Meet Mark Shadle | Master vegan chef + Farmer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mark Shadle and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mark, what do you want your legacy to be?
Our legacy will be defined by our unwavering commitment to Food sovereignty and freedom, and by following our passions regardless of financial gains or losses. We stood true to our vision and brand, not merely representing it but embodying our mission in every action. We advocate for clean eating, nourishing the earth, our bodies, and our souls, and honor animals and the environment through conscious consumerism. Our efforts are always aimed at making a positive impact for future generations. In the end, we leave behind a world that reflects our values and the meaningful change we strived to achieve.! We want to be remembered for being fearless advocates breaking down all
Stereotypes and redefining them
In a greener more sustainable future ! Not to mention that fact that spreading our Plant-Fueled™ and Vegan mission aligns with our core values in creating a world we can feel consciously good about for future generations.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?

What started with being Connecticut’s very first 100% vegan and sustainable food truck in 2008, the company is called G Monkey™️ Plant Fueled Fast Food™. Right out of the gate, our food truck was featured in *Travel + Leisure* magazine, the Food Network, and the *New York Times*, thanks to chef-inspired food and high-quality, handcrafted, and intriguing menu items. We redefined traditional street food, turning it into a provocative, innovative, plant-based, and incredibly nutritious menu for vegans and non-vegans alike. In fact, the *New York Times* described G Monkey as a “vegan retreat for carnivores.”

What got us to where we are now is incredible dedication and an unwavering vision of creating highly nutritious food made from real, whole, and organic ingredients. We never strayed from that vision, never compromising on cost or skimping on cheaper ingredients or packaging. Many other food trucks or businesses offer the cheapest ingredients or processed foods to cut labor costs, but this is something we have never done in the last 20 years we’ve been in business. We have consistently stayed true to our vision, and that commitment has made all the difference. We go the extra mile by using only the best organic ingredients, compostable packaging, supporting local farmers and always serving our customers the exact food that we ourselves would want to eat. We are committed to making everything from scratch every single day and do not revert to using highly processed “fake meat” or other type of ingredients that are full of excess and unwanted ingredients. The Bread is made every day, the veggie burgers, the desserts , the sauces, everything right down to our “Farm 2 Street Ketchup”. We pride ourselves on having food as “REAL AS IT GETS”. And we never stray from our values or our roots. Many of our iconic recipes are more than two decades old and we will continue to raise the bar on our quality year after year, when most business’s seem to be cutting food costs and skimping on quality.
That’s what makes us so unique and bad ass.

The one thing that I have learned from the last 20 years is to always follow your gut and intuition as it never fails you.

G -monkey™ started as a trailblazing food truck and after a few years then evolved into an Award-Winning brick-and-mortar location that was based on the East Coast, located in West Hartford CT called “G-monkey Plant-Fueled FastFood™”
After running the brick-and-mortar that received many national awards & accolades including VegNews Top 5 Vegan Restaurants in USA, I always realized in my gut that my true passion was being out with the people and serving them face to face.
For that reason, going back to my first passion and back to a food truck, was the perfect fit for the success and scalability of our business model and enhances the personal one-on-one interactions between the chef/owners and the public. This is a major disconnect in a restaurant location, as the chefs are usually hidden in the back of the restaurant and never seen or hardly if ever interact with their customer base. Now, whether we are serving off the food truck, doing catering events throughout the USA, or participating in Celebrity charity events, we are interacting with our clients and customers one-on-one, and there’s nothing that can compete with that intimacy and experience!
It has also given us the freedom to do pop-ups all over the USA and serve communities that normally would never have the opportunity to do so with only Brick & Mortar locations. It has spread our ability to make profound and interesting connections and spread our plant-based mission in a much more satisfying way.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
When we are home in LA, our favorite thing to do is hit all of the best vegan hotspots and of course hit the beach in Santa Monica and Venice Beach and check our all the colorful vibrant sights and sounds! When we have time we also love checking out the Food Scene in DTLA and the massive Food hall down there called “Grand Central Market”. The best gluten free vegan Ramen spot called “Ramenhood” is located within this market on South Broadway.
We love getting our fresh-pressed juices at local Erewhon markets, especially the new one in Culver City, and we absolutely love the fact that they bottle everything in reusable glass bottles and the quality of the organic produce and specialty items is hard to beat. Then we usually hit “Creation Organics” on Abbot Kinney for great salads and awesome vegan options and we also always make our way over “GreenTable” in Santa Monica, which is 100% vegan.
For our Vegan Thai food fix, we cannot miss “SATDHA” authentic Thai food on Lincoln Boulevard in Santa Monica.
For dessert, we head to the “Frozen Fruit Company” on Montana Ave in Santa Monica for literally the most insane 100% vegan cashew-based ice cream.
We always eat at “Planta Cocina” in Marina Del Rey for vegan tapas and drinks. We also love “Modern Bread” on Montana Avenue for the best gluten-free bagels you’ll ever have. Another favorite activity in LA is visiting all the local farmers’ markets throughout the city, which happen pretty much every day of the week, but the best ones are in Santa Monica on the weekends! For local music we love Harvelle’s on 4th street Santa Monica.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to give a special shout-out to my wife and business partner, Ami Beach. Our mutual vision and passion for healing others, feeding people and advocating for animals , the environment and vibrant health are deeply rooted in our hearts. By living our purpose and mission together it brings even more authenticity to our brand. Sharing a life of love and joyful purpose has amplified our efforts and success. Without her support, menu inspiration creative directing, intense passion, and social marketing skills that vividly shares our values & holistic lifestyle through social platforms, our brand would not have reached the heights it has today.
The success of my vision as a chef and humanitarian, is greatly impacted and only possible with the support of a strong, fearless woman by my side.
Her unwavering commitment to our shared beliefs in making the world a healthier place has been instrumental in driving our mission forward .
Her dedication and strength inspire and empower us to achieve our goals and our vision become a reality.

Another major influence in my life and person deserving of a HUGE shout-out is Anthony William, the “Medical Medium®” and multiple New York Times best-selling author, who has inspired us since day one to continue on our path of veganism, healthy cooking and empowering our health to the next level. He has inspired not only us but literally millions of people from all walks of life with his ground breaking wellness protocols. We’ve integrated many of his “Life -Giving” strategies and ideas into our clean food recipes and owe him a great deal for bringing us to our first debut appearance in LA.
We showcased our Master chef skills cooking for the
“Medical Medium®” Team and attended and worked one of the largest holistic health events to come to LA.
The event which was called the “Heavy Metal Detox Launch Party” was hosted at Erewhon in Culver City and more than 23,000 people from around the Globe came to support this incredible event and rare opportunity to meet Anthony William in person!
The city of Los Angeles has never seen a turn out like this for this epic Medical Medium ® event that happened on June 15, 2024 and will forever go down in LA history.
The mission of the day was encouraging individuals to take charge of their physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing while inspiring the crowd to drive the change we all wish to see in the world. Also reminding us “For the Light that Stands in the way of the Darkness” and to keep a light heart in this crazy world.
In fact anyone in the LA area can now go into any of your local Erewhon locations throughout the city and check out the launch of Medical Medium®’
“Heavy Metal Detox Smoothie” and take the first steps towards improved health; The proceeds from this smoothie go to “UnderDog Warriors” non profit organization. Underdog Warriors is a volunteer led 501 (c) (3) non-profit assisting those in the “Medical Medium® community facing financial hardships to subsidize the cost of supplements and offer tools for the chronically ill.

Another achievement that cannot go unmentioned was being officially invite to the “WHITE HOUSE” by Michelle Obama when Barak Obama was in office. I was called upon to collaborate with other chefs from around the USA and Globe in the “Chefs Moves to School” initiative founded by Michelle Obama. This program encouraged us to work with public schools and educating about importance of growing our own foods and encourage local farming. Through education and the talents of our Chefs, we made significant strides in introducing healthier, whole food ingredients into the school system and raising awareness of this crucial issue. This honor has profoundly impacted me, fueling my life long mission and passion for teaching. It serves as a constant source of inspiration, not only for children, but also every one around me to stay true to my roots and philosophy ” FOOD IS MEDICINE”.

Website: https://Www.gmonkeyfastfood.com

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Image Credits
Photo credit Ami Beach