Inspired by his grandparents’ farm, Chef William Dissen’s philosophy of using fresh, locally-sourced ingredients consistently inspires his farm-to-table menu.

For 45 years, The Market Place Restaurant and Lounge in Asheville has maintained a focus on sourcing local ingredients for its dishes. Dissen, who has been its chef for 15 of those years, was told “to be the best chef, you have to use the best ingredients” in culinary school. For him, this did not translate to using ingredients like truffles and caviar, but rather to eating fresh food with a connection to the land.

Dissen noticed a resurgence in community-based local sourcing in Asheville in the early 2000s. Local organizations like the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project worked hand-in-hand with farmers, restaurants, schools, and hospitals because there are many benefits to eating local. Many of the area’s great restaurants have a local-sourcing mentality, which serves the entire community in one way or another.

“Eating local helps the economy because it keeps money here,” Dissen said. “It helps create a vibrant community, and there’s a health aspect to it. When you’re eating fresh ingredients, your body just feels better, and the food tastes better, too.”

The blossoming tourism industry in the 2000s and the booming beer industry in the early 2010s led to an increased number of journalists in the city, all of whom were going out to eat while they were in town. Local restaurants made their way into the spotlight, and the uniquely Appalachian aspect of a multitude of farmers growing certain varieties of fruits and vegetables became popular along with them.

“People would argue about who has the best heirloom tomato or whose variety of apple tastes the best,” Dissen said. “That doesn’t happen in other areas of the country. If you go to the Midwest, it can be hundreds of miles of wheat, corn, or soybeans. There are no unique heirloom ingredients that have a story and a flavor all their own.”

The plethora of small specialty farms in WNC allows local chefs to source remarkable varieties of ingredients. Farms specialize in a wide-range of products, from sprouts, mushrooms, and high-end vegetables to goat cheese to trout and sausage, and conversations of upcoming menu plans often influence what farmers plan to grow. There are also local foragers who collect ramps, morels, nettles, red buds, and other seasonal wild ingredients unique to the region.

Because of the focus on seasonal availability, menus at many area restaurants vary. Some offer dishes featuring ingredients like ramp pesto in the spring then butternut squash in the winter.

“That’s another thing I love about our concept of being a farm-to-table restaurant,” Dissen said. “Just like the seasons, people change throughout the year and have different wants and needs throughout the year. It’s interesting how the world changes around us if you take a second to watch. You get to change yourself and what you eat all throughout the year.”