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Stefanie Manley
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Not only does the Farmer’s Table serve rustic dishes crafted using farm-fresh Ohio ingredients, but it also cooks them like farmers traditionally have for years. You can often smell the smoker going out back.
“A lot of people on farms would have smokers. It’s part of the farm — to do stuff low and slow, get that nice smoky flavor,” says owner Jon Stahl. “It’s an element we thought should be in a farm-to-fork.”
Find oh-so-tender smoked items like brisket, turkey, pulled pork and even baked beans on the menu featuring smokehouse sandwiches, salads and steaks, which rotate seasonally with the harvest. The spot opened in January 2020 and is one of the businesses reviving a condemned Medina building where farmers once exchanged goods.
Stahl and his wife, Patty, who also own P.J. Marley’s Restaurant & Pub in Medina, decorated the Farmer’s Table in weathered woods, barrels and metal farm signs as a nod to that rich history and collaborated on menu items with local farmers like Oberlin-based McConnell Meats, which delivers truckloads of beef, pork and bacon weekly.
“They’re a fourth-generation farming family that’s right next door. It’s healthy land, healthy farming, healthy food,” Stahl says. “Local is something we try not to compromise on.”
McConnell ages its meats on-site, including the kielbasa used in the Polish supper platter ($19) that comes with potato-and-cheese Pierogies of Cleveland. Like many items on the menu, the dish reflects the heritage of several Northeast Ohioans, including Stahl, who grew up eating those foods on his Polish family’s farm. Similarly, the Southtown burger ($15) is a custom McConnell chuck, sirloin and brisket blend and showcases a Cleveland-made Orlando Baking Co. brioche bun, Amish cheddar, a house-made aioli and house-cured garlic dill pickles.
“The flavor and texture of the meat — you know it’s a quality burger,” Stahl says. “The juices explode in your mouth.”
For the buttermilk chicken sandwich ($13), the Ohio chicken is pounded, marinated in buttermilk and spices, dredged in flour, fried and then topped with house garlic dill pickles, a house buttermilk ranch and fresh greens grown at Root 42 Harvests in Medina. The Farmer’s Table also carries local drinks like Medina-made Voudoux Vodka and Wrecking Crew Brew Works.
While supply chain challenges have prompted some restaurants to switch to mass-produced ingredients, the Farmer’s Table hasn’t, and customers savor the results.
“Some people haven’t eaten fresh in a while. They’re like, Wow, that tastes totally different,” Stahl says. “It’s not a big secret. It’s a quality product from a great local family farm.” KP
320 S. Court St., Suite 100, Medina, thefarmerstablemedina.com
