If you need to eat out, eat healthy, be served quickly and in style, where do you go?
McDonald’s? Wendy’s? Not for me. The clean promise was broken ages ago, and their attempts at healthy menu items can’t be offset by the unappetizing décor of neon-colored plastic chairs and formica-style tables with the mopped-until-they-are-permanently-dirty tiled floors.
I love Chipotle’s but I don’t need a 1,000 calorie burrito. Tokyo Joe’s has basic sushi, which is typically low in calories, and I do love their Nikko Salad with mandarin oranges, almonds, avocado and tangy herb dressing (and don’t forget their fun-to-watch rad staff sporting tattoos and wild body piercings). Mad Greens has any salad combination you can think of, if all you want is salad, but the décor doesn’t inspire me to linger.
Modmarket could be the answer. The décor is mod, but it’s not a market. They call their restaurants ‘farm fresh eateries’ – and fresh they are.
Two guys in Boulder felt there was a “blatant gap in what was out there for people to eat well, eat fast, and it not be very expensive” according to co-founder Rob McColgan. Rob, and co-founder Anthony Pigliacampo, didn’t have a culinary background when they decided to fill this gap, and yet these two nonfoody guys created many of the menu items for this new concept in fast food, including the Wintergreen Salad with goat cheese, apple, roasted potato, walnut and honey herb vinaigrette (my favorite—recipe below).
Leafy greens seem to be the obvious choice for low calorie healthy eating, but Modmarket offers variety with hand-tossed, oven-fired pizzas, soups and sandwiches and provides calorie and ‘macronutrient’ information on their menus and receipts. Macronutrient info shows you the number of grams for fat, carbs, and protein that make up your meal. According to the Nutricate receipt that provides this analysis, my bowl of Green Chili had 308 calories and only six (6) fat grams, 38 carb grams, and 32 protein grams while the Prosciutto Arugula Pizza had 750 calories with 36 fat grams, 90 carb grams, and 28 protein grams. For more info on the Nutricate macronutrient profile, visit http://www.modmarket.com/tag/nutricate.
Modmarket’s focus is fresh ‘made from scratch’ meals and they avoid processed ingredients as much as possible. Don’t expect to find Coca-Cola or Pepsi, though. They serve sodas made with natural kane sugar by Boylan Bottle Co. http://www.boylanbottling.com/ (I’m sorry, Modmarket, but I do like my processed diet Coke better.)
It’s nice to eat great food in a stylish setting and know, on paper, that you’ve eaten healthy. I’m a mod girl and I like Modmarket. Modmarket also caters. Learn more.
Modmarket’s Wintergreen Salad
1 cup honey
1 cup white wine vinegar
1 oz fresh basil
2 oz roasted fingerling potatoes
3 oz mixed greens
1 oz Haystack goat chèvre
1 oz crushed walnuts
1 oz green onion
2 oz green apple
olive oil, salt and pepper
MAKE THE DRESSING: Combine the honey, vinegar and fresh basil in a blender and blend until herbs are finely chopped. Add salt and pepper to taste.
MAKE THE ROASTED POTATOES: Coat potatoes in salt, pepper and olive oil. Roast for 15 minutes at 350ºF or until they are tender.
ASSEMBLE: Toss greens with goat cheese, walnuts, roast potatoes and dressing. Top with freshly sliced apple and chopped green onion.
Patricia Bainter is a blogger and writer for 303magazine. She trained at Le Cordon Bleu London and shares her culinary musings and recipes at her own website ThePatricianPalette.com. Photos by Patricia Bainter.