Locally sourced, locally served

Valley restaurant goes extra mile to serve locally grown produce and meats

Firewater Public House (Firewater) owner Danny Burau has always envisioned his restaurant to have locally grown produce and proteins served at his venue whenever possible.

"We had conversations with ranchers when we opened and the Barkhursts, from LL Livestock, came in we struck up an easy conversation about serving beef or bison from the Platte Valley," Burau said.

He said the talks centered around how Barkhursts and Firewater could make this work.

"I knew it was going to be a challenge to find a beef producer that could handle as small volume as we had," Burau said. "LL Livestock shipped three animals to Wyoming Custom Meats in Hudson to be cut to our specifications. Then we went and picked it up."

He said in order to handle the amount of beef coming in, Firewater had to upgrade its facilities.

"It was challenging, because we have just so much room," Burau said.

He said the reason Firewater really wanted to have local beef was to give the experience that the restaurant used the animal from nose to tail. Burau was pleased with the beef he received that had been raised in Platte Valley.

"They came in really well marbled and both the rancher and processor both thought the animals had taken to fattening up better than they anticipated," Burau said. "That was really good to hear because that means we are getting great quality with a local product."

He said the animals had been grain finished the last couple months. Before that, the cattle fed off the grass. Burau said the American palate prefers grain finished beef and if the cows were not grain fed, the beef would be leaner tasting, similar to elk. This is not the beef taste Americans gravitate towards.

"It depends on how aggressively the animals are being fed grain, but they can add a third of their body weight those last days they are fed grain," Burau said. "People generally in this country don't want a true grass fed beef. It tastes like game."

Burau said he gives the Barkhurst family credit for going through the trouble to make this happen. He said other ranchers have told him, though no slight against Firewater, it would not be financially feasible for them to process such a small quantity.

Beef is traditionally sold and processed in the fall. This makes the timing for purchasing the beef a bit tougher for Firewater because, like most restaurants in the Valley, there is a slowdown in business versus summer.

"When the animals are ready, they have to go," Burau said. "It is a little leap of faith on our part to sell the beef as we face a downturn."

Burau said, although purchasing the beef in fall is challenging, he is willing to try.

"Our goal is to purchase as much of our product as close to Saratoga as we possibly can," Burau said.

He said the beef going to an inspected facility is another challenge.

"I don't know if a lot of producers realize I can't serve anything that doesn't go to an inspected facility," Burau said. "It is the same way I can't serve trout that is caught in the river. It is the law."

Burau said he works closely with health and safety inspectors.

He is hopeful that he will be able to take bison being raised by the Barkhursts.

"Do I want to take bison in the fall versus summer? Not really," Burau said. "But if that is what I have to do, I will do it."

Burau likes using Platte Valley beef because he knows exactly how it is treated and cared for.

"There is an organization called Grown in Wyoming," Burau said. "It is a cool organization."

According to their website, Grown in Wyoming is the state branded agriculture program of the Wyoming Business Council, designed to differentiate, identify and promote foods and fibers predominantly grown in Wyoming. The program is about a year old.

Currently, Firewater is the only restaurant member in the program listed.

"I think what it boils down to is a conversation between what a rancher and our restaurant is trying to accomplish that is mutually beneficial to both," Burau said. "It has to be economically feasible for both."

He said what Firewater is doing with trying to source local product is in uncharted territory.

"But they say necessity is the mother of invention," Burau said. "It is a necessity to me that we try and find local ingredients when we can."

He said knowing the ingredients as best as possible was important to his concept for Firewater.

"This is why we make things from scratch here," Burau said. "Because we can speak to the ingredients and control what we serve. I could go and touch the nose of the cattle we bought and that is hard for any restaurant to say no matter you are located."

He said local vegetables and fruit is easier to bring into Firewater as long as the produce is directly off the plant. It can't be sliced , peeled or cut in any manner.

"We can take produce from a local garden as long as it is not processed," Burau said. "This way you are not risking introducing contaminants."

He said currently he has been getting greens from Brush Creek Ranch that is grown in the greenhouse.

"The iceberg lettuce they have brought in has been beautiful," Burau said. "The taste is the best I have ever had."

He said the simplicity of getting fresh produce from local gardens excites him.

"If we can find the people who are growing what we want, it is excellent," Burau said. "I guess I would say getting local produce versus local protein is a whole other animal."

Burau said if he can assist in serving local beef and produce to the community, it will be satisfying.

"I feel better about what we are putting on the plate," Burau said. "I know it is more expensive, but to me, to help support the local growers, it is worth it."

He said there is a trade off of trying to keep prices down because economies of scale make it hard. A big industrial producer can buy bulk grain whereas a smaller producer does not get these lower prices. They have to pass the heftier price to the purchasers, such as Firewater.

Burau is up to the challenge.

"We moved here to be a part of the community and that means supporting the local producers in the best manner we can, because it translates to helping our customers get the best taste we can put forth," Burau said. "That is key to Firewater."

 

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