Fresh Kitchen

Fresh Kitchen
Sea Girt
Sea Girt Mall Shopping Center
235 Route 35 North
732-769-8133

Open: Lunch & dinner daily

Price: $ BYO

Style: Blonde wood tables and a wall of hydroponic plants give this small, bright eatery a modern yet convivial vibe.

The Scoop: Mike Nitto, an entrepreneur and fitness enthusiast, travels frequently for business and hates the paucity of healthy food choices on the road. In 2008, he met the well-traveled and adventurous chef Chris Burgess, whose background ranges from foraging to French cooking. They opened Fresh Kitchen in early 2016.

The Menu: The four foundations of the build-your-own menu are stock pot, grain bowl, salad and lavash wrap. Guests are encouraged to be creative, but the menu includes composed dishes, such as the Yucan Do It, a grain bowl with yucca, corn, pork and beets infused with pomegranate and Thai basil. Grains range from quinoa with sundried tomato to exotics like lemon-herb freekeh. The satisfying grain bowl I created included puréed sweet potato, infused beets, pickled cauliflower, grilled red onion, quinoa, rye berries, and all three available proteins: pork tenderloin with baby corn shoots; rosemary garlic chicken breast; and flank steak with basil, chervil and amaranth cress.

Heads Up: Take home a growler of their infused iced teas or soup stock. If you catch Burgess, he can tell you the history of stock and why it’s “near and dear to my heart.”