tempImageNwmIWv.jpg

Important Update:

Starting March 11th, we will resume all smoothie/juice bar orders and grab & go options daily!

Gurnee, IL 60031

Located inside the Advocate Condell Centre Club.

Open to the public.

1405 Hunt Club Rd

Gurnee, IL 60031

Chef Shawn

Who We Are

Essential Kitchen & Essential Kitchen Cafe is an organic, all natural, vegan company lead by Chef Shawn Bork & Leslie Hernandez.

Located in Gurnee, IL… Team EK is passionate about sharing with you the tools available for healthy living. We specialize in making whole food, plant-based dishes with an emphasis on tasty, delicious and most importantly healthy food options.

With Chef Shawn, you can have full faith that his food is his word. He believes that if people are educated on proper fitness and nutrition, they can not only thrive in their day-to-day lives, but benefit from the healing properties of healthy eating.

A Certified Personal Trainer and personal chef with 5 years’ experience in restaurants and catering, Shawn sources the right ingredients and uses his passion & energy to deliver delicious, wholesome meals.

He also offers cooking classes & seminars to give you the foundation to start making healthier decisions when it comes to the kitchen. We incorporate the practices of Ayurveda (a form of holistic medicine that’s focused on promoting balance between your body and mind) to carefully combine every ingredient (herbs & spices included) to ensure optimum digestion and benefit to the body.

All of our Ready-to-Eat meals are:

*Prepared fresh in small batches

*Plant based & Vegan

*Made with organic & locally sourced ingredients

*Using zero preservatives, oil, gluten, & soy

*Easy to order online with convenient pick up locations.

Making the decision on what to eat and how to prepare it can be overwhelming, so our menus make it simple for you to have a healthier way of living.

Essential Kitchen Cafe is located at 1405 Hunt Club Rd Gurnee, IL 60031 inside the Advocate Condell Centre Club and it is open to the Public.

Organic Rootz Health Food Store has two locations and stocks some of our delicious snacks.

·  1202 South Main St    Algonquin, IL 60102

·  215 N Hough St     Barrington, IL 60010

FAQ’s

Once we place our order, how do we know when to pick it up?

Essential Kitchen will call/send an alert notifying you of the scheduled time of pickup/delivery for food.

Can we order the same thing every week?

Essential Kitchen rotates a new menu for each season of the year, so be sure to check when we start our new menu as you have ample time to enjoy that dish!

How do we get our food?

Pick up option:

Place your order on our website - freshly made on Sundays, Tuesdays, & Thursdays.

Essential Kitchen places the food in a bag with your name on it inside the refrigerator for pick up @ Advocate Good Shepard Fitness Center (see location address below) or at our Café located inside the Advocate Condell Centre Club @ 1405 Hunt Club Rd  Gurnee IL 60031.

Organic Rootz Health Food Shop carries our sweet treats. Feel free to walk in for a treat and one of their smoothies. (see location addresses below)

Delivery option: See information box below.

Where are the nutrition facts?

They are available on each menu item as well as on the labeling of each product.

“This food is some of the best vegan and organic prepared meals around! Shawn put together delicious recipes with perfect portions. I tried these a couple of months ago on a whim and they are so good, I have gone back each week since. I drive an hour each way to get these meals each week so while working my 75 hour a week schedule, I can always have something healthy to quickly heat up and eat” —Jodi B

“We ordered from Essential Kitchen last week and it did not disappoint! We thoroughly enjoyed the fresh mango salsa, the chorizo was great in a breakfast scramble, and the jackfruit tacos were tasty with the sweet potato tortillas. Not being vegan we did not know what to expect. What a pleasant surprise. We will be back for more” — Mike & Terri R.

Google Reviews:

So glad to have this right by the fitness/wellness center! Best place to fill up on clean protein after a good workout. Also, a great place for meal planning/consultation or just for a quick and easy, sweet treat with no guilt afterwards😁     -Alex K

 I've been here a few times, and everything I've ordered has been fantastic. When I find a good restaurant I tend to order too frequently and quickly get sick of it. Hasn't happened here thanks to the weekly specials. The specials are very different each time, not just "a regularly offered sandwich but now with green peppers" situation. As for the regular menu - I highly recommend the mint chocolate cookie and poutine.     -Jack D

We originally discovered them from a vending machine/fridge outside of our doctor's office in Barrington. We tried the Mint Chocolate Chip Cookie and Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie and loved them! We checked them online and found they have a spot in Gurnee and went to check it out. We ordered : - Harvest Veggie Loaf w/ Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Cranberry Glaze - Essential Burger with Special Sauce - Plant Based Poutine - Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie - Figgy Lemon Bar - Mint Chocolate Chip Cookie Everything we had was great, healthy, and super tasty! We like that we can find food with no oil. If you are WFPB (or even if you're not) we highly recommend this spot. Leslie and Shawn were very nice, helpful, and informative. Definitely worth our drive from Chicago.     - Sam P

  

I am delighted that this super healthy vegan cafe is now open at Advocate Condell Centre Club Gurnee. I have bought several smoothies there after gym workouts and they have all been superb.     - Wendy S

Thank you so much for the nice conversation and the amazing smoothie and food! I'm so happy to have this wonderful blessing at the Centre Club!! I'm very grateful!!! 🙌     - Travis G

 

For years I suffer with chronic illness and irritable bowel syndrome. Even without onion disorders I've had had to change a lot of my diet. This food is honestly Delicious. I was forced to eat vegan and gluten free and was not getting the correct vitamins. The chef told me that I could eat healthy without sacrificing my taste buds. This company was definitely built on honesty and wellness. The owner puts their love for cooking I'm good energy into making Hearty and healing food. The prices are actually very Reasonable if you think of non-mass produce and organic cooking. Also, the time and dedication. I order from here for gut resets and or big events. I will continue to come here forever lol. Thank you guys For making a difference in my life. Best food ever.      -Bustajoint Nflex