“Going green.”
It’s the new catchphrase thrown around by people these days to symbolize their newfound care for the environment.
For Brandon Borene, going green is a lifestyle choice that means more than just recycling old plastic bottles. He is taking it a step further by bringing his vision of the future of restaurant industries to San Luis Obispo.
Borene and his wife Susan will open Pizza Fusion, an enviornmentally-friendly eatery, next to Trader Joe’s on Higuera Sreet. The upscale pizza place may be a little different than what you might expect from a typical pizzeria.
“When I discovered (the Pizza Fusion franchise) I just knew it was a perfect fit because it fit our healthy lifestyle, it fit what we’re about as people, and I also knew it was a perfect fit for the community of San Luis Obispo,” Borene said.
After having twins in 2004 the Borene’s discovered organic food during their search to live a healthier lifestyle for their young family.
But after a while the menu began to wear thin.
“One of the complaints we had about organic eating is that there is a lack of options for outside of home eating,” Borene said.
So Borene is attempting to turn Pizza Fusion into the first organic-certified restaurant in San Luis Obispo County when its doors officially open for business in mid-November.
“Organic food is a green practice in itself, Cal Poly knows this,” Borene said, citing the Cal Poly Organic Farm. “A lot of people know that organic food is healthy for your body, but a lot of people don’t relate the fact that it actually goes back to the earth. It’s keeping the chemicals not just out of your body, but out of the earth.”
Not only will the food be organic, but Pizza Fusion will also be built to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification standards, though Borene stressed that the building will not actually be certified due to budget constraints. However, it will contain every detail in conjunction with certification standards.
Everything inside the building will be made from recycled material. Countertops will be made of recycled amber-colored beer bottles, the paint on the wall will be zero-VOC paint and the stain on the floor will be a soy-based stain.
Rubberized coating in the kitchen will be made of recycled tires while wall insulation will be made of recycled denim from blue jeans.
Dual-flush toilets and a low-heat dishwasher will be used in an effort to conserve water. All cabinetry will be made from wood which has zero added formaldehyde and environmentally-safe glues in the plywood.
All of those things are required by LEED certification standards, but Borene is going beyond those requirements.
“We use chemical free cleaners in the restaurant, an environmentally-friendly practice, but it doesn’t have anything to do with the LEED certification standards, it has to do with who we are as a company,” Borene said.
Employees will also wear organic cotton uniforms and all delivery orders will be delivered from one of the company’s two Toyota Prius hybrid vehicles.
While this may satiate the appetite of environmentally conscious eaters, customers concerned more about about the flavor of the food than the recycled countertops they will eat on won’t be disappointed, Borene says.
All the pizza toppings will be organic, including meat and there will be many specialty pies to choose from along with the traditional option of building a pizza.
Pizza Fusion will also offer salad and sandwichs along with an organic beer and wine bar and organic sodas.
The restaurant will be full service inside, Borene said.
Salads will be served on chilled plates and gluten-free brownies served on a warm plate drizzled in chocolate sauce for dessert will be offered.
Borene plans to give back to the community by hosting a free children’s program every three weeks. They will learn about “organics and giving back to the earth” and be able to make their own free pizza.
With no comparable pizzerias in town, Borene is excited to see his dream of organic food come to fruition in San Luis Obispo.
“There’s nobody that’s offering a concept such as this,” Borene said. “And if there were, I wouldn’t be doing it.”
Business senior Chris King thinks the idea will suceeded though he acknowledged that the idea is new to San Luis Obispo and in a market flooded with other pizza options, it will have to carve out its own niche.
“It’s ahead of its time anyway. I would be shocked if it didn’t succeed in some way. (but) They can’t just go with the organic kick because eventually that luster is going to wear off.”