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By CHLOE., Oxford Circus, Marylebone

By CHLOE., NYC’s vegan fast food sensation, is making serious in roads into the London plant-based scene with their third location in London, just steps from Oxford Circus. By CHLOE. are now truly spreading the love in the UK with their plant-based burgers, pastries and delicious air fried fries (with beetroot ketchup!). As I am a huge fan of By CHLOE. NY,  I was keen to review the central London branch.

The setting

By CHLOE.  Oxford Circus is based next to busy Oxford Street, so certainly super central! A few streets away in Fitzrovia, you can find Glow Bar and Kin.

The space

Outside they have the signature monochrome look of the By CHLOE.s  in the US.

The inside has a canteen kind of vibe, the space is large, black and white striped, with stripped brick walls.

There are lots of chairs and tables of different sizes, plus striped couches and tiny tables where it’s easy to sit on your own.

It’s not the best space to work on your laptop, being much more of a space to get lunch or dinner to go or to quickly eat in – especially with the many office workers nearby. You order your food at the counter and they give you a buzzer, so, when your food is ready, it buzzes to let you know.

I’m going to be very honest here, since I have visited multiple locations in New York and now in London, maybe it’s the ultra busy location, but this branch has more of a fast food vibe (and less of a relaxed vibe) than others. In New York, By CHLOE.  is very much a relaxed brunch spot too.

The crowd

Being so central, expect a different crowd to their other branches.: shopping teenagers, and lots of business men and women from nearby offices.

What we ate

In the UK By CHLOE. has created some “British specials” like toffee pudding and fish and chips, but sadly, due to the busy location, they had run out of those and other options on the menu, so we couldn’t try them out.

I usually have the Caesar salad, which is super tasty! So decided to mix it up with the Thai salad. When the salad came it was sprinkled with crispy wontons, a few pieces of apricot-siracha glazed tempeh and a very few edamame beans. I suspect they were running out of ingredients here too. However,  peanut dressing was super tasty and gave a really lovely Asian twist to the dish.

Next, we had the breakfast platter of scrambled tofu, spinach, a maple sausage, market greens, walnuts and 7 grain toast. Sadly, the tofu was wet and the sausage was burned. However, the toast was well toasted and crunchy with slightly brown edges, just how I like it.

So, after the negativity, good news: the legendary By CHLOE. desserts!

Their sweets are all amazing and you literally will have no idea you’re eating a vegan pastry!

I’ve had their muffins before, and do really recommend them, but the banana bread is definitely my favourite of all. It’s a super thick slice fully loaded with pieces of chocolate and walnuts. The crust has a little crunch and is perfectly baked and not too moist. Also, I had my first pecan cookie and that was a real winner. The cookie was moist on the inside and crunchy on the outside and contained chocolate chips and pecan pieces.

I’m still a big fan of By CHLOE. and I really hope they will get their kitchen better organised at this busy branch, because Tower Bridge and Covent Garden are doing really well.  The guy at the counter was super sweet and really tried to compensate for the lack of menu items and make everyone happy who was eating in.

The bill

Sweet potato fries  £4
Spicy thai salad  £9,95
Early bird platter  £9
Banana bread  £3.60
Cookie, classic pecan  £2.40

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Maison Nomade, Paris

Need a vegetarian café in Paris where you can eat well and relax close to the Eurostar? The motto of Maison Nomade is meditate, eat and treat.  It’s open for breakfast, brunch and lunch, promotes zero waste and offers yoga classes on site!

The setting

Maison Nomade is in the 10th arrondissement close to Gare de l’Est with the Gare Du Nord also nearby. The café is extremely handy for commuters and Eurostar passengers. But the area is also known for pickpockets, so do take care of your belongings.

The space

The café feels more like Bali than Paris and you instantly relax when you walk in.

You will find the décor is soothing whites and pale wood.  Outside is a terrace bordered by plants and there are heating lamps for the cooler months.

The furniture inside is quite boho with sofas, chairs, pillows and hanging plants. There’s a lot of of tables inside, some shared,  so there’s plenty of  space to eat, and work. The WiFi is good.  At the bar they display freshly baked cakes and pastries. I couldn’t take my eyes off them!

The fresh juice test

The café offers a range of healthy juices and teas. We decided to review the Vitaminasana juice.

 

It was a bright blend of carrots, orange, lemon and ginger.

It is one of my favourite combinations, as it contains vegetables, but you don’t notice because of the sweetness of the orange.

What we ate

Maison Nomade serves vegetarian food with a lot of vegan and gluten free options (clearly marked on the menu).  At the weekend there’s a special brunch menu; and for lunch  and breakfast during the week they have a  fixed menu, which is typically French.

We ordered a Full Nomade menu fixé which comes with a choice of a bowl, a drink and dessert.  The choice was the Nomade bowl, curry or the Mexican bowl. We went for the Nomade bowl which was a mix of roasted butternut squash, sweet potato fries, quinoa, kimchi made off red cabbage, avocado and sukkah (we skipped the labneh). It was warm and delicious and very filling with a generous portion of quinoa.

For desert, we picked the carrot cake. It was vegan and gluten free, moist on the inside due to the grated carrots, walnuts and raisins. It was topped with some very sugary icing, but the cake wasn’t too sweet. We chose a home-made lemonade for the final part of our menu. It contained lemon, ginger and a little hint of agave. It was not sweet.

As well as the fixed menu, we also had an açaï bowl, a plat du jour and the Vitaminasana bowl. The açai bowl was delicious.  It contained cherries, dragon fruit and açai.

It was pretty sweet, but had an intense berry flavour which we really liked.

The bowl was topped off with fresh bananas, blueberries, homemade granola, coconut chips and puffed crisps.

The plat du jour was pretty special.  The base was coconut curried rice with raisins. Next was a layer of eggplant and zucchini tempura. It was not oily, but  perfectly crispy – with some super spicy warm grilled tomatoes. Finally, a layer of sprouts added the perfect finish in touch making the dish complete for me.

The little things that make the difference

You can book yoga classes at Maison Nomade. Check the website for the schedules.

The bill

Full Nomade  19EU
Açaï bowl  9EU
Plat du jour  12EU
Vitaminasana  6EU

 

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Cuppa Café de Salon, Paris

Visiting Paris and need a vegan café? They are not always easy to find so we’ve saved you time by tracking down a hidden gem- Cuppa Café de Salon tucked away on the Left Bank of the Seine. They are known across Paris for their coffee, but their vegan food is equally amazing.

The location

Cuppa Café de Salon is in the 7th arrondissement, behind the Musée d’Orsay. It’s near the Solférino metro stop or you can take bus 84 and 94 to Solférino. The iconic Café de Flore is near by, but there are no healthy hotspots in the area. So Cuppa Café is a clear winner if you need a healthy meal in Paris.

The space

Cuppa is very compact. Outside, there are two tables on either side of the door next to the windows. Inside, there are three tables, plus a couch.  All the furniture is made of stylish dark wood. The bar is dominated by their coffee machine and a delicious pastry display.

They make all the food behind the bar fresh. The service is very quick and the music is chilled. As there’s little space, it’s not the best place to take out your laptop.

The fresh juice test

The café sells teas and coffees, plus coconut water, single freshly squeezed juices and a juice of the day.

We decided to review the juice of the day, which was a blend of grapefruit, pomegranate, blueberries and strawberries.

I loved the bitterness of the grapefruit coming together with the sweetness of the strawberries.

What we ate

Cuppa Café de Salon is almost fully 100% plant based. All the food is vegan except the pain au chocolat – because why would a French person change that? Their signature dish is avocado on toast which comes with their homemade bread, and two different kinds of hummus.

We ordered the Tartine Fromage and, wow, the plant based cream cheese topping was totally delicious!

We also ordered a bowl of yoghurt and a bundt cake. The tartine came on delicious, home made, gluten-free bread.  It had a thick layer of their homemade cashew and almond cream cheese with a little agave. On top of the cheese were thinly sliced green apples, raspberries, blueberries, edible flowers and some chopped pecans, almonds and pistachios. The flavours were all there. It was a perfect balance between sweet and savoury.

The yoghurt was just as pretty. Like the bread, they made their yoghurt in-house. It’s mix of soy and coconut and the hint of coconut gave it a flavour explosion which perfectly combined with their homemade gluten-free pistachio cardamon granola. They told us they sourced the pistachios from Italy, because they have more flavour . On top of the granola was a beautiful selection of thinly sliced nectarines, strawberries, apples, blueberries, coconut chips, edible flowers and some yuzu zest. I travel a lot and have tasted many cuisines and healthy dishes all over the world, but their combination of flavours was absolutely amazing!

The Bundt cake was a mix of a normal cake with chocolate running through it.  On top was a drizzled chocolate glaze, edible flowers and chopped nuts. The cake was the perfect dessert for our lunch.

What we’d go back for…

Although they take so much care of the presentation of the food, It’s the flavours that make it a real winner.

The bill

Granola maison pistache 9,50EU
Tartine fromage 12,50EU
Bundt cake marbré 5EU
Jus du jour 7EU

 

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Avo Brothers, Milan

Looking for a plant-based or vegan café in Milan? Avo Brothers is a new experience totally dedicated to avocados. As well as celebrating all things avocado, they offer an American brunch style menu serving meat and fish alongside a wide selection of vegetarian and vegan dishes. Avo Brothers is also responsible for an Italian first – they sell the revolutionary Beyond Meat burger.

The setting

Avo Brothers is in Porto Vittoria. Take tram 9 or 19 or bus 12 or 27 to Piaza Cinque Giornate, a five minute walk away.  The café is next to the beautiful church Santa Maria Del Suffragio and Muzzi, the healthy breakfast and salad bar.

The space

Avo Brothers is painted a vibrant green so you can’t miss it.  There are two large tables outside and inside there are padded emerald banquettes and velvet sofas galore.

The walls are decorated with mirrors and avocado themed paintings and the large, bright space has small marble tables and a massive sharing table.

If you go at lunchtime you will find it gets quite crowded, There is WiFi, but you should avoid working at busy times.

 

The fresh juice test

Avo Brothers have energy shots and juices, but they are known for their signature rainbow lattes. We had to try one, or two.

We ordered the raspberry chai latte and a butterfly blue latte with oat milk, both in great sized cups.

The lattes were very sweet, maybe a little bit too sweet for my taste. The raspberry one tasted like the Dutch sweets I used to eat when I was little. The staff suggested  we get the oat milk as it froths the best, but there’s also coconut, almond and soy mylk on offer.

What we ate

Avo Brothers serves plant based guilt free food and also caters for meat eaters.  The menu stretches from pancakes to smoothie bowls; from salad bowls with a side of sweet potato fries to meat- free burgers.

We decided to review the classic avocado toast on sweet potato, the açai bowl, the botanical bowl, some sweet potato fries, plus the guilt free brownie

The avocado toast came on three sweet potato slices. It had half an avocado on top sprinkled with black and white sesame seeds.  We also added scrambled eggs, which were made with almond mylk instead of regular. The sweet potatoes were nice and soft and the avocado was was perfectly ripe. We loved the idea of substituting the toast with sweet potato.

Açai is pretty rare in Italy and the açai bowl was a real winner. You can top it with honey, granola and peanut butter for free. The granola is delicious and crunchy, but not too sugary. The bowl was finished off with berries and coconut.

The Botanical Bowl comes with lettuce, carrot, avocado broccoli, mushrooms, cucumber, edamame beans and beetroot hummus with sesame and chia seeds on top. The veg were nice and crispy, not overdone, but the bowl was not overly large.

Next, we had the best, most crispiest sweet potato fries I’ve ever been served – along with some paprika aioli, which was plant based. The sweet potato fries were super crispy, but not oily at all. The dipping sauce had a really mayonnaise-y kind of texture which perfectly matched the hint of paprika powder.

Finally, we had the guilt free brownie to share. The brownie is vegan, but it is still super chewy. On top it was layered with crushed walnuts and powdered sugar.

The little things that make the difference

The bathroom is full of cute avocado paintings.  We love!

The bill

Avo Toast    €5.50
+ scrambled egg  €1.50
Açai  €8
Botanical bowl (Large) €12
Sweet potato fries  €4
Guilt free brownie  €2.50
Raspberry chai latte with oat milk €3
Butterfly blue latte €3

 

 

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Peloton Supershop, Bali

Know what a Peloton is? It’s a group of cyclists who bike together to build speed and conserve energy. They share the effort and strive to reach their goal as a group. The Peloton Supershop café has the same aim. It’s a café where people come together, share their journey and eat delicious plant-based food. Plus, it’s a restaurant and a bicycle store in one.

The location

The café is on the busy road Jl. Pantai Berawa, which connects Canggu and Seminyak. The easiest way to reach it is by taxi.

The space

From the outside, Peloton Supershop has huge, inviting windows. There’s no ground floor outside area, but it does have a second floor roof terrace. There’s a large sitting area (featuring bikes), and they have a communal table where you can sit on with a group or just by yourself. I chose the welcoming blue, soft couch with a wooden table. They also have super cute graphite blue tables. The service is very quick, even when it’s busy. I arrived around 4pm and it was still super crowded. There’s very strong working wifi, and it’s a great spot to work on your laptop!

The fresh juice test

Peloton Supershop have six juices and a selection of smoothies and shots.

I decided to review the Minty Magic juice. For me, it wasn’t really a juice, but more like a home-made lemonade with lemon, ginger and mint. The taste was mellow, but the juice still had a lot of flavour. They also have a choice of warm up, cool down and Ayurvedic drinks.

What we ate

Almost all their food is organic and made with local produce. They don’t use any palm oil in their kitchen and their used oils are donated to the Green school to fuel their Bio bus.

After eating a lot of rice and nasi, I was craving fresh salad so I picked the Powerhouse bowl with some sweet potato fries as a side and a carrot cake muffin as dessert.

The powerhouse bowl was filled with  greens, roasted pumpkin, broccoli, crunchy brown rice, marinated tempeh, carrot, cashews and hummus.

I also got toasted sourdough bread with garlic and an infused balsamic dressing for my salad. The salad bowl was huge and filling. The toast was deliciously toasted and the spread on it really finished everything off nicely.

The sweet potato fries were not super crunchy, but were still delicious. They were served with a homemade BBQ sauce which gave the perfect finishing touch to the dish and they came in a woven basket.

The carrot cake muffin was gluten free and huge. It was filled with grated carrot and a lot of raisins. On top was a huge layer of “cream cheese” and a walnut. The frosting made the muffin very sweet, but the cake itself was not too sweet and packed with flavour.

The bill

Sweet potato fries  35K IDR
Powerhouse bowl   75K IDR
Carrot muffin  45K IDR
Minty magic juice (Large)  30K IDR

 

 

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Cafe Organic, Bali

Café Organic base their menu and environment around wellbeing and sustainability. They support local farmers and they have also become a Bali Instagram sensation. They specialise in vegetarian and health-conscious meals with a farm to table concept. So, I had to check them out!

The setting

Café Organic has three locations- Seminyak, Canggu and Umalas. We went to the one in Seminyak which is near the famous beach club Potato Head and KYND Community. It’s on the main road which leads to all the hotels.

The space

They’ve surrounded their terrace with lush plants and palm tree parasols to create a more secluded, jungle vibe. Outside are picnic tables and inside the restaurant is split into two halves. On the left is a small lounge with wooden and bamboo chairs and a striking “garden gangsta’s” mural on the wall. There are homemade cakes and pies on display and the bar where they make all the fresh juices and coffees.

The café is surprisingly large. It has a central wall with soft sofas and a selection of tables.

The walls are full of art giving the restaurant a very modern look.

They have good working wifi, but I would advise against lingering at rush hour, since it gets very crowded. Café Organic is an Australian concept cafe, so expect a lot of tourists, Instagrammers and influencers. It’s well known so is always busy from around 10am.

The little things that make the difference

Even though the Seminyak location is in the busiest part of town, Café Organic feels calm with their lush terrace planting.

The fresh juice test

There is a good choice of juice options and they will also create one for you if you don’t like what’s on offer. We decided to review the Heart beet juice which was packed with apple, carrot, beetroot, ginger and lemon and had a pretty slice of pineapple on top of the glass. It had quite a savoury flavour, but the apple, ginger and lemon added enough sweetness.

The juice had a very beautiful deep purple and red colour and came with a metal straw. Go zero waste!

What we ate

Cafe Organic serves vegetarian and plant based food with several gluten free options. Each dish is made with the finest organic ingredients supporting local farmers, conscious agriculture and environmentally friendly products. Expect one of the longest menus you’ve ever seen with an insane amount of options.

Two of their smoothie bowls are served in a coconut shell, so obviously we had to try them. We ordered the Açai coco with an extra dot of homemade peanut butter, also we had the Troppo chia pudding, a mermaid latte and the Chocotella coffee tart.

The Açai coco was the most beautiful bowl that has ever been served to me.

The base was made of açai berries, raspberries, cranberries, banana and mango. It was beautifully topped with fresh banana, mango slices, strawberry slices, super crunchy granola, toasted coconut, almonds and blueberries. The toppings added the perfect finishing touch. The peanut butter (we added extra) was delicious, it had a super crunch and was not solid at all!

The Troppo was a chia pudding soaked in coconut yoghurt with stunning, purple homemade pitaya nice cream on top made out of pitaya, banana and cashew mylk. On top of this was another layer of Coyo,, house made crunchy granola and banana slices. The granola gave a perfect crunch to the dish.

The Chocotella coffee tart was one of their raw vegan treats and a very good choice. They decorated the cake with some shaved coconut, almonds and chocolate.

We also ordered a mermaid latte with almond mylk. The colour of the latte was a very earthy blue/grey colour and it had a different flavour than I expected, but the almond mylk did not really foam up sadly!

The bill

Heart beet 39K RPH
Açai coco  75K RPH
+ Homemade peanut butter 10K RPH
The Troppo  50K RPH
Chocotella coffee tart  45K RPH
Mermaid latte  40K RPH
+ Almond mylk

 

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Seed and Soil, Singapore

Seed and Soil is a must visit grab and go in Central Singapore. They make all their food and drinks fresh each day and avoid the use of dairy, gluten, chemical additives and preservatives. We couldn’t wait to review their signature smoothie bowls and test the large, cold-pressed juice selection.

The setting

Seed and Soil is in a tiny space in Tanjong Pagar Plaza near Chinatown. Take the green line to Tanjong Pagar or Outram Park.

The space

Seed and Soil is in a little open area set back from the traffic. You are welcomed with a large glass door featuring the Seed And Soil logo. Inside, there’s not a lot of space. There are two tables, four chairs and two wooden benches, as they’re essentially a take away. It wasn’t very busy when we sat down, although there was a stream of grab and go customers.

Seed and Soil blend the smoothie bowls fresh at the bar in the shop, which can be noisy.  There isn’t any wifi, but there is a public wifi signal to use.

The fresh juice test

What I liked about the large juice menu is that they divide the juices into four categories-rest and destress, protect and strengthen, care and preserve and detox and heal.

I got the 350ML Golden Palm juice which was a blend of Manuka honey, pineapple, orange, lemon, ginger and basil leaves from the rest and destress category.  The juice was a little spicy, because of the lemon and ginger, but the Manuka honey made it very smooth and soft on my throat.

What we ate

Seed and Soil serve 100% plant based smoothie bowls. Their best selling dish is the açai bowl. We ordered the large Morning Glory chia pudding and the large Green Glow smoothie bowl.

The chia pudding was soaked in some unsweetened soy milk and came with some fresh fruits, seeds, coco chips and nuts. We added some extra peanut butter on top.

The chia pudding wasn’t sweet, which meant the flavours were very pure.

However, although we ordered a large bowl, it was still quite small in terms of the toppings, especially as we paid more for extra peanut butter.

 

 

We also ordered the Green Glow which is a blend of spinach, banana, pineapple and coconut water. The bowl came with the same toppings as the Morning Glory: fresh fruits, seeds and coconut chips. Both the bowls had some hidden ground flaxseed as a first layer, which added a nice texture. The bowl wasn’t too sweet, but it was also a small portion.

The little things that make the difference

Seed and Soil also do cleanse packages featuring the juice range.

The bill

Morning glory (large) 12SGD
Green glow (large) 12SGD
Toppings top up 1SGD
Golden palm 350ml  10SGD

 

 

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Zest, Ubud

Zest has amazing views, an uber cool space and they are 100% plant-based. They use “locally grown tasty fruits, shoots and roots” to create their innovative dishes. The restaurant sources produce from local organic farmers, artisans and even their own staff.

The setting

Zest is a little uphill walk from the centre of Ubud, near the stunning Campuhan Ridge walk .

The space

Although Zest is on a busy road, as soon as you enter you instantly feel a sense of calm.  You pass a Buddha and it looks like you’re entering a temple, not a restaurant.

The space is built around a tree. There are relaxing sofas, and tables with an amazing view of Campuhan Ridge and modern art on the interior walls .

They have a very strong WiFi and you can work. However, if it’s busy they politely ask you to move to quieter area of the restaurant.

You can reserve tables (and it does get busy at lunch and dinner time), sit in or get a take away. When I came to review it was around 9 am and pretty peaceful. The food comes fast and the service is super friendly.

The little things that make a difference

This menu is interesting. It promotes native superfoods such as moringa, soursop, starfruit,  jackfruit, cassava, and turmeric. Plus, we were impressed by their commitment to being an eco-conscious establishment. They aim for zero waste by using cloth drink coasters, cloth napkins and glass and metal straws.

The fresh juice test

They have a great drinks menu including warm infusions, elixirs, shots, shakes, smoothies and freshly squeezed juices.

I had a carrot, beetroot, jicama and ginger juice. It had a very earthy taste because of the vegetables and the ginger gave it a strong spice kick.

The juice was freshly made and came with a metal straw. Next, I had fresh moringa shot with pineapple, as I wanted to sample a local superfood.  Most of the Balinese people kick start their day with a moringa shot. The beautiful green shot tasted of the pineapple, but I felt great afterwards.

What we ate

Zest serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. They have a lot of vegan options on the menu from Indonesian food, to tapas to raw pizzas. I had the Zest pancakes and the smoothie bowl, which are two of the famous breakfast dishes at Zest.

The smoothie bowl was a blend of banana, moringa and katuk leafs and was topped with dragon fruit, papaya, granola, shaved coconut, cashews, granola and mint leaves.

It looked beautiful and was very tasty. The pancake was stacked with mango, coconut, caramelised banana and topped with a rich chocolate sauce and dragon fruit.

What we’d come back for…

The view over Ubud is amazing. Incredible plant-based food and that view of nature- what’s not to love!

The bill

Zest pancakes  70K RPH
Green smoothie bowl  78K RPH
Fresh moringa and pineapple shot  25K RPH
Carrot, beetroot, ginger, jicama juice  50K RPH

 

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Our favourite Glowcations, Amsterdam

Amsterdam is one of our favourite cities. It’s packed with canals, art galleries, flower markets and museums. However, what attracts us most is the cool vibe and the huge choice of plant-based food. The selection of vegetarian and vegan cafés can be quite daunting. Luckily, two of our Glowstars, Fabienne Dobbe and Fleur Maat are local and Dutch, so we can really narrow down your hit list. Here’s our top three must visit vegan and vegetarian cafés in Amsterdam.

Lavinia Good Food, Centrum

Lavinia Good Food is a hidden gem in the historic centre of Amsterdam. Sat on the pretty Kerkstraat, between two canals, it is charming, laid back and serves a mean gluten-free pizza. The food is mostly vegetarian and vegan, but they also have some salmon dishes if you eat fish.

Lavinia has an all day brunch and lunch menu with lattes, juices, cocktails, beers and organic wines.

We suggest  ordering The Lavinia bowl with whole grain cous cous, roasted sweet potato, chickpeas, pickled red cabbage and home made hummus. Model Fabienne thinks the vegan vanilla pie is “a must! ”

To read more about Lavinia Good Food click here.

Juice Brothers, several locations

Our favourite spot for a vitamin packed juice is Juice Brothers. Founded in 2015 by four friends on a canal holiday, it’s now a huge success and has  several branches in Amsterdam, plus two in New York. We love their Haarlemmerbuurt branch with its view of the iconic ”Willemsbrug”. The café and grab and go is modern and minimal. You order at the bar and the eating area is upstairs.

Juice Brothers have a mega choice when it comes to drinks: ten juices, three tonics, three mylks, six shots and ten smoothies! We suggest the Unicorn’s Blood – a fresh and spicy mix of watermelon, pineapple, ginger and lemon.

And there’s the smoothie bowls… all the smoothie and açai bowls are made with made with non dairy organic products. We love their signature bowl the Almond açai.

Finally, they sell Van Leeuwen the vegan ice-cream brand. Fabienne and Fleur suggest grabbing one to go. Plant-based heaven.

To read more about Juice Brothers click here. 

The Meets, De Pijp

The Meets is in the Pijp, one of Amsterdam’s coolest neighbourhoods, packed with cafés and home to  the Albert Cuypmarkt street market.
This brick walled café focuses on locally sourced produce, using organic ingredients as much as possible and staying away from refined sugars . The menu is international.  It includes açai bowls and kimchi toast for breakfast, fresh spring rolls, beetroot balls for lunch (a healthier vegan alternative for the famous Dutch ‘bitterbal’ which is a deep fried ball of minced meat)  and Sicilian eggplant stew or Pad Thai for dinner.

On the drinks front, student Fleur loves their fresh coconuts with lime juice,

“I have tasted many fresh coconuts in my life (in Vietnam, Malaysia and Bali), but I must say this was one of the best coconuts I ever had!”.

Also, don’t miss their blue smoothie. The ‘Samui Blue’ consists of banana, mango, coconut water, whey protein, spirulina and bee pollen.

To find out more about The Meets click here.

 

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Beriwell, Singapore

The trend for açai is running high in Singapore. So much so, it’s now home to a dedicated açai café. Based in the beachside East Coast Park, Beriwell joins two other açai hotspots in the area (An Açai Affair and Project Açai), but takes the Amazonian berry to the next level. Not only is Beriwell soft-serve, it’s all natural, dairy-free, gluten-free and vegan friendly.

The setting

Beriwell is near the East Coast Park, the mainland beach area in Singapore. Get your açai fix straight off the beach or take buses 10, 10e, 12, 14, 14e, 32, 40 and 47 to stop App Roxy Sq. If you are coming from downtown take the east west metro line to Eunos.

 

The space

Like many cafés in Singapore, Beriwell has a large outdoor counter where you order your food and drinks. It connects to the inside area of the café and there’s also an undercover outdoor eating space with benches and  tables with painted palm tree murals on the pillars adding topical vibes.

Inside, a sea blue banquette lines one wall with cushioned wooden chairs on the other.  You could easily get your laptop out and work, as the WiFi is really strong.

The little things that make a difference…

Beriwell is run by two women who are passionate about their café. They are passionate founders and helped me with my order and made sure I was OK.

The fresh juice test

Beriwell serves vegan mylkshakes and smoothies.

I had a small Vitamin Sea Smoothie which was a blend of mango, pineapple, orange and passionfruit with a dash of turmeric and a squeeze of lime.

I added an extra black pepper boost for my immune system. The smoothie was very sweet, but it contained all my favourite fruits, so I found it delicious.

What we ate

Since Beriwell is known for their açaï soft serve, obviously I had to review one. I had the “Twist” which was a blend of Açaï and Coco Majik soft serves. The açai element is a blend of Amazonian berries and the Coco Majik is soft serve made of Thai coconuts and spirulina. They come in three sizes, small, large and super size. I had the large, which was a perfect for me. I topped it off with mango, pineapple, goji berries, vegan granola and almond butter. Delicious.

What we’d go back for…

Beriwell organises many events  and it’s a perfect place for a post dinner treat as they are open until 11pm.

The bill

Twist large  9.90 SGD
Almond butter  +0.80 SGD
Vitamin sea small  6. 50 SGD

To book your trip to Singapore with our partner Expedia click here.

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Vegan Bowls, Barcelona

Vegan Bowls is plant-based, plastic free and popular throughout Barcelona. It may be tiny, but it certainly packs a punch when it comes to serving up plant-based food.

The setting

Vegan Bowls is centrally placed near Plaça Catalunya and the shopping district. You can take the L2 metro to Universidat or the bus D50 to Ronda Universitat.

The space

The baby pink payment desk is stacked with their delicious plant-based doughnuts and famous cookies. Inside, they only have two tables with four chairs in total. They are mainly take away.

The white painted walls are made of wood with their colourful logo on either side. They have a good working wifi. However, I would definitely not recommend lingering with your laptop. There’s basically no space for it!  It’s very popular with all ages, so you may have to queue for a while.

The fresh juice test

I loved the green detox juice.

They made it fresh in front of me.  It had pineapple, organic apple juice, mint ginger and kale in it.  It was sweet, but you could taste the hint of veg in it, a very good mix!

What we ate

Vegan bowls has a surprisingly large menu for such a small take away spot. They specialise in bowls like smoothie bowls, toasts and savoury bowls but they also have a huge selection of plant based treats, healthy (and unhealthy).

Their food is super colourful!

I decided to review the Red curry, one of their muffins and their famous vegan chocolate chip cookie.

The curry was warm and filling and made of coconut milk, chickpeas, sweet potato and tofu. It comes with brown rice and beautifully topped with kale, sliced almonds, edible flowers and sprouts! The curry had a very thick coconut flavour and was packed with chickpeas.

The waitresses suggested I try the cookie.  It’s not very healthy, but it’s definitely worth a go. You won’t believe that it is plant-based, because it’s so incredible. The outside is super crunchy, but when you break it open the inside is still soft and moist.

Finally the muffins. They have four kinds of muffins: with nuts, banana, blueberry and apple. All the muffins are sugar and gluten free. The outside is crispy and well baked, the inside is a softer texture.

The little things that make the difference

They offer a delivery service via Deliveroo and Glovo.

The bill

Curry  €9,40
Muffin  €2,80
Cookie  €2,70
Green detox juice  €5,00

 

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Flax and Kale, Barcelona

Flax & Kale was the first Flexitarian health-food restaurant in Barcelona. While 80% of their dishes are plant-based, the remaining 20% contain oily fish. Flax & Kale are passionate about healthy food and the café is famous across the Catalan city.

The setting

You can find Flax & Kale in El Raval, near the Placa Catalunya and the main shopping district. Take the L2 metro to stop Universitat or bus D50 to Ronda Universitat. The amazing Museum d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona is also nearby.

The space

The outside is clean and simple. You will see large windows with beige awning with the Flax & Kale initials on it. The street is quite busy since it’s one of the main shopping streets near by Placa de Catalunya and there’s a terrace outside.

Inside, the café has high ceilings and feels airy and large.

The wall length windows fill the restaurant with natural light which suits the warm wood work and white accessories. You can expect lots of plants, exposed brick, communal tables and a selection of eating areas including booths. I sat down at the bar since I was alone and it was super crowded. I did the review around 11am  on a Tuesday.

On the second floor, there’s another section of the restaurant which they open during peak hours. Finally, there’s also a gorgeous roof top terrace where you can dine in between flowers and plants!

The service is very quick. I couldn’t decide what to pick and the waitress recommended her favourites instead of the best sellers and the most expensive dishes. There’s wifi, but I wouldn’t recommend sitting in to work, as it gets so busy during breakfast and lunch hours.

What else?

The crowd is very diverse and caters to all ages. They have a kids menu. Flax & Kale have two other smaller branches- the take-away F&K Á Porter in the H&M Flagship Store in the Passeig de Gràcia district and F&K Passage in Sant Pere Més Alt Street in the Ciutat Vella.

The fresh juice test

Flax & Kale have a large drinks menu.

You can choose from kombuchas, smoothies, a wide range of Theresa’s Juicery juices, mylks and purées.

I decided to review The Berlin juice – a rainbow coloured fruit purée. It was a very, very good choice! The cold-pressed purée has three different layers. The first layer is made of orange and mango purée. The second layer is a less thick blend of strawberries and blueberries. The last layer is a thick beetroot and activated charcoal layer. It comes ready made in a bottle, but do shake it first. I tried to drink it but nothing came out initially and then everything came out at once. All the flavours were there and I really liked the juice. Even though it is packed with fruit you can still taste the beetroot flavour.

What we ate

I had the Rainbow coconut milk parfait and the Ginger turmeric doughnut.

The base of the parfait is home made coconut mylk yoghurt mixed with blue spirulina, which colours the yoghurt pale baby blue. The bowl is topped off with a lot of fruit- blueberries, blackcurrants, strawberries, raspberries, kiwi, grapes and banana. Next to this, they add their gluten free crumble with chocolate chunks and their homemade “moskito”, which is a cookie made of buckwheat flour, cashew mascarpone with a plant-based chocolate cover. It is a great sized portion.

Next, I had the non-fried ginger turmeric doughnut. The doughnut is made out of almond flour and is covered in plant based chocolate. In the middle it has a blob of ginger, turmeric and cashew cream. The doughnut had a very airy texture because of the almond flour. It does taste a bit more like a cake though, since it isn’t fried.

The little things that make the difference

The toilet is so beautifully designed. The light is amazing and the walls are full of mirrors so everyone can take photos and selfies in the bathroom.

The bill

Rainbow coconut milk parfait  €8.95
Ginger turmeric doughnut  €2.95
Berlin juice  €5.95

 

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Flex Bowls, Barcelona

Flex Bowls was the first healthy bowl café in Barcelona. It has a wide range of plant-based, flexitarian food on the menu. It’s a must visit for you if you’re plant-based and in Barcelona.

The setting

Flex Bowls is in Eixample. To get there, take the 47 bus to Pau Claris Arago station. It’s near other gastro-hotspots Eatmytrip Brunch & Bakery, El Nacional and Citizin café.

The space

Flex Bowls has a large, glass front with their signature white plate sign hanging above it. Outside, there are wooden apple boxes filled with their juice, lunch and brunch menu, plus there’s a tiny terrace on the other side of the pedestrian walkway.

Once inside, there’s a huge bar where you order food to take away or eat in. Behind the bar are shelves stacked with wines, plants, coffee cups and preserving jars. There are three high tables with bar chairs where you can sit at the bar. And there’s more!  Down the stairs there’s another huge space where you can settle in to work or chat. They have strong wifi.

The fresh juice test

I had the slim fit juice which was a smart choice.

It was perfectly balanced between the sweet of the fruit and the savoury of the veg.

The juice came in a house Flex Bowls bottle and was a combination of watermelon, spinach, cucumber, celery, coconut water, lemon, chia and ginger. All the flavours were there, but none of them were overpowering. Delicious.

What we ate

Flex Bowls has a lot of plant-based variety on their menu – from smoothie bowls and chia pots to pancakes.

Lactose Free, Gluten Free and vegan dishes are all marked up. I decided to review the Pumpkin Pecan Smoothie Bowl, as I was curious about the pumpkin (!), and the Vegan Brownie.

The bowl had a base of almond milk, pumpkin, banana, almonds, dates, vanilla and cinnamon. It was topped off with granola, chia seeds, nuts, banana, strawberry, coconut and cinnamon. The base was pleasantly surprising. The pumpkin added a nice twist and the hint of cinnamon added a perfect finishing touch. The granola was very sweet and sugary but rather confusingly didn’t appear to include pecans!

The brownie made up for it though. It was super moist and chewy from the inside. The top layer had a huge crunchy layer of nuts on top. You won’t regret ordering one.

The little things that make the difference

The big smiles of the waiters!

The bill

Pumpkin pecan smoothie bowl  €8,95
Slim fit juice €5,45
Vegan brownie €4,50

 

 

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Lavinia Good Food, Amsterdam

Lavinia Good Food is a hidden gem in the historic centre of Amsterdam. Sat on the pretty Kerkstraat, between two canals, it is charming, laid back and serves a mean gluten-free pizza. If you’re visiting Amsterdam or a local who loves healthy food, then it’s a must visit.

The setting

Lavinia Goodfood is based on the Kerkstraat. It’s close to the flower market and near other healthy hotspots like Delicious Deshima, Stach and SLA. Take tram 2, 11 or 12 to the Prinsengracht of Keizersgracht and from there it’s a five minute walk. There are also plenty of art galleries and vintage shops in the area.

The space

The space is charming and cosy. Outside there’s kitsch yellow furniture in front of the windows,  so you can sit outside and relax in the sun. Inside is brick walled with wooden furniture and lots of wood tables – mostly for two,  but they also have a huge sharing table.

The decor is very kitsch- cute plates and miss matched items stylishly combined.

Around lunch time it can get very packed. There’s great wifi and you can definitely take your laptop out and work, but not at lunch or brunch times since it is too busy. There’s another branch in Amstelveenseweg in Oud Zuid.

The crowd

What’s funny is the waiters are English – they’re not Dutch! Lavinia is really popular with a younger crowd, especially students.

What else?

You can eat in or take away and Lavinia also sells items like juicers, superfoods and even some gardening supplies.

The fresh juice test

Lavinia has a choice of fresh juices and lemonades. We had the green juice.  It was a mix of spinach, celery and apple. The juice wasn’t too sweet, despite the apple, and it contained lots of veg.

What we ate

Lavinia Goodfood serves a bit of everything. The menu is mostly vegetarian and vegan, but they also have some dishes with salmon. Lavinia has an all day brunch and lunch menu with lattes,  juices, cocktails, beers and organic wines. They also have some gluten-free options.

For my review, I had the Açaï bowl, Lavinia’s vegan bowl and a vanilla pie to finish off lunch. The portions were satisfyingly large and colourful. The acaï bowl came with cheese which we switched for coconut yoghurt. It didn’t really taste like acaï, more like a smoothie bowl, but this wasn’t a bad thing.

The bowl came with a very delicious and crispy granola which was gluten-free with coconut chips, fresh fruits and a drizzle of agave on top.

The Lavinia bowl was our savoury choice. It was whole grain cous cous, roasted sweet potato, chickpeas, pickled red cabbage, home made hummus and we also added some vegan “bacon” made out of mushrooms. All the ingredients were perfectly balanced. There was something creamy, something warm, something crunchy and something refreshing due to the pickled cabbage.

The vanilla pie was a must! They had a choice of vegan, gluten free pastries, but also traditional choices like dutch apple pie.

The vegan vanilla pie was a two layered cake with jam in the middle and and white icing on top. Topped off with some roasted almonds, blueberries and an extra drizzle of maple syrup. The cake was not dry at all, it had so much flavour and a really spongy texture.

The little things that make the difference

You can rent out Lavinia Good Food on the Kerkstraat for events.

The bill

Açai bowl  €9,50
+ coconut yoghurt  €2
Lavinia’s bowl  €11,50
+veggie bacon  €2,50
Green juice  €6,50
Vanilla cake  €4,50

 

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Böl, Barcelona

Böl translated as Bowls Bar is one of Barcelona’s go to cafés, especially if you like your dose of fresh, organic, produce served up in a bowl.

From the morning bowls featuring açai, spirulina and protein through to the signature Buddha bowls there’s a huge choice. You can even have Avocado Toast Bowls.

Böl’s aim is to empower you to “Eat Good & Feel Good” to feed your body and spirit.

The location

Böl is in L’Antiga Esquerra de l’Eixample, on the west side of Carrer de Balmes. You can take the H10 bus to Mallorca-Balmes station. There’s a selection of other healthy cafés around and hotspots like Brunch and Cake, Bon and Green and Berry are near by.

The space

Böl has a small outside terrace with tables under beach umbrellas and  wooden stools in front of the window. You order at the bar and you can sit in or take away. Inside the decor is very modern, warm wood work and clean lines. It’s fresh and white with industrial iron lamps.

You can sit outside in the sun, on the pretty baby blue chairs.

The little things that make the difference

The smoothie bowls come in coconut bowls and a matching spoon, we love!

What we ate

Böl serves smoothie bowls, quinoa bowls, toast and plant-based pancakes. It offers something for everyone, meat, fish, vegetarian and vegan. There’s special notes on their menu for dishes which contain sesame, eggs, soy, gluten and lactose and it also indicates which are vegetarian, spicy and vegan. It’s great for those of us with allergies, like my lactose intolerance.

I ordered the coco mermaid böl and the Buddha böl with a beet latte with almond mylk.

The coco mermaid böl had a base made of coconut flesh, coconut mylk, spirulina and cantaloupe. It was topped with homemade granola, apple, blueberry, cacao nibs and grated coconut. The smoothie base was cold, really cold, but the taste was tropical. It had a very fresh flavour mixed with the cantaloupe.  It didn’t have a lot of topping, but the toppings it did have were nice, with a lot of crunch.

The Buddha bowl came on a turmeric quinoa base and was topped with sweet potatoes, broccoli, red cabbage, marinated chickpeas, grapefruit, crunchy seeds, alfalfa sprouts and a miso tahini sauce. The bowl was a mix of vegetables, protein, crunch, bitter and sweet. It was perfectly balanced!

The beet latte was a very cute pink. It wasn’t sweet, you can always add sugar later if you want, which I prefer.

The bill

Coco mermaid böl  €8,50
Buddha böl  €9,95
Beet latte  €2,10
+almond milk  €0,20

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Elle cafe, Tokyo

ELLE magazine was first published in 1945 in France just after the second World War. The founder, Elaine Lazarev, wanted to inspire readers to open their appetites and “just live as happy as you want to be!”. Now ELLE have opened their first ever café, in Tokyo. And it’s a must visit!

The setting

ELLE Café is based in Aoyama in the University of the United Nations campus. At the weekend there’s a farmers’ market in front of the café and Brown Rice by Neal’s Yard is around the corner. You can take the subway to Ometosando station.

The space

ELLE Café’s outside has a minimal, sleek upmarket look. It has high windows with grey and white walls and shutters. Outside there’s a heated terrace with smart black metal tables and chairs. Dogs are welcome in this  section.

Inside is a grab and go café and a seating area with marble topped counters and tables. Lots of plants and flowers are scattered around and the waiters speak very good English.

The little things that make the difference

Around noon the sun shines right through the window which adds an amazing feeling of light to the restaurant.

What we ate

ELLE Café has a diverse menu – they serve meat, fish and dairy, but also plant-based options. The menu is very Western for Japan. We chose the vegan cleanse salad and two of their side dishes- the beetroot hummus and fried sweet potatoes with rosemary. Then we had the strawberry bon bon to finish off lunch. The portions are all a perfect size to share.

The vegan cleanse salad was a mix of avocado, grilled aubergine and zucchini, grapefruits, pomelo, pomegranate seeds, tomatoes, sprouts, pine nuts and romaine salad. We chose the white miso dressing, to give it a Japanese twist, which was a good choice. The salad was light, but had a very fresh taste, because of the citrus fruits.

Next we had the beetroot hummus. It was super creamy and topped off with some roasted chickpeas which added a touch of crunch.

When in Japan, you can’t miss out on their sweet potato skills. The flavour of their sweet potatoes are so different than the ones we have in Europe. These  were perfect golden brown and had a crispy skin. They were still so fresh and sweet.

Last, but not least, we had the strawberry bon bon, which was the only plant based dessert option, so we had to try it.

The first layer was a mix of fresh blended strawberries with coconut milk, followed up with a soy milk whipped cream, a lot of fresh strawberries and another dollop of soy whipped cream – a real guilt free plant based pleasure.

The bill

Vegan cleanse salad  1178¥
Beetroot hummus  864¥
Fried sweet potato with rosemary  648¥
Strawberry bonbon  1944¥

 

 

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Our favourite Glowcations, Paris

Historically, France has never been vegetarian or vegan friendly. Until now if you visited Paris then an omelette and a look of horror was was as good as you could hope for. Times have changed. So much so that the perennially cool Marais district is now nicknamed Veggietown. Here’s our top three vegan and vegetarian cafés in Paris:

Café Mareva

Our Glowstar model, Fabienne Dobbe, often works in Paris and loves this inspirational Canal St Martin café.

Owner Mareva was working in finance when she discovered that she was dairy intolerant and started making her own food.

The whole of her menu is gluten and dairy free and the signature Italian waffle is made with dairy free parmesan. Fabienne describes the sweet potato avocado waffle as “unforgettable”. It’s thin and crispy, and comes with a  generous amount of avocado, rocket, tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes and a perfectly poached egg.

The sweet waffles are equally worth ordering – gluten free and topped off with a choice of ingredients. We suggest fresh fruit, house made praline, chopped almonds, maple syrup and whipped cream.

To read Fabienne’s full review click here.

Café Pinson

Café Pinson is one of the first and best vegan addresses in Paris. It has a fresh, organic menu, a cosy setting and is in a great location in the Marais.

Café Pinson is known for their signature nourishing bowls. Our Parisian Glowstar Caly’s (AKA @veganfeelsgood) loves the Bol Equilibré .
It’s a “Balanced Bowl” and a combo of brown rice, chickpeas, seaweed tofu, grilled organic vegetables, coriander, purple cabbage and radish with a peanut-tamari dressing.

Everything is home-made, organic and gluten-free and their cuisine is inspired by the principles of naturopathy meaning that they believe in the “Let food by thy medicine” philosophy.

Caly’s tip, don’t miss out on the energy balls!

To read Caly’s full review click here.

Sloe

This new concept store in Paris’ North Marais has fast become the go-to hot spot for health-conscious Parisians. It brings together a gym, Pilates and cross training, plus a shop – with organic skincare – and a café.

In typical French fashion, there are two set menus. The petit dejeuner (breakfast) which is an açai bowl with juice and the set lunch menu – a spring veggie bowl with a smoothie and dessert.

Our Glowstar Fabienne is a fan of Sloe’s açai and describes it as a perfect blend, without too much banana and super-chilled. It comes with toppings like mega-crunchy cinnamon granola made with almonds and hazelnuts, coconut chips, fresh blueberries and raspberries. Our tip, get a a big dollop of creamy peanut butter for the perfect finishing touch. If you’re there at lunch, go for the spring veggie bowl which is packed with red cabbage, stir-fried broccoli, grated carrots with pumpkin seeds, grilled zucchini, beetroot hummus, bean sprouts and egg.

To read Fabienne’s full review click here.

 

 

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The Bowl café, Tokyo

The Bowl’s focus is on food as medicine. They serve delicious, health fuelling bowls, packed with organic products.

The setting

The Bowl is based in Ometosando which is Tokyo’s famous shopping district. You take the subway to the Ometosando station and from there it’s a short five minute walk. The area is quite urban, but with a lot of expensive shops and some cool plant-based cafés.

The space

The Bowl has a modern exterior. The entrance is a mix of iron and cement which really suits their minimalistic logo. Plants hang from the ceiling and the windows are filled with cacti.

We visited on a Sunday around noon and it was surprisingly not too busy. There is an upstairs, but most of the seating is downstairs.

Plants are draped around the light bulbs which tone down the industrial feeling created by metal and wood used throughout..

There’s really good WiFi and you could easily take bring your laptop in to do some work.

What else?

You can bring your dogs. They even have a sticker on the door to welcome them.

What we ate

The Bowl serves healthy, nutritional, gluten free and organic bowls. Most of the food is plant-based, but they also serve bowls with chicken.  They have four kinds of bowls: quinoa veggie bowls, fermented brown rice bowls, detox quinoa soups and smoothie bowls.

We decided to review the ashitaba smoothie bowl, the protein coconut curry and the soy cheese vegan caesar.

All the portions were so much bigger than I’m used to in Japan, which was perfect after a big workout, otherwise we might have struggled to finish it.

The protein coconut curry was lovely and warm, but not too hot, so we could eat it immediately. It contained a huge amount of brown rice with red beans, fermented red cabbage, grated carrots, bean sprouts and a generous amount of avocado. The curry consisted of turmeric, onions, zucchini, bell peppers and soy protein.

The soy cheese vegan caesar salad was a winner. I’m always surprised at how they can make caesar salads vegan. The salad came on a large portion of quinoa with a generous amount of kale on top. Which was good as kale is really expensive in Tokyo. It was topped off with shaved soy cheese and toasted almonds. The “cheese” really tasted like real cheese. It was salty and had a cheesey structure, but the dressing really finished off the salad!

Last but not least, we had the ashitaba smoothie bowl.

The bowl was richly topped with coconut chips, frozen raspberries, granola, frozen mango, pine nuts, pumpkin and chia seeds.

The ashitaba had a really special flavour and the bowl was very nice to end with, it was almost like dessert!

The little things that make the difference

I loved the menu and the fact they had photos of all the dishes, so we knew what to order, since we couldn’t read the contents of the bowls.

The bill

Protein coconut curry 1598¥
Vegan caesar 1490¥
Ashitaba fruits bowl 1598¥

For more Tokyo inspiration click here. 

 

 

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Marugo Deli Ebisu, Tokyo

Marugo Deli Ebisu is passionate about treating the environment right -it’s mostly plant-based and serves delicious smoothies and smoothie bowls.

The setting

Marugo Deli Ebisu is based in the Ebisu area. It’s near the Ebisu metro station and other healthy hotspots including Rainbow Raw Foods, Hemp Café and Ko-so!

The space

It’s mostly a take-away so you order and pay for your food and drinks at the counter. You can also sit in. As I came during the week, it wasn’t crowded. There’s not a lot of space inside,  just four tables with two chairs at each table. Outside there are plants and  wooden benches as extra seating in front of the café. The service was very quick and mine came in five to ten minutes.

All the furniture is warm wood with a bar of blue mosaic stones.

Around the bar are jars of granola, dried fruits and nuts and fresh fruit in wooden crates.

There’s also a corner with shelves, where you can buy organic products and their homemade granolas and oils.

What we ate

Marugo Deli Ebisu offers plant based, gluten free food made from organic products. They cater for everyone including non-vegans and also sell sandwiches with tuna and muffins. The smoothies are seasonal and made fresh. Our tip – download Google translate with a Japanese dictionary, to help with the menu.

I love Japanese portion control, as everything is just perfectly balanced and filling enough. You don’t leave feeling stuffed, just satisfied. I decided to review the raw spirulina smoothie bowl, a matcha latte and a banana muffin (as it was Valentine’s!).

The smoothie bowl came in a glass bowl and was made of avocado, banana, dates, raw spirulina and soy milk.

It was topped with a delicious crunchy granola with pistachios, banana slices, dates, goji berries and chia seeds. The granola was quite sweet, but I didn’t mind, as the smoothie itself wasn’t.

 

The banana muffin was plant based, airy and gluten free and filled with banana pieces and walnuts. They asked if I wanted to have it warmed up, so I did. The crust was crisp and the inside goey, so it was the perfect muffin. Finally, I had a matcha latte with soy mylk.  In Japan, the soy mylk tastes very different to  Europe and America. The milk was so thick and creamy. Even after finishing the foam layer.

It was one of the best matchas I’ve ever had.

The little things that make the difference

Normally you have to pay extra for soy milk, or other plant based mylks, but at Marugo Deli Ebisu it’s twisted around. You pay extra for normal milk.  Go plant based food! Plus, they offer cooking classes upstairs .

What we’d go back for…

The corner where they sell good extra virgin olive oils, their own granola, and other organic products, which are hard to find in Tokyo.

The bill

Raw spirulina smoothie bowl  1500¥
Matcha latte  550¥
Banana muffin  500¥

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Sky High Juice Bar, Tokyo

Sky High Juice Bar began with the philosophy of creating a place to boost your health and beauty, both on the inside and outside, through cold-pressed juices and fresh salads. They only use 100% organic and plant-based produce and serve some of the best take away juices in Tokyo.

The setting

There are three locations in Tokyo: one in Hiroo, one in Shinjuku and one in Aoyama. We reviewed the one in Aoyama, their first and largest branch. It’s conveniently near other health hotspots like Elle Café and 8ablish. Also, at the weekends, there is a farmers’ market close by at the University of the United Nations.

The space

The café is hidden behind a stairway, so look out for their signs outside with their menu.  Inside is compact. They have two small counters with six chairs, but they’re mainly focussed on take aways not eat in.

I was the only one eating in, but it was busy with people coming in for take aways. Service was quick.

The shelves and chairs are wooden and decorated with beautiful vases and flowers.

On the counter, they also have a little glass display with their gluten free and vegan pastries.  They have a really good working wifi, but I’m not sure if this is the most relaxing spot to sit down and work at.

The fresh juice test

Sky High Juice bar is known for their cold pressed juices and smoothies, but also serves smoothie bowls and gluten free treats.

Everything is organic and 100% plant based. The day I reviewed, they had seven juices to choose from which were pre-bottled in the fridge.

I chose the “Lifer” which was a mix of beets, pineapple, ginger, burdock, cucumber, grapefruit, turmeric, black pepper and liver tonic.

I only had half of the juice bottle, so they poured the other half of my juice in a plastic cup, which kind of upset me a bit… although the juice was really good.  All the flavours were there.  It wasn’t too sweet, but also not really veggie like. The juice was also had a hint of spice, because of the pepper, turmeric and ginger.

What we ate

I ordered the relax smoothie bowl and a gluten free strawberry muffin. The smoothie-bowl was not super frozen, which I really liked, so I could eat it straight away without getting a brain freeze! The base was a blend of banana, mango, pineapple and oranges.

It was sweet, but I loved it. It was topped off with banana, kiwi, blueberries, frozen raspberries and blackcurrants, coco chips, chia seeds, goji berries and some puffed granola.

They served this beauty in a small coconut bowl with a bamboo spoon which made me super happy and gave me Bali vibes straight away! Finally,  I wanted to try out one of their home-made vegan treats. My attention went straight to the strawberry muffin.  It was so beautiful and red. Surprisingly, it had little coconut chips and berries in it, adding an interesting texture. The muffin was made out of rice flour, which made it gluten free and chewy.

The little things that make the difference

If you’re feeling lazy or you have just landed and need it sent to your hotel, Sky High Juice bar is on über eats!

The bill

Relax smoothie bowl 1500¥
Lifer juice 1000¥
Strawberry muffin 350¥

 

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Juice Press, NYC

Juice Press’s vision when it launched in 2010 was to bring a healthier lifestyle option to the market. Juice Press now have multiple branches in NYC and other US cities and are the number one organic “grab and go” in the States. They are more of a take-away than most sit-down café style Glowcations we review, but we couldn’t ignore their signature juices and healthy lunches.

The setting

We went to the 22nd St branch, between 5th and 6th Avenue. The metro stop 23th Street on Madison Square Park is close by – just take the Q or R. As this is the buzzing Flatiron district where you are surrounded cool shops. ByCHLOE is based in the same street.

The space

Juice Press is designed as a grab and go so there is limited seating.

We took one of the four small wooden tables at 10 am, but our order was still shouted from the counter. As an eat in, sadly we got all the extra plastic which we thought was unnecessary.  The café has an industrial vibe and, as it’s constantly busy, I wouldn’t recommend getting your laptop out. It’s less a sit and chat than a useful pitstop.

The crowd

I spotted mums with buggies and workers grabbing a juice or smoothie. Around lunch break 12-2pm, this office based area of New York,  can get very crowded.  So we suggest avoiding that time or going to another of their locations if you want a seat.

The fresh juice test

Juice Press, not surprisingly, has a wide range of cold pressed juices split into “mostly veggie” and “mostly fruit”.  They also do a wide range of smoothies and boosters. I’d tried the ginger fireball and the rehab boosters before which are two of their most popular drinks. This time, I wanted to try the greenest juice they had, so I chose the Mother Earth juice.

It was a raw veggie blend of cucumber, celery, kale, Swiss chard, dandelion, parsley, lemon and ginger.

And, I’m going to be honest, it made me feel very, very healthy, but the taste wasn’t the best. However, that’s only my taste and I did feel it was detoxing my body.

The little things that make the difference

They have added posters and postcards on the wall to make the café more welcoming  and you can take the postcards away for free!

What we ate

Juice Press is a 100% plant based and organic. Food wise, they focus on açai bowls, snacks, soups and salads. The smoothies and bowls are freshly made, but the salads, snacks and juices are pre-made off-site.

We ordered two signature smoothie bowls.

The green smoothie bowl, was packed with veggies and we chose home made granola, goji berries and a chia and flax seed mix for toppings.

The granola added a nice crunchy texture and sweetness to the veggie bowl.

Our other bowl was an açaï bowl which we also loved! It wasn’t too sweet, and was made with water instead of a nut mylk, so it lacked a little creaminess. We topped it off with cacao nibs, maple toasted coconut chips and almond butter. The topping portions are very generous.

For dessert, we had the Sin-o-buns which were gluten free and made out of buckwheat, flax, gluten free oats, coconut, cinnamon and coconut nectar. The frosting was a little splash of coconut, Irish moss, vanilla, coconut nectar, cinnamon with a raisin on top. The frosting complemented the buns perfectly and they had a delicious cinnamon-y flavour.

What we’d go back for…

We’d grab the juices, boosters and smoothie bowls and go picnic nearby.

The bill

Mother Earth   10.99$
Sin O Bun  5.00$
Açai blueberry bowl   10.85$
Green bowl   10.85$

 

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Make 2019 your best year yet

Blue Monday is the third Monday in January so dubbed by psychologist Dr Chris Arnell while advising a travel company on the most depressing day of the year. It was the perfect excuse to book a summer holiday to cheer you up. But most of us don’t need a branding exercise to remind us that January can be a tricky month. Yes it’s cold, grey and the lights and parties of December are behind us but here our Glowstars give their 2019 tips, resolutions and plans to help you make this year your best year yet.

Jess @freshlysnapped

Every year I start off with the best intentions, I always feel so driven and motivated, however these goals start to dwindle as the year goes on. So this year, in 2019, I’m not setting massive goals that feel daunting or overwhelming.

I am going to set tiny little micro missions and take baby steps to get there.

It may be a tiny change every single day, but over time, it could lead to something big. After all, we are what we repeatedly do. Whether it’s applied to work, relationships or fitness, this philosophy can get you anywhere!

Eli @cerealandpeanutbutter

2019 is going to be my best year yet, because I have learnt to be more in tune with my mind and my body than ever before, and I plan to implement this from start to finish of the coming year. This includes eating more mindfully – just because there is a whole spread of desserts on the table, it doesn’t mean you need to try each one.

I will also ask myself  if I really want to do that high intensity fitness bootcamp on a cold dark Monday morning – perhaps I’d benefit more from a slower-paced yoga class instead?

 Fabienne @modelslovefood

I’m starting my 2019 in Tokyo (for my work), which is one of my most favourite cities in the world. I’ve told myself I should enjoy it more than last time when I was there and not be to strict with myself.

I want to do more yoga, meditation and pilates and go more into the Japanese food culture. There’s a reason the Japanese are the oldest folk in the world right?

Jenna @jennahopenutrition

I’m really excited about 2019 as I’ve just launched a new business and I’m planning a wedding so there’s lots going on. At the beginning of 2018, I started writing a daily gratitude diary twice a day which has really revolutionised my mindset. I will definitely carry this on into 2019.

I also plan to continue working out regularly as this helps with my mental wellbeing, positivity and productivity.

I won’t be changing the food I’m eating, as I’m pretty happy at the moment focusing on eating foods which nourish me. Although, I will be trying to focus more on eating mindfully, as I think appreciating our food and eating it slowly is incredibly beneficial for our overall health rather than just munching it down on the go.

Bekah @bitesbybekah

I’m so excited to continue sharing my love for plant-based food on my blog and experimenting with new recipes, discovering new eateries, and connecting with more people in this amazing community. I’m actually starting 2019 in the US, working on my PhD for a few months, which will be quite an adjustment from life in the UK. I have a few trips planned while I’m across the pond and plan to make the most of my time in the States.

I recently signed up for my first half-marathon, taking place in May 2019.

The longest I’ve ever run is 10K, so a half marathon sounds quite daunting. But I cannot wait to take on the challenge!

 

Amy @nourishing.amy

I don’t believe in #newyearnewme and I am very proud to say that 2019 will be the same old me doing the same sort of thing, but with a renewed sense of purpose. New Year is a great time to set goals, but so is springtime when everything is blooming into life. I will carry through my determination to lead a happy, healthy and nourished life while working on my blog which I hope to see thrive in 2019. I aim to focus on being kinder to myself by taking up journaling again and writing down my daily gratitudes.

I will continue with my yoga practice, as this is my favourite thing that I do for me every single day.

 

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New York JaJaJa

When Jajaja opened in 2017, it was the first plant based Mexican restaurant in New York City. Now it’s a legend. Their first location was on East Broadway, followed by Brooklyn and rumour has it another is coming soon. After all, what is New York without Mexican food right!?!

Jajaja has a mean vibe (it made me want to dance). It is immensely popular and serves on point Cayote “fish” taco’s, and cauliflower buffalo wings. No wonder there’s a regular 90 minute queue at the weekends.

The location

It’s hidden on the Lower East Side on East Broadway. It’s literally above the metro stop (East Broadway, train F) and in front of the bus M9 (Essex St/E Broadway). Look for their iconic “We will Guac your world” sign or you may miss it. It’s near Chinatown, so it’s handy for Chinese shops and supermarkets.

The space

The walls are stripped back and painted in white and brown, and, in true LES style, half tiled.

Pastel green metal chairs, large windows, a mosaic floor and a cool  industrial vibe fill the space.

There’s no outside seating as Broadway is one of the busiest addresses  in NYC.

The seats close to the entrance have bigger tables in booths and are a little more zoned off than the rest of the restaurant. You can also eat and drink at the zinc lined bar.

In the evening or weekends Jajaja can get very crowded. I recommend a weekly lunch to avoid lines. The service is very quick and friendly.

There’s also a take away shop next door and you can order direct from Caviar, Doordash and Postmates who all do home deliveries.

Jajaja plays Mexican music, but not too loud, so you can still hear yourself talk and have a proper conversation.

The crowd

A lot of New Yorkers know about this spot, so it’s often packed both vegans and meat eaters alike. My friend went for the first time and wasn’t even aware that Jajaja was vegan.  If he hadn’t been told, he wouldn’t have known. There’s a wide age range from 16-60 and a great atmosphere.

The little things that make the difference

The ambience really gives you the feeling that you’re in Mexico, not downtown New York.

The music, the food and the interior, everything combined together is perfect.

What we ate

Everything at Jajaja is 100% plant based Mexican cuisine, plus there’s lots of gluten-free options. Food can’t get much more rainbow coloured than this. The portions are huge and you’ll certainly be satisfied. We had the “Chorizo” Burrito, Coconut Quesadillas, with extra guacamole, and the Cauliflower Rice Bowl.

Their famous “Chorizo” Burrito has been on my bucket list for a long time and didn’t  disappoint!

The burrito was smothered in green salsa, red salsa and sour cream (in the colours of the Mexican flag). The inside was stuffed with “chorizo”, cauliflower rice, fermented black bean and guacamole. There was a huge amount of chorizo in there, I loved it, but it was very spicy.

The coconut quesadilla’s are a good complement to the spicy burrito. They’re filled with spinach, basil, “Serrano”, king mushroom, garlic, pico de Gallo and topped with sour cream with guacamole on the side. All the flavours are very delicate and really blend well together. The mushroom adds an odd texture to the dish, which makes it very interesting, and leaves you wanting more.

The turmeric Cauliflower Rice Bowl is definitely not a usual salad. It comes with turmeric cauliflower rice, fermented black beans, grilled bell peppers, red onion and courgette and is smothered with salsa and sour cream. The salsa is spicy, but the sour cream cools it down. It is surprisingly good.

The bill

Burrito  $12
Coco Quesadilla  $12
+guacamole  $3
Cauliflower Rice Bowl $14

 

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The Cold Pressed Juicery, Amsterdam

‘What was missing for us?  A “McHealthy””, says Nathalie Alica Streng, founder of The Cold Pressed Juicery. So, she decided to fill the gap and developed the first cold pressed juicery and raw food grab n’ go bar in The Netherlands.

The Cold Pressed Juicery now has four branches in Amsterdam all famous for their organic, raw  juices, delicious smoothies and their superfood lattes. And we also love those tiled green walls!

The location

We went to the original location on the Willemsparkweg, which is right next to the Museumplein and Vondelpark. The closest tram stop is “van Baerlestraat”-just take the 2, 3,5 or 12 . The café is located near the the expensive shopping street, PC Hoofdstraat – where you can find shops like Armani, Gucci and Dior.

The space

The café has huge windows. In front of the restaurant, there are two benches under the windows to sit out on if it’s warm.

Since it’s on the corner of a side street, there’s more of a neighbourhood feel.

Inside, there are a few pillows on the wide window ledge. Or one level up, there’s a little bar area with a few designer wooden chairs, which are -to be honest- not the most comfortable chairs. All the walls are covered with beautiful, vivid green tiles where they display menu options.
It’s mostly a grab and go type of café and you can also order online at Uber eats. We arrived at around 1pm, and a lot of people were popping in for a quick  juice, but there weren’t  long queues.

The crowd

Expect yoga pants, or workout clothes with a mix of tourists.

The fresh juice test

Where to start? There’s 13 juices and 7 superfood smoothies.

Glowcation fans should go for The Glow (pineapple, strawberry, beetroot and ginger).

But it’s hard to ignore The MOAJ or The Mother Of All Juices ( a mega mix of spinach, kale, fennel, cucumber, green bell pepper, aloe vera, nettle, romaine, parsley, watercress, lime and jalapeño).

Since it was a cold day,  I went for one of their special lattes. I chose the Blue Majik and Ginger latte which you can have either hot or cold. It was sweet, but not too sweet, and had a herbal flavour. It tasted pretty special and boasts great benefits for energy and health, as it contains a lot of minerals and vitamins.

What we ate

The Cold Pressed Juicery makes 99% organic, pure and local food, without chemicals, added sugar, preservatives, pasteurisation, HPP, animal products, gluten and dairy. It is primarily juice bar, but they do have a lot of different menu options like wraps, smoothie bowls, salad jars and raw snacks.  All the portions are medium sized, so you may need a snack or a starter as well. Wraps are freshly made in the kitchen, but most dishes are pre-made in the fridge.

We chose the dragon bowl, a raw wholesome pesto wrap and a banoffee parfait.

The dragon bowl was a really beautiful pink smoothie bowl made of pitaya, raspberries, mango, pineapple, fresh coconut, almond milk, lucuma and raw cacao.

It had a lovely tropical flavour mixture. As toppings, we had raw sprouted buckwheat granola, chia seeds, raspberries, grated coconut and  passionfruit. The granola was super crunchy, definitely a must try!

The Pesto wrap was very thin and super crunchy and was filled with spinach, carrots, courgette, alfalfa and home made pesto (made of basil, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, almonds, maple syrup, Himalayan salt, nutritional yeast, Tamarini and black pepper). The wrap was very well filled and contained a lot of pesto. My only comment would be that the pesto was mostly on one side which made the other side a bit dry.

For dessert, we chose the Banoffee parfait which was a triple layered pot. The bottom layer was like cookie dough made of almonds, maple syrup, cacao, cinnamon, dates and vanilla. The second layer was a little darker, made of banana, cashew and cinnamon and the last layer was made of banana, coconut and cashews.

It was all topped off with a little almond and some cinnamon The flavours all matched each other perfectly. It was heavenly!

The little things that make the difference

The green tiles are stunning and create a lovely, plant based, organic feel.

The bill

Raw wholesome pesto wrap  10.50EU
Dragon bowl  9.90EU
Banoffee parfait 5.50EU
Hot blue latte  4.75EU
Juices  4.75-5.25EU

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Bluestone Lane, NYC

If we’re talking about the most famous Aussie brunch spots in NYC, then Bluestone Lane might well top that list. After moving from Melbourne to New York to work in banking, the founder and CEO Nick Stone found himself missing his local Melbourne café experience. So, in July 2013, he opened the very first Bluestone Lane location in midtown.

Now they have  20 branches across the States. Bluestone Lane is known for amazing coffee and their signature brekkie board: half avo smash and half greek yoghurt with lemon curd. Yum!

The location

My favourite branch is their most cosy café at 30 Carmine St.
It’s in West Village – a really trendy area with a cluster of healthy hotspots like ByCHLOE, Cafe Clover, Banter and Urban Vegan Kitchen.

The space

The outside is striking due to the pretty collection of blue seats and tables with umbrellas. Carmine St is busy, but great for people watching. Inside it’s all white washed timber and minimal. It’s also quite cosy). One wall is lined with banquettes and white marble tables. The other side has a long white table with bar stools.

It can be hard to get a table, as it’s always busy, but you can also grab a drink at the bar at the back of the restaurant.

Hanging plants jazz up the space. Be warned though- it can get quite noisy. You can work on a laptop, but, due to the turnover, staying for a longtime would probably not be appreciated.

The crowd

Bluestone Lane is very popular with New Yorkers and tourists. Our tip is to avoid the weekend as you may have a long wait.  Dogs are allowed on the terrace.

The fresh juice test

Bluestone Lane have a seasonal selection of cold-pressed juices, plus some heart warming lattes. These include beet, matcha and our favourite, Golden,  which is a delicious mix of turmeric, cinnamon, ginger and black pepper and is anti-inflammatory and detoxing.

What we ate

Bluestone Lane has an Australian inspired menu- pure food without any fuss.

They do have a lot of gluten free options, but dairy free is a little problematic. To eat vegan, you have to skip some things in the dishes, and they don’t have substitute items. This was a little bit disappointing for us. They also serve eggs, meat and fish

We had the Collective Granola, Bluestone Lane Rainbow Bowl and the Husk Bakeshop Banana Bread.

The Granola is from the brand Husk and is made of toasted oats, coconut chips, seeds and nuts and is gluten free. It usually comes with fresh fruits, greek yoghurt and citrus curd, but since I’m allergic to dairy, we switched the greek yoghurt to almond milk. They told us they would add more fruit to compensate, but they only gave us four blueberries and a sliced strawberry and a tiny portion of almond milk. However, the granola was very delicious, it was crunchy and had a really nice texture.

The Bluestone Lane Rainbow Bowl was filled with maple roasted heirloom carrots, spinach, lentils, pickled beets, poached egg, sweet potato hummus and avocado with turmeric, ginger yogurt dressing and feta (which we put on the side). The carrots were very well done, soft tender and slightly sweet because of the maple syrup.

The banana bread was our favourite dish.

We got two very thick slices of lightly toasted gluten free Husk banana bread. The bread was drizzled with some honey and topped with toasted pecans, fresh blueberries and strawberries. For those who like dairy, it came with fresh ricotta on the side.

The little things that make the difference

The West Village branch has been designed to host private events, casual cocktail parties and celebrations featuring flexible furniture arrangements and a multi-media and AV system. So, if you’re ready to celebrate, head to Bluestone Lane!

The bill

Husk Bakeshop GF banana bread  13$
Collective Granola   9$
Bluestone Lane Rainbow bowl   16$

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Alchemy, Bali

Alchemy was the original raw vegan restaurant in Bali. Based in serene Ubud, it is still going strong serving salad, fresh juices and smoothie bowls daily from 7am till 9pm.

Alchemy is famous for their signature create your own salad and smoothie bar with a vast array of toppings and bases … and we had heard that their raw chocolate deserts are pretty addictive too, so we had to visit!

The location

Alchemy is on the edge of Ubud. It’s conveniently close to the Campuhan Ridge walk so it makes a great post hike pitstop.

The space

Alchemy is on a busy, main road. The roof is made of multiple layers of palm tree thatch and wood so you can’t miss it. In front of the entrance there’s a row of large potted palm trees screening off the road plus a parking lot for the scooters.  There’s no outside terrace at the front, but they do have a garden at the back where you can sit. Inside is minimal and white. You can grab and go, or eat in. Once inside, you forget you’re on a main road.

The tables, chairs and benches are all warm, distressed wood and complemented by pea green cushions. They have large tables for up to 8 people, but also tables for just two. We choose a wooden bench next to the window.

The crowd

The customers are mixed and mostly tourists including parents with buggies, backpackers or people like us -healthy food lovers!

The little things that make a difference

You can create your own smoothie or salad bowl at the bar so there is no waiting around.

Also, cakes come quickly so you only have to wait for your juices which are all made fresh.

The WiFi is really good and it’s a perfect place to work, because of the relaxed vibe. The music is easy going pop  – not played too loudly.

The fresh juice test

There’s a huge menu of smoothies and juices.  We had two juices -the Classic Green with apple and lime which was a mix of cucumber and leafy greens (parsley, spinach, kale, celery, bok choy) and the Pina Colada made of pineapple (of course), coconut, vanilla and palm nectar.

The green juice tasted very healthy, I loved the mixture of leafy greens. But the Pina Colada was definitely our favourite, it really did taste like a Pina Colada!

The juices are freshly made made in the kitchen, but you can also buy them bottled to take away. We loved the use of bamboo straws.

What we ate

Everything at Alchemy is raw, vegan and mostly home made. We chose two make your own smoothie bowls. You choose the base smoothie or cashew mylk, then three fruits and finally 2 toppings – although you can pay more for extra. The bowls are finished off with mint and lime and the topping sizes are generous. We had a bowl with a spirulina and banana base and another with a  mango base. We made up the green bowl (spirulina and banana base) with dragon fruit, papaya, mango, toasted coco buckwheat granola, coconut whipped cream and extra homemade caramel. With our yellow mango bowl, we added papaya, dragon fruit, cantaloupe, coco cashews and muesli.

Next, we had the raw bananoffee pie, which was incredible!

The bottom layer had a really deep rich flavour. The banana layer added more fruity flavour. Finally, the top layer of coconut whipped cream added a really intense flavour twist. Everything fitted together perfectly. Our other cake (well chocolate bar) was a chunk of raw, vegan chewy chocolate with almonds and a hard chocolate layer on top. As chocolate lovers, we adored it!

What we’d go back for…

Alchemy has their own raw vegan cooking classes where you can sign yourself up. Also, they have their own cook book “The Raw Alchemist”.

The bill

Banoffee pie 45.000IDR
Clean Green  48.000IDR
Chewy bar 27.000IDR
Pina Colada 45.000IDR
Smoothie bowl 55.000IDR

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JuiceBrothers, Amsterdam

JuiceBrothers was founded in 2015 by four friends on a canal holiday who saw a gap in healthy, cold-pressed juice market in the Netherlands. Three years on, it’s a huge success and JuiceBrothers have several branches in Amsterdam, plus two in New York. And their vitamin packed juices are amazing!

And it’s not all about juice, head there for their signature açai with almond butter and of course the delicious Van Leeuwen vegan ice-cream! I went along with fellow Glowstar Fleur Maat.

The location

JuiceBrothers has multiple locations across Amsterdam. We went to the branch they share with Van Leeuwen on the Haarlemmerplein. It’s about a 15 minute walk from Amsterdam Central station. Or you can take a train or bus to Haarlemmerplein Station. It has a good view of the ”Willemsbrug”.

The space

The café is white and modern. Large, floor to ceiling windows display “JuiceBrothers”. Inside, the minimal and clean theme continues. You order at the bar and the eating area is upstairs. There are about 10-15 tables with wooden chairs and a leather couch area with green pillows. The tables are decorated with tiny plants.

You can take away, order online through deliveroo, uber eats and foodora or just eat in.

There’s WiFi, in this branch, so you can totally camp out and work on your laptop.

The crowd

Most of the people who come are younger city types who have a healthy lifestyle.

The fresh juice test…

JuiceBrothers are winners here with a mega choice of ten juices, including five green; three tonics including targeted juices like their Master Cleanse; three mylks; six shots; and ten smoothies.  Our favourite is the Unicorn’s Blood a fresh and spicy mix of watermelon, pineapple, ginger and lemon. It’s also deliciously tropical.

What we ate

The whole menu is vegan. All the smoothie bowls and açai bowls are made with non dairy organic products and so are the juices. Their signature menu option is the Almond açai bowl, which we had to try of course!

The bowl is a blend of açai and almond butter topped off with their own homemade granola, blueberries, strawberries, banana, cacao nibs, goji berries and Terra Sana organic almond butter. The granola is made of buckwheat, nuts, seeds,  maple syrup, coconut and spices.

It was literally one of the most delicious and crunchy granolas I’ve ever had.

Plus, the açai had a very deep, rich flavour, because of the almond butter in it.

The other smoothie bowl we chose was the Matcha made of matcha, banana, almond milk, vegan protein powder and various spices, topped with granola and a banana. This smoothie bowl had far less toppings than the Almond bowl. It was mostly granola, which was a shame and, disappointingly, the flavour didn’t taste like matcha.

Last, but not least, we had three Van Leeuwen ice-cream scoops. We picked the most famous one – Peanut Butter Chocolate chip. The peanut butter flavour was so rich, it tasted like a frozen spoon of actual peanut butter.

The fact that it was mixed with the chocolate chips added an extra flavour twist and bite.

Our other two flavours were turmeric and blue spirulina. They were both a bit crazy looking due to the colours, but they were very delicious. If you love turmeric, I would really recommend trying this one out, it has a really creamy turmeric flavour. Plus, the blue spirulina contained some soft cookies, which we adored.

The little things that make the difference

You can see how they make all the bowls behind the counter, nothing is a secret and they really want you to see that everything is freshly produced!

What we’d go back for…

The ice cream and granola!

The bill

Juice  8EU
Matcha bowl  9EU
Açai bowl almond  9.50EU
3 x scoops Van Leeuwen  5EU

 

 

 

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Moksa, Bali

Moksa has a mission: to create, and serve, healthy food in the most extraordinary and inspiring way.

Their ingredients are sourced directly from their own permaculture garden and this Glowcation is a fun farm to fork experience from start to finish.

Apart from their inspirational mission, Moksa’s USP is serving raw, vegan food which will quite simply explode your taste buds. Their standout dishes from the massive menu are the raw vegan lasagne and pizza.

The location

Moksa is quite remote, so you need to follow the instructions on their website to get there from central Ubud. We went by scooter, as it’s a long walk from the town centre. Moksa is surrounded by rice fields and on arrival you instantly feel like you’re miles away from the super busy and increasingly touristy Ubud.

The space

When you arrive at Moksa, you relax and can appreciate the sound of birds and the jungle. It’s the perfect get away from the city.

There’s two big, wooden, open terraces under a roof. You can relax and look at their beautiful permaculture garden from the chairs and tables made of dark Indonesian wood. When we arrived around 4pm it wasn’t busy at all. It filled up later but it never felt crowded or noisy. The music was  Ed Sheeran and acoustic covers of numbers, but not too loud. Working with your laptop in a culinary restaurant like this won’t be appreciated, but they do have good WiFi.

There’s a little shop next to the restaurant where they sell their own cakes and pies. You can also get take away there.

The crowd

Is quite international.  Moksa restaurant was founded by Chef Made Runatha and Made Janur Yasa. Chef Made Runatha became the world’s first Indonesian certified plant-based cuisine chef.

The fresh juice test

We had a fresh young coconut and the Body Cleanser which contained carrot, kale, celery, wheatgrass, ginger, apple and lime juice.

The apple made the juice a bit sweeter, but not too sweet. It came in a long glass with a bamboo straw.

What we ate

Moksa is 100% plant based and serves raw and cooked food. They use seasonal produce direct from their permaculture garden and the choices on the menu range from Asian, to Italian to Mexican!

We started off with the Moksa Mezze which came on a platter with quinoa, tabouleh, grilled aubergine, cucumber stick, olives, red radishes, tomato, vegan pesto cheese, living bread and crackers, accompanied with zucchini hummus, vegan tzatziki and red beet muhamara.

As our main dish, we had the Moksa Sampler, tempeh ribs and a portion of purple sweet potato fries with house made “ketchup”. The Moksa Sampler was a chef`s selection of mini lasagne, Asian spring pasta, mini pizza, gado-gado, organic spring mix, and accompanied with a soup of choice. We chose the soup of the day which was a very creamy and rich flavoured pumpkin soup.

Our favourite was definitely the mini lasagne, as the flavours were so intense and delicious.

We really loved the Sampler, because the menu is so large and everything sounds amazing, having the sampler allowed us to taste half of the selection.

The Tempeh ribs were two pieces grilled soy tempeh marinated with homemade bbq sauce, served with mashed sweet potatoes, mixed greens and grilled tomato. The flavour and texture of the ribs really were like a piece of meat. Plus, the extra portion of bbq sauce next to the ribs was perfect. So we ate it with the sweet potato as well.

Last, but not least, we ordered the Sweet Symphony as dessert. This was the chef`s selection of three raw vegan cakes and pies with vegan ice cream. We had a passionfruit pie with a nut and date layer and a very creamy light yellow passionfruit and lime layer with raspberries and topped with a gelatin like layer with passionfruit seeds. Plus, a slice of lime pie and another slice of raw chocolate pie with “whipped cream” and a strawberry next to a scoop of raspberry ice-cream.

The desserts were amazing.

Our tip, since the dessert menu is also pretty large, you can have 4 desserts in one if you go for the platter.

The little things that make the difference

The service is perfect and so professional. When we arrived, they asked us if we had been to Moksa before, and explained the philosophy of the restaurant. When your food arrives they also go through everything on your plate.

Almost all their food is grown in their own permaculture garden and they have a farmers market every Tuesday and Saturday from 10AM till 2PM. Also, the ceramic sets on sale (made by Hillary Kane from Gaya Ceramic Art Centre) and the cutlery are really unique.

The bill

Moksa mezze 70.000IDR
Moksa sampler 80.000IDR
Sweet potato fries 25.000IDR
Sweet symphony 70.000IDR
Tempeh ribs 70.000IDR
Body cleanser  55.000IDR
Young coconut  25.000IDR

For more Bali inspiration click here.

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Motion Café, Bali

Canggu’s Motion Café is the must visit destination to eat in south Bali. They have a wide range of delicious menu options from vegan to paleo which puts them firmly on our glow list!

They also support local farmers and take sustainability and caring for the environment seriously. So what’s not to like?

Motion Café is known as the fitness food Valhalla in Canggu. Their standout dish is the divine sweet potato and protein waffle. The rest of the menu is also to die for, with an extensive range of organic food options- Paleo, Keto, Alkaline, Vegan, low sugar to name a few.

The location

Motion Cafe is on Jalan Pantai Batu Bolong, the busiest street of Canggu which leads to the beach a 20 minute walk away.

The space

The café space is open- half inside, half outside. It has turquoise and white walls alongside pretty printed wallpaper which creates a welcoming vibe. You can either order food as a takeaway or delivery, or eat in.

The service is very quick, we had all our dishes within 10-20 minutes and we were there at the busiest time of the day.

We chose a table with two large padded chairs in the outside section. The WiFi connection is very strong, so it’s a hotspot for people working on their laptops. There’s an open kitchen at the back of the restaurant, where they refrigerate their own homemade cakes, raw balls and juices.

The crowd

The crowd varies a lot, but it’s mostly the food and fitness conscious, like bodybuilders, due to the high protein menu options.

The fresh juice test

We ordered two freshly made juices- the Cold juice and the Frog juice (!). The Cold juice was a mix of pineapple, orange, lemon and ginger and tasted very tropical.

The Frog juice was, as it name suggests, green. It was a combo of apple, spinach, cucumber, parsley, lemon and ginger.

It wasn’t too sweet, as it contained a lot of veg, so it was refreshing to drink alongside the sweet dishes.

 

What we ate

Since we went for brunch, we chose a mix of sweet and savoury. As the sweet potato waffles are the real deal at Motion,  we had to order them and a smoothie bowl. Plus, we selected a vegetable wok with tempeh and two juices!

The waffle came with fresh chopped fruit (banana, apple, mango, papaya, watermelon, blueberries and dragonfruit (pitaya)), chopped walnuts, coconut cream and coconut syrup. It wasn’t as sweet as you’d expect, because of the savoury balance of the sweet potato base.

It was crunchy on the edge and soft in the middle and was packed with sweet potato making it very filling.

The Blueberry – Banana bowl had a frozen blueberry and banana base and was topped with a sesame- pumpkin- sunflower seeds mixture along with mango mousse, almond and coconut milk chia pudding, fresh strawberries and homemade vanilla granola. The base was quite liquid and melted fast, but the toppings were very rich and delicious.

The veggie wok was more simple. It came with a mix of stir fried vegetables, a little salad, a brown an red rice mix and some simply fried tempeh.

The menu indicates whether the food is vegan, vegetarian or gluten free and you can change the base to suit your preferences.

The little things that make the difference

Motion is committed to zero waste. They use glass straws, have their own reusable napkins and their glasses are made of recycled bottles.

When we couldn’t finish our “veggie wok” they offered a doggy bag.

The bill

Cold juice  45.000 IDR
Frog juice  45.000 IDR
Sweet potato waffle with fruit salad  70.000 IDR
Veggie wok  65.000 IDR
BB Bowl   85.000 IDR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Crate Café, Bali

Crate Café opened it’s doors four years ago and is now the unmissable plant-based destination in Canggu. Their ethos is “To Create a Community. Keep it simple and keep it consistent”.

Unlike most eateries in Bali, Crate Café opens super early at 6 am, serving great coffee to kick start the day.

Their must have dish is chia pudding with a dollop of nana cream on top. The view over the rice fields is very relaxing.

The location

Crate Café is on a side street off the main street of Jalan Pantai Batu Bolong.

The space

Crate is modern, minimal and large with open sides with a cool canteen vibe. You can either sit outside at a wooden bar with parasols or in the main seating area with large wooden tables, comfy, pink couches and smaller tables featuring pictures of visitors under a plate glass top.

To order, you stand in line, pay and receive a number, then sit down and wait to be served, all of which is very fast and efficient. You can also order a take away, from the same line.

We visited Crate Café twice and both times it was packed but we still got our food within 15 minutes.

It’s quite noisy, as there are so many seats and it gets pretty busy. Plus, we really didn’t have much of a choice of where to sit. The WiFi is very strong, but they won’t appreciate it if you settle in to work there.

The crowd

Crate is very popular with tourists and becomes crowded around 10 am. So, to make sure you get a seat, arrive early. A lot of trendy people come here, but also parents with children and buggies. Dogs are welcome.

What we ate

Crate Café has a huge menu. If you don’t like their signature smoothie bowls or chia puddings, then you can choose from wraps, toast, eggs and (vegan) sweet treats as well – like banana bread, muffins or brownies.

The chia and smoothie bowls are both dairy free. Plus there are vegan, vegetarian, fish, meat, gluten and dairy free options on the menu.

There’s a large choice on the juice and smoothie menu. We ordered a watermelon juice and a Two Timer smoothie which were freshly made in the kitchen. The smoothie was super special with vivid pink and green layers. The pink layers were dragon fruit and banana, and the green layers kiwi and banana. It was both sweet and filling because of the banana.

We ordered the Bluebs chia pudding, the Mangoliciouse smoothie bowl and a slice of vegan banana bread.

The Bluebs was served in a big glass mug. It was a layer of chia pudding soaked in coconut milk, then a layer of nana cream made with blue spirulina, papaya and banana – all topped off with mango and kiwi balls. Often, when you have a banana based smoothie or ice cream, the banana flavour really takes over, but it didn’t here.

The mix between the jelly chia pudding and the ice cream on top was an interesting texture combination, but very delicious!

The Mangoliciouse smoothie bowl was a bit more traditional. The base was a mix of frozen banana, mango and lime topped with roasted cashews, pumpkin seeds, papaya balls and fresh, shredded coconut. The base was delicious, but the toppings were the best part, because of the large helping of fresh coconut.

For something more solid, we ordered the banana bread which was vegan -and a winner!.

The structure was really light, so if you didn’t know it was vegan, it would be tricky to guess. However, it did need a topping or just a little something extra to make it glow.

The little things that make the difference

Underneath the roofed section, there’s a small art exhibition where you can also buy the artist’s work.

The bill

Waterboy watermelon juice  40.000IDR
Two Timer 40.000IDR
Bluebs  60.000IDR
Mangoliciouse  55.000IDR
Vegan banana bread  35.000IDR

 

 

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Café Mareva, Paris

Mareva was working in finance when she discovered that she was dairy intolerant and started making her own food.

She enjoyed creating it so much that she quit her job, went to pastry school and a few months later opened Café Mareva sharing her love for breakfast – and waffles – with the rest of Paris.

The space

Café Mareva has a pretty, tiny terrace with two tables. The wall next to the restaurant is decorated with super cool graffiti. Inside is a complete contrast from the vivid colour outside to a simple, clean interior with stripped back white, brown and brick walls. A bar displays fresh, baked treats and at the back of the restaurant, it opens up with more seating space.

The little things that make the difference

The whole menu is gluten and dairy free and the signature Italian waffle is made with dairy free parmesan.

You can order the waffles, and other dishes on Uber eats. Don’t forget to get a stamp card. If you get nine stamps the tenth coffee is for free.

The fresh  juice test

Mareva don’t have a regular green juice, but do offer two juices of the day. We had the choice of a blend of watermelon, lime and mint or orange, carrot and apple. The mint based  juice had a good splash of lime in it which added interest.

What we ate

We wanted a balance of sweet and savoury and, as Mareva is known for their waffles, we had to try one! So we had the sweet potato and avocado waffle plus a sweet waffle with fruit and also the red berry smoothie bowl.

The sweet potato avocado waffle was unforgettable. It’s thin and crispy, and came with a very generous amount of avocado, rocket, tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes and a perfectly poached egg.

By contrast, the sweet waffles are gluten free and you order a plain waffle and top it off with a choice of ingredients. We covered it with fresh fruit, house made praline, chopped almonds, maple syrup and whipped cream.

This waffle was truly amazing!.

The house made praline combined with the super crunchy chopped almonds and whipped cream were an amazing. It tasted like my childhood with loads of Kinder chocolate.

The red berry smoothie bowl was a great complementary dish to the rich waffles.

It wasn’t actually an açai bowl, but it tasted like one, which we really liked. It came with house made cereals (like roasted rice puffs) and fruit.

The fresh fruit salad was just a fresh, simple salad with fruits of the season- blackberries, blackcurrants, raspberries, strawberries, apple, cantaloupe melon and nectarines.

What we’d go back for…

Since I have a really bad intolerance for dairy, the gluten and dairy free waffles literally made me glow from inside and out. Add a sweet potato through the mixture and you make my day. The menu was a menu for my heart!

The bill

Smoothie Bowl  9.90EU
Pancake Mareva  9.90EU
Fruit bowl  5.90EU
Avocado waffle  10.90EU
Juice of the day  4.00EU

 

 

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Sloe, Paris

Sloe, a new concept store in the North Marais, has fast become the go-to hot spot for health-conscious Parisians. It brings together a gym, where you can practice yoga, Pilates and cross training, a shop – we loved the organic skincare – and café.

It’s conveniently located close to Gare du Nord, and so a great pit stop when stepping off the Eurostar or before a train journey.

The space

This interior is light with white walls and large windows.

The vibe is relaxed and the yoga studio in the basement adds to the chilled and informal atmosphere.

On one side is a bar where the food and baked goods are freshly made and the wall is decorated with delicate black and white animal sketches. On the other side, it’s bare brick, with naked bulbs and open shelving. There are four small outside tables.

The little things that make the difference

We loved the beautiful marble tables dotted with tiny flowers and metal chairs with cool patterned cushions.

The fresh juice test

We went for a green juice and a green smoothie, which came with each of our set menus. The green juice was a mix of pineapple, cucumber, fennel and ginger. I’ve never had a juice with that flavour combination before and it was a hit! The fennel with the ginger made the juice so fresh, but the pineapple kept it sweet.

The smoothie was exceptionally green and contained elderberries which added a very special taste.

It also contained melon, lemon and mint and we preferred it to the juice.

What we ate

In typical French fashion, we had two set menus – the petit dejeuner (breakfast) which was an açai bowl with the juice and the set lunch menu – a spring veggie bowl with the smoothie and dessert.

The açai was a perfect blend, without too much banana and super-chilled.

The toppings were generous – mega-crunchy cinnamon granola made with almonds and hazelnuts, plus coconut chips, fresh blueberries and raspberries. A big dollop of creamy peanut butter was the perfect finishing touch.

The spring veggie bowl was packed with red cabbage, stir-fried broccoli in tamarind, grated carrots with pumpkin seeds, grilled zucchini, beetroot hummus, bean sprouts and egg.

Finally, for dessert we chose the pecan muffin, which had an amazing airy structure and was creamy in consistency. I think it had some pieces of banana in it adding a special twist

What we’d go back for…

The green smoothie, the taste was so pure and it was such an interesting combination. Plus I felt really clean and glowing when I left!

The bill

1 dish + 1 soft drink + 1 dessert  16.50EU
Açai bowl + soft drink  14.50EU
Additional cake  1 EU

 

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Kitchen, Paris

Kitchen is a must visit for vegan pancakes, pimped toasts, smoothies and açai bowls and this cool café is based in the hip Northern Marais.

Kitchen is a hit with locals (and models!) and the good news is it’s open from 8 am 7 days a week.

The space

Walking into Kitchen is like entering a very funky canteen.

The cosy space is filled with four large, communal tables.  Behind the counter there’s an open kitchen where you can observe the super passionate chefs at work.

The simple, white walls are hung with small paintings which add character.

The little things that make a difference

On the tables, there are different jams on offer,  in case you want to add extra to your banana bread or pancakes.

The fresh green juice test

For the green juice test we had a very, very green smoothie, which contained mango, spinach, banana and spirulina (to make it even greener).

It wasn’t super sweet, and you couldn’t really really taste the banana, which I liked!

What else?

Kitchen opens at 8 am every day of the week, which is rare for Paris! But if you don’t feel like getting out of bed that early, you can also order their food on Foodora, Deliveroo and Ubereats.

What we ate

We came to Kitchen to try out their signature vegan pancake stack – the dish everybody is talking about!

We chose the full stack with fresh fruit – two huge,  thick pancakes with raspberry jam, banana slices, maple syrup and powdered sugar. The pancakes are made of brown rice flour (and a secret ingredient they wouldn’t divulge), but they are gluten free and super good!

The açai bowl was a bit too liquidy for me, but very rich and topped with fresh blackcurrants, kiwi, banana, coco flakes, coconut yoghurt and crunchy granola.

The Chia pudding was soaked in plant-based milk mixed with turmeric and agave. It was perfectly balanced with some coconut flakes, blackcurrants and pomegranate seeds.

The banana bread was the vegan treat of the day … and as I love love love banana bread, I couldn’t miss out on ordering a slice!

It didn’t contain too much banana giving it a cake-like structure which I loved. However, it did taste a bit salty.

Usually I don’t eat bread, but living in Paris makes me crave it so much. So when I heard they had bagels – I was sold! We chose the bagel with avocado and hummus. The bagel was served warm and toasted. In my experience, there’s not many places In Paris that serve good hummus, but at Kitchen,  they really do!

Wow, the hummus had such a rich flavour and was topped with some slices of avocado, tomatoes and lettuce, it made a perfect and simple combo.

What we’d go back for…

The wide range of menu options, so you can easily bring all your non healthy, super healthy, vegan, vegetarian friends along and there’s something for everyone.

The bill

Green smoothie  6.00 EU
Açai bowl  9. 50EU
Chia pudding  4. 50EU
Banana bread  4. 50EU
Full stack pancakes  9. 00EU
Avocado hummus bagel  7. 00EU

 

 

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Soulgreen, Milan

Less than two years old, Soulgreen is already being described as Italy’s number one vegan hotspot.

Located near Corso Como, in the modern part of Milan, Soul Green is revolutionising traditional Italian food thinking with its innovative vegan and totally plant based cuisine. It’s a must visit!

The setting

Soulgreen is a genuinely beautiful, green focussed restaurant where you can totally escape city life. As you walk in you instantly relax.

Plants hang amongst the industrial lights and you feel like you’re in a total different world.

The high, stripped back ceiling makes the space seem airy, even when it’s really busy. The vibe is brightly painted chairs, recycled furniture and mosaic topped tables. There’s also a special room (which is filled with even more plants) which you can rent for parties and special occasions. There’s free wi-fi and kids get a welcome kit.

What else?

Not only are Soulgreen are revolutionising traditional Italian food thinking, their ordering system is also bang up to date. It’s all electronic as you order your food on iPads. You simply place your order in the basket and send it straight away to the kitchen.

The green juice test

I ordered the Lean ‘n Clean juice which included pineapple, fennel, pear and tea. At first, it tasted a bit sweet with the pineapple and pear, but after a while, you could really taste the freshness of the fennel which I really liked! The Ginger Head juice was a combo of carrots, ginger, celery, apple and pear. I like to really taste the ginger, as it makes the drink a little bit more fresh.

The little things

By eating at Soulgreen, you automatically help to provide water and food to children in need through Soulgreen’s charity programme ‘proud to give back’.

In 2018, in collaboration with Mission Bambini, Soulgreen will give three meals a day to 280 children in Markapur, India.  In 2017, Soulgreen provided a healthy and balanced daily diet to 150 children living in Cambodia.

What we ate

As we were  Italy, we ordered the Italian bowl. I couldn’t resist the caponata, which is one of my favourite Italian dishes.

It came with a base of rocket and the caponata had lots of flavour and chunks of super soft eggplant. It was accompanied by a simple paprika and  tomato salad with balsamic, vegan pesto and the best part- Cecina. I’d never had this before. It really tastes like omelette- it’s an Italian kind of flatbread made from chickpea flour, water, really good extra virgin oil, pepper and salt.

Our second  bowl was Lebanese,  a fresh mix of  hummus, falafel, greens and quinoa salad.

 

The bill

Lean n Clean medium  5EU
Ginger Head medium  5EU
Italian Bowl  15EU
Lebanese Bowl  15EU

What made us glow?

The plants and greenery. The waiter explained they are there to balance out the pollution of Milan. The plants filter and clean the air and this really made me glow.

 

 

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Wild and The Moon, Marais, Paris

Wild and The Moon believe “food should be good for you and good for the planet”. Emmanuelle Sawko opened the café in Rue Charlot in 2016 to promote this ethos and bring the concept of fast food as slow food to Paris.

A healthy grab and go concept in the Marais? We had to try it for you.

The setting

When you walk in plants are everywhere – in the window, on the wall and in the back of the restaurant. At the front, there are 3 fridges showcasing the juices, salads, snacks and some desserts to take away.

If you’re eating in, you order from a counter in the middle of the restaurant.

Plus there’s seating if you decide to eat in .I think the best place to sit is the back of the restaurant, as it’s very light with a large glass ceiling. There’s a huge communal table in the middle of this space so you can also work on your laptop.

 The little things

The plants create a wonderful environment.  And they do catering which is good to know if you ever have a party or event in Paris and need some plant-powered goodness.

The fresh juice test

I had a very green juice called the “So Green”. It was a mix of fennel, cucumber, lemon, mint, chard and parsley.

It was not sweet, but because of the fennel it had a really fresh flavour.

What we ate

We chose a green bowl made up of half an avocado with hemp seeds on top, broccoli, lambs lettuce,  cucumber, spinach, hummus, cabbage, pumpkin seeds and a vegan mayonnaise made of miso, which was very tasty!

And we got some very creamy guacamole served with really thin, crunchy raw crackers made of vegetable pulp and sumac.

Next, the Nice Cream.

This was definitely my favourite dish. We got a delicious bowl made of fresh coconut pulp, red fruits, maple syrup, coconut flakes and topped with puffed quinoa and goji berries!

There were still some chunks of coconut and berries which gave it texture. The lemon pie was very simple, but the intense flavour made us crave more! It was very rich, which made it a perfect combination with the grated coconut, dates and the almond butter crust.

What else?

They offer special Detox programs for 1-3-5-7days. Wild and The Moon also sell their homemade goodies, like granola, in little bags.

There’s another branch in Opera, and one in NYC and another in Dubai.

The bill

Green Bowl  11EU
Nice cream  10EU
Lemon Pie  5,50EU
Guac crackers  8,00EU
Juice 25cl  5,50EU

What made us glow

Their food is really pure, and that’s what you really taste. They never use processed ingredients, additives, chemicals, GMO, hormones, gluten, soy, dairy, refined fats or sugars AND never pasteurise. Which really impressed me!