Fresh, Local, and Full of Flavor: Celebrating Grow Pittsburgh with Chef Kevin Hermann

For more than 15 years, Bistro to Go Chef Kevin Hermann has partnered with Grow Pittsburgh, a local nonprofit dedicated to food security and sustainable gardening. 

From helping restaurants plant on-site gardens to supporting farm-to-table connections, the group has long reflected Hermann’s own cooking philosophy. So when Grow Pittsburgh asked him to help celebrate its 20th anniversary in August, Kevin knew the menu needed to be unforgettable.

“I wanted this to be special, a little over the top,” he says. “My goal was to create a menu that was 100 percent locally sourced.”

To cater the Garden Get Down, which was hosted at Grist House Craft Brewery in Millvale, Hermann tapped into his deep network of growers and food advocates, including Three Rivers Grown, Footprints Farm and Farm to Table Western PA.  

The spread he put together for the event was all about fresh, local flavor — with a little bit of garden magic added in for good measure. Guests enjoyed an antipasti station, a tomato and salt bar, crostinis, sliders, sausage ragù and flatbread pizzas. 

“Everything either came from local purchase or donation — it was exactly what I hoped for,” Hermann says. “The inspiration was really whatever I could get from the farms.”

Hermann’s love for fresh, locally sourced food will carry over to his next venture; in Spring 2026, Hermann and Bistro to Go founder Nikki Heckman plan to open their new restaurant, Heirloom, on East Ohio Street on the North Side.   

“It’ll be upscale casual, farm-to-table, with a focus on telling stories around food and where it comes from,” Hermann says. “[It will be] great food, made well, in a fun, relaxed environment.”