Good Food
MBE partnered with True Food Kitchen for this post
Even before you and the kids step into family-friendly True Food Kitchen, in El Segundo right next door to trendy Manhattan Beach, California, the healthy living vibe beckons.
Founded by renowned Harvard-trained physician and doctor of integrated medicine Dr. Andrew Weil, True Food Kitchen's 22 locations nationwide offer delicious, beautifully presented and conscious nutrition served against the backdrop of vibrant living vegetable, fruit, herb and succulent potted plants; beautiful painted wall murals; an airy space constructed with eco-friendly reclaimed wood and other materials; and an attentive, friendly service staff.
Casual, Elegant Green Ambiance
If you care about about a healthy lifestyle, the environment and are into green living, you will appreciate this casual, yet quietly elegant eatery's overall feel.
Perfect for a family weekend lunch or Sunday brunch, the spacious floor layout, comfortable seating, politically correct wall murals and open kitchen, also create the ideal place for a business work day lunch or romantic cocktails and dinner for two.
Perfect for a family weekend lunch or Sunday brunch, the spacious floor layout, comfortable seating, politically correct wall murals and open kitchen, also create the ideal place for a business work day lunch or romantic cocktails and dinner for two.
Lush potted vegetable, fruit, herb plants hug the perimeter of the bright naturally-lit restaurant and outdoor eating area, while indoors succulents are everywhere. In fact, after you eat, if you've brought the kids along, they might enjoy going with you to check out and try to identify the plant-based foods they recognize growing in those planters.
Delish, Beautiful, Conscious Nutrition
Under Dr. Weil's direction, the True Food menu is based on the simple, yet well-researched anti-inflammatory diet approach to eating well. From the moment my daughter Rebecca (who's home for the summer from college) and I sat down, this was a pleasurable lunch adventure sampling the seasonal summer menu that's now available till early October.
Cocktails & Appetizers
We started this culinary tasting journey with cocktails to celebrate Rebecca's recent 21st birthday. She ordered the Watermelon Mojito (lime-infused rum, mint, $12) and I had the Wild Orchid (lemon-infused vodka, blueberry, lavender, $12). Both drinks were so refreshing to look at and sip, without any artificial colors, and the wild orchid garnish, particularly, added a vibrant summery touch.
To go along with those fresh drinks, we noshed on two amazing vegan summertime vegetable dishes. The Heirloom Tomato & Watermelon, was beautifully presented on a bed of coconut lime yogurt, basil, mint and toasted pistachio, while the Charred Cauliflower was lightly seasoned with harissa tahini, medjool date, dill, mint, and pistachio.
Salads
Both of us love a good salad and the more exotic, the better. To revel in the height of summer, my daughter ordered the amazing vegan Korean Noodle Salad ($14.50) made with sweet potato glass noodles, bok choy, kale, cucumber, kimchi, mango, and bean sprouts lightly drizzled with almond lime vinaigrette.
I opted for the colorful, sweet and savory Seasonal Ingredient Salad ($14.50). This salad showcased some of my favorite summer ingredients including watercress, grilled broccolini, and asparagus along with raisins and goat cheese; it also featured some things new to me which were absolutely delish: green garbanzo beans, sprouted almond, and turmeric chia vinaigrette.
Main Courses
We could have stopped there, full and satisfied with all that deliciousness. But, when you review a restaurant like this, it's part of the job description to push forward and try some more dishes that are truly representative of a restaurant's menu selection. Especially when it involves good, healthy food like we're talking about today, we thought why not?
Luckily the two of us still had a bit of room to try the seasonal, artfully presented vegan Grilled Artichoke & Pesto Pizza ($16). Vegans (and probably many vegetarians and meal-eaters, too) will rejoice when they taste this unique pizza which comes generously loaded with artichoke, spinach, summer squash, black walnut pesto, lemon, aleppo chili, and vegan almond ricotta.
To balance things out, we also couldn't resist tasting the T.L.T. (Tempeh Lettuce Tomato, $13). Another tasty and good-for-you True Food option, this huge vegan sandwich was stacked with smoked tempeh, butter lettuce, tomato, avocado, vegan mayonnaise, and seeded grain bread.
Tea, Coffee & Dessert
Okay, we admit it. We didn't have to say no more than once to dessert and a hot drink to enjoy with it. After such a wonderful filling and healthy meal, we thought we'd hedge our bets that the summer desserts would be equally good.
The Summer Berries ($7) with forbidden rice, watermelon, macadamia nuts and coconut shipped cream and the fresh homemade Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp ($9) with almond crumble, chia seed, and vanilla ice cream did not disappoint.
The Summer Berries ($7) with forbidden rice, watermelon, macadamia nuts and coconut shipped cream and the fresh homemade Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp ($9) with almond crumble, chia seed, and vanilla ice cream did not disappoint.
This summer dessert duo, along with steaming cups of Matcha Horchata ($6) and Cinnamon Vanilla Latte organic fair trade coffee ($5), were the crowning jewels and perfect ending to our mother-daughter lunch date.
About True Food Kitchen
True Food Kitchen is a family-friendly eatery that's all about conscious nutrition offering healthy vegan, gluten-free, vegetarian, and non-vegetarian food options. In addition to the LA-area restaurant at 860 South California Highway 1, Suite #100, El Segundo, CA 90245, there are currently 22 other locations in the nationwide chain serving communities across the U.S. from California to Maryland.
In addition to the summer menu (available for a limited time till early October), a varied regular menu -- which like the seasonal one, uses locally-sourced ingredients whenever possible -- has broad appeal to a wide range of healthy eating tastes. There is also a special kids' year-round menu including dishes designed to appeal to little ones like the Almond Butter, Banana and Apple Sandwich on seeded grain bread with carrots and tzatziki and more. For details, the full menu and location nearest you, visit the official website. You can also stay in the loop by following the brand on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
FTC Disclosure: My daughter and I were hosted by True Food Kitchen for this review. However, opinions here are our own. See complete FTC Disclosure information that appears at the bottom of MommyBlogExpert's main page and at the bottom of every individual post on this blog, including this one.
