Cafe Gratitude

After a rather thorough Internet search of raw restaurants in Los Angeles I discovered that I had been to most of them. I began asking around to see if there were any I may have missed and sure enough a friend of mine mentioned Cafe Gratitude, a raw Vegan restaurant in the West Hollywood area of Los Angeles.

The atmosphere was pleasant and everyone appeared very cheerful and happy to be there. We sat in the downstairs area and ordered two raw dishes to split. The first one was named "I am Terrific"and it included pad thai style kelp noodles with veggies, basil, mint and topped with almonds. It was a little too crunchy for me as I was expecting more of a pasta taste, but my friend enjoyed it.

The second dish was named "I am Nourished," a wrap made of live curry bread with with seasonal vegetables, avocado and almond pate. That was by far my favorite raw food item I have tasted thus far. The curry bread was nothing like I've ever tasted before and I can't wait to go back to Cafe Gratitude and get another one!

We finished off our meal with two smoothies to share for dessert. We ordered the "I am Luscious" smoothie (almond milk, dates, figs, vanilla beans, and raw cacao) and the "I am Grace" smoothie (coconut milk, almond butter, dates and vanilla beans.) They were both equally as good.

After finishing our smoothies we asked for the check which came to a total of $50.03. Again, this was rather pricier than most restaurant meals but it was absolutely worth it.

Overall, I was very impressed with the entire experience. The wait staff was extra friendly and attentive and the food and drinks were beyond delicious. I would absolutely recommend Cafe Gratitude to anyone who wishes to follow the healthy raw lifestyle.

Leaf Organics

    For a fourth week in a row, a friend and I have been trying out raw food restaurants in the Los Angeles area. Some have exceeded our expectations while others have disappointed. The fourth restaurant we went to is located in Culver City, a small city that is part of Los Angeles. Leaf Organics is near the intersection of Washington and Inglewood and it's easy to see due to its bright green exterior.

   After we sat down we placed our appetizer order of guacamole with kale crisps with our waiter who was very knowledgeable of the menu and its ingredients. The portion was a good size and the kale crisps were a good change from the normal fat-filled tortilla chips that most other restaurants offer.

After devouring the appetizer (we were rather ravenous at this point) we ordered the raw mushroom avocado burger and the raw bombay burrito wrap.

The "burger" was made with a mushroom patty, raw mayo, avocado and onions. Even though it didn't taste like an actual hamburger it was delicious, as was the side salad which accompanied it.

The bombay burrito wrap was even better. It was filled with sprouted lentil croquette with a coco curry sauce and  was wrapped with collard greens. Again, this was a much healthier option that the usual flour tortillas used on most other burritos and wraps.

We were very impressed with everything so far. The service was great as was the food and the atmosphere. I almost felt better after eating everything knowing that my body was getting taken care of rather than destroyed, which is something I would normally do.

We decided to wrap things up with our usual smoothies for dessert. We ordered the protein dream (hemp protein, dates, strawberries, and nutmylk) as well as the kremesicle smoothie (strawberries, mangoes, pineapples, coconut milk and dates). There were both delicious and just the right amount of consistency and ice.

Our bill added up to $48.35. Personally, I considered the amount worth it since we ordered an appetizer, two entrees and two smoothies. I would absolutely go back to Leaf Organics again, and I'm even planning to get lunch there next week. It's a delicious, healthy place and I highly recommend it.