I met Lionel, co-founder of Neobento with his boyfriend Manu, when I came back to Paris, almost three years ago. That was special to me: it was a cold, snowy winter and his warm smile, his welcoming heart along with his great FeelGoodCuisine conquered me immediately. Today it is a true pleasure for me to show you who is behind Neobento in this interview to dear Lionel.
Chiara: Why gluten free?
Lionel: At the beginning it started because my boyfriend Manu is intolerant to gluten and so is his family. We were both 18 years old back then and it was so hard to eat gluten free. There were very few products in the organic shops and they were often terrible. When we decided to create Neobento we wanted to propose food that could be good for everybody: there is gluten free, lactose free, vegetarian, meat, we don’t want to be stuck in a label. Everybody is welcomed here.
Chiara: What is Neobento ?
Lionel: It’s a new food fast concept. Basically you can compose your own bento by choosing the food you would like to eat. There are several colours that correspond to different foods like vegetables, salads, meat, rice, cakes or fruit. The philosophy at Neobento is based on three values that are the same as mine in my daily life :
- Responsibility: towards our planet, my employees, my clients and suppliers.
- Balance : at Neobento the food we prepare is cooked fresh everyday and it’s always a good balance between protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, taste and also fun.
- Happiness : you need to feel good and happy when you eat. We call it FeelGoodCuisine here at Neobento.
It is important to base my life as well as my work on the values I believe in and be up to them.
Chiara: What is the gluten free food that you loved the most?
Lionel: I was in Vietnam, I can’t remember its name but it was some cake with chestnut flour and a creamy heat of Bayles.
Chiara: Gluten free is…
Lionel: It‘s easy. Today there are more choices and possibilities than in the past.
Chiara: What is your next challenge?
Lionel: Keep this same spirit. It is not so easy when you start to develop your own business but that’s what I want and I’am planning to do.
To read my older post on Neobento, click here.
