San Antonio Food Entrepreneurs: Meet Katie Danielson of Zen Monkey

Army veteran Katie Danielson was transitioning to civilian life in Los Angeles and looking for a new career when she met Eric Glandian, her future partner, in 2012. Together, the couple co-founded Zen Monkey, a company that specialized in overnight oats, a nutrient dense meal with oats, greek yogurt and fruit, without additives or artificial flavors.

“There’s some sort of [outlying perception] that healthy food is expensive or reserved for people who have the time to make big meals,”she said. “We wanted to make something that was accessible to everyone, financially accessible and better for you; better than a muffin or pop-tart or breakfast sandwich.”

Zen Monkey was selected as one of the top 25 finalists in the 2016 H-E-B’s Quest for Best competition, and have since brought their products to major grocery store chains including H-E-B, Publix and Hy-Vee.

The couple relocated all manufacturing and business operations to a facility in Danielson’s hometown, San Antonio, within the last two years, and they hope to share new developments with the community in 2019.

“We do have some things in the works, but we’re really excited for our growth so far,” Danielson said.

So many restaurants, so little time. Find out the latest San Antonio dining news with our Flavor Friday Newsletter.