There was a Pacific Northwest atmosphere in the mountains of Park City on the evening of the ninth annual 100 Mile Meal hosted by Recycle Utah.
The 100 Mile Meal is one of the flagship fundraisers of the nonprofit recycling organization founded in Park City in 1991 and serves a dinner with food grown or produced within a 100-mile radius of the recycling center.
This year’s dinner was held at the Red Pine Lodge on Canyons Park City Mountain, which included a ride on the Red Pine Gondola. A slight thunderstorm delay couldn’t dampen the mood, and the rain stopped completely, leaving a mystical vista at 8,000 feet. The surrounding trees seemed to exhale as masses of clouds poured from their tops and the sun burned off the moisture.
Attendees were greeted with a glass of champagne as usual and mingled on the lodge’s upper floor and patio, sampling an extensive meat and cheese platter featuring Beehive Cheese, Park City Creamery and Creminelli Fine Meats. The house-made cocktails – a Mint Mule, Cucumber Basil Smash and Whiskey and Coke – used gin, vodka and whiskey from Alpine Distilling, as well as fruits and vegetables from nearby farms.
Park City Mountain’s culinary team, led by Executive Chef Greg Hansen and Food and Beverage Director Alex Malmborg, put together the evening’s menu and were up to the task.
“Because it’s 100 miles away, we have some challenges,” Hansen said. “Here in Utah, we don’t have lemons or other citrus fruits, no sugar. … So the acid we use is pretty much honey vinegar or honey.”
The appetizers passed around offered a range of flavors and styles: lingua empanadas, a trout pie, smoked beet tartare and stone fruit crostini.
After guests were seated to eat, they chatted with the invited contributors at their tables, the farmers, cheesemakers or ranchers who had offered their wares to the chefs. This year, three new contributors participated: Moonshadow Farm of Hoytsville, Mountain Town Farm Utah of Park City and Whistling Spring Trout Farm of Brigham City.
After the first course of soup – a melon gazpacho with cantaloupe melon, a pork belly chicharron and garnished with pickled melon rind – Ken Barfield, board member of Recycle Utah, addressed the audience.
“This is not a normal performance. This is the leader of our family. This is the leader of our tribe,” he said, pointing to Recycle Utah executive director Carolyn Wawra.
In early May, the young executive suffered a stroke. In July, she returned to work with the support of her staff. Wawra, still recovering from the side effects of the event, gave a speech to the packed room that did not faze her.
“Thank you for coming and supporting the 100 Mile Meal,” she said, reading from index cards. “My name is Carolyn. I’m the executive director of Recycle Utah.”
She thanked Epic Promise and Gallery MAR for their support and said proceeds from the event will benefit Recycle Utah’s mission to create a more sustainable community through “recycling services, education and advocacy.”
When the event ended, the hall erupted in a standing ovation as a sign of the love and support Wawra has earned in her community.
Dinner continued with a mushroom ravioli salad, and then the main course was served family style. A checkered picnic basket and a bucket of fried chicken sat in front of each table, a delightful surprise for guests to unwrap – cans of brisket and ribs, roasted corn and squash, mashed potatoes, and jars of whipped hot honey with crispy shallots for topping.
Most of the meal featured produce from Tagge’s Famous Fruit & Veggie Farm in Perry, including cantaloupe, peaches, sunflower tomatoes and potatoes. The family — husband Thayne, wife Cari and children Laci and Chad — attended the meal and made an exciting announcement.
“Thayne and I are unusual farmers because we did not inherit our land. We bought our farm piece by piece,” Cari said.
Since their founding in 1997, they have watched their neighboring farms being sold and developed, which was their original plan, she joked. But then they realized the magnitude of the changes: “They’ll never tear down a house and plant a peach tree,” Cari said.
“We thought we might be the last ones to have a Brigham City peach. We can’t let that happen. It’s too special. We feel like stewards,” she said. “We believe our land needs to be preserved forever. We want your grandchildren to buy Brigham City peaches.”
She announced that the family had decided to place their 130 acres of land into a legacy trust. The room erupted in applause.
“It must always be used for agriculture and can never be built on,” she said, drawing further applause.
With that in mind, dessert was served, a peach berry pie with buttermilk ice cream from Auntie Em’s Baked Goods, Smith Orchards and Weeks Berries of Paradise, accompanied by a honey apple dessert wine from Slide Ridge in Mendon. A sweet ending to a sweet evening.
Then it was back down the mountain in the dark. The event coincided with this year’s Park City Song Summit festivities, and the sounds of musician Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats grew louder as the gondolas descended for their performance.
The 100 Mile Meal will be back next year. For more information about Recycle Utah, visit recycleutah.org and follow them on Instagram at @recycleutah for event updates.
