Dandelion Communitea Cafe - Urban Teahouse | Eco-attitude

Food Matters

Tue, 13 May 2008 16:17:06 -0500

Sick and tired of the confusion surrounding food?

Want to feel good and prevent or reverse illness & disease? WELCOME TO FOOD MATTERS

Food Matters is a documentary film informing you on the best choices you can make for you and your family's health. Helping you save time, money and effort.In this day and age with so many companies interested in profiting from your misfortune and ill health this film will help keep your money in your pocket and your health in your hands.

We all know someone with Cancer, Heart Disease, Stroke, Diabetes, Obesity, Mental Illness, Depression, Asthma, Arthritis, Osteoporosis, Chronic Fatigue, Allergies and on and on...Knowing what to do and where to turn has become unbelievably complex.

Join the World's Leading Authorities on Nutrition and Natural Healing as they uncover the true cause of disease. Find out what really works, what doesn’t and what’s killing you. Becoming informed about the choices you have for your health and wellbeing can save your life.

A "Local First" Campaign in OurLando?

Tue, 13 May 2008 16:17:23 -0500

At Dandelion, we are passionate about community & are dedicated to helping this city & it's citizens live, work & play in a progressive town. We would like to send a delegation from OurLando to represent our blossoming community at the BALLE "Grow Deep" Conference & are looking to the community to help raise money for airfare & lodging. Please consider making a donation to our travel fund so we can learn what it takes to start & maintain a vibrant "Local First" campaign in OurLando in support of independent business, arts, culture & active citizens.

We need to raise $5,000 for airfare, conference fees, meals, hotel and materials needed to jump-start a program in OurLando. Won't you pitch in? Consider donating $25, $50 or $100. Click on the Donate Button Now!

Eco Enterprise....We Made the Cover!

Wed, 07 May 2008 17:48:20 -0500

Oh, my. You know something is afoot when the Orlando Chamber puts an eco-preneur on the cover of it's monthly publication. Julie was proud to stand tall in front of Dandelion and spread the eco-word on running an authentic green business. Check the article out here on page 18.

Also in the news recently was Tia Meer of the Simple Living Institute. Check out that article here on page 13.

Earth Day 2008 Photos & News Coverage

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 10:12:01 -0500

What a fantastic celebration we had! It was so amazing to have all of our neighbors band together to celebrate mama earth - many thanks to event organizers Emily Ruff & Mike Tiner from the Florida School of Holistic Living for their tireless efforts to bring this celebration to OurLando!

Why we need to REDUCE the use of plastic...

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:30:54 -0500

Apparently, plastic we use ends up in the ocean. Lots of it. A friend of a friend of a friend put together this 12 part documentary. Here's Episode 1 of 12. For More, Go here.

New Study: Organic veggies have more nutrients

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 14:22:21 -0500

A review of nearly 100 scientific studies has concluded that, on average, organic fruits and vegetables have more vitamins, minerals, and beneficial antioxidants than their conventionally grown counterparts. In the new report, scientists from The Organic Center (a nonprofit that promotes organic farming), examined carefully matched measurements of selected nutrients in specific organic and conventionally grown foods. The scientists found that the organic produce had higher levels of tested nutrients in 61 percent of the cases. Furthermore, the organic foods tended to have higher levels of antioxidants and polyphenols, nutrients that are often in short supply in U.S. diets. By contrast, conventional produce had higher levels of potassium, phosphorus, and total protein, which most people already have in their diets in sufficient amounts. The Organic Center will update its findings online as new studies comparing organic and conventional foods are published. Read the report.

A Summerbird in Your Salad

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 17:04:51 -0600

In case ya'll haven't noticed, I LOVE local music, in particular, the local music found right here in OurLando. Half of the Dandelion Tribe is involved in one band or another, which makes for some interesting sing-along's in the kitchen, for sure. While I could go on and on about each and every single one of our rock stars, I'll highlight one in particular that has been getting a lot of attention.

Curtis Brown (the sweet one in the center, with bandmates brad & tyson)of Summerbirds in the Cellar has been making your wraps for the better part of the past year and will soon be opening for REM at SXSW, which is the Sundance of music festivals. Incidentally, Curtis is also the inspiration for my favorite breakfast menu item: the Curty Pie - a bagel sandwich with apples, cream cheese, cranberries & brown sugar!

Check out this music video & look for their album on sale at Dandelion.

The Story of Stuff

Mon, 17 Dec 2007 20:35:10 -0600

Just in time for the holiday shopping season, comes a short that will inspire you immediately to disregard everything I wished for in my previous post (except the part about the gift certificates!). The Story of Stuff takes you on a provocative tour of our consumer-driven culture, from resource extraction to iPod incineration. Watch this 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of production, consumption, and waste. It’ll teach you something. It’ll make you laugh. And it just may change the way you look at all your stuff.
Learn more at www.storyofstuff.com

A Local Folkus: Central Florida Food

Mon, 10 Dec 2007 20:23:52 -0600

WOW!!!! Check out this amazing video which covers the local food movement here in Central Florida. This video clip showcases Dandelion (that's us!), Florida School of Holistic Living, their Co-op, VegFest, the Simple Living Institute, Slow Food, Harmoni Market and Sweetwater CSA & features music by Tony Macaluso.

Be sure to leave John a comment with your thoughts since I know how much hard work went into the production of this video. And then, do as I did: weep in joy that someone has captured all the passion this community has within it and manifest local food prosperity right here in OurLando!

Sparkle Artisan Market Photo's

Sun, 02 Dec 2007 18:01:59 -0600

We had a ridiculously fun time at Sparkle & here's some photos to prove it!

Foodie Awards: Best Vegetarian by Readers & Critic

Sun, 02 Dec 2007 13:22:20 -0600

The people have spoken! The Orlando Sentinel Foodie Awards just came out and we are totally jazzed that we were voted Best Vegetarian by it's readers as well as the critic, Scott Joseph. Here's what he had to say:

It would have been easy to go back to Woodlands or Udipi, both vegetarian restaurants, but I'm happy to join you in recognizing this little startup that puts an emphasis on the Communitea. The selections, which include some vegan entrees, are limited, but owner Julie Norris, a charter member of Orlando's nascent slow-food movement, places importance on buying from local purveyors. Some* of it is organic, but in the "funky, relaxed atmosphere" you probably won't notice**.

*"some" really should say "almost everything" as over 95% of our ingredients are organic.

**actually, we hope you DO notice our food is organic, since the pure flavor burst of organic food is why we consistently win best vegetarian in the Weekly, the Sentinel & recently, best FOOD (not just veggy) at Taste of Thornton Park.

If you feel like it, share your thoughts with Mr Joseph on why you like your food without toxic chemicals. He can be reached at sjoseph@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5514

It's easy being green...TOO easy in this town

Mon, 05 Nov 2007 12:03:15 -0600

This past week, we were featured in the Orlando Weekly article about the City's "Green Business" program. The weak criteria for getting certified are what the eco-savvy call greenwashing. Read the article & my letter to the mayor about some ways he can be a better buddy to our planet.

Winners at Taste of Thornton Park!

Sun, 28 Oct 2007 09:56:39 -0500

Holy Tomatoes! We won 2nd place for Best Food at the Taste of Thornton Park last week. That's right folks, Dexter's took 1st, but we are honored that our food was recognized as we were in some very fancy company with Midnight Blue, HUE, The Beacon, City Fish and a bunch of other GREAT local restaurants in competition! Huge thanks to Sandra Diaz, vegan menu creatress extraordinaire and the flexitarian judges who were smitten with our organic, homemade food! Shucks, we didn't even bring any chili with us! Ha ha ha ha ha...next year we'll take 'em by surprise with our secret weapon!

Put the Sun in the Sunshine State

Wed, 24 Oct 2007 18:27:58 -0500

I've been meaning to post something about solar power forever, and finally the opportunity to bring it up has arrived! With so much at stake from global warming, & being the "Sunshine" State, Florida has got to take the lead in eliminating greenhouse gas pollution. The Florida Solar Roofs Initiative is the way to do it. It will:

Generate enough zero-pollution solar energy to cut out more than 20 coal-fired power plants—the single biggest source of global-warming pollution.
Use solar panels ("photovoltaics") and solar water heating ("solar thermal") each for at least 2% of the state's energy, by 2020.
Save you money, by letting you run your electricity meter backwards ("net metering") when you install solar power on your roof.
Help offset the cost of installing solar panels on the roof of every house and business that wants them. (Wouldn't it be GREAT to see solar panels on the cafe??)
Cap the cost of the program at less than 1% of current utility rates. Almost 80% of Floridians are willing to pay this much, according to a recent poll.

The coal industry is launching a major campaign to kill any real move to renewable energy. (The same bad boys that practice Mountaintop Removal!) If you want a sane, clean energy future, you might want to learn more and

Need a little kick in the pants to get your green on? We all do, and The 11th Hour documentary may be just the thing to do it for you! Our environmental crisis is caused by human actions and our impact on the planet & when I watched a screening of this several weeks back, I knew I had to encourage ya'll to go see it. When we were opening the cafe, one of the main motivational films we watched was Suzuki Speaks - David Suzuki is featured in The 11th Hour along with scientists and environmental advocates such as David Orr and Paul Hawken who paint a portrait for a radically new and exciting future in which humanity seeks not to dominate the earth's life systems, but to mimic them and coexist. The 11th Hour calls for a future now within our grasp that is both sustainable and healthier. Do mama earth and yourself a favor and GO SEE THIS FILM!!