DINE+WINE - nibbles + bites
Find smoothies, salads, paninis, soups and acai bowls at the cafe.
Eat What Your Body
Craves
How can we find nutritional balance, especially heading into the holidays when we’re tempted with more fatty dishes and sweets? Stop in at Vitality Bowls and make a meal of delicious smoothies, salads, paninis, soups and acai bowls—bursting with nutrient-rich superfoods. “You’re going to feel like you’re eating something decadent but it’s all healthy,” says Ted Flinter, who helps his wife and owner, Karine, with the cafe.
Moved from Abu Dhabi and opened Vitality Bowls Karine and Ted investigated several different franchise opportunities while planning their return to the United States from Abu Dhabi. They loved the concept of Vitality Bowls but had not tried the food. Ted had tried competitors’ acai bowls and was not impressed. So, with some skepticism, he flew from Abu Dhabi to San Francisco in January 2019 to meet the founders and explore the business prospect. Ted loved the food, and instead of buying one franchise, he bought three. Karine was fully on board. On July 24, 2020, they opened their first Vitality Bowls in Cornelius. Although neither has a professional culinary degree, 68
LAKE NORMAN CURRENTS | NOVEMBER 2020
Superfoods café Vitality Bowls in Cornelius by Karel Bond Lucander photography by Jamie Cowles
they have both traveled the world extensively and sampled different foods—from Michelin-starred restaurants to street fare. As Karine says, “We have almost 100 years of eating experience, combined!” And they know a good thing when they taste it.
Met during United Nations Peacekeeping Missions Born and raised near Montreal, Karine was a broadcast journalist in Canada, did Peacekeeping work in Kosovo and later joined the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Originally from New York, Ted graduated from Duke University, served in the Marine Corps and eventually worked with United Nations Peacekeeping Missions in Africa. They met in 2001 while in Kinshasa, DRC for their respective United Nations Peacekeeping Missions and have been together ever since. In 2007, they moved to the United Arab Emirates when Ted cofounded a company providing military and paramilitary training in the Middle East and North Africa. In 2012, they vacationed in Lake Norman, loved it and bought a house. After spending summers here, in June 2019 they moved from Abu Dhabi to Cornelius with their three sons.
