Southern SOIL
Table Talk EACH ISSUE OF SOUTHERN SOIL WILL FEATURE A CONVERSATION WITH INDIVIDUALS REPRESENTING DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES ALONG THE FOOD SUPPLY LINE.
locally sourced foods, Snyder admitted that customers who dine at his restaurants rarely question where the food comes from or how it is produced. He also concedes that customer preferences and taste often run contrary to his own ideal for locally sourced quality ingredients. As with any business, demand is king. St Simons Island and Glynn County have their own unique challenges for locally sourced food, from geographic disadvantages to a lack of local supply and demand. “The market is so small here, it’s tough,” Snyder explained “And, of course, the land here isn’t very kind ... The Okefenokee comes all the way up here. So, it’s very difficult. So, we source (locally) what we can, when we can.” Glynn County recently lost a local organic farm that
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Earlier this month, Editor-in-chief LeeAnna Tatum
was sold to developers, reducing local supply even
sat down with Chef Dave Snyder at Halyards on St.
more. “There was only one farm in Glynn Coun-
Simon’s Island to talk about locally sourced food -
ty, Sapelo Farms … we had been getting organic
the good, the bad and the ugly. Snyder owns three
tomatoes, herbs, goats, lettuces, baby veg from her
culinarily distinct restaurants on the Island, as well
for years, decade or more, and now they’re gone,”
as a sea-to-table chartering business, Hook and
Snyder said.
Knife. Despite the setback, Snyder pointed out that CanWhen possible, Snyder uses locally-sourced ingredi-
ewater Farms in Darien is making good progress,
ents to supply his restaurants. As an avid fisherman
but also acknowledges that they have a stronger
he also serves on the Advisory Panel for Snapper/
market in Savannah than in the nearby Brunswick
Grouper Species for the South Atlantic Fishery
area.
Management Council and has worked with the South Atlantic Fishermen’s Association to improve
“Plain and simple, if it’s not important to the con-
the sustainability and health of the South Atlantic,
sumer yet down here, we’re not going to knock on
the availability of local fish and the financial future
people’s doors and say why don’t you do this?”
and heritage of the fishing industry. “I get more inquiries for why don’t I just open up In a frank discussion about sustainability and
another restaurant ... people in my immediate
