Live was everything I dreamed it would be and so much more!!!
Eric and I decided to go out for lunch because it just fit in better with our shopping trip in Toronto today. :)
Immediately upon entering Live, you are greeted with vibrant colours and fabulous quotations. It really sets the mood!
I love this quote below:
It was quaint and edgy looking:
With an open patio feel. Sorry for the dark picture- I should have used flash!
The menu was a vegan lover’s dream come true!!!!!
Looking for some awesome homemade salad dressing recipes: Click below!
I almost died when I saw their GREEN MONSTER MENU!!!!
Can you guess what I got???
I ordered a ‘Liquid Plumber’ smoothie with kale, celery, cukes, dandelion (!!!!), and lemon AND a ‘shot’ of Rejuvi-Live. Dandelion is supposed to be a great way to detox your liver!!!! UMM HELLO!!!
Here I am with a (healthier) birthday shot!!!!! It’s all about balance right? ;)
Let’s just say it was better than some of the shots I had last night. ;) The Liquid Plumber smoothie was exactly what I was looking for- detoxifying and INTENSE. This was not sweet AT ALL and I had a hard time getting all of it down.
My liver thanked me!
More quotes:
The menu was also filled with descriptions of all the foods! I loved this part as I didn’t know many of them.
Eric and I both had a salad to start. His was the Caesar salad and mine was a house salad:
I didn’t care for the dressing on his, but I really liked mine.
Eric got The Better Mac burger:
(there was a top to the homemade live bun but I didn’t photograph it!)
The Better “Mac”
Our high protein seed and grain burger topped with lettuce, tomatoes, red onion, and ‘secret’ sauce served on a sprouted Ezekiel burger bun is sure to curb your burger appetite!
Eric didn’t really care for the texture of this burger and I will admit it wasn’t my favourite either. He was SUCH a good sport about the whole thing though and didn’t complain once!!! What a guy! :)
For my main I decided to go big or go home. I got the Raw Platter Sampler!
I admit I was shaking in my boots ordering this!!! I had never eaten RAW FOOD before!!!!
Top center: The Un-Stir Fry Mixed vegetables, hemp seeds, and sprouted mung beans in a “teriyaki” sauce served over parsnip “fried rice”.
Right: Canadian Pizza Eh! A personal buckwheat pizza topped with a sundried tomato sauce, eggplant “bacon”, green peppers, marinated mushrooms, and a rich macadamia mozzarella “cheese”.
Center: Portobello mushroom burger
Bottom Left: Spaghetti and ‘Neat’ Balls
The taste?
- The pizza was by far my favourite item! So delicious
- The spaghetti and neatballs were good too, my second favourite.
- I didn’t care for the portobello burger (texture) or the sauce on the unstir-fry.
I ate about half of my plate and was pretty stuffed! But not too stuffed for…
RAW CARROT CAKE!!!!!!!!!
This was every bit as amazing as I hoped it would be!!! GAH!!!!! I ate almost every bite (Eric had one bite, lol).
What I wanted to do today I succeeded at. I wanted to try authentic raw food at it’s best! I was a good sport and didn’t hold back- I tried EVERYTHING.
While I enjoyed some of the raw foods (especially the pizza) I still very much prefer to eat my food cooked. There is just something about the warmness of foods and the satisfaction it brings. So no, I won’t be going raw, but this was really fun!
I definitely want to go back to Live and try out some of their ‘cooked’ menu items as everything looked so great!!
One thing that I decided after today’s visit was that I definitely want to explore more raw desserts in my bakery!!! They are just so delicious!!!
The only drawback from my lunch today???
Indigestion!!
Does anyone else ever get bad stomach pains from too much raw food? My stomach has been quite uncomfortable ever since lunch. :( Hopefully the ginger tea I am drinking will help!
On the way to Cayne’s Supertsore, we drove through some fancy neighborhoods in Toronto. I love looking at houses!
Cayne’s Superstore was a BLAST! Eric took me there for my birthday and told me to ‘get whatever I needed’ Ummm…hell yea! :) It was sort of like supermarket sweep! lol. No, no, I’m only joking, I was actually on my best behaviour!
More on my shopping trip later- this girls needs a nap with hubby!!
Aka- me laying down and fidgeting while Eric snores! I can’t nap for the life of me!
Wow what a cool place! I wish we had stuff like that in Nashville! What a great experience! I also love looking at houses! Driving by the great big mansions wishing someday it will be mine :) hehe
~Justine
Hi Angela,
Let me tell you how much I am inspired and love your blog!! I’m addicted.
I have difficulty with the amount of fibre and especially raw vegetables, grains and nuts I can consume in 1 day. I very easily can end up with bad stomache cramps – it is all about balance. I have learned so much from your blog. My husband and I had had our first Green Monsters this morning…
Oh my gosh, that place looks so flippin’ COOL! Out of all the raw foods I’ve seen in the blogosphere, I’m probably most intrigued by the raw desserts. Can’t wait to see what you whip up!
First off, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! : ) Hope you’ve had a wonderful one!
Secondly, that places looks so neat! (though I do agree, that there’s just something about warm, cooked food that I just wouldn’t want to do away with.) : )
Do you think you might have irritable bowel syndrome? I suffer from it myself, and it sounds like from what you’ve said here and previously (the not being able to handle dairy well thing and some other things that I can’t remember, but when I read them I thought, aha, sounds like IBS!) you might as well…
I have been reading your blog for a while, and it’s inspiring me to get healthier! I can’t do much exercise at the moment (apart from the 1 hour of walking I do everyday to get to and from work), because I have done something to my knees and they HURT when I do anything more than walk, which is a pity because I was only just starting to get back into it again… Sigh.
The menu at LIVE looks awesome! Their green monster selection gave me some great ideas! I grew up eating dandelion leaves. I remember my Dad picking them out of the back yard and Mom steaming them up. I hated them then and haven’t eaten them since I was little. I think I need to call Mom to get some instruction. There’s an old lady on their street that still picks them!!!
Lots of veg always leaves me with a bloated feeling belly. Not the nicest….
that restaurant sounds amazing!!! supermarket sweep, hehe :) loved that shoe! i’m such a dork!
Haha, I was cracking up about the liquid plumber and then I read further and you ORDERED IT.
I bet that your tummy trouble have something to do with your festivities last night and your drastically different eating today. You did have a rather ambitious raw meal — and the raw desserts tend to be pretty rich in nuts and dried fruit. On top of all that, you drank green colon blow!
Sounds like you had a wonderful berfday! Many happy returns!
Happy Birthday!
I agree with e.’s insight about your indigestion…especially on top of that you do not seem to eat out a whole lot! I wouldn’t worry about Irritable Bowel Syndrome…
There is an excellent vegan organic restaurant here, and even though I am nearly vegan/veg it always gives me indigestion/ bloating. Maybe it due to the complexity of the dishes, using many combos of nuts, raw veg, raw fruit plus all the seasonings…also many healthy places use freakin’ Canola oil! I don’t seem to be able to digest Canola oil.
Your house is coming along beautifully! So jealous here in L.A., where two bedroom houses are over a million!
Everything looks wonderful! Raw Carrot Cake is something I’ve been dying to try.
It’s probably all the fiber that is making your tummy hurt. I know when I eat too many fruits and veggies, I get bloated.
Love all of the quotes!
P.S. Just making sure you got my e-mail about the cookbook. I have trouble sometimes where my e-mail won’t go through, so I was just checking =)
P.S. Peppermint tea and Kukicha tea are also excellent for indigestion…
I’m glad you enjoyed your tasty looking lunch, and happy belated birthday!!!
looks like a fun adventurous meal!
i just had to say i LOVE your supermarket sweep reference. being on that show is my DREAM!
What kind of camera do you have? I think its a cannon but I’m not sure.
JEALOUS! The menu looked amazing online. There is a company called Awesome Foods that makes A-MAZING vegan, gluten free, raw foods. They ship too! You should totally check them out.
www.awesomefoods.com
OMG that restaurant looks amazing! I’d have to keep coming back to try just about everything on that menu. It all looks so good – I have no idea how you actually chose your lunch! ;) Thanks for such an in-depth review!
Can’t wait to hear about the shopping trip! That sneak peek picture is definitely intriguing.
That place sounds so good! I am going to add it to GoDairyFree.org and link to your post for more details.
It sounded like your birthday was so much fun too, loved all the pics.
I hope you had an amazing birthday! I absolutely adore your blog, just thought I’d let you know :)
That raw food looks pretty interesting – I wish we had a place like that around here, I’d love to try it!
Have a wonderful night!
Love,
Meg
Sounds like you had an interesting lunch. I am intrigued by the raw carrot cake. What was the texture like? I have never eaten any raw meals, I am so curious about what raw desserts are like compared to non-raw ones.
Happy Birthday Angela!! That really looks like a fun day,the raw carrot cake sounds so much good.
Live looks so cool! Austin needs something like this NOW!
What an amazing day it looks like you had, but It look like you guys were the only ones at “Live”
Looks awesome! :) Hope you’re having a wonderful birthday.
www. HelpMeghanRun .com
That cake looks awesome, but more importantly, Happy Birthday!!
Happy Birthday!!! That restaurant looks so cool. I really like all the quotes on the walls.
That restaurant was designed for food bloggers!
WOW that looks delish! (the carrot cake especially) when im in toronto ill have to try this out!!
Angela: I created a new website and managed to add your green monster link to my page again..thanks for letting me to do! I really believe in it! :) (also stuck a picture of a green monster in my new header) lol
– Jocelyn
heh I used to live a block from Live.. up until May 1st. I’ve never been though, and I’m glad for the review-I’m always tempted but never sure. This will help me (though I cant say I’m decided yet! My main issue is the price!)
‘Aka- me laying down and fidgeting while Eric snores! I can’t nap for the life of me!’
That’s so me, my boyfriend loves an afternoon nap, I just can’t do it!
I have felt the same way about eating a raw food diet… Gena from “Choosing Raw” wrote to me the other day (did you see her quote on my blog about it?). She said that she doesn’t experience indigestion but I think it’s because she eats a mainly raw food diet..
and um.. that carrot cake looks AMAZING!
Can we go there this summer? haha.
Glad you enjoyed your b’day from one US taurus to a Canadian Taurus. When you get a spare (???????) moment check out the site for E3 in regards to running/etc. My husband and I have been taking it on and off for about 4 yrs now. The taste is def ‘green’ but it is more of a hassle since you have to defrost a weeks worth, etc. They now have it in pill form and we take it. My local health food has had it on back order for over 3 weeks but you def get a great glow to your skin if you take it regularly.
I get tummy pains when I eat some raw fruits and vegetables too. I’m definitely a cooked food girl (although, I have yet to see a raw dessert that doesn’t look crazy delicious!)
I only get stomach pains from lots of fiber if I consume a lot of sugar alcohols near the time frame of that meal. (HEllo sugar free gum addict!!)
That place sounds so fun though!! I can’t wait to move home and check out some of the raw restaurants there!!
(continued)
* since “home” is a very GREEN and hippy like city….and on my last visit, I was finally noticing all these vegan and RAW restaurants that I had never paid attention to before!!
Someone else promises rosy cheeks because of beets! I guess it’s true :)
Happy belated birthday Angela! You should try finding a restaurant that serves just vegan food (that’s also cooked). There’s one down here in Florida and I think every person who has eaten there has left with happy taste-buds!
I get stomach pains every time I have a green monster I thought it would get better over time but so far it hasn’t. I also can’t eat more than a handful of raw carrots without stomach pain. I am weak… going raw would be a nightmare for me. ehh
Angela, very cool restaurant. I have never heard of it. The pictures are great. I might be with Eric on the burger. :)
I’ve never tried raw food before and I am not sure if there are any restaurants here that have raw food in their menu … Happy belated birthday ;)
happy happy birthday weekend! looks like a great time :)
The Live place looks really cool. I’m still searching for something of that context here in Louisville. Hope the shopping went well.
I hope you had a wonderful birthday Angela! It looks like you had so much fun! :)
It is a really helpful information about organic foods. I live in a village and organic foods are very important for us,
there is also a very useful guide that i got great informatin about organic foods:
http://agricultureguide.org/