We were in Santa Monica with my sister and decided to grab a bite with our significant others and a roommate at a nearby-ish restaurant that I was totally curious about: Cafe Gratitude! I’m so grateful (excuse the pun) that we did!
It is tucked into a building in Venice, honestly the perfect city for a place like this. 🙂
When I say “a place like this,” it is truly a San Francisco type of restaurant, which is where it originated. It was apparently created out of a board game intended to have people pay attention to what they should be grateful for. Everything is vegan and 100% organic and you order as an affirmation. See, everything on the menu is named a positive attribute, so if you wanted the seasonal raw soup of the day, you would say “I Am Adventurous.” Also, they have a question of the day. Ours was, “Who Do You Love?” That was an easy one!
Before any of that scares you away, let me remind you that L.A. is a tough town to have a restaurant survive. Therefore, the food has to be good even after you strip away all of the gimmicks. I wouldn’t say this is a gimmicky restaurant per se, but it definitely has some out-of-the-box concepts outside of the food that get people in the door!
Now to the food!
Roasted Garnet yams with rosemary served with spicy nacho cheese or coconut mint chutney
We had it with the spicy nacho cheese, which was made of cashews and really great! I am a yam lover anyways, so it was just extra delicious. 🙂
Maple-miso glazed Brussels sprouts
I am always ecstatic about Brussels sprouts, and this glaze was indeed terrific. In fact, the entrées are next, and I ordered…
Cooked soup of the day
It was a mushroom soup, which came in an enormous bowl! I wasn’t exactly expecting cream of mushroom (remember no dairy), and it actually resembled a miso soup in some ways. Maybe it was the umami flavor?
Seasonal kelp noodle pasta. Raw Pad Thai with marinated kelp noodles tossed in Thai almond sauce with carrots, red bell pepper and shredded kale. Finished with teriyaki almonds and sunflower sprouts
I thought this one should be called “Adventurous” because it is a bit off the wall. Kelp noodles? But then again I am a carb-aholic and have tried shirataki noodles (made of tofu), zucchini noodles, broccoli slaw, and spaghetti squash to satisfy my cravings. This is honestly the closest to the texture of regular pasta that I have ever found! Also, I am not convinced that the description above is the exact pasta I had. It was more of a yogurt sauce, which at first seemed odd, but it was completely addicting by the end! Also, somehow I was completely full by the end of eating this. Kelp is filling!
Two organic corn tacos with chipotle butternut squash, black beans, avocado, seasonal salsa fresca, and cashew nacho cheese. Served with a side of Mexican coleslaw
Fresh and delicious. I mean, doesn’t it just look tasty!
Indian curried lentils over local brown rice or quinoa with oven-roasted Garnet yams and sauteed spinach drizzled with a spicy mint chutney and sweet tamarind sauce. Finished with chopped scallion
My guy ordered this one and I thought it was fantastic! On a side note, I think that they should have named the item that was “Humble” a pie of some sort. Right?
Mexican bowl with black beans, guacamole, seasonal pico de gallo, pickled winter vegetables, cashew nacho cheese and toasted pepitas. Served with your choice of local brown rice or quinoa on a bed of chopped romaine
This was my sister’s entrée and as much as we thought it was great (we always share everything around the table), we were a bit confused by someone saying “I Am Mucho.” Just doesn’t make sense… However, it was delicious and she is trying to lighten up in preparation for the wedding…a year away!
Homemade veggie burger on a whole wheat bun with lettuce, tomato, pickles, onion, mustard sauce, and spicy chipotle ketchup. Served with a side salad
My sister’s fiancé is a big guy, so he went for the “burger.” This is the picture that I showed you up top. I actually think that the patty looks like pastrami, don’t you?
It not only looks great, it actually tastes great! Honestly, we went around the table and everyone said that they would order the same dish again. Everyone was completely satisfied! And of course, our plates asked us one more time…
Now, we already knew that we were ordering dessert because my sister’s fiancé has ordered the key lime pie every time they eat at Cafe Gratitude. In my sister’s words, he is obsessed.
Key Lime Pie. Creamy avocado-lime custard topped with coconut meringue in a pecan-macadamiadate crust
As promised, it was delicious. My guy loved it so it obviously has an effect on the men!
Strawberry Shortcake
Actually, we didn’t have a bite of this because I had ordered the “Dessert of the Day,” which she told me was a coconut pineapple dessert. They ended up taking it back because they had one more piece left.
Raw Layer Cake of the Day – Coconut Pineapple
This was the one bummer of the day. 🙁 It was super crumbly and dry. Also, the taste wasn’t nearly as pineapple-y or coconut-y as we wanted it to be. The one dish we didn’t like and actually went unfinished. Not bad considering all of the items that we ordered!
Strawberry-meringue pie topped with cashew coconut whipped cream in a Brazil nut and cashew crust
This on the other hand was heavenly! We all adored this one and it was beautiful and so fresh tasting. I could have devoured it all on my own!
It was a lovely experience and I honestly enjoyed everything that we tried. I would love to go back and try some more of the dishes that I was curious about. Now, don’t think you got away clean without answering…
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