By Elizabeth Nealon
As finals near, students do not find themselves with an abundance of free time and are growing more and more tired of the on-campus and neighborhood food offerings. To escape the same-old same-old, students typically assume the only options are to go into Manhattan or go upstate for food. But, in the Riverdale neighborhood, a rare café, brunch, lunch and dinner spot with modern industrial décor and a mission to foster conscious consumption awaits.
Moss Café, a farm-to-table coffee and espresso bar in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, offers a fresher selection than that of other Bronx food establishments. Moss has an ever-changing food and drink menu as they strive to serve the freshest in-season local fare available. They source all of their produce from farms in New York.
The café sources their produce from Paisley Farms, which, like Moss Café, was founded in the interest of providing New Yorkers with fresh, locally grown produce. Moss gets their eggs from Feather Ridge Farm, which prides itself on producing eggs from hens who eat Feather Ridge Farm-milled whole grain feed and are raised cage, antibiotic and hormone-free.
The team smoothly running Moss Café smoothly does not spare any effort when it comes to sourcing, cooking and serving the freshest foods. They adjust their menu constantly to stay in step with the harvests and the availability of their produce; the things that they can’t get locally such as avocados and lemons, they still hold to the highest standards for source and quality.
Their constantly-evolving menu has featured the likes of gluten-free and vegan blood orange muffins, saffron spinach risotto and pan-seared trout with roasted zucchini and béchamel purée topped with warm walnut vinaigrette and spring green salad.
The dishes at Moss are kosher under Riverdale Vaad and fully pescatarian with many vegetarian and vegan options available. The accommodating staff makes dietary restrictions seem like a non-issue in a time when meat and dairy-free options often feel like inconveniences. Many of their menu options already are or can easily be made vegetarian or vegan.
Moss Café is, according to their website, “committed to community, sustainability, quality and creativity”, which is manifested in all of their dishes. In the quite stagnant foodscape of Riverdale, and the larger Bronx area, the crew at Moss is constantly churning out new dishes and experimenting with recipes that push the boundary of what is commonly expected in the vegetarian and pescatarian food scenes.
What on the weekends is a lively brunch scene, during the week is a dream spot for doing some studying. Before five o’clock when the dinner rush starts, Moss Café is a laidback coffee shop that proudly serves Stumptown Coffee and lavishes in its double life. Owner Emily Weisberg’s passion for farm fresh fare is matched only by her interest in coffee. She became so interested in coffee grown in Latin America that she worked and lived in Peru for some time.
The versatility of Moss Café is just another thing to love about it. Who can resist a café that serves great coffee, tea and adventurous pastries in the morning and creates daring dinners that evening? The coffee shop by day, lively restaurant by night is rare for the Bronx and definitely a welcomed addition.
