“From our farmers, to our chefs, to your plate … It’s Elemental.” This is the self-proclaimed essence of Chattanooga’s newest farm to table restaurant called, naturally, Elemental. Located in the environmentally conscious 2 North Shore development across from Whole Foods Market, the restaurant takes this mantra to heart, with chefs truly investing the large amounts of time, thought, money, and energy required to source as much as possible locally in order to provide their diners with not only the best tasting products but also the most sustainable.
Chef Charlie Loomis changes his menu frequently according to what’s available and has a planning party every Monday with his staff to come up with new dishes inspired by what they’ll be getting that week, be it a baby carrot or a piece of lamb. That’s the sign of a restaurant that is truly sourcing locally, a menu that changes, and
it’s that kind of labor of love that’s required to produce true sustenance, the kind that nourishes the community.
“The way we see it there should be a connection between people and their food. It’s an emotional thing,” Loomis describes. “If you’re not getting that, you’re missin’ out. I know the people that I buy my food from and I know their families … I’ve been to the farms … I’ve seen it growing … I think that brings it full circle.”
Chef Loomis and the rest of the culinary staff at Elemental really do bring it full circle by creating fresh, reimagined Southern food like boiled peanut hummus with hemp seed crackers and pickled vegetables with ingredients sourced from more than 35 local farms and artisans. From their buttery steak (which was, it should be noted, cooked perfectly) alongside thick wedges of sweet potatoes flecked with sea salt and caramelized Brussels sprouts to their grits served heaping with some of the most beautiful wood-fired oyster mushrooms I’d ever seen to a stuffed rabbit loin served with a spring vegetable ratatouille, their menu’s refined simplicity that is at once familiar and new allows the ingredients to speak for themselves.