Guest Blog: Ronin: A Farm To Table Experience in Bryan, Texas

The Lights can tell you the story of almost every ingredient used in their dishes served in their downtown Bryan Restaurant, Ronin, and their farm. That is because what you are served today was picked fresh from Ronin Farm yesterday or this morning.

With over a decade of farm-to-table experience under their belt, both Chef Brian and Amanda are looking forward to the next decade. Like many small businesses, Ronin was begun on a whim after they catered a wedding for their midwife. The dream started with an old barn on the farm property, which they converted into a commercial kitchen. At first, the plan was to provide off-site catering. And then the dream began to organically expand, as many dreams and plans do.

Their “family” began to grow with the addition of some new residents. The new residents were chickens, pigs, guinea hens, turkeys, and gardens.

As an entrepreneur, I can only imagine that life was not all sweet-smelling basil and sunny sunflowers. There were successes and failures. But as Brian and Amanda and their family immersed themselves in their newfound rural farm living, the failures became less, and the achievements became more.

As word spread about this great new farm concept and the gorgeous location, Ronin Farm began hosting weddings, special events, and their much clamored-for monthly Full Moon Dinners. Chef Brian and Amanda carry things even further, as Jim and I learned when we attended their May 2022 Pink Moon Dinner.Brian and Amanda are not just talking the talk, but they are walking the walk.

Amanda takes an active leadership role in the farming aspect, as does Chef Brian. The focus is on raising food that has health benefits (such as stinging nettle, which Chef served as a tea at the May 2022 Pink Moon dinner) and healing properties.The Lights’ children are also being raised with a healthy work ethic. They help on the farm and the Full Moon dinners. Their daughters participated as runners and servers during the May 2022 Pink Moon Dinner.

If I had to sum up the underlying philosophy of Chef Brian and Amanda in my opinion, it would be that they have old-fashioned family values. They are doing life in a way that harkens back to a simpler time, where self-reliance and independence were valued. Food was grown and animals raised. This is what the Lights are doing and inspiring others to do the same.

Both Chef Brian and Amanda believe that if you know where your food is raised and eat the right foods, you are ahead of the curve when it comes to your health. Couple a healthy lifestyle with being outside in the sunshine and fresh air, and you have a winning combination!

We’ve all heard the old saying, “You are what you eat.” For Chef Brian and Amanda, this is how they live and how they are teaching their children to live. The Lights raise chickens, pigs, guinea hens, turkeys, and gardens - lots of food, herbs, and edible plants and flowers.

During the May 2022 Pink Moon Dinner, we had the opportunity to tour the farm with the Lights and learn about their vision and philosophy.

The first stop on the farm tour was the barn, where we saw chickens, geese, and guinea fowl. The chickens provide eggs for both the family and the restaurant. The birds are fed table scraps, which reduces their grain intake. These animals are also butchered and used in the restaurant and farm events.

Chef Brian made one point that it is important to let the field(s) rest after they’ve had pigs rooting around in them. The cow and the pigs are kept in another barn and are let out in the fields. This concept is not new; it is really a holistic farming method that our ancestors used. They planned for the needs of the land, the plants, the animals, and the people.

Chef Brian and Amanda choose to go the natural route for pesticides, which I applaud. They are planting tobacco for pesticides and then planting squash between the tobacco rows. This is again an example of holistic farming, where they’ve considered all aspects of farming, living, and provisioning.

So the farm is both an opportunity to educate the community about healthy living and eating and a chance to share a magical, authentic experience that fosters community with their guests and their staff and family.

Each month chef Brian, Amanda, and their team open Ronin Farm and host a Full Moon 9-course Tasting Dinner. This is also an opportunity for Chef Brian and Amanda to spotlight their passion - creating sustainable foods.

As the guests arrived, we were led down a well-trodden path into the heart of the forest on the farm. The setting was breathtaking! Long rows of rough-hewn tables and benches were laid out in a cleared section of the forest as lights twinkled above and wound through the tree branches, bathing the scene in soft light.

Though we arrived as strangers, we developed a camaraderie that unpinned the event as the evening wore on. As we chatted with the other guests around us, something astounding happened. This is what I believe the Lights’ vision is for Ronin Farms - they create the perfect atmosphere for a unique experience not found anywhere else, while also fostering community.

As part of this fantastic culinary dining experience, guests are treated to a tour of Ronin Farm. Both Chef Brian and Amanda lead this tour, and their passion shines through as they share their vision for food sustainability and how they are fostering that sustainability.

The food at the Full Moon Dinners is meant to be “tasting” size. They are small bites that have been carefully curated and crafted for each Full Moon Dinner. None of the dinners are ever the same.

The flavors and tastes of the Pink Moon Dinner were delightful and delicious. I had not had any meal like this tasting menu, and I would return for another Full Moon Dinner dining experience with Ronin Farm.

When you walk up to Ronin, you are struck by the rustic exterior of what used to be the old ice house, which dates back to 1912. The interior is filled with repurposed materials, which pay tribute to the building’s history.

When the Lights were approached about the possibility of opening a restaurant in the Ice House on Main, they knew they had to go to the next step. And so, Ronin restaurant was born. The construction took well over a year to complete.

The tabletops were crafted using wood repurposed from the office floors, and the wood-burning grill uses bricks from the original walls of the ice house. When you walk in the door, it’s almost as if you can hear the walls whispering of their storied history.

*My visit to Bryan, Texas was hosted by Destination Bryan. All opinions are my own.