Day in the Life: Kriti Sehgal

The owner of Philly’s heralded trio of gluten-free eateries — Pure Fare, Agno and Yoku — on eating, shopping, and pesky parking tickets.

Photography by Courtney Apple

Photography by Courtney Apple

I wake up every morning between 6 and 6:30 a.m. If I don’t have a physical activity planned for the day, I try to get one in before work. Then I get ready, read, and do some emails before I head to Pure Fare for my morning smoothie — usually the Avocado Key Lime.

I love checking out Fante’s for kitchen tools and exploring Reading Terminal Market and local seasonal farmers’ markets around the city. There’s a great guy who sells flowers at the Rittenhouse market. The hanging baskets at Agno are from him.

It’s nice to get away from mainstream shopping and support local curated shops. I love the beautiful shops of Old City: Vagabond, Lost + Found, Sugarcube.

Photography by Courtney Apple

Photography by Courtney Apple

I collect tchotchkes like serving platters, cups, stemware and cookware for food gatherings — I love having people over. And I also collect cookbooks, recipes, parking tickets from the City of Philadelphia …

I get my heart rate up at CorePower Yoga and Body Cycle Studio. I often sneak out for a mid-morning break or lunchtime escape.

Photography by Courtney Apple

Photography by Courtney Apple

I could eat all day, every day. Food tells the narrative of your life, so I find myself exploring different places based on my cravings. My favorite meals are the things I can’t find at my restaurants — Vernick, V Street, Umai Umai.

I wear two bracelets every day. One is from my mother, and the other was a gift from my brother, who bought it for me in Turkey. I also wear a watch my father bought me after my first big lesson in business.

When I was in college at Penn, I discovered Mr. Martino’s Trattoria on East Passyunk. It has a really old-world feeling. It’s only open three days a week, and it feels like an escape from the city.

Amos Lee is one of my favorite musicians. He’s a local guy, super-talented and a great supporter of the brand. We’ve had some great conversations about food and clean eating. And he’s also gluten-free!

Published as “Day in the Life” in the November 2016 issue of Philadelphia magazine.