Real Food Daily, Los Angeles #3

Real Food Daily is one of those restaurants that people return to over and over again because they consistently serve good food. This all-vegan mostly organic restaurant has three locations and I think this may have been my first visit to the Santa Monica location.

The Santa Monica restaurant features light wood and soft lighting for a relaxed feel. We started with a couple glasses of wine as we perused the menu. I am familiar with many of their dishes, but there are still many items that I have not tried. To keep it fresh, we ordered off the seasonal specials menu.

First up was the Three Amigos -- crunchy cauliflower fritters with romesco sauce and jalapeno aioli. The texture was delightful and the flavors perfect.

For our entree, we split the Caribbean Quesadillas. They were made with spinach, caramelized onions, coconut lentil puree, and pepperjack Daiya cheese in a whole wheat tortilla. The coconut lentil puree and coconut cilantro cashew cream really made the meal. On the side were some fantastic grilled plantains and a mango salsa.

After all that, we still wanted to try some dessert. The Brownie Bowl is to die for. The rich thick brownie is topped with chocolate sauce and coconut ice cream. It was incredibly decadent and my non-vegan friend remarked that it was as good if not better than any other brownie bowl he'd ever had.

Although the service was a bit spotty, all in all we had a great experience. The appetizer was $13 and the quesadillas were $17, but for mostly organic high-quality cuisine, I thought it was appropriately priced. Real Food Daily will continue to be one of my staples in the LA-area.

Real Food Daily
514 Santa Monica Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90401
(310) 451-7544