The ongoing pandemic has disrupted the way we live, work and play. But what does this mean for the restaurant industry? There is more focus today than ever on supporting local communities, focusing on sustainable and eco-friendly methods while serving customers. This has put the spotlight back on the use of sustainable and recyclable materials. And that’s exactly the choice that a recently opened brewery in Madison, Wisconsin did. Say Hello! to Young Blood Beer Co., one of our coolest and most spirited customers (pun intended).

We met with Nathan Grajeda, Executive Chef at Young Blood to uncover the story behind how they chose Reeden’s Zelah Areca Palm Leaf Plates as their serve-ware for dine-in, and what this choice means for them, for the community and for the environment at large.

Young Blood is a brewery which brings together global street food flavours and an ever changing tap list of beers. When we decided to open our doors in the midst of the pandemic, we had to put on our thinking caps to decide how we wanted to serve our customers. We knew we wanted to go disposable, but we also wanted to make the right choice.

The serve-ware had to be aesthetic, sturdy and most importantly sustainable and eco-friendly.

A chance meeting with the Reeden team at a food expo made this need a reality for us. Being part of the hospitality industry and having worked in a lot of restaurants before, I know that the industry accounts for huge wastage, with plastics being a major part of it. I strongly believe that there is a need to take an active look and an active approach to the kind of footprint we are leaving behind.

With Reeden’s Palm Leaf Plates, I know we made the right choice. – Nathan