Chefs
FARM
Built in 1905, Moore Farm was the original farmhouse for a very large dairy operation located in North-Eastern Spencer County, Kentucky. Chef Joshua Moore purchased the house as a fixer upper in 2005. Throughout the years, the home has been renovated from the cellar to the attic, with the kitchen being the first project on the list, of course.
The majority of the land surrounding the house had been sold off to other farmers and the house now sits on a manageable 10 acres. The original dairy barn and its two silos still stand on the property and are a landmark for guests coming up over the hill to visit.
The Moore Farm garden began with twelve tomato plants growing behind the old barn in 2005. From the many years of having cattle housed at the farm, the dirt is incredibly rich, therefore everything planted seemed to thrive. Soon there were more tomatoes than needed for Moore’s family and he took a few into the restaurant to use for a salad special. The guests LOVED it. Moore has always been very diligent about using the highest quality products in his kitchen, and seeing the excitement over a few tomatoes got the ball rolling on what now is a 2-acre vegetable garden of exceptional produce grown strictly for Volare’s kitchen.
In the Spring of 2014, Moore Farm connected with the University of Kentucky Extension office to do a test plot using their equipment for plasticulture growing. The extension office in Spencer County worked with Moore on laying the plastic in the garden and Moore used their equipment to plant and fertilize the crops. As small production farmers, they were expected to keep a log documenting the changes in their produce and yield for that year in exchange for the use of the plasticulture equipment.
The following year Moore Farm invested in the equipment and have been advocates of the process ever since. This past year the garden expanded again and takes up the majority of the back of the property. In 2018, Moore Farm planted over 1,000 heirloom tomato plants, 55 different varieties, always right in the middle of Derby week! Also growing this year are a variety of cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower (purple, white and cheddar,) swiss chard, brussels sprouts, kale, variety of lettuce, onions, carrots, beets, radish, fresh herbs, peppers, eggplant, squash, zucchini, specialty squash, tomatillos, roma tomatoes, heirloom cherry tomatoes, and of course our seven rows of huge heirloom tomatoes.
We love what the Moore Farm garden is able to provide to our guests at Volare Ristorante.