CELEBRATING OUR PARTNERSHIPS
It’s so important to honor the unsung heroes of our industry, the ever-evolving suppliers who provide us with the finest organic, plant-based, gluten-free ingredients around. These pretty perfect (and most delicious) strawberries were hand-picked at Cecil Creek Farm, a small, organic farm in South Jersey.
A LOVE FOR EATING
My commitment to healthy cooking and baking not only feeds my soul, but nourishes my close circle of family and friends- including our beloved pitbull, Tuffy.
While our recipes are very labor intensive, we actually have extremely slim margins on our products. We’re committed to clean food that tastes great and makes you feel incredible, and hope to help you see the possibilities of clean, organic, plant-based, gluten-free eating. It’s also just as important to see our planet and fellow animals thrive.
“Natural ingredients” does not mean healthy or organic. There are often ingredients in packaged foods that aren’t listed, especially if the ingredient is below a certain % of total ingredients and therefore considered insignificant. I learned this when trying to secure a co-packer to produce our best-selling chocolate/crisp bars many years ago. There were so many roadblocks to finding a clean co-packer.
We are always in search of co-packers to help us scale, and hoping to find ones who will honor our list of fine vendors and ingredients. If you’e curious to know what makes our savory, sweet and beverages special, please keep reading.
ABCs of INGREDIENTS
Our favorite agar is made by a family in the snowy highlands of central Japan who puts the agar through a snow-drying process. We source through this gem of a company, Natural Import
Miyoko's Butter - hands down the best tasting, best performing, and best in cleanest ingredients. All Hail, Miyoko!
Santa Barbara Choclate - we finally found an organic, vegan, gluten-free, emulsifier-free chocolate supplier that uses organic coconut sugar in 2019! Finally, a chocolate without cane sugar.
Equal Exchange - organic cocoa powder sourced by CONACADO co-operative in the Dominican Republic.
Vibrant Coffee Roasters - we no longer receive complaints about our coffee once we started sourcing from Ross NIckerson at the suggestion of a long-time guest. Thank you, Ross for elevating our coffee offerings!
Let's Do Organic - unsweetened shredded coconut from Edward & Sons is our go-to shredded coconut supplier. Always organic, gluten-free, vegan and unsweetened. They make shredded coconut in different sizes, so if you like those large flakes often enjoyed on acai bowls, this is where we source ours. We can also purchase organic coconut milks and creams without any gums from this great company.
We only use organic tofu in its whole form. One of those forms is edamame! The brand we order is by Cascadian Farm. A great low carb, high protein option that goes in our Garden Pad Thai and Forbidden Burritos and Bowls.
Almond, brown rice, millet, buckwheat, quinoa, sorghum to name a few. We do not know the individual suppliers of our flours that are supplied by Nuts.com or Ace Natural Foods. We've tried to find out so we could source directly, but it's top secret! Both of these customers provide very efficient and timely deliveries.
Baldor Specialty Foods is our go-to vendor for non-local produce. They are on-time, reliable and great to work with - delivering 7 days a week.
Tierra Farm - is our place for all things whole nuts and nut butters! Organic pine nuts, roasted almond butter, brazil nuts, cashews. This peanut-free facility procures the best organic nuts.
Ice cream could be my favorite food group. We like to keep an inventory of Coconut Bliss flavors. Not only are these delicious pints 100% organic, vegan and gluten-free, but also contain minimal gums and less sugar than other ice cream brands.
Our talented pastry chef, Katie Dyer, makes fresh jams with an ever-changing list of fresh fruit rotating through our menu. Slow cooked over an induction burner with cold-pressed organic lemon juice and organic maple sugar, we're spoiled forever.
Rabbi Zev Schwarcz of International Kosher Council, Center City, Philadelphia, generously offers to inspect our kitchen at no cost- and with the intention to provide more options for kosher guests. Click on the link to view our kosher certificate.
Wherever you see lemon juice listed as an ingredient, the lemon has been hand-pressed. Doesn't get any better!
We go through gallons of organic maple syrup and pounds of organic maple sugar weekly. Wouldn't be possible without the great folks and farmers at Lancaster Farm Fresh
From forbidden ramen, bamboo ramen, miso ramen to pad thai noodles, we love using Lotus Foods for our noodle bowls.
Even my Sicilian-American husband loves the pasta by Jovial Foods. From pastas, lasagna sheets, to manicotti, these brown rice pasta versions are simply the best.
Thanks to Ace Natural Foods , we can source organic and gluten-free oats - not an easy feat! We freshly grind these whole oats into oat flour, a primary flour in our cakes and baked goods.
The creamiest, smoothest peanut butter we love is by Once Again. They make a variety of nut butters. Since Tierra Farm is a nut-free operation, we order our peanut butter through Once Again.
The secret to our popular waffles? It's the organic quinoa flour! This ingredient has been more difficult to source, but we stock up when possible from Ace Natural Foods.
Our extensive selection of beautiful teas are sourced from Rishi Tea: “Independently owned, direct trade importer of organic teas and botanicals. We are selectors, importers and makers.”
Our famous Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies use Soom Tahini. Soom is a revered tahini company in our region, but I don't know anyone else who uses their organic tahini like we do. Pleading with other restauranteurs to also invest in their organic products, so they can make these available in larger barrels (so we don't need to keep buying retail packaging with all that extra waste)!
The best tofu I've ever had in this country is made in Allentown, PA. Thank you, Fresh Tofu, Inc. We are loyal to using this amazing tasting tofu from day one. (No chalky or strong aftertaste.)
Our go-to for Japanese products is Mitoku. They make the most wonderful, handcrafted, traditional organic products. We love using this plum vinegar to elevate sauces and soups.
I remember learning how vanilla prices were driven up to $300/gallon a few years back. The price of vanilla is still around $200-250 per gallon, due to supply and demand. As the demand grows, the price will come down as more farmers will invest in growing vanilla. We source from Singing Dog Vanilla. who are paying farmers beyond-fair-trade standards to keep the vanilla industry alive for years to come.
We invest in wind power through American Power & Gas to supply our electricity at 1706 Locust!
I am not a fan of any gums, particularly xanthan gum, but understand its necessity for baking gluten-free bread-like products. We use in the most minimal forms and only in our breads, bagels, donuts, or cinnamon rolls where yeast is required. We source ours from Ace Natural Foods.
Our house-made coconut yogurt is very special to us. Made from hand-scooped organic Thai young coconut meat, this yogurt is thick and loosened with organic coconut milk, organic cold-pressed lemon juice and a hint of organic maple syrup. Unlike other yogurts which are made with a milk base and thickened with additives and starches, our yogurt is rich, filling and full of nutrients without any fillers. We order our fresh coconuts from Baldor Specialty Foods or Copra Coconuts who offer frozen organic coconut meat - to save you the hassle!
Who doesn't love zucchini noodles?! It's my go-to noodle alternative when I want to eat light. We grow this in our garden!
