With pressed organic juice now experiencing tremendous popularity, it seems that everyone wants a piece of the action and entrepreneurs from all over the country are quickly jumping into the juice game.

Yet, one of the pioneers of this massive trend, Denise Mari, founder of NYC’s Organic Avenue, was inspired by something other than money.

Having lost her younger sister to cancer at an early age, Denise quickly realized that she needed to live a life of real purpose and wanted to serve as an inspiration to other people.

Guided by the concept of ahimsa, which means “to do no harm”, her vegan and raw food lifestyle eventually manifested itself as Organic Avenue, and it was her goal to share her knowledge with as many individuals as possible.

Now, the publication of her just-released Organic Avenue: Recipes for Life, Made with Love* (LOVE = Live, Organic, Vegan, Experience) will allow her to do just that and reach people well beyond the confines of New York City. Read more »

Recently, I stopped by the offices of Sakara Life, the fantastic organic meal delivery service based here in NYC.

Even though I have known co-founders Danielle DuBoise and Whitney Tingle for a few years, I hadn’t fully researched their company until now. And what a huge mistake that was because it is an incredibly impressive operation with delicious food.

Currently, Sakara Life is delivering fully-prepared, 100% organic, gluten-free, plant-based meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) to customers in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. The service will eventually be expanded to other parts of the country, with California on the company’s near-term radar screen.

Here were a few things that I tasted. Read more »

Most people would probably say that choosing the best farmers market in the country would be based on selection, prices, quantity, how much is organic, crowds, and overall experience.

For me, it is much more simple.

Which farmers market will dictate my entire travel schedule just so I can be there for it? Read more »

If you follow me on Facebook, you know that last week I took a short trip to Miami — I put up a bunch of pictures of the juice that I drank and the food that I ate down there.

What you didn’t see was food from a visit to Choices Cafe, an organic vegan restaurant in downtown Miami, right off of Brickell.

Given that several of my friends in the industry had told me about Choices Cafe and the restaurant has been listed in my Pressed Organic Juice Directory for quite some time, I was eager to go check it out. Read more »

If you live in Greenwich Village in NYC, as I do, it is time to come clean. We are completely and utterly spoiled. Why?

Among other reasons, this neighborhood must have the greatest concentration of organic restaurants, supermarkets, and pressed juice bars of anywhere in the world. And with the recent opening of organic restaurant Feel Food, we may now have the most innovative restaurant of them all. Read more »

Just like many other people, I love eating pasta.

However, I don’t eat pasta that has gluten in it, so that generally leaves me with pasta made from quinoa, corn or rice.

While I don’t have issues with any of these three, I had always wanted something a little different.

That is why I totally flipped out when I came across the red lentil pasta by Tolerant Foods at Natural Products Expo West earlier this year. I was so excited about this pasta that I immediately named it to my Top 5 Organic Products of the Show.

It is rich and hearty, and the texture is strikingly similar to a wheat or flour pasta. Read more »

I know that food trucks are the rage these days but to be perfectly honest, they’ve never really excited me too much.

Maybe that’s because so few of them are organic, and the majority of the ones that line the streets in New York City don’t look appetizing at all.

So, when I heard about a new vegan organic food truck here called The Green Radish, I was a little hesitant.

Yet, what spurred me to go check it out was that owner/operator James Rafferty has some serious credentials. Not only is he a Culinary Institute of America graduate, but he was formerly the sous chef at Bouley, one of the top restaurants in NYC, and has also logged time at other Michelin star restaurants.

Needless to say, I was blown away by the quality of the food at The Green Radish and here are a few dishes that I tried. Read more »