Everyone deserves a reliable partner to guide them towards continuous success.
Let Mindful Eats by Melissa be that support for you!
Hi, I’m Melissa!
I’m the face behind Mindful Eats—a New York-based Registered Dietitian, Trained Chef, and PhD candidate in Integrative & Functional Nutrition. I have a deep passion about nutrition, science and the power of food.
I offer:
✔️ Weekly meal prep for individuals and families
✔️ Small event and dinner party catering
✔️ Private and small group cooking classes (in-home)
✔️ Nutrition counseling with an intuitive eating approach
✔️ Grocery store tours & kitchen clean-outs
✔️ Recipe development & blog writing
My goal is to reach as many people as possible to promote nutritious and delicious eating experiences throughout the world!
Let’s cook, nourish, and thrive—one meal at a time!
MY APPROACH
I DON’T BELIEVE IN DIETS— ALL FOODS FIT & SHOULD BE ENJOYED!
Food is meant to be enjoyed, not feared. My approach to nutrition and cooking is all about keeping things fun, simple, and satisfying—because life’s too short for bland meals and food guilt! I love using whole fruits, vegetables and whole grains in my meals to create delicious, nourishing dishes, and I encourage my clients to do the same. Whether I’m meal prepping, catering, or offering nutrition counseling, I craft a personalized, one-of-a-kind experience based on each client’s dietary needs and taste preferences.
When it comes to nutrition counseling, I take a client-focused, individualized approach—because let’s face it, there’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to food! All food is good food. All foods fit. One thing to note after numerous years of school, food should bring joy, spark memories, and bring people together.
Our relationship with food is way more valuable than any single ingredient.
MYTH vs. FACT:
Intuitive Eating Edition
❌ Myth: Intuitive eating means eating whatever you want, whenever you want, with no regard for nutrition.
✅ Fact: Intuitive eating is about listening to your body’s hunger and fullness cues while also honoring your health. It’s about choosing foods that satisfy both your cravings and your well-being—because yes, a salad and a slice of cake can exist in the same world (and on the same plate!).
Bottom line? You don’t need to “cheat” on your “diet” when there’s NO diet to begin with! Let’s ditch the food rules and make eating enjoyable again—one delicious bite at a time.
MY STORY
2000s – Ever since I was three years old I have been in the kitchen with my mom from eating raw potatoes, to eating carrots and learning the ins and outs of the kitchen. I have learnt family recipes and been cooking them for years now. In my religious beliefs most holidays revolve around sitting around a table and enjoying traditional foods around the table.
2014 – I went to a summer culinary program for 4 weeks in Manhattan to see if my passion still aligned with wanting to go to culinary school to become a chef and let me just tell you it only further drove me to want to fulfill my dreams and proceed to becoming the ultimate chef.
2016 – (From 2016-2018) Where it all began I started my culinary journey at Johnson and Wales University in providence RI with learning the ins and outs of the kitchen in a industrial way.
2017 – The summer I worked as an intern at Cork and Slice, the Kosher Italian fresh pasta and pizza place but that led to the following year…
2018 – part of this year worked at Doma Land & Sea the amazing steakhouse learning so many valuable skills and then I went back to RI to further my education in culinary nutrition through 2019 which that lead me to continue my journey to become a Registered dietitian always loving nutrition and healthy eating.
2019 – I started to work as a private chef for clients while continuing to be at school.
2020 – I did a culinary nutrition internship at stony brook university conducting an amazing research study the impact protein may have for cancer patients. The pilot study was conducted for healthy medical students having to go through different phases of high and low protein diet to see the impact. I was helping with the culinary aspect of making the meals, overseeing operations in the kitchen and lastly ensuring each participant got the appropriate nutrient needs (calories, protein, carbs, fat). (see the partnership page for full article)
2021 – I started my dietetic internship at stony brook university, yes soon after covid hit so it was definitely an experience. Imagine changing job every 4-6 weeks, that is what an internship is to get your license.
2022 – I graduated from my masters program in integrative and functional nutrition, passed my RDN exam and became a dietitian and started to work in a nutritional supplements company learning more about integrative aspects, and halfway through the year I started to work at my full-time job as a clinical outpatient dietitian.
2023 – I got the itch to start cooking again so took on some private clients and just cooked healthy nutritious and amazing meal prep for them.
NOW – I balance my time between my role as a RDN at my outpatient job counseling patients about healthy eating concerning many different disease states, having grocery stores, and having private cooking clients and counseling with recipe development in my free time, as well as a PhD student studying integrative and functional nutrition.
SPECIALTIES
Pregnancy, infertility, postpartum
Overweight and obesity
Autoimmune diseases (Diabetes, celiac)
Cardiovascular health issues
Mental health (depression, migraines, anxiety)
Mindful Eats By Melissa 