agricola
by Sue Gordon
Princeton, New Jersey is the quintessential university town: a delightful mixture of Colonial charm, intellectual gravitas and youthful exuberance. For varying lengths of time, it has served as home base for Jimmy Stewart, Ralph Nader and Woodrow Wilson, not to mention Michelle Obama and Albert Einstein. Yet, until recently, no one would have accused Princeton of being a dining destination. Of course, there have always been a few stalwarts mostly clustered around Palmer Square, and catering primarily to professors and parents with traditional steak and seafood menus. Beyond that, there were a host of pubs, pizzerias, and sandwich shops serving the less-than-refined tastes and modest wallets of the students.
But over the past two decades–mirroring the emergence of a more sophisticated American food culture, and the increased consumer demand for fresh, local offerings—Princeton's dining options have expanded dramatically. The poster child for Princeton's restaurant resurgence just might be Agricola Community Eatery, located on Witherspoon Street, right in the historic heart of Princeton. The restaurant has the perfect vibe: upscale but not pretentious, friendly, fashionable and, above all, comfortable. It's the place to hang out at the bar after work, meet friends for a light supper, or entertain and impress your business colleagues.
As the eatery's name suggests, Agricola's food celebrates the beauty and abundance of nature. The eatery's owners and community ambassadors, Jim Nawn and executive chef, Josh Thomsen, take the words "farm-to-table" as gospel. A large portion of the vegetables and fruit used in Agricola's kitchen come from Jim's Great Road Farm in nearby Skillman, NJ, where artist-turned-farmer Steven Tomlinson uses stainable techniques to harvest 120 varieties of vegetables. With a pantry like that, it's no surprise that Josh, a veteran of Thomas Keller's much-lauded French Laundry, cooks up dishes that sing with creativity and flavor. Meats are sourced from small farms that shun antibiotics, and seafood from sustainable fisheries.
To finish this article about Agricola, turn to page 132 of the Winter 2014 issue of Bucks County Magazine.