Meghan Winkler
When you eat at Mustard Seed Market & Cafe, the freshness you taste is a product of 40 years’ worth of strict standards — there are no artificial colors, saccharin or harmful chemical preservatives used in foods, and all meats are raised without growth hormones and antibiotics.
“Trans fatty acids are not healthy for you at all,” says Abraham Nabors, the director of education and standards. “Those golden ingredient standards matter to our health.”
Mustard Seed sticks to these guidelines while preparing dishes for its menu of from-scratch stir fry bowls, tacos, sandwiches and more in its upstairs Highland Square cafe.
A fan favorite is the avocado BLT ($15).
“It’s a tried-and-true BLT recipe that America knows and loves, but we add our healthy touch to add healthy fats and avocado to it,” Abraham says.
“The reason why people love it so much is that we use quality ingredients,” adds CEO Gabe Nabors.
Try This: Chocolate MyGlow Collagen Smoothie Recipe
Choose between nitrate- and nitrite-free bacon, turkey bacon and coconut bacon, which is made with marinated dried coconut flakes that are “smoky, sweet, savory and salty,” Abraham says. It comes with crisp lettuce, a juicy tomato slice, bread-and-butter pickles, mayo and soft avocado on griddled handmade sourdough. Cool off with a Berry Delicious smoothie ($6), which includes blueberries sourced from Mustard Seed’s Blueberry Hill Family Farms in Glenmont, Ohio.
The protein-packed purple-hued black bean, beet and walnut burger ($13) catches eyes. Beans, beets, walnuts and brown rice combine to create a thick veggie patty that’s crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. It’s served on a whole-wheat vegan bun and topped with butter lettuce, bread-and-butter pickles, roasted red pepper aioli and garlicky greens, which combine garlic, Earth Balance butter and a blend of broccoli, snow peas, kale and Swiss chard.
“It’s a very nutrient-dense garlicky green saute,” Abraham says, “that makes it packed full of vitamins and minerals.”
Dine out on the patio with a passion fruit margarita ($12), made with 100 percent passion fruit puree, a house-made sour mix and tequila. “It’s really clean, flavorful and smooth,” he says.
No matter what you order, you can enjoy the taste of high-quality freshness.
“We’re really proud of our sourcing and of the quality of what we’re able to use,” Abraham says. “They can get food that makes the brain and tummy happy.”
867 W. Market St., Akron, mustardseedmarket.com
+3 Vegetarian Places
Bam Healthy Cuisine, 2185 E. Maple St., North Canton, bamhealthycuisine.com
Good Roots, 2027 S. Main St., Akron, goodrootsohio.com
Soulful Vegan, 1720 Merriman Road, Suite M, Akron, thesoulfulvegans.com
