Once I discovered that I had intolerances to foods such as gluten, dairy, eggs, and peanuts I had to figure out what it was that I could eat. I found that I would look for vegan food not because I don’t eat meat but because there is no dairy in it. And from there I discovered raw food.
I first went to the raw food restaurant, Gorilla Food, when I attended BCIT’s Vancouver location. With having so many food intolerances it is very difficult to find things to eat out. I regularly brought food for lunch to class but there are those times when you just want to grab something when you are out. Gorilla Food was perfect for that and I had a couple of tasty lunches and yummy smoothies while there. I have to say I was super impressed with the raw food creations.
The other thing I missed greatly was access to desserts. Shortly after completing my program at BCIT I moved to Victoria where I discovered the amazing Bliss Cafe. It was there that I discovered raw food desserts. They had amazing food, too but it was the desserts that were my newest discovery. They were like gourmet morsels of yumminess made with ingredients I could eat (and no sugar – sugar is actually another problem of mine but that is a whole other post).
Eventually I moved back to the lower mainland and greatly missed the Bliss Cafe and didn’t live anywhere close to Gorilla Food. Then Organic Connections opened in White Rock. I only made it there a couple of times but I loved sitting looking out over the beach while I ate my tasty treats. Unfortunately, it closed down. (I do hope something else goes in that location soon …right now it stands empty and I really loved the peacefulness of looking out over the beach).
Then, recently a friend of mine let me know that there was a new raw food restaurant in Langley …only about 20 minutes from me. Yay! It is really nice to have an option of a place to stop for a snack that I can easily eat and healthy (this is actually a difficult task) should I need one. So, a couple of weeks ago I stopped in at Viva Verde Cafe. It is a little place just off the beaten path. I had the enchilada wrap as well as a dessert. My daughter had a smoothie. It was all yummy and the proprietor was very friendly, too. You can tell he is proud of his business and wants to do well by his customers as he was genuinely interested in what brought us there and what we were looking for. I have to say I am happy to have a raw food restaurant within reach again.
Babayaya 