Husband and wife team Charley Graham and Lauren Reich are joint owners of Little Star Diner, combining their talents of chef and farmer. Charley runs the kitchen and Lauren grows much of the produce for their small modern diner in downtown Bozeman, Montana.
Charley has cooked for three different small restaurants in the past 8 years. At Little Star Diner, he develops dishes for the always changing menu based on ingredient availability and quality.
Lauren has grown produce for restaurants since 2009 and provides a large portion of the diner’s herbs and vegetables from Star Pudding Farm, which recently moved from an intensively cultivated quarter acre mini-farm in the Bozeman suburbs to 11 acres of work-in-progress vegetable production next to the Gallatin River.
All other produce is sourced from the best of the area’s organic growers. They use meat from small family ranches in and around Gallatin Valley. Their bread and other baked goods are baked in house daily using organic flour and grains from Montana.
They strive to provide the best quality ingredients from local growers and ranchers, preparing them in a simple and tasty way. Their menus highlight the peak flavors of each season and each small farm in the area.
Resources:
little star diner
Book recommendations:
The Winter Harvest Handbook (Eliott Coleman)
Eat a Peach (David Cheng & Gabe Ulla)
The Momofuku Cookbook (David Cheng)
The Road Home / Dalva (Jim Harrison)