Page 33 - Flathead Beacon // 7.8.15

TRANSACTIONS
WEEKLY BUSINESS BRIEFING
NORTH FORK FARM TO TABLE FOOD TRUCK HITS THE ROAD
The farm-fresh, organic veg- gies and goods from Two Bear Farm in Whitefish are hitting the road in a new collaboration between the farm and two young chefs.
The North Fork Farm to Table
food truck held its soft opening
in the first week in July, and the
locally sourced menu will be a
regular at upcoming Whitefish
and Columbia Falls farmers mar-
kets; the Whitefish market takes
place on Tuesdays, the Columbia Falls’ market on Thursdays.
Chefs Sam Bassett and Sarah Nangle will helm the kitchen in the trailer, where the menu will reflect the locally focused ideals of Two Bear Farm. Todd Ulizio of Two Bear Farm said the food truck’s menu will use only regionally sourced food, and all of it must be organically or sustainably grown.
To help fund the project, the farm received a $17,500 matching grant from the state, which paid for half of the trailer. For more information, visit www.twobearfarm.com.
Opening, moving or expanding a business in Northwest Montana? If you would like to be featured in “Transactions,” please email information to [email protected]
enough shape to welcome the Chases’ first visitors.
Before the second summer, Ted and Mara moved into another one of the derelict cabins, and kept working. They fixed up two more cabins, gut- ted the station building, and began rebuilding. They had seven cabins and their steakhouse open by the end of the summer. An adventure-seeking Mainer answered a Craigslist ad for a chef, designed a menu with the Chases fea- turing local fares, and now they serve dishes Ted claims are better than any- thing he’s eaten in Whitefish.
This work runs in Ted’s blood. He grew up helping out at his family’s lodge in East Glacier, which his parents have owned for over two decades. Summit Mountain Lodge is Ted’s way of carry- ing on the family tradition of Montanan hospitality.
Ted and Mara met in 2005, when Ted moved to Guatemala to teach total-im- mersion Spanish. The couple returns to Guatemala annually, where Mara now sources materials for a line of purses and bags with Mayan design that she sells in the lodge.
After moving back to Montana with Mara, Ted felt like his career as a phy- sician’s assistant in the Emergency Room was taking up too much time and energy.
“I wanted my own little piece of heaven with a business,” says Ted, who
spent 15 years watching the market, waiting for something like Summit to come along so he could pull back from the ER, slow down, and focus on quality of life. He is a wilderness and wildlife photographer and whitewater rafter, and he missed being able to get out into nature whenever he wanted.
When he heard that the Summit Station was going into foreclosure, he and Mara drove straight to the bank to make a bid. They knew it was a singular project. “
“We have probably one of the nic- est views in the state of Montana,” says Ted.
There were several interested buy- ers. All were discouraged by the state of disrepair they estimated it would be prohibitively expensive to restore. But Ted, a journeyman carpenter, knew he and Mara could take on the project.
“We didn’t have the money,” says Mara. “But we had the time.”
And the amount of time the cou- ple has put into carefully revitalizing Summit Station is clear. It holds its own against the beautiful lands, yet still blends right into the scenery. The lodge looks just as natural on the site as do the moose and mountains in the backyard.
“You don’t get the Great Northern history with this kind of view anywhere else,” says Ted. “It’s one of the rarest places in the world.”
[email protected]
IT’S SWAN BUCK SEASON!
July 1-15 on all annuals, hanging baskets and veggies.
Open 7 Days a Week
Mon-Sat 9-5:30, Sun 10-4
175 Swan River Road, NEXT TO ECHO LAKE CAFÉ Bigfork MT, 59911
PHONE (406) 837-3375
FAX (406) 837-3376
E-MAIL [email protected] WEBSITE http://www.swanrivergardens.com
HUGE SUMMER SALE
TODAY THROUGH JULY 31ST!
4 First St. E, Suite 102, Kalispell
Private rug collector, Mehmet Demircan
[email protected]
(Across from Athlete’s Foot) For more information call
206-310-6243
JULY 8, 2015 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM
33
August 1st – 15th
SALE 50% off Annuals and Selected Hanging Baskets
August 1st – 15th
SALE 50% off Annuals and Selected Hanging Baskets