CHICAGO, Sept. 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- LYFE Kitchen recently called "the future of food," a transformational, socially responsible "lyfestyle" brand, announced today its franchise location to open in Chicago, IL at the corner of Clark and Hubbard. The announcement was made with the first LYFE Kitchen owner-operator, Carey Cooper, at a LYFE Kitchen Forklifting event, a twist on the traditional groundbreaking ceremony, held at the new location. LYFE Kitchen will bring its great tasting, good-for-you concept back to its roots to help Chicagoans "Love Your Food Everyday."
Executive Chef Jeremy Bringardner, Vegan Consulting Chef Tal Ronnen and Chef Art Smith. (PRNewsFoto/LYFE Kitchen) (PRNewsFoto/LYFE KITCHEN)
Community Table LYFE Kitchen Culver City, Calif. (PRNewsFoto/LYFE Kitchen) (PRNewsFoto/LYFE KITCHEN)
LYFE Kitchen Chicago Forklifting (l to r: Dr. Anthony Cardillo, Mike Donahue, Mike Roberts, Chef Art Smith, Carey Cooper, Paul Facella, Gail Taggart) Photo: Bridget Clauson Photography. (PRNewsFoto/LYFE Kitchen) (PRNewsFoto/LYFE KITCHEN)
Introducing the iconic LYFE Kitchen Herb Wall. (PRNewsFoto/LYFE Kitchen) (PRNewsFoto/LYFE KITCHEN)
LYFE Kitchen Chicago Team (top: Brinker Wolf, Nate Cooper, Abby Eisenberg, Carey Cooper, Matt Modleski. bottom: Emily Smith, Gail Taggart, Amy Edquist). (PRNewsFoto/LYFE Kitchen) (PRNewsFoto/LYFE KITCHEN)
"We are thrilled to open our first LYFE Kitchen restaurant here in our hometown of Chicago," said Mike Roberts, CEO of LYFE Kitchen. "I've known Carey Cooper for 30 years and consider him a trusted ally and advisor. Carey and his team, along with partners like Chef Art Smith, have gone to remarkable lengths to bring LYFE Kitchen here to Chicago. We think our friends and neighbors are going to love our food, our service and our commitment to the community."
INTRODUCING OWNER-OPERATOR CAREY COOPER
"The first time I heard about the LYFE Kitchen concept, I was intrigued," said Cooper. "The first time I ate the food, I was hooked. With my son Nate Cooper's enthusiasm and the team we've assembled I am proud to be the first LYFE Kitchen owner operator.
"We can't wait to start serving people amazing meals in a truly unique atmosphere with spectacular customer service and hospitality and a commitment to the community in one of the hottest locations in Chicago," said Cooper. Cooper has assembled an all-star management team to establish LYFE Kitchen in the windy city and serve as a model for other franchisees nationwide, including former Bubba Gump Shrimp Company executive Gail Taggart.
CHEF ART SMITH (TABLE 52), CHEF TAL RONNEN AND CHEF JEREMY BRINGARDNER LEAD THE WAY: IT'S ALL ABOUT THE TASTE
LYFE Kitchen, Chicago will showcase the talents Chefs Art Smith, Tal Ronnen and Jeremy Bringardner's trusted and thoughtful menu that features chef-inspired, delicious recipes, plant-based proteins, with all dishes containing fewer than 600 calories and 1,000 milligrams of sodium, with most choices containing much less.
Tasty dishes, such as Art's Unfried Chicken and Tal's Ancient Grains Bowl, feature responsibly sourced ingredients from local farms and sustainable whenever possible, and rely on herbs, spices, fruits and vegetables to deliver outstanding flavors.
The diverse menu offers choices to meet any guests' personal food policies, from omnivore to vegetarian, gluten-free to vegan. LYFE Kitchen also creates unique beverages like its popular Kale-Banana smoothie, inspired by LYFE Kitchen ambassador and pro-football star Troy Palomalu, and features prominent wines and locally produced craft beers.
The LYFE Kitchen Chicago Forklifting event attracted hundreds to the corner of Clark and Hubbard Streets, including LYFE Kitchen wellness ambassadors Dr. Anthony Cardillo, a respected emergency room physician, Olympic Champion Janet Evans and Chicago's own Robbie Ventura, founder of and owner of Vision Quest Coaching and one of the most sought after experts on endurance training and peak athletic performance.
ECO-FRIENDLY DESIGN
LYFE Kitchen guests in Chicago will enjoy all this in a warm, inviting and eco-conscious restaurant design. The new restaurant on the corner of Clark and Hubbard Streets in the River North District is located in the new AMLI residential building. The restaurant will feature brand design staples from current LYFE kitchen restaurants such as:
Herb Wall
Centerpiece of the restaurant
Includes dozens of flavorful herbs & spices
Representative of the fresh ingredients used to create many of LYFE's favorite dishes
Enhances the senses and evokes smell and touch
Environmental Building
One of LYFE Kitchen's core principles is a commitment to eco-friendly materials and energy conservation
LEED-certified building standards
All designs built with sustainable focus in mind
Paint consists zero volatile organic compounds
Use of recycled and natural supplies
LED Lighting
SWEET HOME, CHICAGO
The initial LYFE Kitchen menu started in the home kitchen of Chef Art Smith, who, alongside Chefs Ronnen and Bringardner spent more than a year on a taste quest to develop signature flavors and one-of-a-kind dishes.
LYFE Kitchen's Chicago roots spread far and wide from there. Noted design and branding firm Adreinne Weiss Company developed the LYFE Kitchen name and brand that is brought to life throughout the restaurant, from the uniforms to the decor to the menus.
The LYFE Kitchen executive team includes a number of native Chicagoans as does the Board of Directors which includes former White House Chief of Staff Bill Daly and native Chicagoans Charles (Chuck) Stewart and David Bryant, as well as Court Coursey, managing partner of TomorrowVentures.
As LYFE Kitchen Restaurants open in Chicago, local farmers and suppliers will play a critical role in providing the freshest products possible throughout the year. LYFE Kitchen is in the process of forming partnerships with local vendors who share the same passion and social responsibility beliefs to provide high-quality, great-tasting food and beverages, which allow a new audience to "Love Your Food Everyday." Current Chicago-area suppliers in development include:
Intelligenstia Coffee is one of Chicago's premier coffee providers. Chicago Magazine's Reader's Choice Award recognized Intelligenstia as the best locally roasted coffee and in 2011 Chicago Time Out awarded them its "Best Local Coffee Roaster" award. Their Fulton Street Roasting Works is home to three Gothot roasters that turnout the hand crafted, delicious coffee that will be served at LYFE Kitchen everyday.
Established in 1873, Cougle Commission Company is one of Chicago's largest family-based poultry processors. Cougle will provide LYFE Kitchen with the highest-quality, Global Animal Partnership (GAP) certified poultry products to make signature dishes like Chef Art's Unfried Chicken.
Buedel Fine Meats and Provisions has been providing Chicago-area restaurants with the highest quality meats since 1907. At LYFE Kitchen Chicago, Buedel will provide the all-natural, humanely raised, grass-fed beef that makes our Classic Burger, in a word, classic.
Founded in 2005 by broadcast journalist and Chicago native Bill Kurtis, Tallgrass Beef Company is the industry leader in the production of grass-fed, grass-finished beef. What started on Kurtis' 10,000 acre, Kansas ranch has grown into a network of family farmers and ranchers across the United States dedicated to a sustainable method of raising cattle that is not only good for the environment, but also the animals themselves and, ultimately, the consumer.
Green Spirit Farms grows organic, pesticide-free vegetables and herbs using innovative vertical farming technology. Their indoor vertical farm produces harvests all year long, using less water and energy than traditional farming. Their farm is located in a former industrial brownfield in Southwest Michigan.
ABOUT LYFE KITCHEN
LYFE Kitchen is committed to the idea that great-tasting food can also be good for you, affordable and convenient. With choices to please anyone, from flexitarian to vegetarian, omnivore to vegan, our celebrated chefs have developed a menu that is as delicious as it is inspiring. Using locally sourced ingredients whenever possible with the highest standards of quality and adhering to the highest level of socially responsible practices, LYFE Kitchen is creating a new category of lifestyle restaurant. Visit www.lyfekitchen.com for more.
Image with caption: "LYFE Kitchen Chicago Forklifting (l to r: Dr. Anthony Cardillo, Mike Donahue, Mike Roberts, Chef Art Smith, Carey Cooper, Paul Facella, Gail Taggart) Photo: Bridget Clauson Photography". Image available at: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130917/NE81906-c
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