The Green Thumb
Ari Taymor
Alma
Taymor, who’s working on a massive rooftop garden, will grow more than 90 kinds of herbs and vegetables: “I want cabbages the size of a fist. The flavor is so concentrated, you can eat them raw.”
The Backyard Forager
Jordan Kahn
Red Medicine
“Even as a kid, I’d rather have had the bowl of buttery potatoes than the cheeseburger,” says Kahn. On his menu: roasted baby turnips with banana vinegar, onion rings, fried kale, and brown butter.
The Preservationist
Jeremy Fox
Rustic Canyon
It’s no accident that 14 out of 22 dishes here are vegetarian. Rather than sneak bacon into his sunchoke-persimmon soup, Fox lets a garnish of coffee and fennel pollen provide smoke and depth.
The Alchemist
Jason Travi
Littlefork
“I like taking vegetables out of their comfort zone,” says Travi, who might soak onions in maple syrup before frying them as rings or marinate cauliflower in smoked paprika and flash-griddling it.