Finding a restaurant that serves tasty, healthy, wholesome food in the Republic of Boulder is fairly easy. Finding it at a reasonable price, however, can be a challenge. Being very active and healthy, Anthony Pigliacampo and Rob McColgan felt this same frustration, and wished there was a place they could eat healthy food everyday at affordable prices. Rather than wait for such a place to pop into existence, they took up the challenge of opening up their own restaurant, and created Modmarket.
McColgan stated that they wanted to make the food as organic, local, sustainable, healthy, and affordable as possible. To make sure their ingredients are fresh, Modmarket has close ties to local farmers, and even has a booth at Boulder Farmers’ Market. Unlike many of the food vendors at Boulders Farmers’ Market, Modmarket actually buys ingredients from the farmers at the market to make their dishes.
At Modmarket, the salad is no longer relegated to be a side dish to a main meal. At Modmarket, the salad is the main meal. Pigliacampo’s favorite salad happens to be the Mongolian made with mixed greens, red cabbage, soy nuts, green onions, edamame, crispy wontons, and topped with a spicy orange mint dressing, which they make themselves. The salad is crisp, fresh, spicy, tangy, sweet, nutty, and huge. In fact, all their salads are huge. Even their small version is probably enough to feed two people. Pigliacampo likes to add Trip Tip Steak to his salad. If one of the predesigned salads doesn’t appeal to you, you can also have the chefs build your own salad.
The other dish that Modmarket is known for would be its flatbread pizzas made from 8 whole grains rather than white flour. People may not realize that many chain pizzerias actually use frozen dough, which can either taste bland, or too greasy depending on how it’s baked. Some flatbread pizzerias use white flour, which can sometimes taste like bland crackers, which is probably why most people don’t bother eating the crust.
In Modmarket’s case, its healthy dough enhances the flavor of all the ingredients. Take for example their Garden Pizza made with red peppers, broccoli, fresh mozzarella, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Because the dough is so flavorful, it enhances with the sweetness of the chunky tomato sauce, and red peppers. You can actually taste the freshness of the mozzarella and the grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. The best part is, all of their gourmet style flatbread pizzas don’t come at gourmet prices and average about $8.00 for a large.
Speaking of affordable pizzas, be sure to visit Modmarket from Monday to Wednesday during happy hour (3pm to 6pm). If you order a M’Rita pizza, you get a free bottle of Barefoot Wine. That’s right, a whole bottle. Now that’s a happy hour.
If you want something smaller than a salad or a pizza, you can opt for one of their hearty homemade soups. The Curried Split Pea Soup is filled with chunky bits of yellow split peas, carrots, tomatoes, celery, and seasoned with sweet coconut curry. If you need a quick bite, a cup should be fine.
Soon, Modmarket will be adding a new item to their menu: sandwiches. One of its newest creations will be a Tomato Basil Chicken Salad Sandwich. The chicken is actually roasted in the same wood fire oven used to make the pizzas. Unlike the dry, pre-packaged, and cubed stuff you might get at a regular sandwich shop, Modmarket’s chicken is moist, tender, and fresh.
Modmarket has managed to take everyday foods, and made them healthy, sustainable, and, most importantly, affordable. Parents can actually take their kids to Modmarket, feed them pizza, and know that they are still eating healthy. Office workers can grab a quick sandwich, and not feel guilty about the calories. Which reminds me, because both Pigliacampo and McColgan are both health conscious, nutritional facts are printed onto the menus and the receipts, front and center.
Modmarket is perfect for foodies looking for healthy and affordable everyday foods.
Modmarket
1600 28th Street
Boulder, CO 80301
720.663.9440
www.modmarket.com
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