Jesse Cool

Green Cuisine

Jesse Cool, owner of Menlo Park’s Flea Street Café with chef/partner, Carlos Canada, report: For 40 years, we have purchased in a concentric circle, starting with ingredients grown and produced as close to where we live as possible. We have formed deep connections to our local farms, saving fuel and supporting our community. We are thoughtful about using organic food and ingredients that are not produced with growth hormones, antibiotics, preservatives, or stabilizers.  We emphasize local seafood from sustainable fisheries or farm raised if it is done with respect to the environment and people who process it.

We started with a responsibility in our community to not be wasteful. We composted before it was easy. We are very careful about not wasting food and using everything as much as we can, for example, using the whole animal when offering meat, poultry.  When we make changes, we look for sustainable materials and try to reduce energy use and waste.  We believe in shifting the center of the plate from meat being served in large portions to offering more plant based and delicious menu items with meat as a part of them.