Imagine having a dream of owning your own business. For years, decades even, you throw ideas around in your head of what your future venture might look like. Until one day, you conjure up the perfect concept. And you finally decide to take a leap of faith and make your dream a reality. 

So you spend months upon months sketching out a business plan, deciding on a clever name, employing a branding company, finding an excellent location, hiring the right staff, etc. You get the picture. And then weeks before your grand opening, a pandemic brings the world to its knees and life as we know it shuts down.

This is essentially what the past few months has been like for Jordan Johnson, owner of Naked Farmer, a new farm-fresh restaurant located at 200 Central Avenue, which was scheduled to open to the public on April 1st in Downtown St. Pete.

Luckily, Johnson was able to nimbly pivot his business model in response to the national COVID-19 closures. Within 72 hours, Johnson and his team had launched the Naked Farmer’s Market, a digital store where consumers could order boxes of fresh produce to be picked up or delivered to your door.

“Instead of opening our new restaurant on April 1 – we decided to do our small part to come together and help our neighbors get through this crisis,” says Johnson. “And hopefully we’ll all make it through this stronger together.”

The boxes contained a variety of fresh veggies, such as heads of lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, kale, zucchini squash, scallions, green beans and basil. Each box could feed a family of four for 3-4 nights. Over the past two months, Naked Farmer has sold over 4,000 produce boxes.

Now, as restaurants gradually start to reopen, Johnson has set his sights back to the original plan. Last Friday, Naked Farmer opened to the public as a fast-casual restaurant with a menu boasting locally-sourced bowls cooked from scratch. 

“Our real value is our role as a local connector between farmers and their local community,” says Johnson. “Our St. Pete store represents the beginning of our mission to change the food game by building a better food system.”

Diners can expect fresh vegetables that were harvested as little as 24 hours ahead of being served. Naked Farmer’s menu will change periodically to take advantage of in-season vegetables. Meals start at $10.

Naked Farmer is currently sourcing their food from seven local farms, including Brick Street Farms (St. Petersburg), Dakin Dairy (Myakka City), and Providence Cattle Company (Dade City).

Naked Farmer’s Summer menu includes items such as Pecan Kale Caesar, 100% Grass-Fed Steak, and Watermelon Mint and Feta Salad – each grown from farms nearby. Top off your meal with homemade sriracha, garlic creme, or citrus vinaigrette.

Food isn’t the only thing being locally sourced at Naked Farmer. Local beer from 3 Daughters and wine by the glass will be available, as well as hard seltzer, such as High Noon Sun Sips, and sparkling water, such as Spindrift.

The restaurant seats 40 diners and also has patio with an additional 32 seats. The space itself is decorated with very clean black and grey features. When you enter, you’re greeted with marble tables for two on the right side of the restaurant, a walk-up counter to the left with cast-iron skillets filled with roasted vegetables, faux wood beam ceilings and a pick-up wall in the back. It’s incredible to think this space used to be a Subway just a few short months ago.

“We aim to end lunch (and dinner) paralysis for all,” says Johnson. “And we’re doing it by bringing the community together with the land, and the farmers around us. It’s a very exciting time.”

Naked Farmer is open from 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM Monday through Saturday, and until 8:00 PM on Sundays. If customers do not feel comfortable dining in, Naked Farmer also offers take-out and delivery options. Be sure to follow them on Facebook and Instagram to stay up-to-date with all of the farm-fresh and “unmessed-with” deliciousness.