The Cape May Bubble theory claims that when the rest of New Jersey is experiencing cold or rain, Cape May is warmer and sunnier. It’s easy to write the idea off as regional folklore, but there’s something to be said for a slightly milder climate at Exit 0.
We visited Beach Plum Farm during an extended fall nor’easter, and, while the rest of the Jersey Shore was wild, wet and windy, the farm cottages nestled into the spruce, ferns and cedar trees felt calm and protected.
Beach Plum is a working farm that offers farm-to-table dinners, a produce stand and market, farm tours, six cottages where guests can stay, and an event space in West Cape May, less than two miles from the bustle of the beachfront and downtown. A farm, and even a wooded neighborhood of this kind, is anomalous in New Jersey’s overbuilt Shore region, preserved by Cape May’s foresight in protecting its historic charm where other towns bulldoze it.
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There’s a fantastic balancing act being accomplished between utopia and reality on these 62 acres, an equilibrium between agritourism ideals and agricultural efficiency. As you walk the grounds, past fairy-tale cottages, happy farmers in overalls, edible flowers, and cute piglets tussling over a piece of fruit, there’s a hint of organic illusion—a farm-themed boutique property with hayrides and fresh herb cocktails served in the garden where they were grown.
A scenic ride through Beach Plum’s property. Photo: Courtesy of Beach Plum Farm
But there’s also a level of authenticity that’s not cloaked from the public. The strawberry flies induce insanity after a summer rain. The turkey pen smells like cultivated hell. And if you come back to visit in a few months, those playful piglets will be between lettuce and tomato on artisanal bread.
And for all of its storybook charm, Beach Plum can actually feed a community.
Some of Cape May’s recent success can be attributed to Curtis Bashaw, a man of vision and ambitious projects, one of which is Beach Plum. (Bashaw also threw his hat into the political ring and is running for U.S. Senate in November.) He and his husband, Will Riccio, bought the overgrown land in 2007, and it now produces 100 types of fruits, vegetables, herbs and animals, raised in fields and greenhouses to be sold, prepared on-site, or delivered to the kitchens of his Cape Resort restaurants.
Christina Albert, Beach Plum’s director of agriculture, explains that Beach Plum has found success in regenerative practices not common in today’s agribusiness. “The soil in South Jersey is very sandy,” she notes during our tour. “It’s really hard to keep nutrients near the crops. But it’s also easy land to till.”
Visit the pigs at Beach Plum in the fall. Photo: Courtesy of Beach Plum Farm
She tells the story of one field that, early on, was frustratingly unproductive. “We had tried beets, Swiss chard and lettuce, but nothing would grow. That land was telling us it needed to rest,” she explains. So the staff experimented with a cover crop for one growing season, then let the chickens do their thing, roaming, fertilizing along the way, and scratching at the earth for the second year. The third year, it produced 11,000 pounds of tomatoes.
“We’ve failed at times, but we learned a lot, because Curtis isn’t afraid to take risks, and he doesn’t need every field to produce every season,” explains Albert.
Eggplant is raised in one field. Hens greet you from the coop. There’s a walking trail through a wooded wetland. Beans, mustard greens and arugula thrive in a greenhouse. Beekeepers harvest honey off in the distance.
Kids can legally start working agriculture jobs at age 12. The farm has seen a host of locals start as preteen part-timers.
Pumpkins and gourds are available at Beach Plum in the fall. Photo: Courtesy of Beach Plum Farm
Fall is a fantastic time to visit. Beach Plum is open Wednesday to Sunday, 8 am-3 pm; the market and kitchen are open daily. The Montauk daisies come into bloom. It’s a great opportunity to pick out pumpkins and gourds while enjoying breakfast or lunch out of the Barn Kitchen, with all ingredients harvested on-site or on a few nearby plots that Beach Plum now cultivates. “Fall is sort of peak fragrance around the farm, too. There are the wet leaves mixed with sweet persimmons and the Elaeagnus (silverberry) shrubs,” Albert adds.
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Late October tends to show off the most brilliant colors of fall foliage. Beach Plum is a highly coveted wedding venue, but each Friday night in October, and Fridays and Saturdays in November, the staff host harvest dinners made with Beach Plum’s veggies, livestock and herbs. After Thanksgiving, Beach Plum introduces a holiday-dinner series though December.
If you don’t want your time at Beach Plum to end when the day does, you can stay for a night or two on the property.
Last fall, I spent a weeknight in the Hidden Cottage, erected in 2018, along with the Hill Barn, by an Amish builder from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and his sons. Traditional wooden tenon pegs hold the hemlock-beamed frame together. Not a single nail or screw was used in the process. Sitting on one of the peaceful porches, it’s easy to get lost in the fascinating joinery and smell of hemlock. There is ample space—three bedrooms, two baths, two porches, and a well-appointed kitchen. The vibe is an easy mix of mid-century and rustic. The outdoor sitting area with a fire pit has a country feel, but the outdoor shower reminds you that the Atlantic Ocean is just a few blocks away as the crow flies. Rates start at $527.
Beach Plum Farm is beautiful in the fall. Photo: Courtesy of Beach Plum Farm
The farm-to-table dinner is not offered on weeknights, but town is a short drive or bike ride away (on one of Beach Plum’s loaners) to dine at the timeless Blue Pig Tavern, the regal Brown Room or Tommy’s Folly Café, all at Congress Hall. You can also try the Ebbitt Room at the Virginia Hotel, the underground Boiler Room music club/pizzeria at Congress Hall, and the informal Rusty Nail surf bar, all part of the same Cape Resorts family as Beach Plum, offering food that was harvested next to your cottage.
A farm stay here is as much a chilled-out getaway as it is proof of concept that agricultural and economic sustainability can meet somewhere in the middle.
Jon Coen, of Ship Bottom, is a freelancer and creative hustler who covers surf, environmental issues, travel, food and culture when he’s not looking for blue claw crabs and (occasional snowy) waves.
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