Buffables Café Wants Healthy Eating to Feel Less Like a Compromise
-
&description=Buffables Café Wants Healthy Eating to Feel Less Like a Compromise" target="_blank">Pinterest
Healthy eating has a branding problem.
Too often, it means paying a premium for something that sounds virtuous on paper but leaves you wondering why lunch felt like homework.
Craig and Grant Logan are trying to change that with Buffables Café in Tempe, a new health-driven concept built around high-quality ingredients, approachable pricing and menu items designed to taste good first — not simply check a wellness box.
The brothers created Buffables out of their shared interests in healthy cooking, eating and living, but the idea also comes with a strong hospitality pedigree.
Their father, Robert Logan, built a career with luxury hospitality brands including Four Seasons, Raffles and One&Only. Their mother, Heather Logan, ran Pomchies, and Craig and Grant later helped scale the family-owned business into a multimillion-dollar operation during the pandemic.
Growing up around resorts, food and beverage, customer service and entrepreneurship gave the brothers a front-row seat to the business long before Buffables existed.
Tempe, they say, made sense as a first location because of its mix of ASU students, nearby businesses and surrounding residents — a customer base broad enough to test whether a health-focused concept can appeal beyond one narrow wellness crowd.
Healthy, But Make It Interesting
One thing the Logans do not want Buffables to be is predictable.
Their goal is to create food and drinks people would come back for because they genuinely like them, not simply because they are labeled healthy.
That means going beyond the usual smoothie-and-açaí formula with menu items built around more unexpected combinations and house-made components.
The bowls are one example. They start with organic bases and are layered with fresh ingredients, house-made granola, whipped banana, ube coconut cream and other toppings designed to give each one its own identity.
On the drink side, the menu includes options like the Salted Vanilla Maple Latte, made with espresso, Vermont dark maple syrup, Madagascar vanilla bean powder, Maldon salt and whole milk, as well as a Strawberry Banana Matcha and a Pickle Refresh.
The point, according to the Logans, is to create something memorable enough that “healthy” becomes part of the story, not the whole reason to order it.
What “Affordable” Means Here
Buffables is also trying to push back on the idea that eating well has to be expensive.
The Logans say they built the concept to be approachable and accessible across a range of budgets, even while using higher-quality ingredients.
A few current menu examples:
- Salted Vanilla Maple Latte: $7 for 16 oz., $8 for 24 oz.
- Strawberry Banana Matcha: $7.50 for 16 oz., $8.50 for 24 oz.
- Prosciutto and Provolone Sourdough Croissant: $8.50
- Not-Avo Smash Toast: $10.50
- Lil Nutty: $13
- Go Go a Mango: $10 for 16 oz., $12 for 24 oz.
- Pickle Refresh: $6.50 for 16 oz., $7.50 for 24 oz.
That pricing is part of the larger Buffables idea: healthy eating, in their view, should not be reserved for people willing to spend heavily on every meal.
The Ingredient Details They’re Betting On
The sourcing philosophy is where Buffables starts getting more specific.
The café uses coffee roasted in small batches in Oregon, matcha sourced directly from a farm outside Tokyo, unsweetened açaí from Brazil and fresh-pressed organic juices.
Its toasts are made with sourdough from Proof Bakery, and the menu is free of seed oils, fillers and refined sugar.
The brothers also created their own granola brand, Coconut Munch, which is used in Buffables’ açaí bowls and sold separately in packaged form.
Those details matter because “healthy” is an easy word to use in restaurant marketing. Buffables is trying to define it through the ingredients themselves.
Why Tempe
With ASU nearby, plus a dense mix of offices and neighborhoods, Tempe offered the kind of audience the Logans were looking for.
They wanted a location where students, professionals and residents might all have a reason to stop in — whether for coffee, breakfast, a smoothie, lunch or something quick between everything else they are doing.
It is also a useful proving ground for the larger Buffables idea: can a health-forward café feel approachable enough to become part of someone’s regular routine rather than an occasional “being good today” stop?
That may be the more interesting question.
The Bigger Bet
The real test for Buffables is whether people come back because they want the food — not because they feel like they should eat it.
That seems to be exactly the point the Logans are chasing.
Healthy is part of the pitch.
Delicious is supposed to be the reason you return.
Disclosure: PhoenixBites received background information, pricing, ingredient details and responses to interview questions about Buffables Café from the restaurant’s public relations team and owners. This article is an informational profile and not a restaurant review. PhoenixBites has not independently evaluated the food or drinks featured here.
About the Author - Taryn Jeffries
Editor and Chief Eating Officer of PhoenixBites, 2017 Food Writer of the Year (Arizona Culinary Hall of Fame) Taryn grew up in a small town in Illinois with a doting Grandmother who taught her the way around a kitchen and that food is representative of love. Her current quest is to find the love in local dishes and the chefs behind them. In addition to running all things PhoenixBites, Taryn is also a freelance writer, sharing her insight on the best dishes and where to get them each and every month.
More Posts by Taryn Jeffries | Website | Follow Taryn Jeffries on TwitterRelated Posts
Chandler Fashion Center Is Getting Serious About Food. Here’s What’s Coming.
Chandler Fashion Center is getting a serious dining makeover. Din Tai Fung, Wagyu House and La Popular are on the way, along with a new outdoor dining district and two more food concepts still under wraps. Here's what we know so far. Read More
