Healthy Chain Expands Its Brand Of "Lifestyle Eateries"

© Organic Krush
Rockville Centre, NY—Organic Krush, a growing Long Island healthy eatery chain, opened its fifth location in Rockville Centre earlier this month. The restaurant is billed as "a lifestyle eatery" and serves organic "food and juice free of GMOs, pesticides, hormones, and fake ingredients." The Rockville Centre location, at 27 N. Park Avenue, joins locations in Woodbury, Amagansett, Plainview and Roslyn.
The cafe and eatery serves cold-pressed juices, smoothies, breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and açaí bowls. Owners Michelle Walrath and Fran Paniccia met when they were raising their children and bonded over their love of food and healthy living, says Walrath. Paniccia is a Bayville native, while Walrath was born and raised in West Hempstead.
She tells Patch why the partners chose Rockville Centre for their newest Organic Krush location.
"Rockville Centre has always had a great, happening vibe. Growing up in West Hempstead, this was our main hangout spot—I went to Sacred Heart with a lot of amazing RVC girls. The grand opening has been going great. Our guests are so enthusiastic and supportive, and seem to be happy that we are all organic, and have lots of gluten-free and paleo and vegan options."
Reflecting on her company's rapid growth, Walrath says she thinks Long Islanders are welcoming an easy way to complement their healthy routines by accessing food that fits their healthy living goals while out and about.
"We all work and move at a pretty fast pace, and have realized that in order to be truly healthy, it's important to eat food that fuels, that energizes, that makes you feel great. I know Fran and I are attached to feeding our kids food that is free of hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, GMO's, food dyes, etc. If you can't get that type of food when you are out and about running errands, going to gyms, then it becomes too easy to fail on healthy living."
Some customers stop by twice a day she said to make sure they stay on track with their diet goals.
The Organic Krush company mission might expand, Walrath says, to community stores, college campuses, airports and cookbooks but for now the two female entrepreneurs (and both mothers of four children) are focusing on increasing what she sees as necessary education and accessibility of healthy food.
"If people know what they are putting in their bodies they will have a much easier time gaining life-long health."

Organic Krush offers daily specials, breakfast all day, construct your own bowls, salads and wraps and to-go dinners