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True Food Kitchen Opens at the Beach

Let’s just say what most people really think about eating healthy — it’s much better in theory than it is in application. No matter how sincere the intention, a few weeks of bird and rabbit food can cause anyone to lust after a pizza or soda, and then revert back to bad eating habits. However, there’s a new restaurant in town that has locals reconsidering what it means to eat healthy. True Food Kitchen, now open at Fashion Island, uses only the purest and freshest ingredients to create food filled with antioxidants, vitamins and of course, flavor. With a menu that finally has residents excited to try new, good-for-you cuisine, Executive Chef Michael Stebner has managed to revolutionize the term health food.

The True Food Kitchen menu is the masterpiece of a collaboration between Stebner and best-selling author and healthy lifestyle guru Dr. Weil. Incorporating Dr. Weil’s anti-inflammatory food pyramid, Stebner created new tastes by playing with ideas and flavors found in Mediterranean, Asian and classic Californian cuisine. “Our menu is globally inspired. We went for genres of food that are already healthy. We don’t take food that’s bad for you and try to make it healthy,” Stebner says. “The old-school idea of cooking is more grease, more fat, more taste … If you start with a beautiful vegetable, the last thing you want to do is ruin it by adding butter, cream or sugar.” Just a taste of Stebner’s eats will change even the harshest skeptic into a True Food believer.

Along with organic, locally-grown produce, the menu uses natural, hormone- and antibiotic-free protein, wild or sustainably harvested seafood, wheat-free pasta made from brown and white rice and healthy fats like extra virgin olive oil and expeller pressed canola oil. Even the beverages are created to be nutritiously advantageous, offering organic and biodynamic wine, organic cocktails, housemade natural sodas and juices sweetened with agave nectar or honey. “I find it inspiring to cook this way,” Stebner says. “I’m not a health nut. I’m not a triathlon athlete. I just like to eat this way.”

True Food Kitchen started in Phoenix, and was so widely received that the restaurant expanded to Newport Beach’s very own Fashion Island. “I’m excited about Southern California — the bar is set higher,” says Stebner. “For the availability of local, farm-fresh product, there’s no better place. It just plays into the concept so well.”

The menus at the Phoenix and Newport Beach locations differ slightly due to the availability of products and seasonal delights, but the two restaurants remain driven by the same concept: Simple, fresh, and pure ingredients make for the best dining experience.

With a growing population of health food groupies, the days of staring at a bowl of quinoa and wishing it was a burger are long gone. Today’s health food is exciting and tastes better than ever. “We’re changing people’s lives and their ideas of what’s good,” Stebner says. “We’re teaching people that it’s all about quality and freshness.”

Dive into fresh: foxrc.com