12th Street Catering takes ‘eating local’ to a new level with on-site gardens

Have you ever wondered where the ingredients in your meals come from? With 12th Street Catering menus, you don’t need to look any further than our on-site gardens!

As one of the few green catering companies in Philadelphia, and a proud member of the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia, we strive to combine our passion for great, delicious food with sustainability.

We have six raised rooftop beds and three plots in front of our building, which allows us to grow produce that complements other ingredients we use in our menus. They also complement the produce we are not able to grow for our needs overall.

You can find these in our on-site gardens:

• Lettuce: bibb lettuce, red lettuce, micro lettuce, mesclun mix, and micro-greens
• Kale: Lacintato Kale, Curly Kale, Russian Red Kale
• Edible flowers and nasturtium
• Heirloom tomatoes
• Fresh herbs: basil, parsley, cilantro, dill, sage, and thyme
• Assorted peppers: banana peppers, jalapeno, Thai chilis, and cubanelle peppers

Growing items on-site aligns with the 12th Street Catering ethos of incorporating the highest quality, seasonal, and local ingredients into our food.

What is more seasonal and local than ingredients literally grown in our front yard?

Getting to reduce our carbon footprint while also incorporating fresh vegetables, herbs, and edible flowers into our meals is precisely aligned with our green mission. As we continue to grow as a business, we also hope to expand our gardens!

We can ensure everything we pick is ready to be served to our customers; there is nothing like biting into a ripe, in-season organic tomato that you just picked off the vine!

Green spaces are an asset to a community for so many reasons, beyond just the ability to nourish people by providing food. The garden in front of our building also allows the 12th Street Catering staff a more hands-on experience — they can watch the growth and even participate in their care and nurturing!

We have all seen our garden grow from seeds to the towering tomato plants they are (and it’s only July!).

We love our neighborhood of Powelton Village, and we love being able to add just a bit more greenery to the block with our edible garden.

Explore menus that use ingredients straight from our garden here: https://12stcatering.com/full-service-menus.