For years, Hopewell Valley residents knew farmer Malaika Spencer and chef Ian Knauer through farm dinners, cooking classes, CSA pickups and fresh vegetables grown close to home.
Today, the married couple is writing a new chapter just across the Delaware River.
At Roots to River Farm in Bucks County, Spencer and Knauer have created something that combines nearly every part of their professional lives: farming, cooking, education and community gathering. The result is a working organic farm, market, kitchen and tasting room where visitors can buy vegetables harvested from the fields, take cooking classes, enjoy a meal and spend time with neighbors.
For the couple, the project represents the culmination of years of work and a vision that took far longer to realize than either expected.
“We’ve been able to be more intentional about that in this iteration, which is cool because we’re building this together from scratch,” Spencer said.
Deep Roots in the Region
Roots to River Farm was established in Bucks County in 2013, but Spencer and Knauer built strong connections in the Hopewell Valley during the years they farmed at Gravity Hill Farm in Hopewell Township and operated cooking classes and farm dinners there. Through CSA memberships, classes, dinners and farmers markets, they developed a following that extended throughout Hopewell Valley and beyond.
For years, however, farming and cooking largely operated as separate businesses.
Spencer focused on growing vegetables while Knauer built a culinary career that included nearly a decade in the test kitchens of Gourmet magazine, authorship of The Farm: Rustic Recipes for a Year of Incredible Food, and hosting the PBS series The Farm.
The idea of bringing everything together began taking shape several years ago.
“We started looking for a space to do this thing together around 2019,” Knauer said.
The couple found their current property in early 2020. What followed was nearly five years of planning, approvals, engineering and construction before the public-facing portions of the project could finally open.
Farming as a Public Service
At its core, Roots to River remains a farm.
Spencer grows certified organic vegetables using practices designed to improve soil health and long-term sustainability. Cover crops, compost applications and reduced tillage all play a role in how the farm operates.
The work is guided by a philosophy that extends beyond producing food.
“We believe that good farming is a public service,” the farm states on its website.
That philosophy is reflected in the farm’s CSA program, which continues to connect consumers directly with the people growing their food.
It also shapes how the couple thinks about community.
“The thing that draws us to both of us, in the different iterations of food that we do, is the connections with people,” Spencer said.
One of the crops that has become synonymous with the farm is radicchio, the colorful Italian chicory that fills market displays with shades of burgundy and pink.
“I love it for a few reasons,” Spencer said. “It’s very easy to grow here, so it has very few pest problems.”
She also appreciates its beauty.
“They’re extremely aesthetically pleasing,” she said. “At a farm stand, it brings people in. They don’t necessarily buy it, but they’re like, ‘Oh my God, what is that beautiful thing?'”
More Than a Farm Stand
The new kitchen and gathering space has allowed the couple to expand what the farm can be.
Vegetables grown in the fields become ingredients in meals, cooking classes and weekly pizza nights. CSA members pick up produce at the same location where visitors gather around communal tables overlooking the farm.
The operation was designed so each piece supports the others.
“Anything that we can’t use, or that’s a little too old to sell, or if we have seconds, goes straight to the kitchen,” Spencer said.
The approach reduces waste while creating new opportunities for the farm.
One example is Amara, an aperitivo that began when Spencer handed Knauer a crate of unsold radicchio and challenged him to find a use for it. Over the following decade, the drink evolved into one of the farm’s signature offerings.
But while Amara may be one of the most visible examples of the farm’s creativity, the larger goal was always about bringing people together.
Knauer said part of the inspiration came from time spent in Spain, where neighbors gathered for drinks and conversation at the end of the day.
“One of the things that really struck me wasn’t just the drinking itself, but it was the culture,” he said.
The couple intentionally designed the space around large communal tables rather than smaller, isolated seating areas.
Increasingly, they are seeing the results.
“People are coming, they’re hanging out, they’re just resting and eating good food and drinking,” Spencer said. “That’s the whole point of this.”
For years, the vision existed mostly in sketches, plans and conversations.
“We didn’t know if it was going to happen,” she said.
Building the Place They Wanted
As the project evolved, so did the couple’s lives.
Now raising two children, Spencer and Knauer said they have become increasingly focused on creating a place where family, work and community can coexist.
“We want to work in a place that we want to be,” Spencer said. “And now we have two kids, and so that has become even more important.”
Today, visitors arriving at Roots to River encounter more than a farm or a restaurant.
They find a place where vegetables grown in nearby fields become meals, where cooking and farming intersect, and where people gather around shared tables.
For Spencer and Knauer, that sense of connection has always been the goal by bringing people together through food.
If You Go
Roots to River Farm and the Amara Kitchen & Tasting Room are located at 3175 N. Sugan Road in New Hope, Pennsylvania, about a 20-minute drive from Hopewell Valley.
The farm is open:
- Wednesdays, 3-8 p.m.
- Saturdays, noon-5 p.m.
Visitors can shop for certified organic produce, pick up CSA shares, enjoy wood-fired pizza and seasonal menu offerings, and relax at communal tables overlooking the farm fields.
For schedules, events and CSA information, visit the farm online.
