Contemporary culture is riddled with opportunities to eat poorly. Unhealthy food tastes good and is available cheaply at every turn. This situation has created an obesity epidemic and a culture of bodily neglect. This year’s SXSW Interactive conference featured a session with a group of people trying to change fix a clearly broken system. Their message was simple: it is possible to provide consumers with food that is healthy, convenient and delicious.
The session was moderated by Thrillist staff writer Dan Gentile and the featured speakers represented varied approaches to eating conscientiously. Michael Wystrach is the co-founder and CEO of Freshly, a meal delivery service that provides its customers with pre-cooked meals that he described as indebted to the paleo diet. Speaking alongside him were Chloe Coscarelli, winner of the Food Network’s “Cupcake Wars,” and Samantha Wasser, the creative director of Esquared Hospitality. The two of them have worked together to establish By Chloe, an NYC vegan restaurant where Coscarelli is the chef.
All of the speaker’s agreed that there is remarkable opportunity for entrepreneurs in the food industry. Wystrach highlighted the fact that it is the only industry whose products are consumed at least three times each day. Given the prevalence of consumption, customers are open to variety and trying new things is standard-issue practice. This provides conscientious innovators in the food industry to introduce people to healthier practices, sometimes without them even knowing it’s happening.
“We don’t want you to think you’re eating healthy,” said Wystrach.
Coscarelli echoed Wystrach’s sentiments, saying that she did not want customers to leave her restaurant feeling like what they had just eaten was “good for vegan food.” Her belief is that a vegan restaurant does not have to be exclusively for vegans. One of the most fun aspects of her work, she said, is watching skeptics taste her food before cleaning their plates. Given that the customer base of By Chloe is predominantly non-vegan, she gets to enjoy this pleasure quite frequently.
Wasser said that customers have remarked to her that By Chloe has succeeded in making vegan food crave-able, but that achievement is not where the innovation stops for the culinary duo. The restaurant’s social media presence is distinct because it does not, in Wasser’s words, continually feature “the same four salads.”
What By Chloe’s social media focuses on is the preparation of the food and behind-the-scenes glimpses that give customers a full grasp of what they are consuming. The restaurant’s menus are similarly candid about its food. Such openness is indicative of Coscarelli and Wasser’s desire to help consumers become more educated about what they are putting in their bodies.
Check out what Coscarelli had to say to SXTXState about the experience and pleasures of opening a vegan restaurant below.