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mooi vegan restaurant is open, and incredible!
19May 27th, 2010LA restaurants, mooiafter months of setbacks that often come with being a new establishment, mooi raw vegan restaurant in echo park has finally opened its doors…and well, it’s pretty phenomenal. i ate there for the first time last night, and i must say after just one visit, i think it will prove to be one of my favorite spots in LA.
first off, the interior is stunning. a huge double decker space, mooi is furnished with lush comfy chairs, vintage lamps, and purposely mismatched tables. the layout is spacious and extremely well executed—i think the ambiance alone makes it one of the most unique places to eat in LA.
to add to the eclectic vibe, the menus aren’t presented in typical form, but instead they’re pasted into dr. seuss books…
rad.
but let’s get to the most important thing…THE FOOD! the dinner menu is very cleverly separated by course. you have “the story begins” (the appetizers), “the plot thickens” (soups and salads), “the climax” (entrees), and “the sweet happy ending” (desserts, of course!).
sliced tomatoes with pumpkin seed pesto and sweet vinaigrette. $5
for my appetizer, i chose the sliced tomatoes with pumpkin seed pesto and vinaigrette. the description sounded pretty tasty, but it didn’t prepare me for the deliciousness that was in store. it had all the rich flavor of bruschetta, but without the actual bread. it came on a plate with three plump tomatoes topped with chunky pesto and a drizzle of sweetness. quite a good start, i must say!
broccoli cashew cheese soup. $6
for my second course, i went with the broccoli cashew cheese soup. this concoction was so creamy and filling, it could probably be a meal all on its own. the broth was thick and super cheesy tasting, and it came topped with small crispy broccoli florets that were just amazing.
enchiladas in tomatillo sauce with walnut refried beans and vegetables. $11
for my entree, i went with the adventurous-sounding “enchiladas in tomatillo sauce with walnut refried beans and vegetables.” i was very curious to see how mooi would make a raw vegan version of this classic mexican dish, and after just one bite, i was very impressed. the tortillas were crafted from some type of dehydrated mixture of vegetables and flax, and the “meat” inside them was made from spiced walnuts.
the most scrumptious thing on the plate however (and probably my favorite dish of the night), was the walnut refried beans. i have NO IDEA how mooi did it, but these “beans” were phenomenal…and they actually REALLY DID taste like refried beans. wow.
mooi snickerz cake
lastly, for my dessert i went with mooi’s famous snickerz cake. this sweet creation has all the flavor of chocolate, peanut butter, caramel and nuts…and does surprisingly resemble the candy it’s named after. i must warn you, this is only to be tried if you have a seriously vicious sweet tooth. it’s soooo rich and sugary tasting, and naturally i absolutely loved it.
since i’m a huge fan of the orange chicken-style jackfruit, mooi also sent me home with some of that. the chewy jackrfruit had the perfect amount of orange flavoring and it came on a fluffy piece of coconut “bread.” i can’t figure out how they make raw food this good that tastes so much like a classic cooked dish—it’s absolutely astounding.
the bottom line is, last night was only mooi’s first night serving dinner as a restaurant…and they were already rockin’ it hard. the place was comfortably busy, the service was excellent, and the food was exceptional. i know that mooi will be one of my regular haunts, and those of you who live nearby should consider yourselves lucky.
mooi restuarant
1700 west sunset blvd.
LA, CA 90026monday-saturday
10am to 3pm (soon they will start opening at 8am)wednesday-saturday
6pm to 11pmsunday brunch (COMING SOON…not yet)
10am-3pmPS: mooi will be open on monday may 31st for memorial day. woo!
Tags: echo park, raw
17 responses to “mooi vegan restaurant is open, and incredible!” 
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OMG
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I am so excited about this! Those pictures look so appetizing, especially the enchiladas.
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Gauri Radh May 27th, 2010 at 10:38
I’m still in the transitioning-over-to-veganism-from-being-vegetarian phase and I haven’t tried vegan-raw dishes yet. Must try them soon, and this looks like the place. The stuff in these photos looks delicious!
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Screwdriver May 27th, 2010 at 13:15
Holy cow….looks great, but.
How many grams of fat in that meal? 80-100g?
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haha they need to be careful about advertising “happy endings,” it might draw the wrong crowd. Food looks delicious though.
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Food was horrible…. not to mention expensive …. the menu pretty much had few items available to order none of the stuff in the article… thai noodle was like eating straws that are edible and bland… chocolate ice cream very salty… staff where nice owner was polite …. waste of my $95 3 people… I usually don’t waste my time writing bad press but I have cramps stomach as does my guest who came ….. go somewhere else
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susielol May 27th, 2010 at 23:16
My husband and I shared a meal there on Wednesday night too and I think we sat next to you actually. lol I love the staff. Cool people. Attentive but chill. I LOVED the broccoli cheese soup and the stuffed jalapeños. The orange chicken and the coconut bed it laid on were hard to stomach though, at least for me. Texture of the jackfruit was impressive.I give it that. Just not my taste. My opinion. The chocolate chunk peanut butter ice cream was all white with one small chocolate chunk and a tiny smear of peanut butter and it tasted like mint and hand soap. We have tried their ice creams in the past and loved them. hmm. My husband’s quarter-dollar-sized brownie was a joke but my snickers pie was a good size. At first bite, it was a bit too salty and rich for my taste but I learned to love it after a few more bites 😉 I would go back for the soup, jalapeños, and pie. Your enchiladas look good. Should have tried those instead of the orange “makes my stomach turn” chicken j.k. :p I’m just a picky eater.
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drainote May 28th, 2010 at 01:58
Do they have another menu that actually shows the prices of their items, perhaps like a paper To Go one or something?
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dude i think i know the couple in the last picture. this is the 2nd time i’ve seen them on a blog eating at a vegan restaurant. WEIRD.
i cannot wait to go to this place!
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EricM May 28th, 2010 at 14:52
not being a fan of most raw foods, i am 99% sure i will never step foot in this place. especially after JD’s comment.
sounds spendy, too. i’ll pass.
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Gregalor May 28th, 2010 at 19:24
I think anyone who says this looks appetizing is crazy, but to each his (or her) own.
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The last time I had raw vegan food was from CRU, and I’ve been scared of it ever since. Everything they served me was tasteless and overpriced simple crap.
However, Mooi looks pretty damn delicious! I will have to try it and cross my fingers that once again I wont leave hating raw foods. -
Amber J July 15th, 2010 at 11:00
THIS PLACE WAS AWFUL! From the piss poor service to the food that tasted bland, bitter, gross and soapy all in one bite. To the part where it took us 30 min to get our bill. I nearly felt offended that we had to pay for such crap. Then to top it off I had stomach cramps for the next 24 hours. WHAT!!! Why?? This is maybe the only restaurant where I almost argued that I didn’t want to pay for the food becuase it’s flavor was offensive and insulting! I’m just not like that ever.
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So glad I read some of the above comments; now I wouldn’t dream of taking the long bus ride to Echo Park to eat at Mooi!
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Chef BeLive will be the guest chef on Saturday, September 11 @ 6pm. Get a BeLive appetizer and main course (TBA), for a set price of $20 and enjoy something from Chef Stephen Hauptfuhr’s (Mooi Foods) menu as well. Either way, you surely will be delighted.
2 Trackbacks / Pingbacks
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[…] new Fridays). They are open until 3:00 pm today for lunch, and 6:00 – 11:00 pm for dinner. QuarryGirl has a rave review of the raw vegan restaurant, so it might be worth check it […]
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[…] so please, ORDER YOURSELF SOME CSA PRODUCE and PICK IT UP AT MOOI next week. and whilst you are at mooi, eat some of the awesome vegan ice cream and raw food! […]
deblog May 27th, 2010 at 07:38