The Real Food in Manly

Ora may have taken out TimeOut’s Café of the Year in 2016, but you wouldn’t hear it from owner duo Alex Johnson and Alex “Pod” Rast. It’s quickly evident, stepping into their Manly café, that care and goodness takes priority over the capitalist grind that drives many.

Johnson is strikingly passionate, honest, and far from self centred. Believing unfalteringly in organic, healthy food that is sourced ethically, her holistic approach does not waver, as Ora radiates with goodness from the heart.

“I will serve you what I eat at home,” Johnson says.

Her empowering, unapologetically forthright manner is clear as she believes one must “be a good person for the sake of being a good person. If you want to be unethical, be loud and proud about it, don’t mislead.”

Cafés across Sydney have been swept with the organic ‘trend’, but Johnson believes not enough cafés are committing fully to the inherent principles of good food, and considering the implications of their processes from sourcing, to cooking, to what ends up on the plate. Whether it’s using vegetable oil rather than olive oil, or wrapping everything in cling wrap rather than Tupperware, there are many easy ways businesses can make the switch.

Johnson has a love for healthy food because “you can control what goes in your mouth”. In a world where air quality and factors beyond your control impact your health, why wouldn’t you do everything in your power to ensure your own good health?

An intentional sense of mindfulness is central to Ora. Due to drought conditions, at times Ora is unable to source some ingredients. Rather than buying from major supermarkets, if Johnson and Rast face a shortage in their suppliers, they simply accept that they do not have the ingredient in question. The menu is vague and adaptable to availability, or lack thereof, keeping diners on their toes, who keep coming back for their old favourites regardless of the minor changes. Leaves, collard greens, herbs and natives are sourced from their garden in Brookvale.

However, while Ora certainly caters to vegetarian, vegan and gluten free diners, “fad” diets in and of themselves are not a goal for Johnson, as she ideates the menu. Often perceived as a paleo-esque or vegan café, Johnson herself eats meat and actually just believes in good, healthy food. Pretty simple.

Instant gratification has ravaged the way we eat today, with many consumers choosing fast food options, or overly sugary, salty foods, over food as fuel with long term benefits. Having greasy takeaway “just this once”, or to “treat yourself” can snowball into habit, and have an adverse effect on society as a whole.

“We just make food that tastes good, and I can tell you everything that’s in it. You’re coming to our house for dinner and everything is beautiful,” Johnson says of THE COOK ROOM, Ora’s sister venue who comes out at night.

THE COOK ROOM pioneers the clean kombucha cocktail, free of artificial colours, flavours and sugar. Everything on the menu is cooked slowly, with 19 year old chef Julia Marques preparing much

“We just make food that tastes good, and I can tell you everything that’s in it. You’re coming to our house for dinner and everything is beautiful.” of it during the day. Marques’ passion echoes that of Johnson’s; Marques hails from Brazil, and made the cross continental journey to pursue her love of organic food spawned in her upbringing.

“I know that I am what I eat, I’m very conscious,” says Marques. “I don’t want to eat poison, I’m really passionate about it, that’s why I work nine hours a day.”

Marques’ favourite thing about working at THE COOK ROOM is her ability to create everything from scratch, even down to the house-made crackers. She spreads her passion to others through the menu, which bursts with the heart of a home cooked meal. The gluten free, vegan or vegetarian options will be loved by even the hardiest of meat eaters; “you won’t feel like you’re eating a lettuce leaf,” Johnson explains of their innovative take.

So where does Johnson get her inspiration? Podcasts, reading, and studying online. She found that traditional institutional avenues of learning about cooking had glaring faults in knowledge, a sentiment shared by Marques as she first tried to study in Brazil.

Ora and THE COOK ROOM are all about changing mentalities through irrefutably good food. They choose minimal waste over speed, ethics over profit: just ask the garbage collectors, who’ll tell you that they only need to make the journey once a week to this wholesome Manly café. • choice

BERRY-LICIOUS