Commitment and conviction main ingredients at Food and Thought

Organic farmer and entrepreneur Frank Oakes doesn't simply talk the talk. He's devoted himself and his livelihood to making a difference in the lives of everyone who enters his market and café, Food and Thought, which he describes as "militantly organic." And that's the pure essence of the place.

He hasn't created a 100 percent certified organic establishment because it's trendy and he can charge more for his merchandise. As you might gather from the name, Oakes has put a lot of thought into his food and firmly endorses Hippocrates' philosophy: "Let your food be your medicine and medicine be your food."

Once a traditional — or "chemical" farmer, as he describes it — he gradually rejected the agricultural practices of his father and grandfather, arriving at the conclusion that pesticides and commercial fertilizers were to blame for many undesirable states of the human condition. He began raising vegetables free of such products and believes it's improved his life and that of his family. It's also become the central theme of his life and his recently expanded market and café.

The menu changes daily but always includes poultry, fish and vegetables. This plate contains garlicrosemary chicken, dilled potatoes and collard greens. A meal at Food and Thought is strictly informal. You order at the counter from a limited selection of daily specials. You carry that food to an unadorned nearby table (those on the patio are situated among lots of greenery and several have umbrellas). But what you eat is all fresh and organic. The only oil used is olive; the only water is purified by reverse osmosis. Beans start out dry, not canned, and are soaked then cooked but not in aluminum or Teflon-coated pans. There are plenty of veggies plus a fish and a fowl dish, but no pork, beef, lamb or veal. Smoothies are 100 percent fruit — no sugar, ice or any other additives. Ditto for the juices, which are made as you watch.

The results, while not the chef-driven delights you'd find in a restaurant, are brightly flavored and taste good going down because they are so unsullied. Oh yes, a meal at Food and Thought is also pretty darned inexpensive. We had two entrees, four side dishes, a smoothie, a juice, a slice of cake and a big cookie for $41.

Strawberry shortcake seems like health food at Food and Thought. The day's entrees were salmon cakes and garlic-rosemary chicken, so we tried one of each. (There's also a daily vegetarian option, such as eggplant Parmesan.) The chicken was juicy and lightly seasoned. The day's greens — collards — were bright green and still retained some crunch, while the dilled potatoes had good flavor but could have been warmer. A highlight of the meal was a delicious salmon cake — a nicely browned, good-sized patty that combined salmon with carrots, red bell pepper, bits of parsley and a light breading. Firm pinto beans and a large mound of creamy smashed yams made for a satisfying meal. For beverages, we sampled a smoothie

and a juice. A pina colada smoothie contained a rich blend of pineapple, papaya, mango, banana and pineapple coconut juice. It overflowed with ripe fruit flavors and was almost a meal in itself.

The Doctor was a tangy blend of carrots, beets, celery, apple, lemon, ginger and parsley. The young woman who made and delivered the juice offered to bring me ice if I wanted it. I declined, but thought later it might have benefitted from being cooler than the room temperature at which it's served.

Dessert was a large, chewy chocolate chip cookie and a slice of strawberry shortcake that contained sweet fresh berries wedged between two layers of shortcake covered in a light whipped topping.

At nearby tables, I spotted a colorful salad, a couple of wraps and a sandwich, the contents of which weren't clear from a distance, but everyone looked contented as they ate.

It would be hard not to get the message here. The "Organic Farm Market" sign stripped across the top of the store is visible from U.S. 41. As customers prepare to enter the building, a sign on the window reads: "Militantly organic so you can shop in peace."

Employees wear a different T-shirt each day, with the color and the saying on the back changing with the day of the week. On this day, they were wearing their Saturday shirts: cream colored, with the day's thought on the back provided by Samuel Johnson: "Deviation from nature is deviation from happiness."

Food and Thought isn't a destination restaurant, but it is an establishment that dispenses as much good sense as it does healthy food. You can't help but feel virtuous after a meal there. In fact, it inspired me to head over to the market, where I stocked up on organic produce, crackers, chicken and hummus.

Oakes wants to upgrade what we put in our mouths, but he also wants to heighten our awareness of what's in what we put in our mouths. He's doing a fine job on both counts. Hippocrates would be proud.