|
|
|
|
|
 Organic Harvest Cafe
|
|
 235 East 53rd Street
New York, NY 10022
Cross Streets: (Between 2nd and 3rd Ave.)
Phone: (212) 421-6444
|
|
User Rating
|
|
7.88
Above Average
|
 |
|
|
Editorial Review
“The healthiest fast food in the city,” guarantees Organic Harvest Café owner and operator Mark Mager. “You can run a healthy restaurant in the Village, but unless you are able to get orders out fast, you aren’t going to make it in Midtown.” Mark and Organic Harvest are definitely making it.
On a Wednesday evening during a particularly oppressive Summer heat wave, there were just a few people perched on the stools in Organic’s small storefront, but the staff was cranking out deliveries with the best of them. Despite the rush, we were not pressured to hurry our order and were told to put our money away until after we had finished eating.
Organic Harvest serves an eclectic menu of 100% organic produce, chicken and fish. Most of the menu items are vegan, and the menu clearly states if any of the dishes contain animal products. The organic ingredients make eating at Organic Harvest more expensive than you would expect from a café, but you get what you pay for.
We started with the Asian Roll ($7.95), which was a solid rendition of the Thai favorite, boiled rice paper stuff with grilled tofu, cucumbers, bean sprouts, red onions, cilantro and rice noodles. The spicy peanut sauce, prepared in the kitchen along with everything else served in the restaurant, was the highlight of the dish. Try one of the daily soup specials, a better value at $4.75 a pint and served with a slice of bread.
The Hummus Wrap ($9.95) surprised with a filling serving of grilled tofu, tomato, alfalfa and greens smothered in a creamy hummus and rolled up in a whole wheat wrap. The Tuna Salad Wrap ($9.95) was pleasant if not a standout on the menu.
Definitely try the Tempeh Reuben Sandwich ($9.95): reason enough for former meat eaters looking to reminisce about childhood favorites to come back often. Tempeh is a difficult ingredient to master, resisting the best attempts at flavoring, but Mark has done an excellent job marinating and baking it into a memorable filling. Tempeh meets Reuben with Russian dressing, sauerkraut, mixed lettuce and soy cheese or cheddar cheese and served on toasted mixed grain bread. We could have eaten two.
For entrees, try the Sante Fe Crepes ($13.95), filled with a savory mix of beans, peppers, onions, tomatoes and salsa, guacamole on the side. We were pleased to find out that the steamed vegetables, so often destroyed by overcooking, were still crunchy and glowing with vitality while the hearty serving of seaweed provided a nutrient boost and salty counterbalance.
To get the best look at what makes Organic Harvest a leader in the Midtown healthy restaurant category, we suggest ordering from the side dishes (3 for $8.50). There is no better way to experience the high quality ingredients and conscientious preparation at Organic Harvest, while also getting a full plate of highly nutritious food for under ten dollars.
Looking for a carb fix, we skipped the sautéed greens and ordered a plate of brown rice, baked beets and grilled seitan. The seitan was excellent and received rave reviews from the meat eaters in the crowd, but may have been just a bit salty for the vegetarians in the crowd. The garlic ginger sauce, picked from a list of ten sauces, provided a tangy balance to the sweetness of the beats. We’d like to go back to sample the mushroom gravy and lime curry vinaigrette, which smelled excellent on the plates of people sitting on the stools next to us.
The food was heads above the neighborhood competition, but we get the sense that there is something extra keeping the phones ringing off the hook. Mark is bringing health food to where the people are, serving organic chicken and fish because that’s what the people want, while also maintaining separate grills and cookware for his loyal vegan customers. “It’s all about allowing people to eat healthy organic food together regardless of their specific diets,” Mark concludes. “Sharing food is an experience that shouldn’t be taken for granted.”
|
|
Restaurant Information
| ||
Organic
Vegetarian Friendly
|
American Grill
Global Fusion
New American
|
$$ ($15-$20)
|
M-F: 11am-10pm; Sa-Su: 12pm-9pm
|
|
Member Reviews -- Sorted by
Most Recent |
| Positive | Negative | Most Recent | |
|
Showing: 1 of 2 | | User Rating: Below Average | terrible service, ok food Posted by pearljpark on 1/15/08 | I ordered a tempeh portabella burger at 2:30pm. Several other people walked in after me and ordered their food. They were served first and I didn't get my meal until almost 3 pm. How in the world did my burger take so long? The actual tempeh and portabella burger was very small and didn't have many mushrooms in it. Just regular lettuce, tomatoes and a side of hard raw cabbage. Nothing about the meal was very spectacular or worth waiting that long for. It was 10.15.
| | More Member Reviews |
|
|
|
|
|
|
