We’ve Got To Get Ourselves Back To The Garden
By Erin Vanderberg
Aleece Raw started her journey toward The Garden three years ago. Before her sister Shelly was diagnosed with stage III ovarian cancer, Aleece, an internet marketer, ate whatever was easy – namely, food from a box – and never thought twice about it. After Shelly was diagnosed, Aleece realized that she was the only woman in three generations of her family to be cancer-free, and she started researching what she could do immediately to decrease her risks.
Now Aleece, three years a vegan, a graduate from Bauman College’s Natural Chef program and a former intern at Kate’s on 35th, and her family are poised to open The Garden this month for weekend brunch service.
The Garden’s menu, vegetable-based as it is, will reflect what’s fresh and locally available. These days, it features items like pureed sweet potato soup and spinach, navy bean salad.
Currently, Aleece and her nephew Jake Courington, Shelly’s son, are the only full-time employees at the restaurant. But they have a lot of help. Aleece’s sister Debbi Stephens, a five-year breast cancer survivor, is The Garden’s COO. Their mother Carol Carleton, a Hodgkin’s lymphoma survivor, is the CFO. Owen, Aleece’s step-dad, and Brad, Debbi’s husband, share the title of Mr. Fixit.
On her family coming together to create this restaurant, Aleece says: “Through the worse tragedies that happen, you find the best. There are two ways to respond: we chose to be grateful for life.”
While the restaurant has a variety of dairy- and gluten-free items, it was the family patriarch, Owen, who insisted The Garden have meat and dairy on the menu.
But since Aleece has become a vegan, some pretty phenomenal things have happened to her health: she has remained cancer-free, she dropped 20 pounds and 4 dress sizes, she cannot remember the last time she was sick and she has boundless energy. Ironically, Aleece used to hate her last name, Raw (you can imagine the jokes in school). But now it’s the perfect name for a vegan restaurateur.
“I can’t say I’m an expert,” says Raw, “but I’m happy to be in the circles learning about and sharing wholesome and delicious food.”
The Garden, at 3435 Albion St., opens February 4th weekends for an 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. brunch service. Reservations are encouraged, 303-321-5231. For more information, visit thegarden-parkhill.com.