We’ve been Fresh Harvest customers for awhile now and couldn’t be bigger fans of the company. As our CSA (community-supported agriculture), we receive a weekly produce basket from Georgia farms delivered right to our door. They also sell meat, dairy, and other specialty products from vendors on their site and those can be delivered with the produce. We’ve drastically improved the quality of vegetables and protein in our house with them. Fresh Harvest takes everything back to reuse – the box, the ice packs and the foil packs. And as if that weren’t enough, they’re based in Clarkston, GA – a refugee resettlement community – and hire many refugees. I cannot say enough about this company and how much it means to us to be a small part of this.
When I heard that they were doing a benefit for refugees with Talat Market, an incredible pop-up Thai restaurant that uses local Southern ingredients and was on Bon Appetit’s 50 Best New Restaurants last year, I knew we had to attend. That it fell on Sean’s birthday weekend was icing on the (birthday) cake. 😉
The dinner was held outdoors on the Fresh Harvest property – we had to walk down a gravel road to get to a lovely clearing with a couple of houses, an old cabin, stream with bridge, lake and a beautiful dining setup. Swoon.
So excited!
Looking at the menu had us ALL kinds of ready to eat! Yum! We attended a pop-up last year with Talat Market and the Korean Fusion where they used ingredients from the other chef’s country in their dishes – so we knew were in for a treat. In fact, one of Korean Fusion’s dishes that night was the top thing I ate in all of 2018!
Serving coffees, lattes, beer and wine at this event, Refuge Coffee entered into our awareness. Also located in Clarkston, the company was started by a woman named Kitty who wanted to create jobs for the refugees that paid a living wage. They get their coffee from Perc in Savannah, hold events and workshops, and give a lot to the community. 
We took our seats as the dinner began.
The first course was a very light soup – used to whet one’s appetite. Gang Jeut Gai is a chicken broth with hakurei turnips, cilantro and garlic oil. I thought it was excellent and actually cooled me down on the humid evening.
The next course was Yum Khao Thawt – crispy fried rice, red chili jam, red curry sausage, tomatoes, lemongrass, ginger, scallions. This was my favorite dish of the night. An incredible burst of flavors, textures, and freshness. I could eat this EVERY day. Those tomatoes, OMG.
The next course was the garlic chives with summer squash. Big vegetable flavors here, and very light. 
The fourth course was the green curry with roasted new potatoes, green beans and basil. I dug into it so quickly that I didn’t get a photo. We ate with the side of sticky rice that was provided, and I used the Naam Prick Khaa – galangal chili dip – on my rice for even more flavor and a bit of heat.
The curry was not a coconut milk broth – rather, it was more like the green curry paste mixed with some liquids from the veggies and fish sauce. Unreal. I love curry and this was to die for. Add in perfectly cooked and wonderfully flavorful potatoes and green beans, and I was in food heaven.
The fifth course was roasted lamb and chicken topped with cilantro. Both were great but the lamb was particularly amazing. Expertly cooked and thoughtfully seasoned to let the flavor of the meat come through, this was the most unique portion of lamb I’ve had in awhile. Unique in its simpleness because I find that’s not how lamb is usually done at restaurants.
The final course was a Pandan Custard with blueberries and graham cracker. Light and delicious – the perfect sweet bites to finish a memorable meal in a beautiful setting.
Speaking of this setting – I leave you with these photos, another round of applause for these three wonderful companies – Fresh Harvest, Talat Market, and Refuge Coffee – that we’re lucky to have nearby, and big happy birthday to Sean!
