Mixing necessity with trendiness, going “green” is now a certified cultural phenomenon. However, few take it as literally as the Hungarian-born “green graffiti” artist Edina Tokodi, whose work has been sprucing up the streets of New York City in the form of animal-shaped moss installations. Tokodi’s eco-art art brings to light the urban dweller’s lack of access to natural greenery, enlivening an otherwise concrete jungle. By placing her renegade installations from Williamsburg to Coney Island in a continually-expanding project, Tokodi has not only caught the eye of New York’s pedestrians, but now, the attention of Philadelphia’s transportation system, SEPTA, who recently commissioned her to produce their campaign to promote the environmental benefits of using of mass transit.

A vegetarian with a taste for the greener side, Tokodi made a fitting subject to sample the East Village’s hip and healthy hot spot, Counter— which recently became a "Certified Green Restaurant" by implementing several sustainable practices, to be built upon each year. This environmentally conscious and popular vegetarian bistro, opened by natural-food aficionado Deborah Gavito in 2003, serves seasonally-fresh cuisine and an impressive selection of organic martinis and biodynamic wines— some even featured in their “Rebel of the Month” spotlights on organic winemakers. From one green rebel to another, psychoPEDIA joined Tokodi at Counter on a bustling night to chat over the eatery’s organic offerings:

As we are seated, the manager Frank Cisneros greets us and talks a bit about the steps the restaurant has taken to become “Certified Green.”

What are some of the restaurant’s current sustainable practices?
FC: We’d had energy-efficient lighting and a temperature-control system with micro thermometers, so there’s not an ounce of energy wasted. Last year, we worked with a company to re-use our fryer oil and installed low-pump spray valves in our kitchen cleaning systems that use a tenth of the water normally used to wash dishes. Along with recently purchased motion sensors for the service areas to control the lights, one of the steps we’re doing this year is installing aerators in all our faucets, that adds air to water so you use less of it.

Any future practices you hope to adapt?
FC: We're looking for a good producer of to-go containers made of bagasse— a fibrous, sugarcane material you can process as a plastic that’s biodegradable in 90 days. We’re also in talks to get energy-efficient hand dryers, and a long-term project is LED lights for our awning that are powered by solar panels.

What do you think of the “green” and “organic” movements?
ET: It’s kind of a shame. People go green or environmentally friendly, but somewhere on the side, it’s very sad. It should be normal.

How did you get involved in the SEPTA project?
An advertisement agency, Red Tettemer, searched for me, because they had seen one of my other projects. They came up with the idea for the moss campaign and did all the backgrounds and posters. Then my collaborator and I did the whole moss installation. It took about a month to put the materials together at home and one week to install them, which was a hard job.

What was the process to install the moss pieces?
We spent five days at the station in Philadelphia. The interesting thing is, the agency put the posters up before we installed the moss. At first, everyone went by and didn’t take a look at all. But after we installed the moss, people actually stopped and got more interested in the campaign than they were before.

The waiter brings us bread with tofu-garlic dipping sauce as we ponder over the extensive wine list before deciding on glasses of biodynamic Beaujolais.

Despite endless wine choices, what do you think of the minimal food menu?
I always have a really hard time choosing. I’m happy when there aren’t too many choices. And here, everything sounds very good.

For starters, we order on the Mezze— a selection of 3 appetizers— the roast beet salad with chevre, spinach and feta cheese cigars, and panisse with aioli (chickpea fries). For an entrée, Tokodi chooses the Vegetable Tasting Mosaic— which includes a market-fresh array including Portobello mushroom roulade, sautéed haricots verts & escararole, and whipped maple sweet potatoes.

Reactions to the appetizer spread?
My favorites were the spinach cigars and the beets. Usually, I don’t like onions or scallions, but I thought this was really good.

Tell me more about the concept behind your street “graffiti.”
I made a trip to Japan a couple of years ago and was inspired by the zen gardens— they give you so much energy. I still think about the garden in the house where I grew up. It was nothing special when I was there, but here in New York, it’s unaffordable. The idea for these installations is that people are so far from this kind of life.

How do you want people to connect with the installations?
The main idea is that these installations are interactions. When people see them on the street, I want them to get close— touch them and feel them. Maybe they’ve never touched any moss before.

Entrees arrive, and Tokodi navigates her way around the plate, tasting each vegetable one by one.

What do you think about the assorted vegetable dish?
It’s very good. I like the type of food that has it’s own taste. That’s why I love real Italian food— zucchini tastes like zucchini. [With this dish], I love the sweet potato. But, I like everything.

After polishing our plates, we review the dessert menu. Following the waiter’s recommendations, we choose: a crème brulee— vanilla custard with candied orange peel & drizzled with kiwi-berry sauce, and chocolate fondue— valhrona & callebaut chocolate served with fresh fruit and coffee-walnut cake.

Despite the pricier nature of organic menus, would you still choose to eat somewhere like Counter over the McDonald's across the street?
I’d rather not eat at all if I don’t find something that’s good. I like to eat, and I like to eat things that are good quality.

Does it make you feel better eating here, knowing the sustainable practices the restaurant has installed?
If you’re running a restaurant, you should be responsible for these kinds of things. If you run it in a crazy way, you create a lot of waste. With this restaurant— these are simple things. But now, we’ve gotten to the point where it’s getting very serious, and everything counts.

~Leann Peterson


For more information on the steps and benefits to becoming a "Certified Green Restaurant," check out the website for the Green Restaurant Association.