Sarma Melngailis is President of One Lucky Duck and Partner/Executive Chef at Pure Food and Wine, the nation's premier raw food restaurant.
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Below is something I wrote for Get Fresh magazine… the very cool raw food rag printed in the UK. You can buy copies, current and past issues, at oneluckyduck.com, and soon at some Whole Foods too. Sweet.
Eating a raw food diet is still considered alternative. On the fringe. People don’t understand it. What is so hard to understand? Food that naturally grows from the earth, fed by sunlight. No one disputes that fresh fruits and vegetables are full of good things, and that generally, people should be eating more of them. Everyone seems to know now that nuts are good, full of “good” fats. Flax, sesame, hemp and more… most would recognize that these are also good foods. Yet, if I went on a road trip across the U.S., I know that there would be long stretches of driving where I would be hard pressed to find places where I could conveniently find and purchase natural and clean food. I would likely encounter a lot of people who would find my eating preferences unusual and odd. But I wonder, if I eat a raw food diet, does that mean that so many others out there are on a processed food diet? Are there enthusiastic processed foodists? For these people, is there an inspiring magazine called “Get Processed”?
Finding Clarity in the Blender: The Green Shake
This post is a bit more upbeat than the last - no curse words, cranky complaining, cynicism or sarcasm. Writing down your thoughts is, in itself, therapeutic. But when you post it on the web and lots of people read it and give you all kinds of thoughtful feedback, well, that’s free therapy. I’ve learned a lot. THANK YOU!!!
Since it’s impractical for me to drop everything right now and run off to an Ashram to find myself, I had to see how I might be able to conduct the search locally. How do I do this, in my “spare” time? What spare time? How do I find solitude in New York City for some good self-awareness? And when? This has been an ongoing exploration.
Not Perfect, Just Real (Sarma's Debut)
This is my first blog post ... ever. What to write about? Writing a whole book somehow felt less daunting, though when it was finally published I could not believe that all those words, written during delirious late nights in front of the computer, were out there in print, and that anyone would even care. The most heartwarming part is that it seems people do, hence this blog.
Keeping It Real: Not a religion and not about rules
I always remember how I felt, shortly after going raw, when I sat in a midtown restaurant across from a friend who ordered filet mignon (I went straight from carnivore to raw vegan, no inbetween). My friend, from my Wall Street days past, ate the entire juicy filet, all the fries on his plate, and left behind the ten or so peas that were the only thing around remotely qualifying as vegetable. At the time, I happened to have just begun my first and only gallstone-cleanse… (again, more on that later - I should really keep a tally of all the things on which I'm supposed to one day soon elaborate). All I had was a glass of water. After he ordered, I was preparing myself for a good twenty minutes or so of torture.
Mood - there's a reason why it rhymes with Food
SO January 1st, back to reality, the day that so many of us out there (probably mostly girls too) swear that we're going to be 'good' and loose that stubborn 5 to 10 pounds, or whatever it is. How hard can it be? Eat less, exercise more? The problem is, it's not about that. It's all wrapped up in personal history, emotion and mood, with a big wad of anxiety tossed in.
Valentine's Day - Love and Food
Valentine’s Day!! It can be kind of like New Year’s Eve… too much expectation which leads only to disappointment. Here’s what I’ve learned: don’t expect anything. Then you’ll never be disappointed. Rely on yourself. Love yourself. And everyone else, but really, if you don’t treat yourself well, why should anyone else?
Sexyback: Sarma's Raw Confessions
It seems I’m not really taking care of myself... And the silly part is that so much of what I do essentially revolves around taking care of others, with my time and often with my advice, which I’m in effect dispensing but now not following. As a result, I’m feeling quite… crappy. Just last summer I was twenty pounds (yes, twenty!) lighter than I am today.
Sex, Pain, Madness, and One Lucky Duck
Warning: This post is really long, and gets really personal, with lots of curse words, and is all very self-serving. But kind of entertaining, hopefully? I just finished reading a book – yes, I’ve been reading lately. It was by the British chef Marco Pierre White, “Devil in the Kitchen – Sex, Pain, Madness and the Making of a Great Chef” It’s a good title… because who
doesn’t want to read about sex? From a
hot chef? And pain and madness? Well yes, that too. It’s inspiring to read about people who know
what they want and go through a lot to get it. But pain and madness? Is that
what it really takes to achieve greatness? Does everyone have to toil tirelessly, sacrifice health, get hurt, worn
down, and knocked down over and over, feel pain, and teeter on the edge of
madness? If so… I’m SO on the right track! YAY!
