Get Into the Habit of Things
by Eleanor Harte
Those looking for a bite to eat for lunch that is nutritious and energizing need look no further than Isola’s Healthy Habit. Located next to the bus stop on Church Street in Edgartown, Healthy Habit serves local raw and whole foods to go. The driving mission behind the restaurant is that the food we put into our bodies has a big impact on our well-being, so we should be feeding ourselves with healthy food.
Gabrielle Sullo started the restaurant last summer because she wanted a restaurant that served “good for you stuff.”
“I have a love for nutrition and health and wellness,” said Sullo, “and I felt like a place like this wasn’t really available on the island.” She developed the menu, which features made to order, fresh ingredients, made up of food she likes to eat.
The menu features salads, wraps, toasted sandwiches, organic coffee, and specialized desserts. The desserts include raw vegan energy balls, called “amaze-balls”, and vegan “cheesecake” squares. It’s a small menu, but a comprehensive one. Sullo’s favorite dish is the Thai Zoodles, spiralized zucchini noodles with vegetables in a homemade peaNOT sauce, which is safe for those allergic to peanuts. “I grew up in a family of really good cooks and I absolutely love Italian food. Both of my parents are great cooks and that got me into cooking.”
The most popular item on the menu is the Chicken Alley, a grilled chicken and avocado wrap that’s topped with red cabbage, pickled shallots, mixed greens, and homemade raw ginger dressing. There’s also a BLT with coconut vegan bacon offered on toasted multigrain bread. It is combinations like this that set Healthy Habit apart from similar restaurants; Sullo seeks to serve nutritious food, but she doesn’t skimp on quality or taste in doing so.
Having opened in July 2014, Healthy Habit is still young. But it has come a long way, and Sullo is refining the menu daily. She’s gotten help from her brothers and her dad, who run the attached restaurant Isola, and though they were initially hesitant about the vegan food, they’ve come around. It helps that locals are loving the food, which is important to Sullo. She creates the recipes for the “cheescake” squares, which are entirely vegan and whose combinations include mint chocolate, kiwi raspberry, mocha swirl and more. “I play around in the kitchen and make it up.”
In closing, Sullo said, “I don’t want to be a chef, I just want to nourish people and feed them well.”
