Click here to find a showing at Harkins Camelview in Scottsdale.

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What are you doing to make your business more environmentally friendly? Why?

I strive to make my business more environmentally friendly everyday. I buy local organic produce whenever possible. I make suggestions to clients where to shop and how to reduce waste. I use re-usable containers and recycle any product packaging I can. It is important to me to be more aware of my surroundings and appreciate everything in nature not just use and abuse the environment but work with it and help in anyway I can.

She has some flexibility around Valentines’ Day – how cool would a home prepared chef-quality, organic meal be for you and your sweetie? I love it! She provides service to most places in the valley so check out her website and see if your area is an option. Also, she has entirely vegan menus available as well as really great sounding omnivorous or vegetarian ones. I am so glad that this Chef is out there spreading the word about healthy eating, for individuals sake, and for the sake of our environment. Go Chef Steph!

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Engrained is designed as an educational food experience demonstrating how a restaurant operates focused on sustainability & environmental stewardship utilizing local, organic, humane and fair-trade foods.

Engrained is as much about the experience of dining as the food itself served in a fast-casual dining atmosphere, rather than fast-food or grab & go. The idea is to stop into Engrained for a casual lunch to step-back from the business of campus life. Engrained is designed as an educational food experience surrounding sustainability and environmental stewardship with a focus on what we are making, the ingredients used and how it is handled. In turn, the menu will change daily with a key focus on seasonal foods from the area. There is a focus on healthier eating based on seasonal fresh fruits & vegetables, vegan and vegetarian options, local meats and dairy etc. We are also partnering with the ASU by harvesting items such as produce, herbs, citrus and dates.

The restaurant also features environmentally responsible construction utilizing renewable resources and Energy Star appliances where possible. Built in the same footprint as the Maricopa Café on the upper-level of the Memorial Union, Engrained features a new layout with center-island where customers can dine and watch meals prepared and cooked in hearth oven, hip look and relaxing vibe.

Check out their site here for more information and their menu

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Photo by: Majiscup

Corn plastic or PLA (polylactic acid) cups, utensils, and packaging have been popping up everywhere and I have been curious how they stack up against conventional plastic. It seems obvious that plastic made from corn would be more eco-friendly right? I did a little research and compiled a list of PLAs green pros and cons.

Pros:

• Manufactured from corn starch, a renewable resource.
• Biodegradable, breaks down into mostly carbon dioxide and water.
• Compostable, 6-12 months in a home composter (Many people are reporting that they will not compost in a home composter), 1-6 months in a commercial composter. Longer for heat resistant utensils. Once composted it is indistinguishable from the other compost.
• Does not emit toxic fumes if incinerated.
• Does not leech chemicals into food or soil.
• Freezer safe.
• Can handle hot items up to 120F (200F for utensils).
• Looks, feels, handles just like plastic.
• Is inexpensive.

Cons:

• Is not recyclable, must be kept separate from plastic.
• Few commercial composting facilities (113 in U.S.), only 1/4 of which accept residential materials.
• Commercial Composters use Microbes to break down organic material. Large amounts of PLA in a composter would cause problems because it breaks down into lactic acid which is wetter and more acidic. They can break this down but it requires more oxygen for the microbes to consume. Commercial Facilities would have trouble providing enough oxygen for large amounts of PLA to breakdown. Anaerobic digesters would not have the same problem.
• It is estimated that in a landfill PLA will take anywhere from 100 to a 1000 years to biodegrade.
• Typically made from genetically modified corn and usually not organic.
• Diverting corn away from the world’s food supply.

To me the cons don’t seem too bad considering plastic can’t be composted, takes longer to decompose in a landfill (starts decomposing after around 700 years), and can leech chemicals into food and the soil. Overall I think PLA is a pretty good substitute for disposable plastic cups, utensils, and packaging.  What do you think? Any more pros and cons?

edit: Lots of good comments made and a few saying that perhaps these are not as eco-friendly as their manufactures want you think. See comments for details..

For more in depth information check out these links:

• Corn Plastic to the Rescue
• Information on bioplastics

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Tempe

• Green: 2240 N Scottsdale Rd # 8 Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 941-9003
• Tasty Kabob: 1250 E Apache Blvd # 116 Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 966-0260
• Udupi: 1636 N Scottsdale Rd Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 994-8787
• Wildflower Bread Company: Locations all over Phoenix.
• Blue Nile Cafe: 933 E University Dr Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 377-1113
• The Center Cafe: 21 East 6th Street, Suite 114 Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 491-5591
• Three Roots Cafe: 1020 S. Mill Ave. Tempe, AZ 85281, (480) 966-4949 [click here to read our full review]
• Haji-Baba: 1513 E Apache Blvd, Tempe (480) 966-4672

Phoenix

• The Farm at South Mountain: 6106 S. 32nd Street Phoenix, AZ 85042 (602) 276-6360

Scottsdale

• Rancho Pinot Grill :6208 N Scottsdale Rd # 101 Scottsdale, AZ 85253 (480) 367-8030
• Sabuddy Israeli Restaurant: 480.348.2333 6949 E. Shea Blvd. #10, Scottsdale, Arizona 85254
• Soma Cafe: 10810 N. Tatum Blvd. Phoenix, AZ 85034 (602) 867-2175
• The Herb Box: 6990 E. Shea Blvd. Suite 116, Scottsdale, AZ  85254  (480)998-8355

Yuma

• Nature’s Express: 2905 4^th Avenue Yuma, AZ 85364 (928) 317-8300
• River City Grill: 600 W 3rd St Yuma, AZ 85364 (928) 782-7988
• La Fonda Tortilla Factory: 1095 S 3rd Ave Yuma, AZ 85364 (928) 783-6902

Flagstaff

• Macy’s European Coffee House: 14 S Beaver St Flagstaff, AZ 86001 (928) 774-2243
• Black Bean Burrito Bar & Salsa: 12 E Route 66 # 104 Flagstaff, AZ 86001 (928) 779-9905

Tucson

• Casbah Tea House: 628 N 4th Ave Tucson, AZ 85705-8449, (520) 740-0393

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And once again I’d recommend the docurama film: King Corn, which explores our current model of corn production and how it is causing a malnourished, unhealthy population.

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On another adventure for local food and coffee, where vegan goodies and a sincere concern for the environment can be found, we made our way to Three Roots Coffee House and Cafe in Tempe, AZ. This is a stone’s throw from the Arizona State University Campus and has been there in its quaint and charming location across Mill Avenue from the Gammage Auditorium and Fine Art Museum since 2003 yet some how it had been overlooked by us for five long years. Our patronage there was long overdue and worth the slight struggle to find a parking spot as the feel of the place is fantastic. Quiet, studious college kids reading and clicking away on laptops with free wifi filled the cozy cafe. Eclectic artwork, fabrics, and colors adorned the walls and furniture and made for an inviting space. We were greeted by genuinely friendly baristas who had been casually chatting with other customers near by.

Their small menu is 100% vegetarian and nearly all vegan with the exception of one grilled cheese sandwich that comes with Meunster. They have all of the comfort food any vegan could ever desire, from fresh vegan potato salad to warm creamy vegan mac and ‘cheese’. I thoroughly enjoyed and devoured my eggless egg salad sandwich on my first trip and on my second I enjoyed their ceasar “chicken” wrap. Their jasmine-green tea was fabulous, as was their house iced tea, refreshing and light with a hint of cooling mint perfect for the warmer weather.

They make an effort to buy organic and local ingredients to support sustainable agriculture and local businesses which is good for our local economy and for the environment. After my first trip I was absolutely hooked. I would recommend you give them a try if you are in the Tempe area and looking for a great little spot for breakfast, lunch or dinner or a perfect place to have tea or coffee. They even have local musicians that perform there on a regular basis. Their prices are very reasonable, the food is wonderful, the staff is extremely friendly and they are making an effort to decrease their impact on the environment. What more could you want?

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Check out this article: Less waste, more taste: maximize your produce, to learn more about some great places to get fresh organic produce and how to store it properly. I’d also recommend the docurama: King Corn, which explores our current model of corn production and how it is causing a malnourished, unhealthy population.

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Many of us have the best of intentions. We don’t have money to throw away. You would not purchase food just to throw it away but that is exactly what happens to a lot of us, isn’t it? You load up your cart with delicious fresh looking fruits and veggies but by the end of the week you’ve only made it through half of them and the rest are already rotting. It is not just you and I, my dear reader! It is not even just our wasteful American culture. It is a problem across the globe.

This image is from a campaign in Brazil to raise awareness and decrease waste. Artist Mihail Aleksandrov designed this handout, please click on the image for a larger version.

So, we know there is a problem with keeping the produce we buy.. we know eating more fruits and veggies as opposed to meat and dairy is more environmentally friendly.. we know eating more fruits and veggies is better for our health… we know we are just wasting money and perfectly good food this way.. so what do we do? How do we save money on food and help it last longer? There are a couple of strategies here:

1. Buy locally grown produce
2. Start a garden
3. Buy less more often
4. Store your produce properly and strategically

1. Buy local: Buying locally grown produce will not only support your local economy and farmers, it will also save you money. With the huge cost of fuel transporting produce across continents is not practical and will be reflected in the price of the food. Buying local eliminates that cost and allows you to get fresher fruits and veg that will in turn last longer when properly stored. Also, by buying local you are saving the environment from all of that extra pollution that would have incurred during transport. Double whammy! Here are some local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) groups that will provide locally grown/organic produce as well as some farmer’s markets in the Phoenix area.

• Crooked Sky Farms: local organic produce with several pick up locations in the Valley
• Downtown Phoenix Public Market - Local produce, and other goods by various local vendors.
• Tolmachoff Farms – Glendale, pick your own produce.
• Tucson Community Supported Agriculture.
• Agua Linda Community Supported Agriculture.
• Flagstaff Community Supported Agriculture.
• Prescott College Community Supported Agriculture.

2. Start a Garden: I know you may think this is not practical for most of us and that nothing will grow in the desert but you are wrong. With the proper techniques you can grow all kinds of great stuff here. Even with limited space or poor soil you can make a great container garden. We will be doing some more posts here once we get our garden going. We do not have green thumbs by any means but it can and will be done! Now is not the best time to start a garden but you could start getting your soil in shape and at least start dreaming, take a class or two from the Urban Farm and get some organic seeds. Growing your own produce allows you to eat it when you feel like it, you can cut lettuce off as you need it for tonight’s salad and it will continue to grow. There is nothing better than a home grown organic tomato and you can just pick them at their peak. You can harvest a couple of onions, beets, turnips, etc as needed and they will be the freshest and most affordable you can get!

3. Buy less more often: We are all busy people but making time for an extra grocery trip during the week can mean the difference between wasting 1/3 of what you buy and making good use of it. Try making a menu for the week and plot out what you need on your grocery list. If you can break that into two or more trips (assuming you do not live a great distance from the grocer) and make your second trip once you have used up your first batch of goodies it just makes sense that you will have fresh produce more often and less chance for waste.

4. Store your produce properly and strategically: As plants decay they give off ethylene gas. Some more than others, and some are sensitive to it (which is why if you have an unripe avocado you can place it in a paper bag with an apple and it will quickly ripen). With that in mind you should only store certain fruit and veg together, some is better suited to the fridge while others are best left on the counter, some in a cool dry pantry while herbs and asparagus are best stored like fresh cut flowers, just snip the ends and put them in some water in a glass.

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The Center Bistro is opening up again this August! I don’t know if this address is still current, but will be sure to update this information when I find out.

The Center Bistro
21 East 6th Street, Suite 114
Tempe, AZ 85281 • 480.491.5591
- Hours of Operation -
Sun-Thurs 11am-10pm
Fri-Sat 11am-Midnight

Increasingly in the downtown Tempe area surrounding the ASU campus the charm of small local restaurants and businesses is being wiped away for a more corporate, polished, and I would argue, cold and unwelcoming feel. I have walked past The Center many times with its great location near my preferred parking garage and Borders. I ignorantly dismissed it as another new kid on the block taking up space in the area that used to be home to some of my favorite little mom and pop places now replaced by chains. Don’t let its new brick exterior and chain store neighbors fool you, this place is locally owned, has all the charm of its local predecessors with some artsy-polish and serves Earth-friendly organic dishes.

We decided to go there on a whim, wanting to try something new and environmentally friendly. Not knowing what to expect and seeing their prices were moderately steep we got gussied up and headed to Tempe. Their menu is vegan/vegetarian friendly allowing for substitutions of tofu for any of the meat dishes. They specialize in beautiful salads and sandwiches, vegan desserts and some darn good smoothies! As we were seated we were each greeted with a shot of their strawberry-peach-mango smoothie, or ‘Karmic Colada.’ It was so great we ordered a full sized version along with the banana-blueberry-spirulina. The banana one was far sweeter and I liked knowing I was getting all of the nutrition from the spirulina but while it was really yummy I preferred the strawberry. I was so impressed with their smoothies I will make a point of returning just for them.

Even their drinks are organic! I had some organic iced green tea that was quite good while James had an organic pear cider. They had a small but good looking selection of teas I would like to try at some point, including a spiced chai (both green and black), mint, breakfast black, and a couple of good looking greens. They also had fresh lemonade, Mexican coffee, and a wide variety of organic beers and wines.

Our meal started with the baked organic coconut tofu and blackened organic tempeh tower. Not only was this sculpturesque creation beautiful, it was delicious, nutritious and environmentally sound! Reminiscent of Jamaican jerk-spices with a twist of grapefruit-yuzu, this kicked off our special occasion with style and taste. Next up was the main meal… after smoothies and protein packed appetizer we were pretty full but the incredible presentation and scent was more than enough to lure us into gluttony.

Their miso soup is vegan and fantastic. Not too “fishy” from the vitamin-packed sea weed but just right. The salad, with its fresh baby greens, artfully spiraled carrots and sprouts in an amazing ginger-soy dressing was too good to be true!

I ordered the organic wild mushrooms sandwich with spring lettuce, fresh dill, organic olive oil and garlic, vegan cream cheese and power green pesto. The dill made this baby something really special, subtle so it didn’t knock your socks off but it acted as the perfect unexpected flavor that made me think for just a moment – what is it that is so great about this?! Dill!!

James substituted tofu in place of beef on the free range organic roast beef sandwich with fresh organic beets, organic spring lettuce, house mayo, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar reduction, with Mainland Farms white cheddar. Who would think to put beets on a sandwich? It looked amazing and James was very pleased with his choice. Aron, James’ brother, ordered the salmon sandwich, wild salmon filet with organic heirloom tomatoes, daikon radish shreds and horseradish black sesame aioli. He was also quite pleased. 3 for 3!

As if we were not stuffed enough…. they have organic vegan cheesecake!! Now how often do you have this option? It would be a sin to deny such an amazing treat, right? It was, just as all of their dishes, beautifully presented and tasty as could be with a lighter texture than a conventional cheesecake. They also had other vegan dessert options so I will certainly be back for.

What makes The Center a green place to go? They are mostly organic, so what? When we eat organic foods not only are we avoiding ingesting the potentially harmful pesticides and herbicides that go into conventional crops, we are supporting sustainable agricultural practices. Organic farming promotes better treatment of the soils which means they will be healthy and supportive of tomorrow’s crops for our kids and theirs. It is also important that they have a focus on vegan options. The meat and dairy industries, particularly from the factory farming practices due to their highly concentrated population of critters, contribute a huge amount of methane (a green house gas) not to mention the requirement for huge amounts of water, land, and crops to feed them (and the water and land required for those crops!) and the fuel to truck them, living and dead, across the country. (Click here to read “Rethinking the Meat Guzler” from the NY Times for more info) There are controversies around soy at the moment regarding rain forest being cleared for lucrative soy crops, however, those are being resolved and the U.S. is the number one producer of soy.

I can’t say enough about the Center. The artwork was beautiful, the food was fantastic, and the service was amazing. I will be back soon and encourage anyone wanting to support a local green restaurant to head over there as soon as you have the chance!

[The Center Cafe/Bistro]

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