{"id":212458,"date":"2021-03-27T01:43:26","date_gmt":"2021-03-26T22:43:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/the-most-exclusive-eggs-come-from-this-nyc-chefs-maine-farm\/"},"modified":"2021-03-27T01:43:26","modified_gmt":"2021-03-26T22:43:26","slug":"the-most-exclusive-eggs-come-from-this-nyc-chefs-maine-farm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-most-exclusive-eggs-come-from-this-nyc-chefs-maine-farm\/","title":{"rendered":"#The most exclusive eggs come from this NYC chef’s Maine farm"},"content":{"rendered":"

“#The most exclusive eggs come from this NYC chef’s Maine farm<\/strong>”<\/p>\n

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His chickens are laying golden-yolk eggs \u2014 and funding his rural dream. <\/p>\n

Last March, Bill Seleno was at the top of his game<\/a> as the executive sous chef at Midtown event spot Gotham Hall when he heard the call of the wild.<\/p>\n

He and his wife, Tyrany Montez, flew the coop for what they thought was a week-long trip<\/a> to their rarely-used vacation home in Fayette, Maine. But they fell head-over-heels for the rural life. Not long after, they moved full time into the 1860s farmhouse and upgraded it, converting the land into B & T Homestead and Provisions \u2014 an 11-acre sustainable farm.<\/p>\n

But native New Yorker Seleno, 49, had an eggs-ellent idea for how to pay for his farm fantasy. He scoured YouTube<\/a> for tutorials on how to raise chickens and other livestock. Selling the fruits of his labor, he runs a buzzy one-man egg market in Manhattan, making the trip down a couple of times a month. \u201cYou can\u2019t stay away from New York,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"Bill
Bill Seleno relocated to Maine at the beginning of the pandemic. He started a farm calle B & T Provisions with his wife and now sells the heritage breed eggs they raise to chefs in the City.<\/figcaption>
Tamara Beckwith\/NYPost, Jennifer Bakos<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The enviable eggs come from his 120 free-range heirloom chickens, whose divine diet includes fresh watermelon: \u201cIt\u2019s hilarious,\u201d said Seleno, who previously ran the kitchens at Guastavino\u2019s Strong Place and Albert Hall Tavern. \u201cWe toss wedges to them \u2014 usually a summer thing.\u201d They produce\u00a024 dozen eggs a week, which Seleno insisted are \u201cincredible\u201d compared to the pale yellow yolks typically found in the supermarket.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He loads up his truck to deliver eggs, for $4 a dozen, to old work friends and new fans who follow the chef\u2019s journey on his B & T Provisions Instagram page<\/a>. \u201cTo find eggs of my quality are [typically] $12 a dozen,\u201d said Seleno, adding that chefs who snap up his goods tweak their menus just to use his farm products.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still love New York, it\u2019s still home and I miss it tremendously, but my heart and soul is in the farm,\u201d he said, explaining that why he doesn\u2019t mind the regular jaunts. <\/p>\n

\"Bill
Bill and his wife sell these heritage breed eggs that they raise.<\/figcaption>
Tamara Beckwith\/NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

But it\u2019s necessity too. With a drought and ensuing hay shortage last summer, the price of a single bale ballooned from $3.50 to $12. \u201cThe math on that is crazy \u2014 I need to sell enough eggs to buy the hay.\u201d<\/p>\n

His restauranteur buddies can vouch for his farm-raised product. <\/p>\n

\u201cOriginally I thought he had a mental breakdown,\u201d said Mariusz Lukasik, the chef at Midtown\u2019s Cornerstone Tavern, of Seleno\u2019s big move. But then he tried the silky, orange-yolked product. \u201cA good egg has to be creamy on the yolk, and not meant for scrambling,\u201d he said app<\/a>rovingly.<\/p>\n

When he meets Seleno to pick up the goods, it\u2019s a thrill. \u201cIt\u2019s like the French connection for eggs,\u201d said Lukasik. \u201cMy [restaurant] guests get the best eggs in town, without even knowing it. The only problem is I always run out. I guess you can\u2019t mass-produce natural, clean farming.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Seleno
Seleno meets up with chef Mariusz Lukasik from Cornerstone Tavern. <\/figcaption>
Tamara Beckwith\/NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

That\u2019s true \u2014 but Seleno and Montez have other big plans for their sprawling farm.<\/p>\n

Beyond just chickens, the pair cares for a menagerie that includes 45 ducks, 5 goats, 50 rabbits, two nanny goats named Thelma and Louise, cows, sheep, manga<\/a>litsa pigs, hogs, piglets, black roosters and even emus. They used to work at restaurant kitchens into the wee hours, but now they\u2019re up at 6 am to feed the animals, clean the pens and sweep the barns. <\/p>\n

The chef, whose energy is contagious, admitted farm life has changed him. \u201cNow, I catch myself saying, \u2018I\u2019m going to go out and brush the cow.\u2019 I never thought I\u2019d use those words in a million years.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"Tyrany
Tyrany Montez feeds one of their chickens watermelon.<\/figcaption>
Jennifer Bakos<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Seleno said he\u2019s looking to eventually expand the farm\u2019s on-the-ground offerings, with a tea room, a beauty shop selling handcrafted grooming products, and a wood-fired pizzeria. Also in the works is a food truck on the grounds, daily intimate farm-to-table dinners, and a wellness retreat for burnt-out New Yorkers. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to think outside the box to make money,\u201d said Seleno.<\/p>\n

Until then, it\u2019s all about the eggs, and his pilgrimages down to the city to sell them. \u201cThe hustle-bustle of New York is like crack,\u201d Seleno said. \u201cIt feeds the beast. It\u2019s in your blood.\u201d\n <\/p><\/div>\n