Pure Food and Wine, New York

When Sarma Melngailis stumbled upon the idea of a raw, vegan diet, she decided to try it out for two weeks tops. By the end of her first week, though, she knew she’d found something that would not only guide her personal dietary choices in the future but could also inspire a new business. One Lucky Duck is the third notch in her entrepreneurial belt, just behind her other restaurant, Pure Food and Wine, and a cookbook called Raw Food/Real World: 100 Recipes to Get the Glow. From locations in Chelsea and Gramercy, she and her staff dole out savory entrees, such as zucchini and tomato lasagna, falafel, thai lettuce wraps, and a portobello and hemp-seed burger. They’ve even mastered the art of the vegan dessert, including moon pies, mallomars, and milk shakes, and magazines such as InStyle have lauded their freshly pressed juices.