63: Tender Greens Founds Erik Oberholtzer On Regenerative Agriculture, Food As Community, & How To Crave Plants

Summary: Erik Oberholtzer is a renowned professional chef who spent 10 years in some of the best fine dining kitchens in California. After getting his start at Chez Panisse, he cooked everywhere from Lark Creek Inn to Left Bank to Shutters on the Beach. Inspired by his relationships with local farmers and his access to fresh ingredients, he became passionate about finding a way to bring farm-to-fork to the masses. In 2006, he opened Tender Greens, a slow-foods-meets-fast-food restaurant in Culver City with an emphasis on affordable chef-created dishes. It has since grown to 28 locations spanning across both coasts and is backed by hospitality giant Danny Meyer. In this week’s episode, Erik and I discuss how he cultivates culture at Tender Greens, America’s shifting relationship with food, and why it’s an exciting time to be in the food space. We also talk about the "forgotten foods" you might be seeing on the Tender Greens menu soon, his commitment to regenerative agriculture, the collision of technology and food, and the power of partnership in growing a business. Go to TryOmax.com/mindbodygreen to get a box of Omax3 Ultra-Pure, for FREE! Omax3 comes with a 60-day money-back guarantee, so you have plenty of time to try it and really feel the Omax difference! Hungryroot delivers weekly boxes of healthy convenience foods that customers can use to make a variety of inspiring and delicious dishes. All our food is plant-based and gluten-free, and comes either ready to eat or ready in less than 15 minutes. Use code mbg to get $25 off your first two deliveries with a total savings of $50. To contact Jason with comments, questions, or speaker ideas, please e-mail podcast@mindbodygreen.com. For all sponsorship inquiries, please e-mail sales@mindbodygreen.com. To join our podcast email newsletter, please visit http://bit.ly/mbgpodemail.