Casa de Luz is a little piece of paradise in the heart of the city. Located in downtown Austin near South Lamar and Barton Springs Road, Casa de Luz offers a plethora of good food, good exercise, good people and, above all, a sense of community. The Casa is a restaurant, Yoga/Tai Chi dojo, community meeting place, Montessori school and macrobiotic culinary school all rolled into one. Beginning with a philosophy of integrity and freedom, and encompassing a macrobiotic vegan menu, Casa de Luz fosters a sense of health and well-being within the community by providing a place to experience an alternative vision to today's often-disastrous lifestyle. 

 

The menu at Casa is astounding. The food is simple and is wonderful for this very reason. Don't we too often taste the sauce and not the food -- the proverbial ketchup problem. The cooks at Casa try to highlight the food itself through loving preperation and simple fare. Pickled red sauerkraut, creamy kabocha coconut soup and wonderful green salads are just a few tasty items that grace the menu and the palate. The meals at Casa de Luz are 100 percent organic, vegan and often include herbs grown on site, as well as fermented foods made in house. Prices are affordable all around. (They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner.) The atmosphere provides a serene dining experience where communion with your food is a joy.

 

Casa also offers classes in Vinyasa Yoga, Satyananda Yoga, Yoga Flow, Hatha Flow and Yoga en Español, as well as Tai Chi. There are classes every week and there is even a yoga class for the kids. Casa also offers relaxation classes, deep inquiry sessions and massage therapy. As if this wasn't enough, the Natural Epicurean Culinary School offers an 800-hour culinary arts program through Casa de Luz. It is great to go to Casa de Luz for a refreshing, healthy, all-natural meal, but with the courses offered there you can learn to make them at home. Casa de Luz also offers facilities to the community for rent in order to foster community ties and relationships. With community in mind, Casa de Luz is in the process of designing and building a holistic village to support its ideals on healthy living.

 

The Parkside School, Casa de Luz's contribution to the next generation, was formed in 1991 by Joe and Claire Bruno, MaryAnn Justman and Wayo Longoria. Parkside is a Montessori school boasting almost 150 students. The school is a non-profit organization. This helps provide an even economic and demographic distribution among students. The curriculum is wide ranging but is based on some overlying theme that ties all parts of the curriculum together into a cohesive educational experience. Parkside takes children up to 12 for enrollment and classes span three age groups in order to provide a mentoring atmosphere to students.

 

As you can see, Casa de Luz is a shining example of what can be done when people take good ideas and good work ethic and put it to use.  The city of Austin is a brighter place for being home to Casa de Luz, or House of Light.  The food itself is worth talking about, but Casa de Luz demands much more.