Eco friendly and organic eateries are coming up with triple sevens at casinos in the Lake Tahoe area. Monday, May 5 opened a new chapter in conscious cuisine for the Crystal Bay Casino with the soft opening of Bistro Elise.

Organic coffee standards are increasingly becoming established for many reasons, heavy chemicals, deforestation and fair trade being the most controllable.

Coffee is known as the heaviest chemically treated food commodity in the world. Synthetic petroleum based fertilizers are slowly destroying the soils fertility and seeping into local water supplies. Rain forests are being cleared at alarming rates to make room for new hybrid sun resistant coffees. Up to 70% of world coffee production employs these sun resistant strains leading to massive deforestation.

Coffee served at the Bistro Elise is shade-grown and certified as being 100% organic by a third party agency such as Skal, Organic Crop Improvement Association or Quality Assurance International. All source farms must practice sustainable, biodynamic agriculture. Additionally all Bistro Elise coffees are bought at a guaranteed premium, usually three times the highest market rate of conventional coffees. Fair trade helps insure fair wages and better living conditions for the farmers.

While organic coffee and teas are featured, the new bistro has a whole lot more to offer. The Bistro is presently open seven days a week from 6 a.m. until midnight. Operations will be 24/7 within a few months. Breakfast features healthy choices including Greek Eggs, a three egg scramble with tomato, basil and feta cheese. Pesto Eggs include sundried tomato, pesto and garlic. There are several omelet specialties, traditional breakfast fare and of course casino favorites from the griddle.

For a healthy treat try an Acai Bowl topped with granola and fresh fruit. Acai is a South American super-food that is just now finding its way to the United States. Hidden within its royal purple pigment is the magic that makes it nature's perfect energy fruit. Acai is packed full of antioxidants, amino acids and essential fatty acids. It contains a remarkable concentration of antioxidants that help combat premature aging, with 10 times more antioxidants than red grapes and 10 to 30 times the anthocyanins of red wine.

Burgers, fruit and cheese platters, a multitude of fresh salads, calamari fritti, zucchini tempura and freshly made soups are just a few of the lunch and dinner items available at Bistro Elise.

Bistro Elise offers 20 specialty and coffee drinks along with pastries and a one of a kind healthy Italian frozen dessert available in constantly changing flavors. As our new Food & Beverage Director, Harold Peskin says, “If we have the ingredients we will make it for you.” The Bistro Elise, where healthy alternatives meet traditional casino fare in a setting unlike anything on the North Shore.