Picnic at Blue Hill @ Stone Barns

Background: Saying that I am thankful for the pandemic would be incredibly untrue. However, I am thankful for a few of the silver linings that it has brought.

One of those being that as a result of it, the famous restaurant Blue Hill at Stone Barns started offering outdoor picnic dining. It has always been a dream of mine to go to Blue Hill @ Stone Barns, but it is virtually impossible to get in.

Once the Restaurant had to shut down due to COVID-19, they started offering "boxes" of uncooked food from their farm that you could pick up to make yourself. They had meat boxes, veggie boxes, grain boxes, cocktails, and my absolute favorite, the bread and spreads box! My family ordered these a couple of times and cooked wonderful meals with them, but it just wasn't the same as dining there.

If you don't know what Blue Hill at Stone Barns is, it is basically a massive farm run by renowned chef Dan Barber in Tarrytown, NY. They are known for creating their own unique and experimental species of fruits and vegetables to perfect their flavors and textures. Their creative dishes with the freshest seasonal ingredients helped them to be awarded two Michelin stars. Long story short, it is an amazing restaurant with a talented chef on a beautiful plot of farmland. Now that restaurants are able to offer outdoor dining, Blue Hill has crafted a perfect picnic experience on the farm.

My Experience/The Food: This past weekend, my family and I had the privilege of attending one of their new picnic dining experiences. We arrived giddy to start our meal and drove through the beautiful farm to park our car. We were greeted with personalized menu's and "maps" to our picnic baskets with our names on them. We found our table and sat down to sip our cocktail and admire the wonderful view of vast greenery. We had the Blue Hill Negroni and the Roasted Parsnip Margarita (my personal favorite). We were then served our picnic basket (one for every 2 people and began to eat). The baskets are handmade by an Amish family that the farm partners with.

The meal consisted of three courses. Although you could really eat whatever you wanted when you wanted. We began with a loaf of their freshly baked 100% Whole Emmer Wheat Bread and butter. Their bread is perfectly crusty on the outside but super moist and doughy on the inside. Aside from the butter, we were also presented with Pork Marmalade (basically bacon jam) to dip the bread in, which was deliciously salty. We then ate "This Mornings Vegetables," dipping them in the Avocado Squash Guacamole that was served inside of an avocado. Next we each sipped on our chilled pea soup that was so refreshing thanks to its subtle notes of mint. Mind you, we're still on the "first course" here.

Anyways, we finished off our first course with a Fluke and Striped Bass Ceviche, which again, was fantastic. The entire first course was perfectly curated to be light and fresh, leaving you wanting more. We were then served a platter with fresh Maine Lobster tails and Pork from the pigs at the farm along with smoky grilled asparagus. To accompany this course we were given a crisp cucumber salad, potatoes with horseradish and peas and some kraut for the pork. As we munched on our food, the sun began to set, making our view even more spectacular. We finally moved on to our dessert/cheese course. We were given Little Hosmer Cheese and cured meet as well as Rice pudding with strawberry, rhubarb and cherries and a bowl of the absolute freshest fruits from their farm. Just when we truly thought it was over and we couldn't eat any more, we were served a warm double chocolate chip cookie with cool and refreshing homemade cherry ice cream to finish off the dinner.

Every single thing that I put into my mouth at the picnic was bursting with fresh flavor. While you get plenty for your money at the meal, you do not leave feeling overstuffed and are even given containers to bring anything home.

Ambience: As I said, the farm is absolutely stunning, especially at this time of year. The tables are set up under a little covered balcony with a view of the farmland. They are spaced apart so that you do not feel claustrophobic or have a hard time hearing one another. The staff was incredibly friendly and attentive to bring you anything you might need.

They are very proactive in making sure that guests have everything on the table beforehand so that they do not need to interact quite as much. My entire family felt that the precautions that they took due to COVID were very comforting and never felt uneasy about getting sick.

Overall: The experience of dining at Blue Hill was truly unforgettable. Every aspect of the picnic setup was so well thought out and planned for. Some tips that I have for you if you decide to go. First, definitely book in advance because the spots fill up quickly. However, if you see that it is sold out, it is worth putting yourself on the wait list. They'll email you if you get a spot. Second, in my opinion the 5:30 seating was nicer because as you were finishing your meal, the sun was just setting, ensuring that you had a beautiful view for your entire meal. However, it was very hot, so if that bothers you, then definitely go for the later one. Overall, this experience was absolutely amazing and I would give it a 5/5.