Oct
26
By Lief Lett Uss
Last month I visited restaurants in Vancouver. This month I want to look at raw food restaurants here on the Island: Café Bliss in Victoria and Rawthentic eatery in Qualicum Beach. Both use organic and locally sourced food wherever possible; both serve deliciously satisfying wholesome dishes.
Café Bliss is located at 556 Pandora Avenue downtown (Tel: 250-590-5733), next to Mole restaurant not far from Mountain Equipment Co-op. It is a cozy high-ceiling juice bar serving freshly made juices, "mylk" shakes, salads, entrée's and decadent desserts. The cost may appear high to those on their first visit, but trust me, the food is top quality and immensely satisfying. Daily specials are written up on the chalk board, but there is also an available menu. I recommend the Vesuvius cracker plate ($10) and/or the chocolate "mylk" shake ($8). The cracker plate, as the name implies, comes with a generous number of large crispy seed crackers accompanied by fresh sunflower sprouts, almond hummus, salsa and olive tapenaude - a nice blend of taste sensations and quite filling. The "mylk" shake is thick and served in a 16 oz mason jar ($1 extra if you elect take-out), and I use a spoon to eat it and a straw to drink what I don't spoon out. Alternatively the daily pizza special ($8; $12 with a side salad) is a good selection as well. Posted hours are 9:30 AM to 6:30 PM, but recently they have been staying open to 7:30 PM. The chocolate desserts are also very yummy!
Rawthentic Eatery in Qualicum Beach is a must stop if we are on an up-island jaunt and a worthwhile destination in its own right. It is appealing to those who are not necessarily "raw," but who are health conscious and want value for their money, Rawthentic Eatery is located in a modern restaurant, next to Pharmasave and kitty corner from Quality Foods grocery store on one of Qualicum Beach's main streets (744A Memorial Avenue: tel: 1-250-594-72980) They advertise themselves as "gluten free," "dairy free." and "healthy." Rawthentic Eatery utilizes the flavours of Italian, East Indian and Oriental cuisines to win over the palates of those who wouldn't normally be attracted to "raw" foods: There are burgers, pizzas, wraps, lasagnas and gourmet desserts. Rawthentic Eatery also offers courses in the preparation of their foods. If I go up island this is a must-stop for me, and I usually bring back snacks and a meal or two in my portable fridge. Their hours are Monday to Saturday 10 AM to 5:00 PM; Sunday 11 AM to 4:00 PM and Friday (dinner special) 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
E-mail addresses for both restaurants are noted below:
http://www.cafebliss.ca/menu.htm
http://www.rawthenticeatery.com/