Kyle and I had a date last weekend at Native Foods. Again. I love love love this place and so even though we swore we wouldn’t spend money going out to eat when we had so much food to finish off before moving, we got an invitation from friends (they picked Native Foods!!) and so we took it as a sign couldn’t turn it down.
So here’s the thing. I’ve used the restaurant’s rewards card every single time we’ve gone and never gotten anything. We’ve been the Palm Springs location, the Culver City location, the Costa Mesa location, and the Westwood location. Lots of time. And what have I gotten for swiping my card? Nada. As we were walking in the front door this night, I said to Kyle we may as well not even use the rewards card since we were leaving LA and probably wouldn’t be dining at Native Foods for a while. In other words, what’s the point?
Then we met our friends, got seated, and Kyle went up to order for us while I stayed at the table with P.
I got the sesame kale macro bowl. Duh right? I mean, I’ve obviously been craving it for a while now since I keep making my own version at home.
I also got a side of seitan. Just because I wanted to try it and never had. Extra protein never hurts.
I was kinda annoyed by the size of this “side” (it was in a condiment cup and cost $3), but whatever.
Kyle and I got ours to-go just in case P decided he wasn’t cooperating and we had to bolt. Of course he was a dream and slept through the entire meal, but it worked out because I still had leftovers to take home.
Kyle got the nachos. I reminded him that he should get them after he eyed mine last time.
Here’s the best part…when Kyle came back to the table after ordering he told me he used the Native Foods diner card and we finally got a reward!!! So now we get to go back again before we leave because we have a $10 off coupon!!! This is VERY exciting. I think of all the vegan restaurants Native Foods is my fave. Kyle likes Veggie Grill a lot, but I wish they had more options without faux meat. I get the kale salad with tempeh every single time, whereas with Native Foods there are TONS of options that I always drool over and consider.
Our friends both got Earth bowls.
This is the Rockin’ Moroccan Bowl with Native “chicken” marinated in their homemade Moroccan sauce with grilled veggies and quinoa, and topped with currants and toasted almonds. You can get it with tofu too (which makes it GF).
This is the Bangkok Curry Bowl with seared tofu steak on top of steamed veggies, greens and brown rice with a lemongrass and ginger-infused coconut milk curry and topped with sesame seeds and cilantro. It’s also GF.
So what should I get for my last Native Foods meal??? Browse the menu and tell me.
I love native foods! Their lavender lemonade is just wonderful 🙂
If you haven’t tried their Greek Gyro bowl yet, you should. I get it with tofu and it’s very tasty. Also, while it is an appetizer, the saigon rolls are really, really good. Very light and tasty but satisfying and full of flavor.
“I think of all the vegan restaurants” …. I’m so jealous you even have ONE. Akron, OH is not a hotbed of vegan eateries.
Unrelated, do you have an instagram feed? I take photos of all the new recipes I try, and many of them are yours and I’d love to be able to tag/promote you!
Native Foods was the first vegan place I’d ever eaten at and it was love from the start. Like you, I tend to stick with the macro bowl because it’s so amazing. I have had nibbles of their chick’n wings (pretty tasty) and my son’s scorpion burger. I wish I could make tempeh tastes like their’s when I make it at home. Yum!
The Chimi Chop salad is my favorite. I get it without the seitan because it makes me bloat like crazy, but it’s still extremely tasty without it! I love the croutons, dressing, and roasted veggies!
I’ve heard so many amazing things about Native Foods…I’m dying to try it! We have a serious shortage of vegan restaurants here in Columbus, Ohio. I would totally order the Bangkok curry bowl…holy yum. I’m crazy for anything with coconut milk!
We have Native Foods here in Chicago and everything looked amazing but I had such a hard time finding something on the menu that was gluten and soy free! As expected though in a vegan restaurant.
Haha! That’s too funny because I was just complaining to my friend that I never get anything for using my Native Foods Reward Card- hopefully I will soon!
P sounds like such an angel! I can’t believe you were able to travel with him and he’s always so cooperative when you’re out in public. Lucky momma and daddy!
Maybe you’ll get a reward soon too!!!
That’s so surprising! They are really good about swapping or omitting proteins and I know there are quite a few GF items (labeled as such).
Ditto to coconut milk. Mmmmm
The scorpion burger was the first thing I tried. They do good stuff w tempeh!
Native foods is my favorite. I used to always order their oklahoma bacon cheeseburger but my latest favorite is their OC Raw Chopper Salad with added Blackened Tempeh. So yummy!
I wish I had a place like this near me! I am 3 hours from Chicago so my next weekend trip I know one place I will be stopping at. And when I go, I am going to try the Ensalada Azteca salad, yum yum!
I want a native foods in my neighborhood!! The entire menu looks so amazing, but the deli rueben would be my pick- good vegan versions are hard to come by! If the bread is a deal breaker the aztec salad is tempting….
Having never been to Native Foods, I vote for the Greek Gyro bowl too! It looks like it has lots of yummy ingredients that you like 🙂
Hmmm…so I saw someone up thread mention there is one of these in Chicago. Our go-to vegan restaurant in Chicago is the Chicago Diner, but I may have to look this one up. Although the Diner is vegetarian/vegan; you can get anything they make completely vegan, but they do offer real cheese and egg dishes.
they do have one in chicago! you MUST try it!
Colorado finally got its first Native Foods last year and I’m so jealous because my mom went and told me how much she loved it and I’ve browsed the menu many times and everything looks so good! It’s not that close to me (like an hour drive each way) but I’m really considering just taking a day trip down there to finally try it!
I had the pleasure to be at the opening weekend of the first Native Foods ever in Palm Springs. It was very different back then many years ago. I miss the old Native Food so much. The new version is nothing like the original . It is still good, but nowhere near as good as it once was. I now like Veggie Grill better.