Yesterday, I was standing in Wild Living Foods looking over their menu unsure of what I got myself into. I was a bit perplexed because everything on the menu seemed so healthy and fresh. In no way do I want you to think that I seek out restaurants whose food is high in fat or close to expiration, because I don’t. I’m merely saying that my frequency in visiting restaurants tends to lead me to those that aren’t so healthy. I probably should have known that this was a healthy place by the name alone, but my mind interpreted the name differently than most. When I dissected the name word-by-word and associated it to things I was familiar with, it went a little something like this:

Wild—Bear
Living—Bear
Foods—Cows, plural.

Turns out Wild Living Foods in Downtown Los Angeles, is none of that. Instead it’s a plant-based, organic, gluten-free, non-GMO raw bar. Sure I love my share of processed foods, packed with sugar, swimming in fat, that will probably take three days to digest, but to be honest with the amount of damage I put my digestive system through I needed something healthy and Wild Living Foods looked like a great place to be. That was clear as day from the bright, colorful, and lively interior. Add to that, the merchandise section selling wellness products alluded to helping people live a life of goodness. Then there was the staff: Dennis, Santino, and Iyana who were kind, calm, and bubbly individuals respectively. All that wrapped together made me feel like I was going to have lunch in a pleasant place and probably wouldn’t want to leave. Well, I was parked at a meter so I would have to leave in about 68 minutes. Until then, I enjoyed myself.

It didn’t take long for me to know what to order. Actually, I asked Dennis what he loved and pretty much went with that. I was eating healthier food than I normally do so I thought it would be best to go with the advice from the man who seems to know the restaurant well. With his help, the first item I ordered was the New God Flow ($12) made by Santino. It was made with C.R.E.A.M., cashew butter, mucuna, cold brew coffee, Ashwagandha, and vanilla dates. Straight from the remedy bar came a brown colored smoothie sprinkled with thin coconut shavings. As I took a few sips the first thing I noticed was the texture and consistency. It wasn’t thin like milk nor did it taste gritty, instead it was easily in between. Even better it wasn’t too thick so that it was hard for it to move throughout the straw. As I quickly inhaled the smoothie I loved that the main taste out of it was the coffee then the cashew butter flavors. It was perfectly blended so it all created a harmonious smoothie that was noticeable from my first sip to the last.

As I tried to quietly finish the last of the smoothie, my plates arrived. I started with the Spring Rolls ($8). A trio of brightly colored rolls enveloped fresh vegetables in a coconut wrap and it was served with a creamy sesame dip. Bite after bite I found that the spring rolls tasted incredible! While spring rolls are prevalent throughout Los Angeles, it’s easy for them to blend in taste from one restaurant to another without little distinction. At Wild Living Foods, my favorite part about the rolls was the coconut wrap that held it all together. The mid-toned brown wrap had a gentle coconut essence across it that gave the entire roll a delicate hint of flavor. From the outside in I loved the fresh vegetables and how the sesame dipping sauce served as the best pairing to the dish. The creamy sauce brought it altogether and made it hard for me to not keep dipping my rolls in it. As a whole, the rolls didn’t feel weighted yet were filling with all the healthy ingredients I could ask for. It wasn’t boring like I initially thought it would be and that was a great surprise!

After enjoying the spring rolls I had the Puebla Wrap ($15). The wrap was made with a pumpkin seed chorizo, avocado slices, marinated Kale, pico de gallo, sour cream, rolled in a sun dried tomato coconut wrap. The two halves of the wrap came with a side of homemade chipotle dressing that pulled together a variety of flavors that made me feel like I was teleported from Downtown Los Angeles to a small city south of the border. The chorizo was exciting and beamed with flavor in each bite. Within the chorizo was a spice that carried a great kick that forced me to eat it slowly. Unless spice is your thing this won’t happen to you, me on the other hand, well you already know I’m a spice wuss. With that, I proceeded with caution. Chrozio aside, I liked the thick slices of avocado and the smooth texture it brought to the wrap. The kale was a complete opposition to the avocado and gave the wrap a nice crunch and level of freshness. All in all it was such a delicious plate that I found it difficult to put it down.

I may have misinterpreted the restaurant’s name and I may have stared at the menu looking for heavy processed food to no avail. I get it, I was wrong and I can admit my shortcomings. That aside, I’m so glad that I was invited to the restaurant and that I was introduced to items that were not only good for me but made with care. That may have been a corny sentence, but considering how great I felt after eating at Wild Living Foods, I have a feeling they seriously put love into each plate.

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Address: 760 S Main Street Los Angeles, CA 90014
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