“CLEAN” Your Plate

PHOTOS: Fred Lopez

Greens and Grains in Clermont serves up wholesome, organic food.

Gluten-free. Vegan. Vegetarian. Organic.

Not many dining venues in Lake County are sympathetic to these eating concepts.

But diners who like to explore alternative food styles will feel right at home inside a beautifully remodeled 1930s house on West Avenue in Clermont.

Since opening Greens and Grains Organic Café in January, longtime restaurateur Pietro Priola has created the perfect place for those looking for a fresh, fulfilling meal.

That’s evidenced from the regulars who show up weekly, as well as the steady stream of traffic derived from word-of-mouth.

“We’ve enjoyed an amazing response during the few months the restaurant has been open,” Pietro says. “People are very thankful we’re offering a healthy alternative to what is normally served at chain restaurants. We also try to buy as much fresh food as we can from local farmers.”

Greens and Grains Organic Café is open seven days a week and serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Some of the more intriguing menu options include open-face avocado toast, a garden veggie bagel, a portobello mushroom sandwich, a grass-fed Angus burger, and a spinach BLT. There are also several vegan options—including a meatless Philly cheesesteak and quinoa salad—as well as an extensive selection of salads, specialty sandwiches, and entrees. Pietro’s ever-popular creation, the Green Goddess smoothie, can serve as a replacement for lunch or as a decadent dessert and gives diners a way to sneak a few extra nutrients into their meal. It comes with a unique blend of spinach, avocados, cucumbers, bananas, apples, coconut water, and pure honey.

When it comes to discussing food, there’s an eternal boyish enthusiasm about Pietro, especially when he talks about his rich twist on traditional pesto sauce.

“I make my pesto sauce with roasted black walnuts and I do not use cheese. It’s fresh and delicious and tastes good on just about everything.”

Dabbling in organic food represents an about-face for Pietro, a native of Sicily who immigrated to New York City with his family in 1969. He made his first pizza at the tender age of 10 after his family opened a pizzeria in New Jersey. Cooking was in his blood, and he later owned and operated several Italian-style and Mediterranean-style restaurants in Maryland.

However, a battle with thyroid cancer in 2012 forced him to drastically change his eating habits.

“I began doing wheatgrass shots and drinking lots of smoothies,” he says. “Eating healthy helped me feel much better.”

It also prompted him to open his first Greens and Grains restaurant in Hagerstown, Maryland. Although the restaurant was a hit among locals, Pietro soon found himself love-struck when he met his future wife, Laura, on an online dating site. Laura, a schoolteacher of 27 years, was living in Clermont at the time.

Instead of forcing Laura to move to a colder climate, Pietro decided to relocate himself and his restaurant to Clermont. He has no regrets.

“I really like the small-town atmosphere,” he says. “The people here have welcomed us with open arms, and we’ve already established a clientele who has been extremely loyal and comes back.”

Prior to opening the restaurant, the couple spent countless hours painting, decorating, and remodeling the quaint, small house. The interior, which is both homey and rustic, features several small dining rooms, as well as a coffee/smoothie bar. The walls are adorned with the Priola’s interesting collection of decorative rooster pictures and artifacts.

“We’ve made beelines off I-95 so we can check out flea markets and see if they have anything related to roosters,” Laura says. “To us, the roosters symbolize the freshness of our food.”

Patio seating is available for patrons who enjoy soaking up the sun.

Greens and Grains is located at 658 West Ave. in Clermont. For more information, call 352.242.9463.