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Life&Style

 

CHOMP CHOMP CHOMP!

New Port Moody vegan restaurant is delicious and close

T

@ Photo by Ste
By Keating Smith, Contributor

mong the tanning salons,
fitness centres and
townhouses in Suter Brook

Village is Chomp Vegan Eatery, Port
Moody’s newest and possibly first-
ever vegan restaurant.

“T came up with an idea to
open a business with the goal of
being involved in the community
and to help give back to others,”
says restaurateur Vanessa Mills.
“Originally, I came up with an idea
of creating a community-based
special-needs arts program, which
evolved into what you see today.”

Being passionate about
veganism and organic local food,

   

and also having a space where she
could offer local artists the chance
to showcase their work, Mills
decided starting a restaurant would
be a more suitable idea.

She spent years in the
restaurant and catering industry
and decided to take the self-
employment course at Douglas
College last spring and, shortly
after completion, wrote up a
business plan. Like any business
owner knows, the road is long
and winding when starting up a
business. However, with the help of
Mills’ family and friends, Chomp’s
doors opened a little over two
months ago and the response from
the community, in her opinion, has

been “phenomenal.”

“People in the Tri-Cities no
longer have to drive to Vancouver
to eat at a vegan restaurant and
literally all of our marketing—with

to soul favorites such as poutine,
mac ‘n’ cheese, and chili. There
are also pub food classics such

as nachos and sliders, with the
restaurant using white bean patties

“Chomp also has a tofu scrambler breakfast menu and features sweet-
tooth items such as strawberry doughnuts, chocolate mint cookies,
banana muffins, and more. All meals range from $9 to $12.”

the exception of using social media
and our website—has been through
word of mouth.”

Previously, Chomp’s storefront
was a skateboard / snowboard
boutique with a lot of shelving
areas along the walls. Mills decided
to keep a lot of the old layout as it
fit her vision to have an open and
warm character for the restaurant
and use them as an area to
showcase local art. Open mic nights
are also being hosted where anyone
can come out to show off his or her
spoken-word, comedic, or musical
talents. The next one is set for
February 25 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Now the most important part:
the menu. It is divided into three
sections from the appetizers to
the entrees. Chomp has over a
dozen options on the menu with
additional specials and other
creations not seen on the main
menu. Choices include everything
from their famous spicy tofu bowl

as the meat substitute for the latter.
Chomp also has a tofu scrambler
breakfast menu and features sweet-
tooth items such as strawberry
doughnuts, chocolate mint cookies,
banana muffins, and more. All
meals range from $9 to $12.

There’s a huge emphasis
on using gluten-free bread,
locally grown produce, and
organic ingredients; all add to
the sustainable living goal of the
restaurant.

If you want takeout, it’s not a
problem. Chomp uses 100 per cent
biodegradable to-go containers or,
if you prefer, you can bring in your
own food containers. Just make
sure it’s suitable for what you have
ordered.

Chomp Vegan Eatery is located
at #7-201 Morrissey Road in Suter
Brook Village and is open daily
from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can
also visit them online at www.
chompveganeatery.com.

 

Healthy foods;

Necessary nutrients

By Naomi Ambrose, Contributor

thinking about what you

should eat. So you ask yourself:
“Should I have my usual two slices
of pizza with extra cheese and a
diet soda? Or maybe I'll have a
bag of potato chips and a chocolate
bar.” Hmm... Those options sound
tempting, but the question is, are
they healthy for you? No, they’re
not! So here are my top healthy
foods and the reasons why they are
good for you.

I'll begin with raisins. These
small, green-or-black-coloured
fruits are an excellent source
of energy. As college students,
we need all the energy we can
get to study effectively, to listen
attentively to our instructors, to
do assignments, and to read our
textbooks.

While reading, you can
continue eating raisins to get boron,
an important micro-nutrient that’s
very beneficial to bones and joints.
Since many of us regularly climb
that treacherous hill to get to the

[« time for a snack and you’re

New Westminster campus, it is
important to have strong bones and
joints. Getting enough boron from
raisins will help make that up-hill
trek a more enjoyable experience.
Raisins also provide an
excellent supply of vitamin A,
A-beta carotene, and A-carotenoid,
which are all essential for good
eyesight. Good eyesight is
important because we need to
read instructions clearly for our
assignments and exams, especially
if we are aiming for good grades.
We should also aim to have a
daily supply of vitamin E, which we
can get from sunflower seeds. They
are grayish-green or black seeds in
grey or black shells that often have
black or white stripes. Vitamin E is
very important for the prevention
of heart disease. I am sure that most
of you have heard that heart disease
is one of the leading causes of death
in North America. Don’t think that
because you are not 40 or 50 that
you shouldn’t worry about your
heart. Instead, you can decrease
your chances of developing heart
disease by getting enough vitamin

E from sunflower seeds. According
to The World’s Healthiest Foods

(whfoods.org), a quarter cup of
sunflower seeds contains 62 per
cent of the recommended daily
value of vitamin E.

After you’ve eaten some
sunflower seeds, why not have
some celery? This tall, green
stalked vegetable contains active
compounds called phthalides that
help to reduce stress hormones. As
college students, I’m sure we've
all felt stressed out whether it is
because of exams, relationships, or
work issues. Try to balance yourself
by munching on some celery. If
you'd like some added flavor, try
dipping it in hummus or creamy
peanut butter. Your stress hormones

 

will thank you later.

Finally, try eating some bell
peppers. These crunchy, glossy
orange, yellow, green, or red
vegetables are an excellent source
of vitamin C, containing 117
milligrams per cup, according to
whfoods.org. That’s more than
twice the amount found in an
orange. Since it’s the winter season,
we need all the help we can get to
battle the cold and flu. As a recent
cold sufferer, I ate a lot of bell
peppers and I must say my cold
was bearable.

So next time you visit the
grocery store or farmer’s market,
make sure you get your supply of
raisins, sunflower seeds, celery, and
bell peppers.

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