From Boston: Still Green After All These Years
Veteran chef/owner Jim Solomon remains true to his causes
As any foodie knows, restaurant trends come and go…and so do restaurants! That is why longevity of any kind is remarkable. In order to stay current, however, many chefs and owners feel the need to change things up in order to ride the prevailing (and often fickle) tides of customer desire.
For 15 years, Jim Solomon of The Fireplace Restaurant (www.fireplacerest.com) has remained true to (and thus a favorite of) his customers by remaining true to himself and what he values. In addition to making time (and food) for local police officers, firefighters, and other community members in the Boston suburb of Brookline, Solomon (who also hosts a series of events where he prepares foods that were enjoyed by our Founding Fathers and Mothers and is also a regular member of a local historically-accurate fife and drum corps that performs at Patriots games and other notable venues) has always made a point to support local butchers, farmers, and fishmongers and to offer the freshest, cleanest, and greenest foods available. In fact, The Fireplace was the first restaurant in the Boston area to be certified by the Green Restaurant Association (www.dinegreen.com).
“I received a letter in the mail asking if I wanted to have a ‘green’ restaurant,” Solomon recalls when asked how he became the pioneering purveyor in the region. “While I was not quite sure I knew what that meant, I did know that I believe in being a good steward of the earth.”
After meeting GRA CEO Michal Oshman, Solomon knew that he wanted not only to get on board the “green” train, but also to stoke the environmentally friendly fire among his colleagues and guests.
“I had an epiphany,” said Solomon. “As an advocate of corporate responsibility I was for the first time aware that, since opening my restaurant at the age or 37, I was now, for all intents and purposes, a corporation.”
As such, Solomon took it upon himself to be a leader not only in his community, but also in the larger food community, which has since exploded in the Greater Boston area. Among its earliest and most enduring steps along this long road were to find local providers.
“It is central to our mission to serve what is fresh and in-season,” he maintains, noting that, in addition to ensuring freshest, cleanest, healthiest food available, the locavore focus (which may not have even been a word, much less a “thing” when Solomon started) has “the added benefit of creating a relatively small carbon footprint.”
While an additional benefit may be savings on shipping, Solomon assures that this was not on his mind when he decided to go green and help his neighbors grow.
“For me the decision was not based on a cost-benefit analysis,” he assures. “I believed it was ethically the right way to run my business.” Fortunately, Solomon’s spirit of giving also helped him gain financially as well.
“The GRA staff were able to show me the empirical data so I did actually know before laying out money that running a green business meant running a more profitable business,” Solomon recalls.
In addition to the “top line” benefits of dedicated customers and even corporations who come back to Jim time and again for his popular live music, historic menus, wine and beer pairings, and other successful series, The Fireplace was also given the honor of being named a “three-star green caterer” and has landed numerous gigs not just because the food and service are excellent, but also because the clients feel so good knowing that the food and its preparation are good for them and the environment.
Though he has been at it for almost 15 years, Solomon continues to educate himself and to move his menus towards ever-greener pastures.
“Each year we make approximately two to four significant changes to move in a greener direction,” he explains, noting increasing savings on utilities and many ideas and additions that continue to lead the industry.
“An additional benefit of being as green-focused as possible is positive staff morale,” Solomon adds. “The crew… feel good about where they work and I honestly believe that turn-over is lower than would otherwise be the case. Additionally, in a saturated restaurant environment where talent is scarce, we regularly welcome candidates that choose to approach The Fireplace because of our values.”
So whether you want to enjoy a meal that was also enjoyed by John and Abigail Adams or to enjoy the freshest live music while digging into even fresher and more satisfying food, follow your nose and your heart to The Fireplace and you will surely feel warm all over.
Matt Robinson is a professional journalist, writer, communications director, educator, coach, and parent. His food writing can be read at matts-meals.com and he can be reached at matthewsrobinson@mac.com