A chef does not want your catalog. A chef wants to know, by Tuesday afternoon, what you will have on Friday and what it costs. The farm that sends that message every week, on time, becomes part of the kitchen's routine. The farm that sends a beautiful brochure once becomes a pleasant memory.

Selling produce to restaurants comes down to two things: a weekly availability list and a delivery day that fits a working kitchen. Here is the template, the delivery plan and the rest of the sales steps around them.

What chefs want from a farm

Chefs buy ingredients they can build a special around. They want consistent quality and quantity, deliveries when the kitchen is quiet, clean invoices, and a farm that tells them early when something will fall short. Price matters, but the chef compares your price to a distributor's price for something that arrives every day without a conversation. What you can offer that a distributor cannot is a variety they can't get, and a story they can put on the menu.

Not every kitchen is a fit. Farm-forward restaurants, bistros with changing menus and independent chefs with some purchasing freedom are the best targets. Chain restaurants with fixed menus and corporate supply contracts usually are not. The owner buys at small places; at larger kitchens, the chef or a purchasing manager does.

The weekly availability list

Send it the same day each week, to the same people, in a form that is readable on a phone. Plain text in the body of an email works better than an attachment. Here is a template with fictional numbers.

Willow Bend Farm availability, week of October 20. Order by Wednesday noon. Delivery Friday, 7 to 9 a.m.
Lacinato kale: 40 lb, $3.20/lb
Delicata squash: 80 lb, $1.60/lb
Salad turnips (bunched): 30 bunches, $2.50/bunch
Shallots: 25 lb, $4.00/lb
Shishito peppers: last of the season, 15 lb, $6.00/lb
Minimum order $75. Free delivery over $150, otherwise $15. Reply with what you want and I'll confirm by Wednesday 3 p.m.

Notice what the list contains: the order deadline, the delivery time, the quantities available, the price, and what is ending. The quantity matters because it tells the chef how big a special they can plan.

Finding farm-forward restaurants by name

Search a map for restaurants within a 45-minute drive and read their menus. Menus that name farms, show "seasonal" in the headings, or change weekly are targets. Instagram helps: chefs who post their specials and tag growers are telling you what they want. Aim for 25 places. For each, note the chef's or owner's name, the menu style and where they currently source. The Google Maps leads guide and finding an owner's email will help you turn the list into names and addresses.

Pricing against the distributor

You will not beat a broadline distributor on every item. You don't need to. Ask the chef what they pay for the items you grow, or look at a wholesale price report. Then pick the five items where your quality is clearly higher or the variety is unavailable elsewhere. A fair rule: match the distributor on commodity items and charge a modest premium on the specialty ones. For example, if ordinary shallots are $3.40 a pound from the distributor, and yours are $4.00, say what is different: harvested two days ago, a variety with a milder flavor. Never discount to win an account and then raise the price later.

A first email to a chef

Subject: Delicata and lacinato kale, delivered Fridays before 9

Hi Chef Alvaro, I saw delicata squash on your fall menu. I farm eleven acres about 25 minutes from you, and I can deliver delicata, lacinato kale and salad turnips on Fridays before 9 a.m., picked the day before. This week's availability is below. A $75 minimum, no contract, and I'll bring samples on Friday if you want to see the squash. Hannah Voss, Willow Bend Farm, [mailing address]. Reply "no" and I won't write again.

Follow it with the week's list underneath. The chef sees what, when and how much in the first screen.

The delivery-day plan

Kitchens are quietest between about 7 and 10 in the morning. Deliver then, to the back door, with a printed invoice. Pack in clean, labeled crates the chef can return. Keep a cooler for greens. Check what the kitchen needs before you load: some require liability insurance, and some ask about food-safety practices, such as a food safety certification program or a written plan. Ask in your first conversation so it does not become a blocker. Rules vary by state and county for selling produce, so check yours.

Plan routes so you do four stops in one run: 25 miles, four kitchens, 90 minutes. At $150 average per delivery, four stops is $600. If gas and your time cost $60, the route clears. If one stop is a $75 minimum, the $15 delivery fee helps.

Following up with next week's list

If the chef doesn't answer the first email, don't send a nudge. Send the next week's list. The list is the follow-up. A chef who is busy on Thursday sees it on Monday and answers in a minute. If three weeks pass in silence, send one line: "Still glad to keep you on the list. Want me to send it to a different address?" See the follow-up sequence for how many touches is reasonable, and cold emailing a local owner for the plain approach.

Handling shortages without losing the account

A hailstorm, a bad week for kale, an early frost: a shortage will come. Tell the chef Wednesday, not Friday. Offer a substitute ("no kale, but I have Russian kale at the same price"), or a smaller quantity. Never silently swap items. Chefs forgive a farm that tells them early and drop one that makes them scramble at 8 a.m.

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