Organico Gourmet; New Haven for Organic Food Lovers

I started eating light when I gained weight in the early 2000s,  I avoided pork,  (I eat lean meat only  when I crave, for my protein support), dairies, cakes, concentrated juices and softdrinks. I have never felt healthier until now.  I got sick once in a while for colds but other than that, my BP is still stable for my age and  I take my vitamins everyday.   Thank God for the love of good food and my discipline.

When organic food was introduced in the market,  I went crazy for chia seeds, cayenne pepper, quinoa rice to substitute with red rice, organic almonds, organic coco sugar to mix with my meals. That was how serious I am with my food intake. But since I was too busy to prepare my meals, I started to look  for restaurant that offers organic delicious food cooked the way I want. I was just as lucky as everyone else's when I got an invite for the launch of  Organico Gourmet, last July 18, where good food and wellness come together, its located at #916 Mencias Street, San Juan near Mandaluyong area. It used to be a house and transformed to a restaurant. The interiors of Organico Gourmet are country inspired and designed by Anton Bermudo. Waw Manlapaz is in charge of creative marketing.

When you walk inside the stylish Organico Gourmet, you can immediately feel better with the interiors and the ambiance and wait till you have a bite of their guilt free indulgence dishes.

Organico Gourmet is the brainchild of Executive Chef Gloria de Vera and the story of how she came up with the idea for it is an interesting, and at the same time, highly personal one. "it was my youngest daughter who inspired me into putting up this place,” relates Chef Gloria. Her daughter, then 12 years old, battled weight problems because of a fondness for food, particularly steak (which she would eat up to three times a week), ice cream and junk food. “That motivated me as a mom and as a chef, kung ano ha any puwede ko gawin to help her,” says Chef Gloria.

So she started experimenting: she researched different diet plans on the Internet and finally ended up putting her daughter on the South Beach diet, which made her lose an initial ten pounds. The weight loss made her realize the value of eating smart and healthy; after that, she started eating more fish and chicken and became a semi—vegetarian, which means her diet included milk, soya and eggs aside from vegetables. In.2 years, she lost 30 pounds. Now, at 16 years old, she weighs a very trim  and healthy 115 pounds.

It all boils down to eating good food and making healthy choices—something that Chef Gloria and her team at Organico Gourmet live by. But a big part of their effort is dedicated to making people realize that healthy food can also be tasty and delicious. “A lot of people think that just because it's healthy and organic, that it can’t be delicious,” says Chef Gloria.

Bellychon

Grilled Prawns with Pasionfruit Butter Sauce

Tinapa Mousse on Mini Pancakes

Organico Gourmet’s menu is divided into ‘breakfast, appetizers, soup, salad, rice bowls, seafood, chicken pork  pasta (fettuccine or spaghetti), pizza, sandwiches and dessert.

Their offerings include the following;

For breakfast Grilled. Bangus Belly, Angus Beef Tapa, and Truffled. Mushroom Omelette; 

For appetizers, Oyster Fritters, Smoked Fish Croquettes and Fried Cauli Florettes; 

For soup, there’s a choice of Minestrone, Three Mushroom Cream Soup and Roasted Pumpkin Soup;

For salads include Mixed Greens with Roasted Sesame Dressing; Mixed Greens with Truffle Balsamic Vinaigrette and Goi Ga

Rice bowls, diners can choose from among the Spicy Tofu. Rice Bowl, the Penang Gai in Black Rice and the Chiu Chow Fish in Red Rice

Seafood, Grilled Prawns and Grilled Salmon BBQ,

Chicken. Tamarind and Honey Glazed Chicken and Stuffed Chicken Roulade 

Pork,   Pork n’ Beans and Grilled Pork chops with Apple Chutney

Pasta, Chicken and Kale Ravioli, Kale Pesto, Pasta Bolognese and Marinara

Pizza the selection includes Vegetarian Pizza, Truffled Four Cheese Pizza and Sardines Pizza; 

Sandwiches 0G Burger, Banhmi, Oyster Po ‘Boy, and. Mushroom Burger.

Dessert, Mango Pudding with Chia Seeds, Sweet Potato Smores and Coconut Pannacotta.

The dishes are priced at about P300 and up, but the portions are generous and can be shared.

Organico  Gourmet. also carries cold-press juices made from organic and natural ingredients that are 80 percent vegetables and 20 percent fruits.

It's the same kind of menu you would find in any other fine dining restaurant, but the difterence is that Organico Gourmet's dishes are made with all-natural ingredients. The food and ingredients are pesticide-tree. hand-grown and non~GMO (Genetically Modified Organism). Even the meat dishes use meat coming from animals that are grass-fed or eat feed not treated with pesticides or anything that could be potentially harmful to one's health.

Organico Gourmet also has a market, or deli where you can buy organically-grown produce and meat, dips and sauces, fresh herbs, green teas in sachets, chips and other snacks and condiments.

“That's why our motto is ‘Deliciously Organic'. We want to show people that organic food can also be delicious, and it's healthy too," explains Chef Gloria.

Organico Gourmet aims to ignite a healthy dining revolution in the country. For reservations, inquiries and meal plan deliveries, call +639l73790888. You can. also check out their Facebook page at @organicogourmet88, their Instagram account (ORGANICO_GOURMET)or email them at organicogourmet88@gmail.com.