There’s a Place! M Café de Chaya
Jul 30, 2009
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Starting today, we will have a There’s a Place! segment, featuring reviews of restaurants and cafés that are—or are working on—using organic or local ingredients, as well as incorporating sustainable business practices.
Recently I spent the day with Ara as he had knee surgery and was unable to drive. Dehydrated, hungry, and groggy, he suggested M Café de Chaya, a macrobiotic café on LA’s trendy Melrose Avenue.
Think of macrobiotic, and most of us think sprouts, wheatgrass, and torture. Or you picture Madonna, who supposedly restricts her children to such dietary rigor while she’s doing her daily four hours of yoga. Or maybe you just get depressed.
M Café describes itself using the “M word,” but you wouldn’t think it after you valet your car and walk inside. Brightly colored woods, clean modern lines, and a bright display case showing the day’s eats greet you.
Almost everything on the menu is organic or local. There is no red meat or poultry on the menu, nor is anything made with refined sugar, eggs, or dairy. Proteins are sustainably caught fish or plant-based foods such as soy and tempeh. The restaurant does an impressive job of satisfying your cravings: large, hearty sandwiches, leafy salads, fresh soups, rice bowls, and of course, sushi.
We split an Indonesian gado-gado salad, miso soup, and some sushi rolls. Gado-gado is hit-or-miss, even in Indonesia, but our salad was full of fresh greens, a light tangy dressing, and tempeh triangles that actually had texture and volume, not the slimy or gritty abomination through which I’ve suffered at other eateries. My only criticism is that despite the menu’s warning of its spiciness, I didn’t get much hot out of the dish—Bobby Flay would not approve! The miso had depth and was refreshing, not briny or grainy (like the stuff I whip up at home!). And the sushi rolls were an eyebrow raising success: made with brown rice from a sustainable farm, our rolls had enough chewiness, filled with generous portions of flavorful ahi.
Washed down with fresh lemonade, the mean left us satisfied, but not stuffed, and not starving or wanting as I’ve felt at other vegetarian restaurants. Lunch for two without dessert (they looked rich, but we resisted) was about $30 with a few bucks for the staff—it’s casual wait service here. This wasn’t a cheap eat, but a spirited way to spend lunch hour on a sunny summer day. I’ll be back: I’ve heard the kale with spicy peanut sauce is to die for!
Melrose location: 7119 Melrose Avenue Hollywood, CA 90046, 323.525.0588
Beverly Hills: 9433 Brighton Way, Beverly Hills, CA 90210, 310.858.8459
Culver City: 9343 Culver Boulevard, Culver City, CA 90232 310.838.4300 