Sheepish about lamb? Utah couple aims to put the meat back on the table

A good sheepherder always looks out for the strays, and that's what James Gillmor did the night a lost hiker stumbled onto his pastureland in Morgan Valley.

Justin Jacobsen was hiking in Farmington Canyon, got separated from his companion and ended up on the other side of the mountain after wandering several hours in the rough terrain.

"It was dark, and he was tired and cold," recalled Gillmor, who gave Jacobsen a ride back to the truck where his hiking partner was waiting. During the ride, Gillmor found out Jacobsen was a chef at Bambara restaurant in Salt Lake City. Gillmor refused payment for his help but mentioned that he and his wife raised natural, hormone-free lamb and would soon be contacting restaurants to buy it. "I asked him to put in a good word for me," Gillmor said.

When Bambara's executive chef Scott Blackerby tried Gillmor's meat products, he was impressed enough to put Morgan Valley Lamb on the menu. Robert Barker was told the hiking tale last year when he took over the reins as executive chef. But that's not why he chose to keep the lamb on the menu.

"I think it's more tender and flavorful than the regular lamb," he said. "It's such a great product that we've been getting rave reviews."

For Gillmor, of Delta, it was one more step in his goal to put more lamb on Utah dinner tables. He says Utahns eat less than one pound of lamb per capita per year — the national average is two pounds per year.

"But I look at it as an opportunity to grow the demand," he said. "And it's caught on because of the wonderful chefs who are using it."

Log Haven has the company's lamb chops on its menu, and leg of lamb is served there on Sundays. The Garden Cafe at the Grand America is featuring it in a nightly special all this week, spiked with flavorings like pomegranate syrup and a lemon grass marinade.

"Our American Spring Lamb Menu Tasting was so popular last year that we decided to bring it back again," said Tom Beaty, Grand America's food and beverage director.

Since Morgan Valley Lamb started selling meat two years ago, it has found its way to other restaurants, including Mazza, Au Bon Appetit, Blind Dog Grill, Bohemian Brewery, Butcher's Chop House, Em's Restaurant, Goldener Hirsh Inn, L'Avenue, Lugano's, Metropolitan, Sage Grill, the Cottage Restaurant, the Paris Bistro, the Aerie at Snowbird and Tuscany.

It's also sold at Emigration Market, Springville Meat, Majestic Meats, Tony Caputo Market & Deli, Broadway Market and Snider's Family Meats, or on the company's Web site, morganvalleylamb.com.