Kansas ranch with dream garden has more veggies than it can use, chef is giving them away
The high-end Hooray Ranch — an exclusive hunting resort in Kingman — has been closed for business since the coronavirus pandemic started shuttering businesses in March.
But its 30,000-square-foot garden — which executive chef Bill Crites utilizes for summertime farm-to-table dinners at the ranch — has continued producing. And with no guests to feed, Crites said, the abundance will go to waste.
So Crites, who Wichitans might recognize from his time leading kitchens at Dempsey’s and Koch Industries, came up with a plan that his bosses approved.
Starting this weekend, he wants to share the veggies with families in need around Wichita — people who have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic or who are in need of fresh produce.
Starting this weekend, he plans to start delivering the produce to people who get in touch with him. He’s got enough spinach, lettuce greens, radishes and other vegetables to share with at least 15 families, he said.
“We put a ton of work into this garden, and it would be a shame for it to go to waste,” he said. “I’d like to be able to share it with people.”
The garden, which also features an orchard and hundreds of feet of berry bushes, will just keep producing, Crites said. He thinks he’ll be able to continue with the deliveries for at least three or four more weeks, and strawberries, turnips and onions will be the next veggies ready to go.
Anyone interested may e-mail Crites at bcrites@hoorayranch.com.
Crites, who took over the kitchen at the ranch in late 2018, said that its garden is the stuff of a chef’s dream. He uses the produce to create lavish dinners for Hooray’s guests, and the fresh produce helps him create flavors that keep customers coming back. Because of coronavirus, the dinners haven’t launched for the summer season quite yet.
‘This garden we have is akin to what you’d see at a 3-star Michelin restaurant,” he said. “It’s spectacular. It’s amazing.”
People can get a glimpse of the garden and one of the dinners Crites put on last year by watching a dreamy video posted on the Hooray Ranch website.
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Crites said he’s preserving some of the produce to use in the future, but things like lettuce and spinach are at their best when they’re fresh. Crites said he knows there are people in Wichita could use free, healthy food right now.
If he gets too many request, he said, he’ll likely start a mailing list and contact other people as more vegetables become available.
Crites said he won’t be “vetting” anyone who e-mails him. On Saturday, he’ll drop the food off on porches along with some suggestions for the best ways to cook the vegetables he’s providing.
“There’s no threshold for ‘Who needs it?’” he said. “If someone would like this food, it’s first come, first served.”
This story was originally published June 3, 2020 at 2:43 PM.
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