26/04/2023
When we opened the Real Coconut on Tulum beach in 2015, the vision was to create a restaurant focused on clean eating, championing ingredients (such as coconut, cassava/yuca, and plantain) which were low impact, and able to support the nurturing of our world. At the time, I also chose to curate recipes and a menu free from gluten, grain, dairy, soy, and many other ingredients, which challenged me and my team to really explore what we could achieve with a limited range of options. The other core focus was to never compromise on quality, with the choice to cook with only high quality oils, such as coconut, avocado, and extra virgin olive, our impeccable consideration in the the producers of our animal proteins, and to consider the impact of all our choices.
It was not an easy task by any means, at any stage of the process, yet the concept was so well received that we continued to explore and even stretched to open our doors into the US (which sadly did not succeed through COVID and increasing pressures within the US). So many people came to us to express their love for our food, and that they could feel good about the care we put into everything related to the brand.
As our world continues to shift and transform, and as the awareness that things cannot always remain the same…what worked in a particular time or moment, does not always translate into where we are now, the concept of Real Coconut is ready to expand beyond its own boundaries, into what I am calling Sanará Kitchen.
The Real Coconut was birthed within our boutique wellness hotel Sanará Tulum and there has always been a natural symbiosis between the two brands. Sanará means, ‘it will heal’ and the overarching concept of a divine inevitability that all will be good, and all will play out as it is meant to. Charlie and I have continued to explore the energy of Sanará, and see it as a way of Being, ‘embodying reverence and authentic care as we explore the path toward ultimate healing’.