Watering herbs on the Widow's Walk at Ventuno (photo: Elizabeth Hathaway)

One of the simultaneous draws and drawbacks of island living is isolation from the mainland bustle of the ordinary everyday. With erratic ferry delays dictated by weather (Hurricane Irene, yikes!), sometimes the seclusion from modern conveniences— such as a predictably decent sandwich from Panera or a favorite brand of iced coffee— can be frustrating.

However, for chefs on the forefront of the Nantucket restaurant scene, the island’s separation from the commercial food route presents a unique opportunity to commit fully to local sustainability.

Leading by example is Straight Wharf Restaurant and Ventuno Restaurant, the two biggest buyers from the Bartlett’s Farm Association, Nantucket’s oldest and biggest family owned farm.

Bartlett's Farm (photo: Elizabeth Hathaway)

The restaurants, headed by partners Gabriel Frasca, Amanda Lydon and Scott Fraley, are in the midst of celebrating a bountiful end of summer harvest with menus almost exclusively featuring island-grown and raised goods. “The farming community informs our decisions and helps design our menu,” Chef Frasca said, amidst prepping for a busy weekend night. “It is not because of philosophical or political reasons, though those certainly may factor in, but because that is what is best and what makes the most sense.”

And following “what makes the most sense” has certainly yielded dishes pleasurable to the sensory system as well. The restaurants’ menus feature a variety of island goods raised by local farmers, such a Patty Meyer’s green garlic and Steve Bender’s Pocomo Meadow Oysters. While working primarily with local goods may seem to be a limiting variable, in fact, the restaurants’ adherence to local sustainability has forced creativity and originality in design and preparation, as unlikely local ingredients make their way onto Ventuno’s Northern Italian inspired menu and Straight Wharf’s lunch and dinner menus. Take, for example: the braised local conch with citrus; Bartlett’s tomato bruschetta and a soffrito of fresh garden herbs; the seared foie gras with heirloom apple, crabapple, hazelnut, rosemary and cider; and, the roast chicken with Bartlett’s carrot puree, roast tomato, chanterelles, grilled onions and capers.

The Nantucket relationship between restaurants and their local farming community serves not only as a model of the sustainable way to buy, but as the sustainable way to make waste as well. With an organic Tamworth pig raised on prep scraps from the kitchen and later making an appearance as a succulent porchetta special, not to mention Chef Frasca driving a station wagon run on left-over veggie oil, Ventuno is close to joining its sister Straight Wharf in a 0% waste model.

“Nantucket has forced our hand to move in a direction that the rest of the world is already going” Frasca modestly explained. But with two restaurants thriving on local farming relationships, receiving accolades such as Best of Boston 2011 for General Excellence and Best New Restaurant, plus attaining official green certifications, the Nantucket restaurant scene may, perhaps, have a few things to teach the mainland.

For more reading on Nantucket’s efforts at local sustainability, check out Sustainable Nantucket.

Straight Wharf's Bluefish Pate (photo: Elizabeth Hathaway)