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2-Part Fermentation Workshop
Join us for a workshop, dialogue, and lunch
REGISTER
Hosts
Garnet and Northeast Larder @ Ambrook
Dates
Saturday, Sept 13th at 1:00pm
& Saturday Sept 20th at 12:00pm
Location
Lower East Side, NYC
Cost
$115 for both gatherings (or $65 for part 1)
Details
This workshop is designed for those curious about fermentation, with minimal existing knowledge.Together, we’ll explore:
- The science and taste of lacto-fermentation
- The culture of fermentation in the Northeast U.S.
- What fermentation can teach about forms of meaning-making
You’ll learn the foundational language of lacto-ferments: how to make them, tend to them, and understand the communal vectors of fermentation.
This two-part workshop & lunch opens up space to consider time, memory, and care in the context of fermentation and community. We’ll observe the transformation of ingredients, the development of relations from repeated interactions with others, and the accretion of knowledge from forms of sustained attention.
We’ll work in an intimate group of about a dozen people. Each participant will take home their creations, nurture them, and return to share them with the group. Through this cycle of making, caring, and sharing, we’ll consider how these acts develop relations between people, and develop the constellation of significant relations that makes us feel at home.
We’ll consider our own ideas and experiences, as well as those by others. We’ll draw on various disciplines, from gastronomist David Zilber’s reflections on the “domestication of fermentation” to scholar Donna Haraway’s notion of sympoiesis (“making-with”), which can frame fermentation as a system of relations.
Part 1 and Part 2
Part 1: A workshop & dialogue.
For Part 1, everyone will receive a bell jar and weight (to take home!), a bountiful table of fruits and vegetables to play with, and the all the necessary equipment to make their ferment.
We’ll make with our hands, converse, and bring home.
We’ll monitor, take care of, and document.
and then, we’ll come back together for...
Part 2: lunch & dialogue
For Part 2, we’ll savor ours collective efforts through a bento-lunch. We’ll provide steamed rice, fresh tofu from Fong On, a few special garums from the NE Larder, a table full of your ferments, and hot tea from regional grains.
We’ll taste, discuss, document, and construct a shared artifact from our explorations.
At the beginning, we’ll ensure your ferments are safe to consume :)
Timing
On Saturday, September 13th at 1:00 pm and on the following Saturday, September 20th at 12:00pm.
About your Guides
Benjamin
Benjamin is the owner of Garnet, a restaurant opening in Brooklyn in 2026. He is exploring forms of commensality – the act of eating together – as the basis for urban civic and social revival.
Joe
Joe is a founder of Northeast Larder Project, a food lab and research center based in the Northeast of the US. A recent classics graduate from Yale, Joe has studied ancient eating cultures and foodways, and has translated some of the first known cookbooks.
Jaclyn
Jaclyn is a software engineer at Ambrook, a company that helps farms, ranches, and other industrial operations become more profitable and sustainable, and the creator of rabbitholeathon, a roaming multi-day learning retreat for curious individuals.
faq
How long does the experience last?
Part 1 will last roughly 2 hours. Part 2 will last between 2 and 3 hours.
Do I need to know anything about fermentation to attend?
No! This gathering is designed for those with limited existing knowledge on fermentation. Even if you know about the basics of lacto-fermentation, this gathering will explore other dimensions of fermentation that we think will be of interest.
If I can no longer attend, can I get a refund?
Sadly, we cannot offer refunds if you can longer attend. You can absolutely give/transfer your ticket to someone else.
Do I need to bring anything?
Nope! We’ll have everything you need. If you have a journal or notebook you enjoy taking notes in, you are welcome to bring that.
ben@garnet.nyc
@garnet.nyc