened Rigor Hill Market, we all of a sudden had a cafe and marketplace cooking breakfast, lunch, dinner, take away, bakery, and pastry programs seven days a week. It was then that we took our packaging more seriously. We took any waste from the restaurant and turned them into beautiful soups, salads, and ice creams at the market. Running two businesses simultaneously is where sustainability became a true top priority.
What would you say is the biggest challenge in utilizing sustainable practices?
Sustainable practices are more work, require more care, and demand authenticity, so the identity needs to be there. The culture needs to be there. Everyone who’s performing the labor has to have a passion for it, and they have to be taken care of—that’s honestly the biggest piece of making sustainability sustainable—taking care of the people doing the work.
Another is making sure that it's a practice and not just an end result. This requires continual improvement. There isn’t just a single thing to start doing, or stop doing, and that’s it.
How does sourcing locally / sustainable practices affect the menu?
Not only does sourcing locally ideally keep the menu hyper-seasonal, but it reflects the local food ways and historical agriculture of the region. Sourcing locally allows the menu to reflect and celebrate a region. As a result, the menu and food then become more sustainable because it travels less. Requiring less fuel and packaging to go from farm to the kitchen.
What do you view as the future of zero waste in gastronomy?
We can and will keep chipping away at it. For us, we want to focus on our practices and our promises to Mother Nature. We want to set the bar and be ambassadors for this industry and a more sustainable approach moving forward. We need to reevaluate our standards as a society and accept more “ugly” fruits and vegetables into our grocery stores and restaurants. We need to be present at farmers' markets, universities and early education to help spread what’s important to our food systems moving forward. As a restaurant group, we are educating our neighborhood every day, as much as possible.
What can other restaurants do to be more environmentally conscious?
I think a great start is to understand and embrace seasonality. To cook and purchase locally. Slow down the planes and trucks shipping out of season produce around the country. And let’s start educating and bringing awareness to what wants to be a cleaner and healthier planet.Have you incorporated any sustainable practices in your off-duty life?
We’re proud that our farm can feed more than just our daily restaurant guests. We are able to feed our farmers, our employees, and also make charitable donations throughout the year to those in need. I’m also proud to sit on the board for City Harvest, a food rescue organization which takes perfectly good fruits and vegetables and provides it to a hungry New Yorker in need.
What’s one thing everyone can do to be more environmentally friendly in their daily lives?
Learn to cook with more vegetables and from your local farmers' market, try and reduce your daily footprint, and most importantly, spread the excitement!
Hero image: Gary He / One White Street
