From the outside, the quaint yellow house perched on the corner of 138th Avenue Northeast and Bel-Red Road in Bellevue looks like a typical two-story home. But appearances can be deceiving.

Step inside, and you will discover a spacious interior with warm undertones and a natural, yet modern take on a standard meeting center.

The recently opened Zenai Center is an eco-friendly meeting place where friends, family, co-workers and first-time acquaintances can gather and break bread together. The new meeting facility is the brain child of co-founders, chef Curtis Ross and Debbie Martin.

New to Bellevue, Ross brings more than 20 years of experience as a private chef and has worked for such clients as Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith and Washington Redskins Owner Daniel Snyder.

Martin, a registered massage therapist opened a Day Spa and grew her business to more than 2,400 clients. She went onto receive national recognition in Massage & Bodywork Magazine as “one of the biggest success stories in the country” for increasing public awareness about the benefits of bodywork while raising money for a local charity to help abused children.

In 2007, Ross and Martin met and teamed up to form the company Alchemy7.

The two have brought their own brand of sustainable living through the idea of prospering community through free-flowing communication: self awareness, authentic connections and global impact.

The two-story, 4,000-square-foot Zenai Center is available for hosting holiday parties, business meetings, seminars, workshops, charity events, fashion shows, weddings and other special occasion events. The Zenai Center also offers yoga classes, workshops, events and services. In addition, the Body-Evolution Health & Fitness Technology Day Spa recently set up shop on the second floor of the center.

“We want this to be a place where people can come and enjoy the vibrant space for any type of event,” Martin explained, adding that Zenai means meditative love in Chinese and in Hebrew it means Mercy of the Divine. “It’s about each person finding their own spiritual journey. We want to embrace people’s religion whatever they may be.”

Ross and Martin not only offer an exterior place for gathering but also they have developed the concept of an Alchemy Feast. The feast involves a seven course, organic, sustainable meal centered on three components – food, mindfulness and seven eco-friendly realms. Through the span of seven courses, the Alchemy Feast allows each individual to tap into and examine the different realms, including spiritual, emotional, physical, nutritional, social, environmental and financial.

“The whole goal is to provoke conversation and insight through dining,” Martin said. “In the Japanese culture there is never business discussed, it’s about how you interact with one another over a meal. It’s great for team building through discussion and unity through food.”

The feast brings people together around the dinner table for a very healthy, organic, and 95-percent raw meal created by Ross.

“It’s like a workshop over dinner because it has some structure to it,” Martin explained. “Examining each realm lets you stimulate insight into yourself and the world around you that will have the end result of helping you transform your own self and help create an environment of healthy and sustainable living,” Ross added.

The Zenai Center hosts Alchemy Dinners, a more condensed version involving four courses, once a month. The space is limited to 20 people to keep the gathering intimate. Composed questions keep the conversation thoughtful and flowing while Ross prepares Conscious Cocktails and the four course meal.

For an alternative take on traditional Thanksgiving dinner, the Zenai Center is opening its doors for a Thanksgiving Alchemy Feast on Nov. 27 at 4 p.m.

Ross and Martin soon will be taking their concept to the red carpet. On Feb. 22, they will host the first green Alchemy Feast for the Oscars. The feast for around 100 people will include many high-profile celebrities who are deeply rooted in the sustainable movement.

“Everyone has this belief that raw and healthy food may be very plain-Jane and bland, but what I’ve done is really infused a lot of spices and herbs to bring out the rich flavors in each ingredient, creating an authentic taste and flavor,” Ross explained.

For personal enrichment, Ross offers assistance in enhancing individual’s health through food in an eight-week, intensive meal planning and nutritional consultation program.

Ross and Martin also host a radio show every Wednesday from 2-3 p.m. on KKNW Alternative Talk Radio, 1150AM.

For more information on the Zenai Center visit www.zenaicenter.com. For more on Alchemy7, check out www.alchemyfeast.com.

Lindsay Larin can be reached at llarin@bellevuereporter.com or at 425-453-4602.