of the collective." According to the Moosewood Restaurant website, the restaurant was founded by David Hirsch and Ned Asta, and is a "pioneer in plant-forward cuisine and the farm-to-table philosophy...the restaurant's idealism and political commitment to operate as a 'worker managed - worker owned' business structure became a model that has been adapted by cooperatives globally." In addition, the restaurant is a "pioneer in 'farm-to-table' sourcing and vegetarian-ish eating (they always served fish and seafood)." History 1970s Moosewood was established in "the ground level of the Dewitt Building at 215 N. Cayuga St," and sits "[in the] southeast corner of the building [...] its décor included barn board wainscoting, fifteen wooden tables, mix-matched chairs, and tie-dyed curtains." The founders originally developed the restaurant as “a place to feed their community. The vision was to put forward ideas about sustainable farming and environmentally friendly food systems but to do so in a delicious way." It was also set up to: Wynnie Stein, an original Moosewood member, states she became involved due to the emphasis on local ingredients: "it's important for people to know where their food was produced. I saw Moosewood's Collective involvement in this locally sourced foods movement and I am so glad to be a part of it. It's refreshing to be part of a group of individuals who support the use of locally produced fruits, vegetables, and grains." Stein also notes that the "first people who were involved were very idealistic, none of them had any restaurant experience. They were just great cooks and they loved to cook... we were really interested in food being not just helpful or good for you, but super creative and delicious, and I think that's what set us apart from the rest of the natural foods movement." In 1978, the original founders sold Moosewood to the restaurant staff, now called "The Moosewood Collective." David Hirsch (who joined Moosewood in 1976) recalls that there "were seven original owners, and by the time I started there were only two left who were still working there. Within a couple of years we bought out the original seven owners and formed it as more of a philosophical collective, because it wasn't a true cooperative economically. We would have meetings and try for consensus on different decisions that were important. We didn't have a hierarchical leadership; it was more horizontal." New ownership (2022-present) During the COVID-19 pandemic,