PHOENIX Fox Restaurant Concepts, parent of Sauce Pizza & Wine and other concepts, has partnered with health guru and author Dr. Andrew Weil to open True Food Kitchen at the Biltmore Fashion Park here.
True Food Kitchen features global cuisine, influenced by areas such as the Mediterranean, Asia and California, with a focus on local and sustainable ingredients, according to restaurant officials.
“Dr. Weil and I have been friends for a long time," said Sam Fox, president and chief executive of Fox Restaurant Concepts. "We have been exploring the idea of a creating a restaurant together for years. When the location at the Biltmore became available, we knew the time was right."
Weil is the author of several best-selling books on health, including "Eating Well for Optimum Health" and "Healthy Aging: A Lifelong Guide to Your Well-Being." In creating the menu for True Food Kitchen, executive chef Michael Stebner incorporated many of Weil’s philosophies, such as combining grains, vegetables and proteins for the entrŽes; using sustainable or wild caught chicken, beef or fish; and using fresh ingredients sourced from nearby farmers when possible.
"All items on the menu will be consistent with the nutritional philosophy that I teach," Weil said, "starting with the principle that food should taste great but should also promote health and healing. We hope the experience of eating a healthy meal at our restaurant will serve as a catalyst to help people learn more about the influence of diet on well-being.”
The menu includes such dishes as sashimi-style tuna in a mixed salad with tofu, avocado, cucumber, tomato, edamame and ginger, $12; rigatoni pasta with natural chicken sausage, roasted peppers, tomato and Romano cheese, $14; brown rice with baked tofu, Chinese broccoli, soy glaze and crispy nori, $11; and robata-style yams and pea shoot salad with aged soy, $22.
The 4,000-square-foot restaurant was designed by Judi Testani of the Testani Design Group in colors of lemon yellow and celery green, combined with both light and darker wood tones throughout. The restaurants seats 130 inside and 90 outside.
True Food Kitchen also participates in the Green Restaurant Association’s recycling program and features recycled stone tabletops, low-voltage LED lighting, bamboo counter tops, reclaimed wood floors, low-use water fixtures and recycled quarry tiles.
Fox Restaurant Concepts, which is based in Scottsdale, Ariz., operates 28 restaurants across 12 restaurant concepts, which also include Olive & Ivy, Wildflower, Blanco and North. The company's restaurants are located in Arizona, Colorado, Kansas and Texas.