New, Inventive CSA's at Prime Meats and Rucola

 have been popping up all over the neighborhood, and now a few local restaurants are getting in on the action.

Come May, Prime Meats Delika-tessen and Provisions - the shoebox of a shop around the corner from the restaurant - will be a pickup point for Lancaster Farm Fresh produce. 

Packages offered include a "Full Vegetable Share," which, at $700 for 25 weeks, includes 7 - 12 varieties of organic, Pennsylvania-grown vegetables per week, plus small quantities of fruit when available. Aside from traditional fare, the Full Share also promises to deliver a selection of exotic, lesser-known veggies for the experimental home chef.

For less adventurous folks, a "Half Vegetable Share" is also available, which includes 4 - 9 vegetable varieties a week at $425. A 20-week fruit share is $180. 

With so many great, local CSA choices, what sets the Prime Meats option apart from the pack? According to the restaurant's Director of Operations Christina Knowlton, the advantage is the ability to complete your dinner shopping in one shot.

"There are several CSA's in the neighborhood, but since our pickup is at The Prime Meats Delikat-Essen & Provisions, members will also have the opportunity to purchase other farm fresh products," she said.

Knowlton mentioned some of the products available at Provisions: Lancaster Fresh Chicken and Duck Eggs, a variety of German and Italian Sausages, Whole Amish Chickens, Thick Cut Bacon and Pork Chops and 38-Day Dry-Aged Steaks. A variety of grains, spices, pickles, condiments and house-made baked goods are also for sale.

For additional details and to enroll, visit Lancaster Farm Fresh.

Meanwhile, Rucola on Dean Street is gearing up to offer their own take on the CSA. The soon-to-open locavore bistro, helmed by Prime Meats alum Julian Brizzi and his partner Henry Rich, is offering This Batch, a dramatic departure from your conventional farm share.  

This Batch is “not simply a drop spot for other CSAs," said Chris Muscarella, a parner at Rucola. "We are offering a CSA-like service, but are quite different from other CSAs in that we will be working with and featuring multiple farms and using the web to make the experience easier for consumers and farmers.”

This Batch will send a weekly email on a Saturday or a Sunday telling those who sign-up what's fresh off the farm in the next week. The choice is then up to you whether you want a single or family sized portion.

The food available through This Batch is the same that Rucola's chefs will be using in the kitchen.

Additionally, This Batch doesn’t require a season-long commitment like other CSAs. Instead, said Muscarella, “people can participate on a weekly basis if that suits their needs and schedule better.”

To be notified when This Batch officially launches, sign up here.

With so many diverse options for consistent, fresh, local produce in the neighborhood, it will be difficult to find an excuse not to eat your vegetables this summer.

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Full disclosure: Puzio works part-time at Prime Meats Delikat-Essen & Provisions.