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Ray & Shannon Tell Us The Story Behind Grown How They’re Preparing Real Food, Cooked Slow, For Fast People!

Written By: Carina Zatarain

When ten time NBA All-Star Ray Allen joined the Miami Heat in 2012,

he and his family were embraced by the city of Miami and the Tahiti Beach community. “We love the culture of Miami. The Heat family welcomed us with open arms, the Tahiti Beach community welcomed us, we immediately felt like we were home,” his wife Shannon beamed as she related about the location of their new restaurant Grown. So it’s no surprise Ray and Shannon found the corner of Ludlam Rd. and South Dixie Highway as the perfect place to turn their innovative, healthy fast-food restaurant concept into a reality.

As a professional athlete, Ray was no stranger to staying in shape and eating healthy. Shannon prepared Ray’s pre-game meal each game and was always conscious about how food could a!ect the body’s performance. But the battle to redefine the Allen family’s eating habits began when their son, Walker, was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at 17 months. “From the moment Walker wakes up to the moment he goes to sleep at night, we monitor everything he eats,” explains Shannon. The daily routine includes testing Walker’s blood sugar with finger pricks 10 times a day, counting the amount of carbohydrates he consumes, and mathematically working out how much insulin to inject. In fact, the Allen’s’ revolutionary fast food

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concept was inspired six years ago by a frustrating night out on the road struggling to find a healthy meal for Walker.

When Shannon was pregnant with her fourth child, she and her kids were out driving when Walker suddenly felt hungry. Hungry, for a child with diabetes means dropping blood sugars, which translates to, he needs food now. But the food that a diabetic puts into their body can have dramatic e!ects. A soda and french fries could be dangerous, as they shoot blood sugar levels up too high, too quickly. As Shannon relates, she was desperately driving around and could not find a healthy, quick option to regulate Walker’s blood sugar. Ultimately, Shannon had to call in a favor from a chef friend to make gluten-free panko chicken tenders and unsweetened ice tea for them. to I was so frustrated that I just couldn’t get something delicious and nutrient

dense at a drive-thru,” she shared, in a hurry. “We’re a real family that’s always out on the road,” Shannon says, “That’s why this concept makes so much sense for us, because we need it.” This venture is not for the exclusives—it’s for the soccer mom, the hardworking parents grabbing a quick dinner, for everyone young and old. Ray inspired many of his teammates to cut out junk food when he played for the Miami Heat. Shannon stated, “The really amazing thing about Lebron, D-Wade, and his Miami Heat teammates is that they had a lot of love and respect for Ray. They really learned from each other.” Ray added, “That’s what makes a championship team. You have to build a great individual and good-quality people that love to be around each other. That is what we have done here. Shannon, myself, Glen and Jen, and Chef Todd are the core of this team.” The Grown unit consists

“After six years of development, their dream to bring organic, local, and nutritious ingredients through a drive-thru has become a reality with Grown. Fast food provides a real service to busy people. The convenience, a!ordability, and consistency allow you to trust and rely on its services. A typical family should not have to lower their food standards because they are out on the road. The Allen’s call their concept, “real food, cooked slow, for fast people.” It highlights their central idea to initiate a convenient food destination for families, dieters, and anyone looking for cheap, healthy food

“I remember sitting on the shower !oor crying because I was so frustrated.” It was at that moment where she called Ray and determined, “If somebody doesn’t reinvent fast food, we’ve got to do it.

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www.pegolamps.com

Inside the restaurant are iPad stations to place orders if the lines are long and an iPad bar with educational games for kids. Online ordering will be available so that people may order ahead of time. In the near future, they aspire to link Bluetooth technology to an app so the drive thru can recognize a person’s phone and have their order synchronized. “We really believe that you have to be creative and willing to evolve,” Shannon says. Though the concept can be readily expanded, they wish to make sure the quality of the product stays premium before expanding.

The restaurant opened for its soft launch in late March and has been slammed since opening day. Open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. during its soft opening period, it’s typical to find Shannon racing through the restaurant making sure customers are well-attended, while Ray preps sandwiches and calls out customers’ names to pick up their orders. Ray details his first week in a recent Instagram post, “It has been a crazy week. @grownmiami has been open for a week and I have learned a lot. I made a lot of sandwiches, wraps, omelets, smoothies, you name it. And I've swept and mopped a lot of floors. It has been awesome! I want to thank each and everyone that has come to Grown to taste our food. It has been an honor serving you all. I look forward to seeing many of you come and try our delicious food.” Grown is planning on a grand opening with a full drive thru in the late spring.

The Grown team and support from the community has really fueled their work. Shannon shares, “The city of Miami is full of great people that welcomed us into their family. Even in our neighborhood of Tahiti Beach, the people have been so warm, loving and caring.” Essentially, Grown prides itself on the foundation of family, nourishment, and the numerous other families like the Allen’s looking for healthy food fast. In a recent Instagram post, Shannon expressed her gratitude with Grown’s recent success, “…Grown is six years in the making. During that time I've heard hundreds of ‘NO's' and ‘it's impossible,’ ‘you're crazy’ and the everyday favorite ‘Americans don't care about delicious, organic ingredients made fresh – they just want big portions of fried food.’ Drown out the noise, listen to the voice in your own head and the pang in your heart that compels you to go for it! I thank GOD for the faith, love & support of my husband and partner @trayfour, our children's love & support, our family & friends, our #grownteam for dedicating themselves to our shared mission, our community for rallying around us and our investors for taking the leap with us!” With motivation from the community, the incredible people that have rallied around them, and the Allen’s unwavering passion, Grown is equipped with everything necessary for a championship team.

It’s an honor to feature Ray and Shannon’s new restaurant Grown, in this issue of Cocoplum Living. Stop by to say hi to your neighbors while you enjoy some “real food, cooked slow for fast people.” Who knows? You might even be served by Ray Allen himself!

of close friends, private investors, and reliable nutritional experts, including Chef Todd Kiley, the man who made Shannon the organic chicken tenders for Walker six years ago.

Chef Todd, formerly of Rainforest Café and Legendary Restaurant Group, relocated to Miami to become Grown’s executive chef. This will be his 25th restaurant from sawdust to open. Working towards getting Grown’s Organic Certification is his main ambition. Everything coming through the door, including salt, pepper, and meats, must be 100% organic. They are all working diligently to become one of the few in the nation with an Organic Certification.

Grown is a game changer for fast food, which is why Ray believes that Miami is the right starting point for the company. Ray expresses, “This Miami community is a fast-paced community. People here have an active lifestyle, and they want to eat good food.” He envisions the fast food eatery to become a quick breakfast spot for someone to eat on their way to work and finish the meal by the time they get downtown.

The weather also allows Grown to have an “urban farm” on its rooftop. Local farmers will be growing greens, vegetables, and herbs, taking advantage of Miami’s 10-month growing season. What’s more, the restaurant is building a dumbwaiter system that transports fresh food from the roof right to the kitchen. “Once the rooftop garden is up and running, you will be able to see someone coming in with a tray of arugula that we grew on the roof,” Shannon divulged. You will also find a column of fresh herbs in the middle of the restaurant, giving Grown a natural, earthy environment paired with the open kitchen, rustic wood finishes, and white and blue hues. The former Miami Heat player says, “When you walk into our restaurant, you get a feeling like you’re in your own kitchen. You get a healthy home-cooked meal, and it makes you feel good that you didn’t have to compromise your eating standards just because you stepped outside of your house to eat.” The Allen’s want to make Grown an approachable place for everyone.

Grown o!ers juices, salads, smoothies, wraps, and sandwiches. Their signature is how the menu allows you to create your own flavor with an array of international sides and sauces to pair with the food. Meals range from $4-$18 o!ering breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Breakfast includes an omelet station, steel-cut oatmeal, baked goods and fresh cut fruit. Lunch and dinner serves soups, salads, wraps, sandwiches, and family-style meals to go, such as an organic free-range rotisserie chicken with two seasonal sides and four drinks. It’s the kind of meal Shannon needed that night years ago, and the sort of collective change that Ray wishes to achieve moving forward. “We believe food should be delicious, organic and inspiring. It’s not made, it’s not manufactured, it’s grown,” their website proudly illustrates. Everything on the menu can be made gluten-free, vegan-friendly, paleo-friendly, or in child’s portion.

GROWN8211 S Dixie Hwy Miami, FL 33143

(305) 663-4769www.Grown.org