Double Brook Farm, created in 2004, is a pasture-based, sustainable, livestock farm located in Hopewell, NJ. The farm was started as way to show our kids where their food comes from, and has since become a full-fledged operation supporting both a farm store and a restaurant. We raise primarily cattle, sheep, pigs, chickens, and turkeys on 800 acres of pasture in the Hopewell Valley.
All of our animal breeds have been selected for their ability to thrive on pasture, temperament and quality of meat. With the exception of chickens, we breed and raise all of our livestock on the farm.
Double Brook Farm is proud to have an on-farm USDA-inspected slaughter facility; one of only two in the country. This allows us to significantly reduce the stress of our animals and preserve the integrity of our meat.
Hopewell Farm Works
Hopewell Farm Works has the food you want form the farmer you know! While we originally sold our products at the Brick Farm Market in downtown Hopewell, NJ, the market has since moved to 130 Hopewell-Rocky Hill Road – the campus of the Brick Farm Tavern. We, along with the new owners of the Market, Otto and Maria Zizak, are focusing on the original core concept of the farm: selling locally raised meat and other products to our community.
In this more intimate format, our customers are getting our premium meats, sausages, bacon and eggs, specialty items that are made in house, as well as a curated roster of locally produced or grown products that are used as ingredients at the restaurant. Even better, the products are available on our online shop and can be delivered to your door (within a generous radius). But we hope truly hope to see you in person.
Brick Farm Tavern
For fine dining, make sure to visit Brick Farm Tavern, a farm-to-table restaurant housed in the 1812 brick farmhouse we renovated from 2010 to 2015.
The Tavern debuted in November of 2015 to feature seasonal products from the farm and artisanal creations in every area including breads, pastries, dairy products and charcuterie. Located at 130 Hopewell Rocky Hill Road in Hopewell. The Tavern campus is also home to the beer culture standout, Troon Brewing, and distillery, Sourland Mountain Spirits.
Both the Brick Farm Tavern and the Brick Farm Market are now owned by Otto and Maria Zizak. Farmers and restaurateurs in their own right, Otto and Maria’s focus of bringing the most nutritious, tasty food to our local community in the most sustainable way dovetails with our original mission. And the menus they have created at the Tavern and the Market cafe are authentic and delicious.
About The Founders
We originally started Double Brook Farm in 2004 to raise beef, chicken and sheep for our own consumption. In a way, we also started the farm to get ourselves and our kids – connecting with the land.
As we began building our barns and house and telling people about our vision for the farm, more and more friends and acquaintances became interested in purchasing the meat and eggs we would be producing. So we decided to scale up a bit.
At every turn – through conversations with friends, stories in the media on conventional food and people’s desire to know where their food comes from – the demand for local, all-natural, pasture-raised products has defined the direction of our farm.
Our research of local farming revealed a trend. Local farmers all seemed to share the same problem; marketing and distribution. The more time they spent on the marketing and distribution, the more the quality of their product suffered. Less focus resulted in poor sales.
Around this time, we also started talking to chefs, restaurants and retailers. They had the opposite problem; they could not get quality and consistency. It was becoming clear if the farm was to be
more than a hobby, we needed a different model.
If the mission is to get the best tasting local food to the community at prices that make sense, we had to look at ways to cut out middlemen while still fulfilling our goal of humane animal treatment.
To this end, our goal is to create a completely vertical model; farm, slaughter capabilities, retail market, and restaurant with nearly everything to be produced from that single farm.
Products would include a variety of meats cut by a proper butcher, charcuterie items, eggs, house-made sausages and cured meats, among other farm offerings. What does not get sold in the market or the restaurant will return to the farm as feed or fertilizer.
The ultimate goal is a farm that uses energy from the sun or the earth, has zero outside inputs, no external animal feed, no external fertilizers and a very limited carbon footprint.
Currently, we are raising cattle, sheep, pigs, turkeys and chickens for both meat and eggs. A portion of our cattle is also raised by George Lake of Thistle Creek Farms in Tyrone, PA. Lake has been raising grass-fed beef for over 20 years and we are proud that he is raising ours.
While it may seem like a lot to pull off, we hope that by taking a responsible, thoughtful approach to local farming and food production, we will actually be simplifying how good food gets to our table and yours.
– Robin and Jon McConaughy