Garbanzo Grill’s Jon Terry has a refreshingly creative take on vegan food that sparks a sense of place and community, but it’s also about everything that he and his partner Jeannine Navratil have done and are doing in their small food cart operation in the Whitaker neighborhood. And they do it all, bringing a completely new meaning to a “DIY” work ethic. Nearly everything, from the burger patties to the rebar chairs out front, is made in-house by the two restaurateurs. Terry was slightly hesitant to explain the intricacies of his proprietary burgers, but an explanation isn’t necessary. Just sit down and dig into one.
Terry’s burgers are unlike any other veggie burger currently on the market. After decades of being a vegetarian and working in fine dining kitchens in Aspen, Colo., he decided he was fed up with the dry, cardboard-like excuses for burger alternatives that were available on the market.
“I ate all the (vegan) meats that are available, that you’re able to buy, like Field Roast,” Terry said, “and after a while I was like, ‘I like these,’ then after a longer while I was like, ‘I hate these.’”
Terry began to develop his own recipe over a 10-year period and used a wheat-gluten-based meat alternative similar to that of seitan. The final results put everything else he’d tried to shame. He knew that he needed to capitalize on his idea immediately and so Garbanzo Grill was born. Bite into a “Thick ‘n Juicy” burger and your palate is immediately overcome by scrumptious vegetables, a meaty, well-textured and portioned patty, caramelized onions, his “special sauce” and your choice of soy cheese or real cheese. This burger will convert even the most ardent meat eater.
“This is like a vegetarian outreach program,” Terry said. “So the meat eaters can be able to go ‘Wow, this didn’t suck. This was actually really good.’ I’m way more interested in having a meat eater come here and eat.”
It doesn’t stop there either. Terry and Navratil also prepare a sauerkraut and kombucha. The kombucha, either green or black tea based, mixed with peach or ginger juices respectively, leave commercial brands in the dust. And the kraut, which uniquely uses a red cabbage base with daikon (a carrot-like vegetable) and cauliflower, has a satisfying crunch and saltiness. The two are looking even further into possibly expanding their repertoire of probiotic offerings with a yogurt made with milk from their neighbor’s Jersey cow herd.
“We’re kind of easing into doing probiotics too,” Navratil, who is a former scientist at the University of Pittsburgh, said. “We’re doing sauerkraut and kim chee as of now. I love all these old foods and skills that are coming to the forefront again.”
Terry has also been integrating his principles into his Garbanzo Grill cooking, beginning last September. Both he and Navratil are extremely well-versed in all aspects of ethical food production, and they keep those notions at the forefront of the business.
“The whole green revolution back in the ’70s was anything but green,” Navratil said. “It ruined our agricultural system; it ruined our diet, and we’re paying for it now. You know, you have 15-year-olds with Type 2 diabetes. People just don’t know how to eat anymore.”
Terry and Navratil’s vision for the cart includes opening a restaurant, hopefully within the next few years or so, and their DIY principles and ethical beliefs will be following in tow.
“We want to have a restaurant where we do all of the (curing, fermenting and prep in-house) and we’re going call it ‘DIY’ because we essentially do everything ourselves,” Terry said.
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Garbanzo Grill: Bringing you a tastier, healthier veggie burger
Daily Emerald
March 2, 2011
Rachelle Hacmac
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