On Hilton Head Island, where outdoor living and coastal beauty inspire a natural approach to wellness, one local family has quietly and steadily been shaping how the community eats, learns, and thinks about healthy food. Through Delisheeyo, a beloved vegan restaurant at 32 Palmetto Bay Road, and through groundbreaking hands-on education in Bluffton schools, the Wearren family’s influence reaches from toddlers munching sugar snap peas to adults seeking vibrant, nutritious meals.
Together, father and son Brent “Farmer B” Wearren and Blake Wearren, owner of Delisheeyo, have created a movement rooted in organic gardening, fresh ingredients, and a belief that healthy eating is a lifelong journey. It’s a story of family legacy, community impact, and the transformative power of food grown with love and intention.
When Blake purchased Delisheeyo in 2014, he wasn’t dreaming of reinventing health food. At the time, the small shop – originally opened as a froyo hangout in 2010 – already had a solid menu of wraps, salads, juices, and smoothies crafted by its chef-owner. Blake, then a young manager with a budding interest in nutrition, simply wanted to expand what worked.
Blake, Millie and Madeline
“I added things like the kale chips, the açaí bowls, the bottled juices to go, and a lot of the snacks,” he said. “But really, I’ve just kept the menu the same with a few additions every few years. It seems to work that way.”
His introduction to healthy food came during college while working at Whole Foods, where he was exposed to veganism, food allergies, and the superfoods that would later define Delisheeyo. But, like many in their early 20s, it wasn’t until after graduation, when he settled on Hilton Head and took over the restaurant, that nutrition became central in his life.
“You just want to have energy, especially to run a business,” he said. “Part of growing up was taking care of myself. … At this point, I’m still not vegan. I own a vegan restaurant, but I don’t want anyone to think you have to eat a certain way to be healthy. It’s a journey. Everyone feels differently eating different foods. You figure out what works for you.”
Now a new father, Blake’s motivations have grown even clearer: “I want to be healthy and around for a long time for my child,” he said. “That’s my new motivation.”
Brent “Farmer B” Wearren is photographed in the self-sustaining garden outside of May River Montessori on Calhoun Street in Bluffton.
Enter Farmer B: The Man Behind the Garden
If Delisheeyo has a secret ingredient, it’s not hidden in a sauce or smoothie. It grows right outside its front door.
Blake’s father, Brent, known to many as Farmer B, is a horticulturalist by trade and a lifelong organic gardener. Originally from Louisville, Kentucky, he spent more than three decades as a wholesale grower before moving to the Lowcountry in 2014. His arrival coincided with a growing concern: He kept hearing about children’s food allergies and the disturbing disconnect between kids and the food they eat.
“I told my son, ‘This is pretty serious,’” he recalled. “Kids weren’t aware of where their vegetables were coming from or even what they ate.”
After relocating, Brent began teaching workshops on how to grow one’s own food. Soon after, he was offered a part-time role at May River Montessori in Bluffton, an opportunity he initially resisted. But the children, families, and community embraced his work so wholeheartedly that a part-time job soon became a full-time passion. Eight years later, Farmer B has built one of the most respected organic gardening programs in the region.
“I teach ages from 18 months all the way up to sixth grade,” he said. “Every classroom has its own garden. They grow five vegetables, they harvest them, and they eat them raw right there in the garden. We don’t take them home. We eat them right where they grow.”
Through the school’s Healthy Organic Plant Evolving (HOPE) program, the gardens are self-sustaining. Students sell plants (never produce) to fund the program, learn agricultural business principles in upper grades, and experience the taste of truly living food.
“Over 80% of my student base eats raw kale leaves we grow at school,” Brent said. “When you harvest that kale and eat it alive, you’re getting the maximum nutritional value. Kids know the difference.”
A healthy wrap with carrots, avocado, sprouts, beets and tofu.
The Garden at Delisheeyo Takes Root
When Brent arrived on Hilton Head, it didn’t take long for him to turn his attention to the small garden outside Blake’s shop. “He’s kind of a perfectionist in the garden – almost a control freak,” Blake said with a laugh. “He couldn’t take how I was taking care of it. So I asked him if he wanted to help.”
What began as casual advice quickly blossomed into a full partnership. During a period when Brent took a brief medical leave from work, he approached Blake with an ambitious proposition:
“I said, ‘Blake, I’m going to transform this into an edible, sustainable landscape. Are you OK with this? And you’re going to pay for it,’” Brent said. “He said, ‘Sure.’”
What followed was three months of intense redesign. Using companion planting techniques, horticultural expertise, and Blake’s vision for fresh, hyper-local ingredients, Farmer B created a thriving organic ecosystem.
“We looked at what Delisheeyo uses the most – kale, tomatoes, herbs – and planted based on that,” Brent said. “Kale became a major crop. Cherry tomatoes grow beautifully with basil, so we plant those together. And we add seasonal color so it always looks beautiful.”
Today, the Delisheeyo garden produces kale for chips, juices, and salads; tomatoes for sauces and wraps; herbs for soups; cherries and blueberries for customers (especially children) to forage; and seasonal experiments like papaya, guava, pomegranates, and even avocado.
“It’s pretty wild,” Blake said. “A lot of what we grow is supplemental, but the kale alone – cases a week once it’s in full season – makes a huge difference. And the kids love coming to forage. That’s where my dad really shines.”
Farmer B with one of his students at May River Montessori.
A Community Fueled by Freshness
Blake is the first to credit the “health-oriented community” of Hilton Head and Bluffton for Delisheeyo’s longevity. “I think it’s a big part of what keeps Delisheeyo going,” he said. “People here are active – they love outdoor activities, and they want to feel good. Over the years I’ve seen a lot of places like us come and go. But our locals are the reason we’ve lasted.”
For Brent, the effect is even more visible in Bluffton, where his gardening curriculum has inspired a wave of home growers.
“It has gone through that little town like a tsunami,” he said. “Everybody is growing gardens. Everybody is eating healthy. You can see the difference.”
During the 2020 lockdowns, Brent didn’t let the connection falter. He sent every family home with a tomato plant, conducted virtual coaching, and facilitated a mass harvest of produce so no child went without fresh vegetables.
On weekends, families still gather at the school gardens to help weed, plant, and harvest. “The parents have already bought in,” Brent said. “It spills over to everything they do.”
If Delisheeyo has a secret ingredient, it’s not hidden in a sauce or smoothie. It grows right outside its front door.
Food as Education, Wellness, and Legacy
Both Wearren men see their work as a long-term investment in the health of the Lowcountry.
“I can see the tangible results,” Brent said. “If I can get one child to eat a raw vegetable in a year, I’m successful. If I can get someone to switch from processed food to fresh, I’m successful.”
Blake sees similar transformations at Delisheeyo. “We have people come to the restaurant with health conditions,” he said. “By consuming and following our lead on adjusting their intake, we’re seeing results. My dad and I – we’re making this area healthier one family at a time.”
Their partnership is authentic, unpretentious, and rooted in generational wisdom. Blake grew up watching his father trade vegetables for dairy and asparagus, tend a two-and-a-half-acre garden, and run a roadside stand at his grandmother’s house. He and his siblings didn’t realize until much later how rare and valuable that upbringing was.
“We grew everything we consumed,” Brent said. “My kids grew up organically. They didn’t know any different.”
Today, that same reverence for real food defines Delisheeyo’s menu and Farmer B’s curriculum. From toddlers sampling papaya and pink guava to adults sipping green juice pressed from living kale, the Wearrens’ imprint is unmistakable.
Soup du jour using vegetables grown in Farmer B’s garden, is served daily at Delisheeyo.
At the center of their work are two simple principles:
1. Start young.
“You don’t have to say much,” Brent said. “You take a vegetable, rinse it, take a bite. They mimic what you do. Start them at 2, and they’ll try anything.”
2. Start local.
“I think Delisheeyo works because of the community,” Blake said. “People love the food, but they also love how it makes them feel.”
Together, they’re making the Lowcountry not just a beautiful place to live – but a healthier, more connected, more mindful one.
As Delisheeyo continues to thrive and as Farmer B’s gardens continue to shape the next generation of eaters, the Wearren family’s impact is just beginning. Their work reflects a rare blend of passion, purpose, and partnership – one that honors the past while cultivating the future.
In a region known for its natural bounty, the Wearrens remind us that the foundation of wellness is simple: fresh food, grown with care, shared in community.
And sometimes, the greatest changes begin with a single kale leaf, eaten right from the garden.
Community Call to Action: Standing with the Wearren Family
Just before press time, Blake and Maddie Wearren—owners of Delisheeyo on Hilton Head Island and parents to their 8-month-old daughter, Millie—shared devastating news with our team. In a single day, their family experienced two life-altering tragedies. In the early morning hours, a vehicle crashed directly into the front of their restaurant, causing extensive damage that may force Delisheeyo to close during one of the busiest weeks of the year. Just hours later, before they could even process the shock, their home caught fire and was quickly engulfed in flames. While the family is safe, nearly everything they own was lost to fire or smoke damage. The Wearrens now face lost income, rebuilding their home, replacing baby essentials, temporary housing expenses, and supporting their staff during the restaurant’s closure. For years, they have nourished the Lowcountry with intention, generosity, and heart. Now, they humbly ask for that same support in return.
To help the Wearren family rebuild, donate here: gofundme.com/f/help-the-wearren-family-rebuild-after-two-devestating-losses
