Jeremy’s Farm to Table Finds New Approaches to Stay in Business

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As restaurants statewide are seeing a downturn in business, owners are having to find new and creative ways to adapt to this new territory.  Many, including in Lewis County, are struggling to stay afloat or have shut down for the time being. 

“It’s hard to put that into words,” Jeremy’s Farm to Table owner Pam Wildhaber said. “It’s just the most bizarre times. Every day I wake up and think, ‘Is this really happening?’ It’s just so surreal. It’s The Twilight Zone.”

Jeremy’s Farm to Table is not one of those. It didn’t have a choice, initially. The Chehalis restaurant had a surplus of inventory when the novel coronavirus hit, followed by statewide dine-in restrictions and stay-at-home orders. Everything happened so fast, but the restaurant, which typically served a couple hundred customers or more a day, sometimes up to 600 people, had a stockpile of food to move and sell.

Then Jeremy’s Farm to Table began receiving requests from customers on social media about what types of meals they should cook. It fueled Wildhaber’s hope.

“It gave me encouragement to stay open,” Wildhaber said. “It’s really catching on, in terms of support. We’ve been so blessed with our loyal customer base. I want to emphasize how much we do appreciate the community. And I’m so blessed with a really great staff that’s continuing to run the to-go aspect of our business that we suddenly have to jump into.”

The restaurant has, of course, seen a drop in regular business since the novel coronavirus outbreak. And as everything happened so quickly the past few weeks, it has transformed its business model. Jeremy’s has adapted to this new environment with creative ways to serve its customers better. It is focusing on family-style dinners now, which is important to people now more than ever as families have been self-isolating the past few weeks.

“One thing we all want to do is have good dinners with our families,” Wildhaber said. “That’s been a blessing where we’ve been able to help. That’s a real good feeling.”

Some of the new dinners, which include take-and-bake, consist of prime rib stroganoff and creamy chicken alfredo. The smaller option is over two pounds of food and feeds two to three people for $19.95. The family-style portion is four and a half pounds and feeds four to six people for $36.95. Customers can also add an organic salad for additional $4.00 per person. 

The restaurant always makes extra because it never knows how many people will call in and it’s used to serving big crowds. It offers delivery service through DoorDash, currently, and is looking for more ways to reach out to the community, as well, Wildhaber said. 

The other portion of Jeremy’s that the family has run for the last 30 years is Jeremy’s Fruit Stand and Market, a produce business that relocated to 1849 N. National Ave. in Chehalis in August 2019. Prior to that, it was on Main Street since 1989.

The market sells organic produce sourced from local farms and — get this — toilet paper and paper towels. Wildhaber buys toilet paper and paper towels through her restaurant supplier then supplies them to the public at the market stand. It also offers other hard-to-find items like rice and flour.

“We’re carrying more things that people can’t get,” Wildhaber said.

Starting around the end of May and start of June, the fruit stand and market will also offer a variety of berries, including organic strawberries by the flat. It will have a large tent for an open-air market. Her nephew owns Newaukum Valley Farm and will feature their organic produce for sale, as well.

“And we’ll feel like life is normal again,” Wildhaber said.

Gov. Jay Inslee extended the statewide stay-at-home order until at least May 4, and Wildhaber is hoping it’s lifted before Mother’s Day on May 10, which is Jeremy’s Farm to Table’s biggest day of the year.

“I’m hoping it’s open for Mother’s Day,” Wildhaber said. “Who knows, though. I hate to get my hopes up about it. The thing that’s helping me through this is you get back to being thankful and grateful for all that we have, because it could certainly be so much worse. Grateful for our health, our family’s health, that we have food, that our community is strong.” 

More Information on Jeremy’s Farm to Table



Hours: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Thursday and Sunday; 11 a.m to 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday

Location: 576 W. Main St., Chehalis

Phone: 360-748-4417

Website: www.jeremysfarmtotable.com

 

Top selling items at Jeremy’s Farm to Table

Pizza: $15-27

Creamy chicken alfredo: $19.95

Prime rib stroganoff: $19.95

Kale salad: $14

 

More Information on Jeremy’s Fruit Stand and Market

Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday; 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday

Location: 1849 N. National Ave., Chehalis

Phone: 360-748-9888

Website: www.jeremysfarmtotable.com/market-fruit-stand

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Reporter Eric Trent can be reached at etrent@chronline.com. Visit chronline.com/business for more coverage of local businesses.