When the Ozark Natural Foods community cooperative first began in 1971, it was a group of 12 locals whose idea was to create a place where area farmers could partner with the community to benefit the well-being of each other. As community ownership has grown, so have those benefits.
As the co-op recently celebrated its 45th anniversary in October, the number of community owners has grown to nearly 10,000. The store moved to its current location in Fayetteville's Evelyn Hills Shopping Center in 2000 and has taken on many aspects of community service since then.
"We've grown tremendously since we have been here," fresh food manager Pauline Thiessen said. "We had just a few thousand owners when we moved here 16 years ago, now we are just continuing to grow each year.
"When we started we were doing like $5-6 million in revenue a year, now we do like $10-12 million."
The Ozark Natural Foods community cooperative warehouse is one of those local places where people are so familiar with what they know that they may not realize all that the co-op has to offer. When something has been a part of day-to-day life for so long, it may be surprising for patrons to find more than what's become routine.
Ozark Natural Foods has an in-house cafe, "A la Carte," that offers more than that of a standard grocery deli. Thiessen and assistant manager Bryan Cheney manage the cafe's menu, operations and employees. A la Carte has a staff of employees available to assist customers and make the shopping experience at Ozark Natural Foods more enjoyable.
The high level of customer service found at the co-op is one of the many attractions there. Another aspect of Ozark Natural Foods is the cafe and hot bar that Thiessen manages acutely.
From Monday through Saturday, the day starts with a 7 a.m. breakfast bar with options such as breakfast pizza, tofu scramble and potatoes either roasted, scalloped or au gratin. Other options on the breakfast bar include garden frittata, sausage scramble, biscuits and gravy, veggie and sausage gravy and casseroles that include broccoli or chile rellano flavors.
A la Carte's hot bar is served Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday. The hot bar offers a variety of healthy, organic and international cuisine choices not found elsewhere under one roof in Northwest Arkansas. Many of the items are locally sourced. Prices for the hot bar items are an all-inclusive $8.99 per pound and includes the salad bar.
The every-day items on the bar include Rosemary Thyme Chicken Leg Quarters, Roasted Brocolli, and Mac & Cheese. Additional items rotate daily by theme.
The bar has an Indian theme on Mondays and Wednesdays, featuring meals like Tikka Masala Chicken , Indian-Spiced Chicken Leg Quarters and Curried Cauliflower. Tuesday is a Mexican fiesta that includes Spinach Mushroom and Chicken Enchiladas, and Tempeh Tacos, while Thursday features an Ozark flavor with the likes Roasted Acorn Squash, as well as Maple Roasted Roots and Soulful Kale. Friday is Stew day which features Beer Sausage and Beef Veggie Stew, Garlic Dill Carrots and Roasted Turnips and Green Beans, while comfort foods are served on Saturday, from Shepard's Pie and Vegan Sheppie to Roasted Roots. Sunday is also a comfort day, with Biscuit Sandwiches in the morning, and Vegan Meatloaf.
The hot bar also features several pizza flavors every day of the week.
The salad bar is also a popular lunch and dinner choice for Ozark Natural Foods customers. The vegetables offered on the salad bar are mostly locally sourced from an organic farm within a 100-mile radius of the co-op. The salad bar is priced at the same $8.99 per pound as the breakfast and hot bars.
Soups that come with fresh baguette slices are another popular option from A la Carte. As the thermometer dips further down, the hot soup menu will be expanding to feature heartier soup options. Current soups of the day include Ginger Chicken, Coconut Lentil, Butternut Squash and Roots, Beef and Bean Chili, Vegan Chili, Broccoli Cheese, and Sweet Potato Bacon. Soups come in two sizes, an 8 oz. and 12 oz., that cost $2.99 and $3.69 respectively.
The to-go counter at A la Carte also features salads, wraps, and sandwiches priced from $4.99 to $9.99. They also bake and serve their own fresh traditional bagels for 99 cents, as well as an Everything Bagel for $1.39. Bagel sandwiches and various spreads will soon be on the menu.
They also offer take-and-bake 14-inch pizzas, made from scratch, for $12.99. They also offer a line of Meal Solutions, which are meals and sides that can be taken home and heated up.
Fresh, cold-pressed juices bottled in-house have recently been introduced to the to-go menu. Flavors of cold-pressed juices include Carrot, Carrot Celery, Apple Beet Carrot, Orange, Apple Greens Lemon, Apple Pear Ginger and Apple Beet Carrot Ginger. They also offer 1 oz. shots of more potent beverages, such as Ginger, Turmeric, Wheatgrass and an array of Tonics.
The options at Ozark Natural Foods constantly evolve as the management and staff respond to market trends, seasonal availability for fresh local items and owner requests.
ONF recently opened the state's only organic livestock feed store next door, with a community kitchen within, which can be rented out to store owners for various events, such a cooking demonstrations. They are also hosting the Fayetteville Farmer's Market indoors throughout the winter months, through March.
They will have their Spring Baby Chicken Sale the week leading up to Easter Sunday. This allows patrons to purchase baby chicks, and receive instructions on how to raise them.
Ownership is open to anyone in the community and limited to one share per household. Each share costs $140, which breaks down to $20 a year for seven years. There is often patronage (money) returned to the owners at the end of each year, depending on how well the store does and how much each individual spent in the store that year.
It is not a requirement to be an owner of the co-op to purchase items from the cafe, but those who would like more information about becoming an owner of the Ozark Natural Foods Co-op can visit onf.coop. They can also be found on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
NAN Dining Guide Cover on 02/17/2017