• April 24th, 2010quarrygirlLA restaurants, mooi, naturewell

    as we get closer and closer to the opening of mooi, a raw vegan restaurant in echo park, i am growing more and more excited. not only have i recently discovered the joys of raw food—but i have had the pleasure of trying several mooi desserts and appetizers, each one being utterly fantastic.

    here are a few of the things i got to sample (let’s just say, you have a lot to look forward to!)…

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  • April 2nd, 2010quarrygirlLA restaurants, mooi, naturewell

    when we announced we were going raw for the week, we turned to stephen hauptfuhr and his food business mooi, to help us get by. we were already huge mooi fans—the organic/vegan/raw catering company won us over long ago with their delicious ice cream and homemade cheeses, and we have been anxiously awaiting the opening of their restaurant. however, we’d never tried their entrees until just a few days ago, and only now do i realize how much we were missing out! everything was incredible, and the best news is that it’s all available to buy pre-packaged at naturewell in silverlake!

    check out our massive haul…

    ginger garlic stir fry with sweet 'n sour pineapple skewers: carrot, cabbage, broccoli, celery, and bok choy.

    our first mooi dish was a raw vegan stir fry, which consisted of carrot, cabbage, broccoli, celery and bok choi in an extremely tasty garlic ginger sauce. it came topped with a generous amount of pineapple skewers, which added the perfect sweetness to the vegetables. i don’t know how mooi does it, but this honestly evoked all the flavors and nuances of an actual stir fry…without being cooked.

    thai peanut noodles: kelp noodles with peanut sauce, broccoli and snow peas.

    the next entree was by far my favorite of the four. a raw take on thai food, it consisted of kelp noodles in a rich peanut-style sauce with loads of fresh vegetables. it was so ridiculously good, i can’t possibly do it justice. the thick, creamy, and nutty beyond belief…and the soft noodles were fantastic. the normal dish comes with bell peppers, which i hate, so stephen was kind enough to leave them off for us. if you are into raw food, or just good food, you should seriously head to naturewell and pick some of these noodles up.

    more after the jump…

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  • October 22nd, 2009quarrygirlLA restaurants, mooi, naturewell

    who said ice cream couldn’t be raw, vegan, and delicious? the folks over at mooifood have created tons of amazing flavors using ingredients such as coconut meat, agave, and soaked cashews—who would have though such tasty ice cream could come from such simple foods? mooifood’s ice cream is all raw, vegan, organic, soy-free & gluten-free, and is available at naturewell in silverlake by the scoop or half pint.

    blueberry cheesecake

    blueberry cheesecake

    i was lucky enough to receive a sample of 6 of the 9 flavors, and each one was refreshingly tasty. this ice cream strikes the perfect balance between being decadent and healthy…tasting good and not making you feel like crap after eating it. the first flavor i tried was the blueberry cheesecake (pictured above). it was cool, creamy, and filled with tiny chunks of fresh blueberries. i ate it in one of mooifood’s homemade raw vegan cones, which was phenomenal—like a big, thick bendable cookie. i never realized raw food could be such a treat!

    pumpkin (seasonal)

    pumpkin (seasonal)

    the next type of ice cream i tried was the seasonal pumpkin, which was by far my favorite. this was the richest flavor of them all, and tasted like a frozen version of pumpkin pie. it even had a crunchy swirl in the middle, YUM. i don’t know how long the pumpkin ice cream will be around, so you must rush over and try it ASAP! it will totally get you in the mood for the holidays.

    chocolate peanut butter

    chocolate peanut butter

    the chocolate peanut butter swirl variety is pretty decadent as well, made with cacao and sunflower seeds. the creamy chocolate ice cream is filled with big chunks of salty, nutty patches. if you are a peanut butter fan, this really won’t disappoint. and i am definitely a peanut butter fan.

    gingersnap cinnamon cookie dough

    gingersnap cinnamon cookie dough

    again in a raw cone, i tried gingersnap cinnamon flavor, which was packed with big chunks of delicious cookie dough. epically scrumptious!

    maple cornbread

    maple cornbread

    the maple cornbread ice cream was a blend of unique tastes that worked really well together. the real maple syrup flavor was strong throughout and added a perfect sweetness to the cornbread.

    peppermint chocolate chip

    peppermint chocolate chip

    lastly, the peppermint chocolate chip was delicious—ice cream flavored with peppermint oil and littered with cacao nibs. extra minty with just enough chocolate flavor.

    you can find all these mooifood ice creams as well as strawberry banana, vanilla and chocolate at naturewell in silverake. right now they are priced out at $2.25 for one scoop, $3.75 for two scoops, or $4.99 for a half pint. i don’t know if you are used to raw ice cream prices or not, but that is CHEAP compared to other places. if you want even more, you can contact mooifood and get 16oz for $8.99 or 32oz for $14.99!

    if raw food is your thing, you will absolutely love this ice cream. and even if you aren’t much of a raw foodie, this stuff is really impressive…and fairly good for you. it sure won me over. definitely get to naturewell and try some—i suggest pumpkin flavor! 🙂

    naturewell
    3824 W Sunset Blvd
    Los Angeles, CA 90026
    (323) 664-5894

    for more info on mooifood, check out thier website or follow them on twitter!

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