The Mood Philosophy

From day one, Mood has been committed to being transparent about what we serve. When we opened in 2007, we struggled to categorize ourselves, as many food establishments label themselves as organic or farm to table. Others also market themselves as selling the best ingredients, but this leaves us wondering what that means to our customers. We have always been dedicated to our philosophy regarding where we source ingredients and how we prepare our food, rather than following trends of the day.

In an ideal world, all of our ingredients would be from organic or regenerative farms, but with costs rising, this becomes more and more unattainable. We price our menu as affordably as possible without sacrificing what we believe in, and with the hope that anyone can pursue a healthy lifestyle at Mood. Unfortunately, it’s not always possible to keep costs down. We have promised transparency about our ingredients, so here is a breakdown of what you pay for when you eat at Mood Food and Mood 'Wiches:

SEASONINGS:

We avoid sugar and use fruits, honey or maple syrup whenever possible. In all cases, we use much less sweetener and salt than popular recipes. Exceptions include some of our baked goods, such as scones, muffins, cookies and bars. None of our GF items contain processed sugar. They’re sweetened with honey and we won’t use substitutes such as stevia or swerve because we believe these are overly processed.

We don't over season our dishes, since there’s no need to mask the flavor of our amazing ingredients! The better the source, the more flavor (and nutrients) in the food. We all have a sweet/salty gauge that differs, but we want to bring your gauge down. Lower sugar and salt intake for a multitude of health benefits! Once we reset your taste buds, you won't want to eat overly seasoned meals again.

ORGANICS

We don't always order from USDA organic certified farms, but we do order from small farms that that follow organic farming practices as an alternative, many of which can’t afford to pay for the USDA stamp. We believe that some ingredients are more important than others to be organic or from a regenerative farm.

• Any produce grown underground is organic, such as carrots and beets.
  

• Anything grown at the soil level such as kale, spinach and romaine we do our best to source organic or from regenerative farms.
  

• We feel that bananas or produce with a thick protective skin does not need to be organic.
  

• Most of our breads are organic which means they are made with unbromated flour. Exceptions include gluten free bread, Ezekiel bread and the whole wheat wrap.

PACKAGED INGREDIENTS:

We try to avoid anything packaged that contains preservatives or other fillers. None of our main ingredients are ultra processed.

COOKING METHOD:

We’ve eliminated the use of seed oils at Mood Food and now use olive oil, coconut oil or avocado oil for all of our cooking and dressings. We believe this is better for your health than using seed oils even if they are organic.

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Are you looking for a 100% clean diet?

Here is a detailed guide on anything you may want to steer away from:

ORGANIC PACKAGED GOODS:

Ketchup

Olive oil– contains no additives

Almond butter– contains no additives

Tahini – contains no additives

CONVENTIONAL PACKAGED GOODS:

Dairy Milks, which are hormone/antibiotic free

Half and half, buttermilk, heavy cream are organic

Almond milk - contains no additives or filler or emulsifiers

(when Mood-made almond milk runs out)

Oat milk – contains seed oil and emulsifiers

(still searching for an alternative that works for espresso drinks)

Tobasco

Sriracha

Ketchup in packets

Cream cheese

Mayo

Dijon mustard

Whole grain mustard

Anchovies

Yogurt

Peanut butter

Coconut cream

Juices that are not made in house

Vinegars

Tomato paste

Roasted red peppers

Kalamata olives

Solid white tuna

Mood made items that CONTAIN PROCESSED SUGAR:

Non GF muffins

Chocolate chip cookie

Oatmeal cookie

Chocolate walnut cookie

Scone

Nutty date bar

Coconut bar

Pecan bar

Lemon bar

Apple pie

Balsamic vinaigrette

Lemon Vinaigrette

NATURALLY SWEETENED Mood-made items

Fudgey brownie – maple syrup

Powerhouse cookie – maple syrup

Paleo bread – raw honey

GF Muffins – raw honey

Apple cider vinaigrette – maple syrup

Honey mustard – raw honey