For Jim Weaver, good food is slow food. “”We definitely need slow food,”” says the executive chef as well as a part owner of Tre Piani Restaurant at Forrestal Village in Plainsboro. “”It is the opposite of fast food.”” Weaver is among a national following of the Slow Food movement – enthusiasts who believe that society’s obsession with fast, processed foods has largely destroyed many people’s ability to taste, savor, and understand the origins of food.
Weaver is the founder of the Central New Jersey chapter of Slow Food USA, an international grassroots organization started in Italy in the mid-1990s that is committed to preserving “”endangered foods,”” small farms, and unique food production methods. “”It’s really not so much about cooking,”” says Weaver. “”Slow Food really is eco-gastronomic. We preserve, promote, and protect local foods that are at risk of endangerment.””
Slow Food USA, along with the New Jersey Department of Agriculture and the New Jersey Restaurant Association, will host the 2004 Jersey Fresh Wine and Food Festival at Mercer County Community College on Saturday and Sunday, August 14 and 15, from noon to 5 p.m. Tickets are $20, and include wine tasting and a glass. Food will be available for a nominal fee. Call 609-588-0085 for information.
The festival features 17 New Jersey wineries offering samples and the sale of hundreds of wines and more than a dozen of the state’s finest restaurants sampling from their menus that draw from the freshest produce and meats. There will also be a seafood market, cheeses, cooking demonstrations, wine seminars, cookbook authors, and a Kids Zone for the children.
Weaver has been involved with the Jersey Fresh Wine and Food Festival for four years and says it offers the perfect opportunity for people to become aware of the concept of Slow Food. “”We are interested in preserving and celebrating endangered tastes,”” says Weaver. As a case in point he offers the Delaware Bay Oyster (Crassostrea virginica), which has been prized for its unique flavor and plump meat since the 19th century.
In its heyday it was one of the most popular oysters in the world, says Weaver. Although it is not a rare species, changes in water circulation have contributed to a steady decline in its popularity. Today there are only five producers left and two oyster schooners remain on the bay.
“”It is a world class oyster, and it is right in our own backyard,”” says Weaver. “”We are trying to get more people involved in oyster farming on the Delaware Bay and open up some niche markets.”” Some measures of success, says Weaver, include a new distributor in New York, and the fact that the Delaware Bay Oyster is now a menu item at New York’s Plaza Hotel and the famed Oyster Bar in Grand Central Station.
Originally from Morristown, Weaver says that he became interested in cooking as a child simply because he enjoyed eating. His father was an architect and both his parents loved to entertain. “”That’s really how I picked it up,”” he says. “”There were a lot of friends around, and there was always a lot of good food in the house.””
He majored in hotel and restaurant management at New Hampshire College but says that he basically taught himself how to be a chef. “”I did some cooking when I got out of college and got my foot into the kitchen,”” he says. “”I found that I was hooked.”” An East Windsor resident, Weaver says that he is currently looking for a home in Plainsboro closer to his work at Tre Piani.
Weaver has become one of the most celebrated chefs in the state and was selected to compete in the Great American Seafood Cookoff in New Orleans last month. Executive chefs from 15 states competed to determine the top chef of seafood preparation in the United States. “”The governor of Louisiana challenged all the other coastal governors in a competition to see who had the best seafood,”” says Weaver. Perhaps not surprisingly, the chef from Louisiana won the title of Seafood King, but Weaver says that he was honored to participate.
While it is tempting to view Slow Food USA as a political organization, especially in an election year, Weaver says that is not the case. “”We are not an exclusive organization. We just promote what we feel is right. It’s about enjoying what you eat.””
-Jack Florek
New Jersey Fresh Food and Wine Festival, Mercer County Community College, Saturday and Sunday, August 14 and 15, noon to 5 p.m. $20. 609-588-0085.
