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New Reviews
Recently added: Om Garden, Lifefood Gourmet, Beehive Natural Foods
Recently updated: Sheba, Ocean Drive Fusion, Spyro/Siam Rice
Coming soon: Urbanite Bistro
379 SW 15th Rd. / Miami / 305.856.4433
(Originally posted on the Miami New Times' Short Order food blog.)
After hearing about Om Garden for ages and tragically stopping by when they used to be closed Sundays, I finally arrived to see a packed house of diners already turned on to this hidden yet veg-friendly gem. Om Garden is fully vegan, a very welcome change of pace when you are used to asking waiters to pretty please make sure there is no [insert animal byproduct] in what you plan on ordering. They offer a wide variety in their impressive menu of appetizers, salads, soups, nori rolls, pizza, desserts, smoothies, and juices. A good portion the menu is also entirely raw. I started off with the "Blessed Broccoli & Cheddar" which was an incredibly flavorful chilled salad appetizer with fresh florets covered in a pine nut and sunflower seed sauce that would've made any lactose-intolerant swoon with glee. I would seriously be happy taking a tub of that into a theater instead of the yellow #5-colored, oil-laden, bucket o' heart attack that's available.
Rainbow Roll!
I couldn't stay so I ordered their Rainbow Roll and Happy Cow veggie burger to go. The Rainbow Roll came highly recommended by the staff and patrons I talked to and wow, for good reason. A rice-less roll, it featured perfectly portioned avocado, mango, beet, carrot, fig (surprisingly good) and a creamy, white coconut/cashew sauce that made everything pop, all wrapped in greens and nori, and drizzled with balsamic syrup. A friend who tried a piece summed it up well when they said, "It tastes like summer." The Happy Cow burger was nice, but paled a bit next to the roll. It was tasty (especially with the Om House Honey Mustard poured over it) but next time around I'd order it with the bread toasted to give it a bit more structure. It came with guilt-free baked sweet potatoes on the side.
Owner Dionette was super friendly and happily told me all about her establishment. She opened Om Garden in July of '08 and has gotten a great response, so much so that yes, they are now open seven days a week. Their full menu is available online and they do catering as well. As more and more people turn on to healthier (yet still delectable) eating, business for places like Om Garden are truly only going to grow. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
$$
1248 SW 22nd St. (Coral Way) / Miami / 305.856.6767
Lifefood Gourmet, which moved a while ago to an airy new location on Coral Way, promises to be a mecca for healthy eaters, vegans and raw-foodists alike. Advertised as "the most sustainable cuisine on the planet," Lifefood makes guilt-free dining easy with no dairy, wheat/gluten, soy, corn, chemicals, "strange proteins" or anything artificial -- everything on the menu is truly fresh, raw, wholesome, and thankfully, legitimately delicious.My companion and I arrived hungry and got to work on the appetizer sampler. The cucumber rolls were filled with a sumptuous nut pate that could put any cream-based filling to shame, and the Mexican nachos were smothered with a hearty amount of guacamole and pumpkin "meat" (though it could have included a few more chips as we grabbed forks to scoop up the remainder of the topping). The nori crisps were better than the best blue corn tortilla chips. The world-traveler dining next to us couldn't help but comment that he bought some to take with him on his next trip to Costa Rica, but only made it down the block before he devoured the entire bag. For the main course we split their burger and the NYC "cheese" pizza. The burger was served on sprouted quinoa bread which was great as some raw places try to use flax crackers and it ends up feeling like a giant hors d'oeuvres. It came with a side salad of house greens covered in a refreshing dill dressing that they should consider bottling for mass consumption. The pizza had a thick sun-dried crust, flavorful fresh tomatoes and toppings, and the perfect sprinkling of dried oregano to give it that real NYC feel.
Some people incorrectly suspect that eating such ridiculously nature-y food will leave them wanting but by the time we dropped our forks (and still had leftovers), we were far too full for dessert. Head chef John Schott certainly knows what he is doing as far as coming up with innovative raw recipes that are not only uniquely tasty but satisfying as well.As one might surmise, the only downside to a place like Lifefood Gourmet is that the food is a bit pricey. A "Goji Magic" shake with hemp milk, goji, hemp, maca, tocos, vanilla and honey runs $11, but the pizza was a steal at $13. Clearly though, if you bought all those fresh, organic ingredients at Whole Foods, the bill plus the time to prepare everything makes it more than a bargain for what you get. Lifefood also uses biodegradable/recycled tableware amongst other eco-friendly practices so you can feel good supporting such a progressive and necessary local business. Highly recommended.
$$
5750 Bird Rd. / Miami / 305.663.1300
In business since the '70s in a strip mall on Bird Road, Beehive Natural Foods could be considered the Honey Tree of the South - it's a quaint, unassuming health food store with a kick-ass lunch counter in the back. The dishes are made fresh daily, all vegetarian, mostly vegan and often macrobiotically-friendly too. They're open 10am to 7pm Monday through Saturday but word is that the lunch usually doesn't start 'til around 1pm. Over the years I've had all sorts of meatless delights there - heaping plates of beans and brown rice, seitan/tofu empanadas, tasty soups - yet the best thing about eating here is that everything they serve is just super-duper good for you. The "ambiance" of this tiny lunch spot may be a bit off-putting to people not used to crunchy veggie hangouts but they'll get over it once they visit a time or two. The counter only has a small handful of stools and there are just a few plastic tables outside so the bulk of their business seems to be take-out. I MUST now mention that one of the best items they offer is frozen banana custard, in which they put frozen bananas into this magical machine and it comes out as smooth, creamy, banana soft-serve goodness! They can even add cashews, cinnamon, acai or other fruit to it and it's freakin' delicious and hard to believe that there's no dairy or anything else involved. I'm *this* close to getting one of those machines for my apartment... Of course they also make fresh juices and smoothies, so if you're cruising on Bird and are despairing over all the fast food and steak houses, make a bee-line to Beehive, a local veggie oasis.
$$
18315 West Dixie Hwy. / North Miami / 305.935.9544
Hungry but can't decide what you want? In need of a smoothie or wheatgrass shot or pineapple-strawberry lemonade or all three to quench your thirst?? Well here's a suggestion with a selection - tucked between the train tracks and West Dixie near Aventura is a hidden gem called the Big Squeeze which boasts a massive menu of healthy goodness. A brief run-down of the sections: Breakfast (served 'til noon), Starters and Sides, Sandwiches, Hot and Cold Wraps, Melts, Platters, Salads, Specials and more. I had a huge pita sandwich with a big ol' slab of grilled tofu and my companion had a yummy falafel salad with tahini dressing. Happily, they're one of those places that realizes the importance of delicious dips and sauces in vegetarian eating and they offer several options (and for the flesh-eaters they do offer lean chicken and fish). Then there is the ginormous selection of fresh-pressed juices and whole fruit smoothies. You can sit on their nice patio or just walk up to their diner counter. I really wish this place was closer to my house, but I try to hit it up whenever I'm in the area. For those of you lucky enough to live nearby, they even deliver.$$
14815 Biscayne Blvd. / North Miami Beach / 305.405.6700
1013 N Federal Hwy. / Ft. Lauderdale / 954.358.5353
196 N Federal Hwy. / Deerfield Beach / 954.427.5353
2378 Weston Rd. / Weston / 954.641.5353
I finally made it up to Pizza Fusion in Ft. Lauderdale after hearing raves about it from several different reliable sources. This is an up-and-coming pizza chain whose entire operation is not only tasty, but eco-friendly, health-conscious and good-lookin' too. They offer dairy and vegan cheese options, wheat and gluten-free crusts, organic ingredients, biodegradable flatware and even use hybrid Priuses for their delivery vehicles! I had the rosemary mushroom pizza with whole wheat crust and it was fresh and delicious, and not drowning in globs of cheese like many places. Their pizzas are shaped as these sort of oblong ovals and the large I ordered seemed to last forever. They also have a selection of salads that looked yummy (vegetarian with meat as an ADD-ON, as it should be!), organic teas, sodas and a beer and wine menu. Besides that the whole packing of the place was tight, cute and creative, (I was later hardly surprised to learn that one of the founders was also a graphic designer) - a counter flier I grabbed advertised their "Date Night" special which offered a deal on 2 glasses of wine or soda and a medium pizza to share. With all these plusses (and locations in 13 states already) I foresee more Pizza Fusions popping up all over in the near future... Miami next please! Of course all this green-y organic-ness does raise the price-points a bit, but it's still only marginally more expensive than a "fancy" pizza place like Andiamo, and it's organic. Pizza Fusion rocks and I hope that other restaurants start taking a hint from them, providing healthy, delicious foods, being environmentally responsible, and fully accommodating all modern dietary needs and preferences. It's the undeniable future of modern dining. [UPDATE: Just read that one is coming to North Miami Beach - hurrah!]$$
PIZZA FUSION'S WEBSITE
5505 NE 2nd Ave. / Miami / 305.758.5862 x5Okay okay, OBVIOUSLY I'm biased here here but I still gotta spread the word... Sweat Records is my independent music store, opened in March 2005, hit hard and forced to move by Hurricane Wilma, and now quite happily settled into our cute new permanent space next-door to Churchill's. When we reopened here, we added an awesome full-service coffee and tea counter that's completely organic and fair-trade whenever possible. We offer soy milk, cow milk, and rice milk, and for sweeteners we've got raw cane sugar, organic honey, agave nectar for the vegans, and "Organic Zero" which is a non-chemical alternative no-calorie sweetener. Even our cups and napkins are recycled! We carry a full line of herbal and maté teas, AND we offer Numi Organic Flowering Tea Service which is a hand-sewn rosette of tea leaves, served in a clear pot with clear teacups, that blossoms as it seeps. It's a wonderful aesthetic experience and a nice idea for a date! Definitely our specialty and best-seller is our dark, velvety espresso, which is meticulously prepared in true Italian fashion (seriously, we had to take classes on this!). In addition to the beverages, we carry EARTHCAKES Vegan Cupcakes (locally-made and OH SO DELICIOUS), Pro Bar Whole Food Meal Bars, and Primal Strips Vegan Jerky. We're open 12 to 12 every single day and have great music and free wi-fi so stop by and hang out! We've got St*rb*cks beat six different ways.$
SWEAT RECORDS' WEBSITE
3300 Grand Ave. / Miami / 305.238.7747Not a restaurant per se but still a seriously amazing resource for vegans, vegetarians, and foodies in general - basically this place is mandatory if you like to eat! For the last 20 years, Redlands-based Glaser Organic Farms has been dedicated to "growing the finest naturally grown organic produce and preparing gourmet raw foods." Since the Redlands ain't exactly around the corner for most of us, every Saturday from 10am to sunset they set up a fantastic farmers market on a vacant lot.
There's so much goodness abounding we're just going to make a list and you can salivate accordingly: AMAZING juices (honeydew, sugar cane, almond milk, mint lemonade with wildflower honey, cactus fruit!), packets of fresh spices, dried fruits and nuts, trail mixes, a huge variety of fruits and vegetables, raw nori rolls, raw fruit pies (if you've never had one of these make it a priority!), sprouted breads, hand-churned vegan ice cream with toppings, pantry items like nut butters and oils, fresh baby coconut water, and a bar of chilled ready-to-eat salads and items like pesto-pate-stuffed portobello caps and the funkiest, chunkiest, cilantro-lime guacamole you ever had.
Everything is fresh, colorful and flavorful. Their website also has an online store where you can order certain items, find out about raw cooking classes, and even arrange a tour of their facilities. For the Grove location, the increasing gentrification in that area is worrisome, but Glaser's quality and selection will easily help them stick around for another 20 years. The other downside is that it's definitely pricey, but might as well rationalize it any way you can - sometimes it's important to indulge and what better way than with natural, delicious fuel for your one and only body.
$$
115B SW 107th Ave. / Miami / 305.553.0078Meatless Miami can't be everywhere so here is a guest review from our good friend Kent Loftin who works for the wonderful organization Best Buddies International: "I went to a dope new veggie place right next to FIU that I would love to see on Meatless Miami. The name is "Vegetarian Restaurant" and all the ingredients are fresh - no canned veggies or processed foods. They have a set plate daily like Garden of Eatin' which today was yummy black beans and rice, a beet salad, a white sweet potato topped with salsa, and a garden salad. I also tried the pizza which was a delish blend of veggies on a whole wheat crust. My friends had the veggie empanadas which were good, and the pastelitos which are filled with guava and soy cheese. I tried the strawberry and pineapple cake, with tofu based icing, and they were tasty enough for me to get an extra piece to bring home with me. There are also daily soups, fruit salads, health shakes, sandwiches and other dishes that will keep the 305 vegetarians smiling, not to mention that the place is cheap. I watched them making the fruit juices and they were 100% pure, try the pineapple juice!"
They're open daily 10am to 6pm so this is a great new lunch spot for people in the Sweetwater area. Thanks again Kent!
$
Rainbow Roll!
