THE KITCHEN GARDEN · SINCE 2013
GROWN OUT BACK.
Nearly four acres gave us room to grow. So we did.
SPRING 2013
FROM UNUSED GROUND
TO KITCHEN GARDEN.
PUTTING THE LAND TO WORK
Big Chief sits on nearly four acres, and for years much of that ground went unused. We had always believed in cooking with fresh ingredients, so in the spring of 2013 we decided to put some of it to work.
What began with a simple idea became a roughly 9,000-square-foot kitchen garden just steps from the restaurant.
The original Big Chief Gardens sign.
Building the Big Chief Garden · Spring 2013
We planted. Missouri did the rest.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE
A SEASON MAKES.
From bare ground to something worth harvesting.
WHAT'S GROWWING
It changes with the seasons. That's part of the point.
HEIRLOOM TOMATOES
SWISS CHARD & KALE
EGGPLANT
FROM THE GARDEN
STRAWBERRIES
BELL PEPPERS
FROM GARDEN
TO KITCHEN.
Picked steps from where it is served.
What we grow here doesn't travel far. Throughout the season, vegetables, herbs and greens make their way from the Big Chief Garden into our kitchen.
Sometimes becoming part of a dish, sometimes inspiring one.
A FEW MORE GARDEN
RESIDENTS.
Not everything out back has roots.
The Big Chief Garden has had a few feathered residents over the years, too. Our chickens were originally brought in with several jobs in mind — fresh eggs, composting, natural pest control and, admittedly, a little personality. Regulations ultimately kept their eggs out of the restaurant kitchen, but the rest of the arrangement worked just fine.
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They help turn garden scraps into compost, patrol for pests and make the garden a little more interesting for everyone who visits.
GARDEN STAFF
Pest control · Composting · Morale
MORE THAN A GARDEN.
Sometimes the best thing we grow is curiosity.
A GARDEN BECOMES A CLASSROOM.
Over the years, the Big Chief Garden has become more than a source of fresh ingredients. It has also given us an opportunity to share where food comes from and how it grows.
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In 2015, local students visited the garden for a hands-on look at growing food — an experience that put the Big Chief Garden on the cover of The Wildwood Current.
