Last week while in San Francisco, I had the pleasure of chatting with Luke’s Local founder Luke Chappell over a delicious Blue Bottle coffee in the Ferry Building. His recently started Bay Area based company brings fresh produce and prepared meals to commuters who frequent the Hillsdale train station and shoppers in twelve grocery stores throughout San Francisco.
It’s a simple concept yet brilliant at the same time. Basically, the five people who make up the Luke’s Local team – including chef Jessy Manuel whose resume includes stints at Quince and RN74 – make 300 prepared meals each day using local ingredients (sourced primarily from VegiWorks and Golden Gate Meat Co.) and sell them in grocery stores for $7.99. True, it is more than some of the frozen meals out on the market, but I guarantee if you look on the back of one of Luke’s Local packages, you’ll actually recognize all of the ingredients! Plus, what you’ll find inside is far from the mushy mac n’cheese and frozen peas other prepared foods offer. The menu changes every week – including items such as salmon and brown rice salad with wild mushroom risotto – so you’re bound to get variety with what you eat…check out this week’s menu to see what I mean. And when they aren’t preparing the meals, they run a daily pop-up produce market at the Hillsdale train station during the morning and evening commute times.
Luke told me that he started Luke’s Local in 2009 after seeing how much oil was being spent on food transportation. He was also inspired by reading books including Michael Pollan’s, The Omnivore’s Dilemma (a personal inspiration as well!) and working on a 200-acre farm on Nantucket Island off the coast of Massachusetts. “In the process, he was able to sharpen his understanding of the importance of small local farming in today’s food supply chain,” his bio boasts.
The new company focuses on obtaining all its ingredients within “a day’s drive” and strives to give consumers a “gourmet experience” while eating on the go. At the same time, Luke said he tries to keep produce affordable for consumers by having a team member pick up fruits and veggies directly from growers rather than having it delivered and closely monitoring their inventory so produce isn’t wasted.
So next time you’re at the Hillsdale train station or find yourself in a Blue Fog Market, be sure to check out what Luke’s Local has to offer… since I’m guessing it isn’t long before you hear this company’s name start popping up all over the Bay Area food community.
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