About

Coming Out of the Garden is a collaboration by two typical Texas dudes, Jordan and Owen, who wanted to share their plant-based lifestyle with the world. The origin of Coming Out of the Garden comes from all of the awkward, uncomfortable, sometimes hostile and unfriendly conversation we had with our friends, family and acquaintances. The "Coming Out" process was honestly not easy for us. In beef and BBQ loving Texas, eating animals is the way of life in these parts. Anything contrary is un-American, or worse, not Texan. We're not trying to say it was the most difficult thing we've ever done, or that it was more or less difficult than coming out of any other closets.  Everyone has closets in one form or another.  For us, ours was that we disagreed with the culture we had been raised in, and no longer wanted to support it. We wanted to change what we ate, what we wore, how we viewed animals and many other aspects of our lifestyles. Once we figured out how to "Come Out", we did, and continue to do every time we meet someone else who is confused or interested in why we eat and live the way we do. The hardest people to come out to were our friends, family and close colleagues. But we're past it now. We came out of the garden and wanted to share what we learned along the way with you!


Jordan on Owen

O’s plant based adventures began in 2014, when he and I teamed up together to create healthy, vegan and mostly raw snack food and BAMF recipes to share with our friends. Owen was one of my first friends I “came out” to. While he was a little confused and had lots of questions way back when, he
was always supportive and wanted me to do what was best for my body. O is one of the most caring, selfless dudes I know and he’s always looked out for me, especially when I was at my weakest health wise. He has a counter-culture, creative knack for new ideas and always questions the status-quo. When not working for a world class marketing firm, Owen can be found riding his bike, cooking, or going on hikes and canoeing with his lovely girlfriend Chelsea (ask them about alligators!!!). O is also quite the sports enthusiast, designer and weight lifting guru. He brings a lot of expertise and joy to the table and I wouldn’t want to be taking this adventure with anyone else. Fun fact about Owen, he walked on to the Division I, SMU Football Team having not played football in high school (our school didn’t have a team.


Owen on Jordan
I've known Jordan for quite some time, but we've really have become best friends since graduating college. And, I have to say that you will rarely meet someone as genuine as Jordan. He's a great man of character and he always does the right thing, even when no one is looking. He was born to be a leader, but a medical discharge from the US Navy kept him away from pursuing his dream. I can't imagine his difficult transition, but things in life happen for a reason and I believe that it was to lead others in a different way. Jordan "came out" and adopted a plant-based diet, which remarkably improved his health. His unconventional desire to heal his body naturally made me question my own lifestyle. He may not know it, but he changed my life and he even affected my family's eating habits. I know Jordan's enthusiasm to go vegan will continue to inspire others. It may not seem very valiant as being a midshipman, but I think changing someone's life seems just as gallant! You can find Jordan being just as passionate in anything he does, whether he's riding his bike, doing yoga, going on a hike, or cheering on his Spurs. He's an intense individual and gives life his whole 100 percent effort. He currently works as a civil engineer and even aspires to help cure the world! I'm proud to have JB as a friend, and I can't wait to take on this next endeavor with him.