Just in time to help West Chester locals with resolutions to eat better in the new year, The Couch Tomato Café will open its second location on W. Gay Street around the start of 2015. With a successful location in Manayunk, Couch Tomato is bringing its super-healthy menu choices to the downtown area, with the ultimate goal of taking its menu more organic. Couch Tomato co-owner Craig Mosmen was good enough to give Dish the inside scoop about what we can expect from the new eatery, and our tummies are rumbling.
PA Eats: The new Couch Tomato Café on W. Gay Street looks gorgeous from the outside! What’s going on inside as your opening day draws nearer?
Craig Mosmen: We’ve just finished many of the interior finishes, like our wood-fired brick oven, a tomato mural and the installation of our custom 35’ red couch. Now, we’re just working through the final health and building inspections; after that we’ll work on staff hiring/training and then start dishing up some tasty salads and pumping pizzas out of the new brick oven! The grand opening will follow a soft opening and is currently aiming for mid- to late January, when everyone will receive a FREE gourmet slice (limit one per person throughout the day of the grand opening).
When did you introduce organic ingredients at your Manayunk location? What types of challenges, if any, do you anticipate in doing the same thing at the new West Chester location?
In the restaurant industry, it is very expensive and difficult to source organic ingredients. The low supply and demand make the cost of organic goods significantly high, which is why many restaurateurs avoid going organic in the food industry. But, we’re eating many of those premium costs to bring our customers a healthier product. We, as owners, try to regularly eat organic in our personal lives and therefore felt it was important to begin that evolution within our business as well.
We believe in this change and plan to continue adjusting our business model to become more organic as our suppliers offer more organic options and organic goods are more accessible. We are committed to offering a healthy product!
So far we have upgraded our award-winning pizza crust by making it organic, and we no longer use the standard canned tomatoes (that you find in practically all pizzas in the restaurant industry) in our sauce. We roast thousands of pounds of fresh tomatoes per month to keep up with the demand for our signature red pizza sauce. We also source locally our lettuces and many organic salad and pizza toppings (when available).
Last, our meats are antibiotic-free and grass-fed/free range. We are conscious of not only trending toward being more organic and healthy, but also plan to become more non-GMO when possible.
The Couch Tomato caters to a huge array of eaters, including vegetarians, those eating gluten-free and, now, diners passionate about organic food. What about downtown West Chester and the people tell you that the area is ripe for those offerings?
We feel that people are becoming more and more educated on food in many areas, and the world of foodies also seems to grow by the minute. West Chester is littered with restaurants and eateries that are constantly filled with health-conscious consumers.
As our opening nears, many people passing by are popping their heads in to our location asking questions out of excitement, and stating that they can’t wait for our “healthy food!” This, along with the typical feedback we regularly hear at our other branch in Manayunk, shows us that West Chester is also ready for our healthy concept.
What are a couple of The Couch Tomato’s menu items that you either love to eat the most or are most excited about offering to customers?
We opened our first branch of The Couch Tomato Café roughly 12 years ago, and every day I am there, I eat pizza. My business partner and I joke about how crazy it is that we haven’t gotten sick of pizza yet. My go-to slice would be our hot & honey chicken pizza made with a house ancho chili-honey sauce. That’s today, but tomorrow I would probably give you another answer. Our customer-favorite salads are the Holy Chipotle and Food Pyramid salads. We also have a soup chef that is constantly churning out different homemade soups each day. Our homemade soups and specialty sandwiches have also helped shape the success of our business.
Is there anything else you would like downtown West Chester to know about its newest hot spot to eat, ahead of opening day?
First, we are very proud of and excited about our house-made gluten-free dough (pictured above). Our gluten-free pizza crust and sandwich pita have been huge hits among the gluten-free community, and many have proclaimed to us that we have the best gluten-free pizza in Philadelphia. We hope that West Chester feels the same way.
Second, catering is a huge aspect of our business. We cater office and house parties, with a simple and affordable drop-and-go style of catering. We cater roughly two dozen orders per day, and our catering department takes pride in its accuracy and professionalism.
Third, we will be offering not only plenty of room to dine in, but you may also order takeout AND delivery! And, once the weather turns around this spring we will be opening up our roof deck seating area for lunch and dinner.
Look for The Couch Tomato Café to open early next year at 31 W. Gay St. in West Chester.
- Photo of owners: Nina Lea Photography
- Interior, Exterior Photos of West Chester Space: Couch Tomato
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