A visit to a new restaurant in Agoura Hills gave the Ferbas family of Malibu a fresh take on vegetables, and another way to incorporate them into their diet.

Kathie and John Ferbas took 8-year-old daughter Ashley, a third-grader at Webster Elementary, to a new restaurant over the hill—Ladyface Alehouse. John, who enjoys a beer now and again, wanted to sample their microbrews.      

What happened next is one of those small moments that, in retrospect, can have an unexpected, lasting impact.

Ashley ordered the sliders as a kids meal, and with it came an ingeniously presented side dish. The waitress plunked down a canning jar filled with fresh-cut vegetables. Ashley was charmed, and began munching.

“Normally, when kids get veggies at a restaurant, they’re kind of disgusting," Kathie said. "Little baby carrots in a little package—not kid appealing. This caught your eye immediately, and on top of that, I tried to steal them from her, which only made her want them more."

The presentation was so charming (who doesn’t love a canning jar?), and the veggies so fresh and simple, they were irresistible. While Ashley loved carrots and celery before, now she loved them even more.  

Kathie took note, and the next day, she went out and bought canning jars for their own kitchen table. Then she copied the restaurant’s idea. Same result. Ashley was charmed, and munched away on her favorites—celery, carrots, raw green beans and cherry tomatoes—oblivious to the nutritional goodness. Sometimes, the presentation is paramount, isn’t it?

Now the veggie jars are a common occurrence at the Ferbas family table. “We do it for dinner frequently," Kathie said. "I’ll do it when I’m making a vegetable I don’t think she will eat or when we have had salad six days in a row, and she is tired of salad. We make a vegetable with every single meal, so this gives us some options."

Her other trick is to source the carrots wisely. “We only buy our carrots from the carrot dude at the Malibu Farmers Market," Kathie said. "Anyone who shops there will know him! Carrots right out of the ground—we eat them unpeeled and eat every last bite. Best carrots ever."

There’s a new emphasis on freshness and nutrition across the country, with first lady Michelle Obama’s initiative to battle childhood obesity and chef Jamie Oliver’s newsmaking effort to make school lunches healthier.

Closer to home, the Ferbas family found a way to build on a foundation of veggie-eating that was not only painless, but delicious.

Maybe the rest of us can follow their lead, and make canning jars full of fresh vegetables common at dinner tables all over Malibu!