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Friday, July 5, 2013

July Survey Response



Hello, and we hope you enjoyed your holiday!

First, thank you all for your survey responses! Your input is a big part of building Bite Me Kitchen and we value your requests and want to make sure that you are always satisfied!

We saw a lot of positive responses, some great constructive ideas, and a handful of questions (answered below). As always, feel free to contact us with ANY questions, concerns or ideas!

What if we changed the schedule?
We asked about rearranging our schedule to Mon-Tues / Weds-Fri meals and 90% of responses were "Sounds good!" or "Either way!" This simple rearrangement means we now have a mini-weekend away from the kitchen that enables us to better follow up on inquiries, organize our wholesale orders, manage billing & paperwork, and develop new ideas & recipes! This is absolutely incredible for us, as we have not had any single days to be off our feet and devote time to the other aspects of the business! We are confident that reorganizing the schedule will allow us to build a better-balanced business and be happier/healthier/saner people!

What does all that mean?

Effective immediately, the week is divided into:
  •  Mon-Tues meals (pickup Sun PM in Costa Mesa / all other locations Monday AM)
  •  Weds-Thurs-Fri meals (pickup Weds PM in Costa Mesa / all other locations Wednesday AM)

Can BMK list the nutrition info on the menu before I place my order?
We spotted this trend right away: you wanted to see the nutrition info prior to ordering via link on the menu! DONE! If you have any questions, please ask us anytime! If you are requesting modified meals (gluten-free, nut-free, etc.) your ingredients may be slightly different from the ingredients listed.

Do you use organic ingredients?
We use organic ingredients whenever possible! All our soy, grains, and the majority of our produce are 100% organic and non-GMO. Occasionally, there are items we cannot source organically via any of our distributors. In these cases, we often pay retail (costing us a small fortune) because we are dedicated to our organic ethic. There is a very short list of ingredients we use that are simply not available organic and those can be found on each meal's ingredient list. Anything organic is always marked with the ยบ symbol. Please keep in mind that the overwhelming majority of restaurants do not make their food with any organic ingredients due to the dramatically increased cost. It’s also important to note that while all organic ingredients are non-GMO, non-organic ingredients are not necessarily GMO.

What is your Tofu / Vegan Cheese / Soy Milk?
We make our soymilk from scratch a few times a week using 100% organic dried soybeans. Nothing else is added to our soymilk! Our vegan ricotta (okara ricotta) is made from a natural by-product of the soymilk making process and is made of organic soybeans, raw cashews, nutritional yeast, and Himalayan pink salt. We do NOT use faux-cheeses (like Daiya) since they are heavily processed, despite being vegan. We do not make our own tofu – sadly, it is far too time consuming – even for us! Instead, we use a trusted brand of organic, non-GMO, sprouted soy tofu made by Wildwood Farms. Some people asked about “processed soy products” and Wildwood simply doesn’t merit that label. It’s made from hot organic soy milk combined with a blend of salts and nigari, strained and pressed into shape. That’s it!

What are Seitan / Tempeh / Cutlets / Sausages?

Seitan is a faux meat product made from vital wheat gluten (the glutinous/gummy part of the wheat berry), seasoning, tomato paste, garlic, nutritional yeast, and broth. It is not suitable for those with gluten intolerance. Contains gluten. Made with organic ingredients. Non-GMO. BMK made.

Tempeh is made from grains and/or legumes physically pressed together and fermented for additional health benefits (fermented or living foods are great for your digestive system!). It is usually gluten-free. Organic. Purchased.

Chickenless Cutlets – a combination of okara (from making soymilk), seasoning, and vital wheat gluten baked into a crispy cutlet. Contains gluten. Made with organic ingredients. Non-GMO. BMK made.

Vegan Sausages – a combination of beans, vital wheat gluten, seasoning, rolled into sausages that are usually sliced or ground. Contains gluten. Made with organic ingredients. Non-GMO. BMK made.


Tell me about freshness / separation of sauces / preservatives!
Preservatives – we don’t use them! This means it’s a good idea to eat your lettuce-y and salad-y things first, and your hardier pastas and baked goods later. Someone mentioned the lettuce from Monday being slightly wilted on Wednesday – there’s unfortunately not a lot we can do about that! We also had a question about the sauces and dressings being separated – this is absolutely true because we use no artificial preservatives, emulsifiers, coagulants, or binders in our sauces, so they may separate! Fear not, for a quick shake of the container or a stir with a fork will blend them back together good as new! If your rice or grains are a little dry – simply sprinkle a little water over them, or cover with a damp paper towel to rehydrate them!

Kale vs. Spinach
We had some people say they prefer spinach to kale and others prefer kale to spinach! We love both! Some meals it’s simply impractical to make in the volume we cook with spinach because spinach loses so much volume when cooked. Kale retains its shape and volume meaning we don’t have to buy 30 pounds to make 80 pcs of lasagna. We hear you loud and clear and when we can swap in spinach (like in the enchiladas and some salads) we will!

What about that delivery fee?
We had already been thinking about changing the delivery fee for our two dropzone locations (SCAR and Rausch) but we need to figure out how to equitably balance the cost of delivery with a fair fee! We’ve waived the fee for July as a summer treat and we’ll let you know when we’ve settled on a reduced rate!

Who cooks the food?

We're glad you asked! WE DO! Both Adam and Rose create all the recipes, write the recipes, make the from scratch ingredients, prepare and pack all the meals. We also handle the graphic design, web design, marketing, advertising, billing, accounting, ordering and delivering! 

When will you have a BMK Restaurant / Shop?
We are keeping our eyes open for a little place of our own in the area! We would love to be able to offer you a daily breakfast you can come in and grab with your to-go goods as well as some of our made-from-scratch market items for your home culinary adventures! As you know, Orange County is outrageously expensive, so finding just the right place without winding up broke is an arduous task! Most people in our position get investors, but we want to keep Bite Me Kitchen’s focus on making real, healthy, fresh food, and that may conflict with an investor’s primary goal of making money. Know of anyone with good real estate contacts? See a place for lease in your area that’s small and equipped with a kitchen? Got ideas? Let us know! We love being community-driven and we want you to be an active part of our business.

We want favorites!
Like something a lot and want to see it more regularly? Let us know! Shoot us a text or an email and demand your favorite meal weekly! Many people requested favorites to be on every weekly menu, but we need your specific input to make that happen for you! :)

Thank you all so much for being a part of our growing business. We are grateful to serve such a diverse and tremendous group of people and we hope to continue serving you delicious and healthy meals for years to come!

Adam & Rose Zalewski
949-981-2695