Are You A Veg Head?
By Kay Walters
Are you in the mood for a healthier fast-food alternative while feeding your eco-conscience? Meet Mark Metcalfe, owner of The Veg Head restaurant in Loveland, Ohio. Mark’s vision is to bring an eco- friendly restaurant with healthy food into the mainstream – and to create a franchise that will someday rival McDonald’s, Wendy’s and Taco Bell. Mark espouses eco-friendly business practices. “I want to offer a low impact, ecological food service carry out,” explains Mark, “where even in our fast-paced lives, we can embrace my ‘eat here today, live better tomorrow’ philosophy.”
Take, for example, his use of biodegradable plates, utensils and carry out containers that cost between 5 and 8 times what petrochemical-based or Styrofoam products cost. To offset the additional operating costs, Mark “reclaims” several products by sending his compost and biodegradable products to local Neumann’s Someday Farms. Neumann’s picks up compostable materials each week to add to compost piles that are used on their gardens. Plants are harvested and brought back to The Veg Head for sale to complete the cycle. Neumann’s grows tea throughout the year and vegetables during the Spring, Summer, Fall months. Mark then reincorporates these
food items into his menu. His vision is for full-cycle recycling to become the industry standard.
In his restaurant you will find five different recycling bins –glass, cans, plastics, biodegradables and trash. He recycles so much of his products that he generates only three bags of garbage per week. This means he can rent a much smaller container from Rumpke, reducing waste while saving money. All of his Biopack to-go containers can be rinsed and recycled; all of his eat-in and take-out containers – including flatware – are 100% compostable.
Mark’s oldest daughter is a vegetarian, so he has been cooking on separate grills for years. He offers both vegetarian and meat dishes cooked on separate grills in his restaurant. His food choices and cooking methods are so health-conscious and grease-free, his grills don’t require a hood. Best of all, he is leading the way in eco-conscious living. Customers tell Mark he “would rock” in California to which he replies, “That’s why I started my business in Loveland. If I can make it here, I can make it anywhere!”
Menu selections include the award-winning black bean veggie burger, made entirely in-house; The Veg Head black bean, curry hummus or chicken wrap; and the Philly steak sandwich. All sandwiches come with kettle chips and sautéed red cabbage. The Veg Head also offers multi-grain melts and The Veg Head Za, as well as nightly vegetarian and non-vegetarian specials. No refined sugar; only whole grain wheat buns or multi-grain breads and brown rice are used.
Mark started The Veg Head after years as a corporate chef. He is often mistaken as a Denver (Colorado) transplant, with his full-cycle
recycling program and his emphasis on “wraps” and “zas.” However his roots are pure Cincinnati. He’s been the corporate chef at Grailville for 11 years after working at O’Bannon Country Club and helping
Guenther’s restaurant get its start. Embrace green practices and visit The Veg Head!
920 B. Loveland-Madeira Road (across from
McDonald’s) 513.697.7090
