A Quezon City-based healthy food delivery service which started in April this year found a receptive market and soon expanded rapidly to launch a catering service and a new restaurant.
Rodrigo ‘Rad’ Pelayo, a licensed physical therapist and lifestyle coach, teamed up with nutritionists, chefs, doctors and entrepreneurs to open the first restaurant of Healthy Meals PH at the ground floor of MC2 Building along Congressional Ave. in Quezon City.
“Do you know that 80 percent of the population right now are consciously managing their weight. But with the busy lifestyle, the traffic, the meetings, we order fast food. Our advocacy is to transition people to a healthy lifestyle,” he says.
Pelayo, 39, says Healthy Meals PH is the first in the Philippines to serve complete and balanced food. It started as a gastronomic delivery service, before offering catering and then opening a restaurant just this month. It provides meals with the specific calorie count for weight loss, weight gain, and keto diet.
Pelayo says healthy meals do not have to taste bland. The meals are complete and balanced in the sense that they consist of fruits, vegetables, protein, healthy fats and carbohydrates, he says.
Health Meals PH also offers high-protein meats for muscle-building, meals prepared for diabetic and hypertensive individuals and lunch box for children.
“Our meals are not only healthy but also delectable,” says Pelayo.
“Our advocacy at Healthy Meals PH is to help people transition to a healthy lifestyle of eating in the most convenient way,” he says.
“I know the market because I’m one of them. I used to weigh around 210 pounds before, with a waistline of 39 inches. Now, it is down to 33 or 34 inches. I’m happy with that,” says Pelayo, who is also into sales and marketing.
Pelayo, who lives independently in a Quezon City condominium, thought about Healthy Meals PH one morning because he got tired of ordering fast food but could not find a store that could deliver healthy but delicious meals.
“Sometimes, the problem is you don’t know what food to order. Sometimes, the food tastes bland. That’s why we developed Healthy Meals PH,” says Pelayo.
Pelayo says Healthy Meals PH is different from other health food delivery services because it follows the right approach. “The difference is we are not a dieting company. We are a holistic company that serves complete and balanced meals,” he says.
“Your food doesn’t have to be tasteless. It is not a starvation plan, it is a diet plan,” he says.
“I am a licensed physical therapist and I have an experience in the pharma industry. That is why I want it holistic and scientific,” he says.
Healthy Meals PH has gained following through the Internet, with early customers still ordering their meals every morning from the group to this day.
“We have clients who have been eating Healthy Meals PH for six or seven months already,” says Pelayo.
As a delivery service, Healthy Meals PH accepts cash on delivery which is popular among customers. It is heavily active on social media, using chatbot and real persons to answer the queries from customers. “We have a bot and actual persons who respond to the chat. We talk to our clients,” says Pelayo.
Chef Angelo, the executive chef of Healthy Meals PH, says they can adjust the meals to the calorie needs of customers. “We follow a holistic approach. Your meal doesn’t have to be complicated. We will prepare the meal for you. Just tell us and we will deliver,” he says.
“We are offering you something delicious, affordable, with good quality and it is something that you will find surprising,” he says.
