It starts with a friend of a friend and a road trip up North. Three years ago, chef Robert Berry, head chef at Monument Lane in the West Village, was offered a lift back to New York from DC by a kind friend of a friend who had an extra seat in his truck. This chance encounter proved to be more beneficial than merely getting a road trip buddy to chat with about cycling.
As they started talking, Berry discovered that the brother of his new friend was an experienced forager and had access to a huge ramp crop down in West Virginia where these sought-after weeds grow in abundance. As most New Yorkers would agree, this town is all about “who you know,” typically starting with a friend of a friend (or a friend of a friend’s brother). And in this case Berry hit the culinary connection jackpot.
