Plant Food and Wine

I can’t believe today marks the beginning of July. The summer has already flown by! Next week I’ll be back with my regularly scheduled posts, along with some exciting beauty reviews I’ve been promising. But first, I wanted to share a yummy outing my dear friend Lisa and I had last month at Plant Food and Wine in Venice Beach.

Lisa is always up for trying new restaurants so when she invited me to join her for vegan food at Plant Food and Wine I jumped at the chance. I had heard incredible things about their locally sourced ingredients (some grown right at the restaurant) and while neither of us is vegan, we knew we had to check it out.
We started off with their flora artisanal cheeseboard. I know what you’re thinking – how can dairy-free cheese be any good, but trust me, this was delicious. Made with nuts and truffles, each varietal was so incredibly creamy I couldn’t believe there wasn’t any dairy. Accompanied by their gluten-free fennel crackers, it was the perfect first course.We moved on to smoked hummus, smashed avocado and their MK salad with mixed greens, sprouts, avocado, hemp seeds, olives and lemon dressing. As an avocado lover, this course pretty much made my day. I could have stopped there and left a very happy lady, but we moved on to their curried cauliflower tacos and socca, which only got better. Socca is like a pancake made from leeks and garbanzo beans. They top it with fresh asparagus, heirloom tomatoes and mint. It was filling and savory in the best possible way.After dinner we of course had to order dessert. I normally can’t eat cheesecake so I was delighted to try their pistachio and ginger concoction (again, dairy-free!) topped with rhubarb. We also ordered a plate of their gourmet chocolates, bon bons and truffles. It was the perfect decadent end to a fabulous meal.The best part about our dinner was how satiated I felt afterwards. Rather than feeling like I needed a nap, I was energized and ready to take a walk around their organic garden. After dinner we ventured up to the culinary school with General Manager, Joey Repice. He gave us a tour of the space and we got to observe their chefs working on assignments for the day. It was so interesting to see the incredible care and focus that goes into creating each dish. Like fashion, it’s a form of artistic expression, and I love watching masters in their element.If you’re ever in Venice Beach I highly recommend stopping by Plant Food and Wine!