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Nook, a 'Paleo-influenced diner,' will serve vibrant high-protein, low carb food
The minute you start that Whole 30 or Paleo diet plan, you can pretty much stop going out to eat. Few restaurants cater to dietary restrictions, but that changes in February when Downtown Indy’s former Mo’s steakhouse becomes a Paleo diner.
Forget same-same high-protein, low-carb grub like plain grilled steak alongside steamed asparagus and a baked sweet potato. The menu at Nook, a “Paleo-influenced diner,” might serve almond flour tortillas around enchiladas served in spice-spiked coconut milk sauce.
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Tapioca flour may coat fried shrimp. Sheets of steamed squash layered with rich eggplant could replace noodles and cheese in lasagna. Wheat-free pizza is in the works, too.
“You’ll be like, ‘Holy cow, that was great.’ Or ‘Holy cow, that was not processed and it’s amazing,” Nook owner Johnny Vassallo said.
Grass-fed beef from Kentucky, organic daikon radish and collagen-peptide-enriched coffee are among the local and organic food and drinks Vassallo plans on a menu divided into sections with headings such as Whole 30, Paleo and Keto diets. Nook has the potential to end up a go-to for people who suffer food allergies or other dietary restrictions, Vassallo said.
Nook, scheduled to open Feb. 6, will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner, 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. in a farmhouse diner setting furnished with booths, butcher block tables, subway tiles and shades of green, gray and white. Dishes will mostly range from $15 to $25.
While Nook will be geared toward special diets, Vassallo said anyone could find something to eat there. Beer, wine and cocktails will be available. “We’re not going to get so deep into this that we’re going to keep some people away,” Vassallo said.
“We’ll have some things that will be on the edge (of Paleo), and we’ll have some things that will be non-Paleo.”
Over time, Vassallo said he hopes Nook will help diners chronicle how eating certain foods makes them feel, thereby empowering them to change their overall well-being. He’ll also track demand to develop packaged meals to-go. If the restaurant is a hit, Vassallo will consider duplicating the concept elsewhere.
“The proof is in the pudding. Everyone likes to talk about healthy food. We’ll see if people come, but it’s been a lot more pull than push, I can tell you that,” he said. “The conversations and the reception I've had, I’ve never had in my entire life of my restaurant business before. Never, not once.”
Vassallo this past fall shuttered his Mo’s A Place for Steaks, 15 E. Maryland St., in operation at that address since 2014 and previously at 47 S. Pennsylvania St. starting in 2003. Both were part of his Milwaukee-based Mo’s Restaurants group.
So many upscale steakhouses in a half-mile square of Downtown Indianapolis – 12 currently and two more due in 2018 – were a small part of why Vassallo decided to switch gears. The bigger influences were one of his employee's dietary restrictions and his own health.
A thyroid issue limited what Vassallo’s employee could eat, making dining out on business trips difficult. At a recent dinner in Louisville, ordering took 12 minutes and a conference with the chef to figure out what she could eat, Vassallo said. She had no problem at a Paleo restaurant in Texas. Meantime, Vassallo himself had been dealing with some food sensitivities.
When he told people those stories, many of them shared their own needs, desires and mandates to change how they ate.
“I think that we’re on to something," Vassallo said, "and the more people I tell, the more food stories I’m getting.”
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