Nutritionist, cookbook author, restaurant owner, and generally amazing. That’s Joy Pierson, co-owner (with partner Bart Potenza) of the New York’s famous Candle Cafe and Candle 79 restaurants. Chic Vegan was able to steal a few of Joy’s precious moments to ask her a few questions.
Chic Vegan: What motivated you to become vegan? Was it an overnight switch or a more gradual shift?
Joy Pierson: Our process to become vegan was a gradual shift with long-lasting results. We had a vegetarian restaurant at 71st Street and Lexington Avenue in NYC that Bart started in 1984. Then, when we opened Candle Cafe in 1994, we went vegan with the restaurant. As we learned more and more about the treatment of animals there was no looking back. Our customers, friends, team members and suppliers continually vegucated us!
We learned the benefits for all sentient beings and Mother Earth. Also, the food was delicious – better for you and better for the planet!
Personally, I felt great being vegan. I had more energy and my mental clarity improved. I also saw big improvements with my hair, skin and weight.
CV: Tell us a little bit about your new book, Vegan Holiday Cooking from Candle Cafe, and what inspired you to create it.
JP: Vegan Holiday Cooking from Candle Cafe was written to bring families together both in the kitchen and at the table—making holiday cooking fun, festive, and plant-based!
Because we hate turning people away on the holidays and have experienced waitlists of over a hundred people at all our restaurants, we created the book so you can take Candle home for the holidays.
CV: Walk us through a day in your life.
JP: Every day is different yet the mission is always the same – healing the world one bite at a time. Every day I share great vegan food at any of the three restaurants, through our three books, through our frozen food line or as a function of my work with the Coalition for Healthy School Food. Wherever I am and whatever I am doing, I am teaching and sharing the wonders of a plant-based diet. Whether it’s in a classroom, the back of a cab, or table side at Candle Cafe West, it fills my heart with joy.
CV: What is your favorite vegan indulgence?
JP: The Vegan Ice Cream Sundae or Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches, which you’ll find in Vegan Holiday Cooking in the Super Bowl Chapter. Excuse the shameless plug, but I want to do your readers a favor. They will love this dessert! Homemade cookies with homemade ice cream … and vegan … what could be better!!!
CV: When people learn that you are vegan, what is the #1 question they ask and what is your response?
JP: When they hear I’m vegan, they say “Wow, wish I could do that.” And I say, “You can! Come dine with us and let me show you how.”
CV: What vegan product could you not live without?
JP: We have a stocked pantry and love tons of products that we are glad we do not have to live without. But because of Bart’s Italian heritage I am going to say our chef’s famous wheat-balls that are great on top of any pasta, in a sandwich, or just as a side.
CV: In your wildest dreams what will your life look like in 5 years?
JP: In our wildest dreams, schools internationally would all offer plant-based options or be entirely plant-based. Candle Cafe vegan foods would be available everywhere and to everyone. Also, Bart would have a radio show to educate and inspire people on the never-ending possibilities and benefits of the vegan lifestyle.
Feature photo by Gabriela Martinez Benecke
