Gorilla Food (Waterfront, Downtown)

On initial inspection, Gorilla Food seems more like a cozy hobbit hole than a restaurant. Situated underground beside a Richards Street sidewalk (you have to saunter down a flight of stairs before you reach the doors), Gorilla Food is easy to miss, a secret lair tucked away while the rest of bustling Vancouver passes by above. Further inspection of the interior only adds to the “cozy hobbit hole” impression. For instance, each side of the restaurant’s walls is painted with a different colour. The walls themselves are adorned by colourful paintings of local artist Simon Haiduk. There are only five people working in the open-space kitchen. Their hours only run from 11 am to 5 pm. And the counter has a handwritten sign: “Cash only please.” I found all these details to be charming, even provincial.

But beneath the undeniably bohemian atmosphere, Gorilla Food carries a very weighty food philosophy: not only does the restaurant have an organic, local, and vegan foundation, but more significantly it follows the tenets of the raw food movement. Yes, you read that right. Raw. All the items in the menu are not “cooked”– at least not in the traditional sense. Gorilla Food owner and chef Aaron Ash explains that raw unprocessed plant-based foods are more nutritionally condense because the enzymes and vitamins remain intact when not heated to such high degrees.

Okay, so the menu may satisfy the most fastidious of health nuts, but my primary question is, how does it fare flavour-wise?

To answer this question, I started off with some Thai Wraps (three rolls for $5). These wraps are composed of a delicate and chewy filling of sunflower seeds, sesame, and coleslaw rolled inside three crisp, green collard leaves. But the best part is the condiment that complemented the entrée– a mound of sesame-topped ginger raisin chutney. The ginger raisin combination was just the right blend of sweetness and spiciness, adding a necessary tanginess to the leafy wraps. I jokingly asked if they sold bottles of the ginger raisin chutney, and unfortunately, they don’t.

The next entree to arrive was the Green Taco ($6.50). Instead of having the traditional taco shell, a romaine lettuce leaf was the perfect substitute, topped by layers of spicy chili walnut pâté, fresh guacamole, and savoury salsa. I was quite impressed by the innovation, particularly of the pâté, with its walnuts and pine nuts providing the savoury essence and chunky texture that’s expected of a taco filling.

The house favourite happens to be the Veggie Burger (two patties for $7.50), as almost every other patron in Gorilla Food was asking for this entrée. Again, instead of buns, this dish came with the lettuce leaf substitute, but the patties were the real surprise. While most veggie patties are composed of tofu or soybean of some variation, Gorilla Food’s patties are made up of compacted walnuts, hemp seeds, and sunflower seeds– none of which need to be cooked, unlike tofu. The guacamole and a ginger tomato sauce on top of the patties added zest to the equation. Almost like an afterthought, slices of tomato and cucumber were added as traditional toppings, though this veggie burger is certainly leagues beyond your ordinary Big Mac!

The only misstep for me in this entire meal was the T&T Gorilla Green Seasonal Salad ($5.50). This salad comes with a choice of dressing: citrus walnut cilantro, ginger avocado, and lemon flax herb (which I chose). On its own, the salad was delightfully light and refreshing, comprising mostly of spinach and daintily diced cucumbers and tomatoes.  On its own, I would say that this is one of the better salads I’ve ever had. On the other hand, in a menu comprising of fresh, raw vegetables in every dish, the salad was a little redundant, if only because it was also the least surprising.

Nevermind the salad–what’s for dessert? Gorilla Foods offer many healthy sweets and cookies, but they also offer varying cakes and pies daily. I chose a slice of the Cacao Hempseed Pie ($6). The pie comprised of a chewy shredded coconut and chopped walnut crust, balanced out by the smooth texture of the chocolate cream. Perhaps it’s because I’m a dessert fiend, but the pie was my absolute favourite, so much so that I finished the huge slice quite quickly even though I was already absolutely stuffed from all the other entrées.

Altogether, I found Gorilla Food to be very impressive–from its unpretentious comfy atmosphere to the innovative menu. In the future, I’d love to pop by the restaurant just to see what new culinary inventions they have come up with, or even just to grab one of their healthy and delicious smoothies and pizza slices to go. Being the only raw food restaurant in town might make Gorilla Food something of a curiosity, but it certainly fills in its particular niche in the Vancouver food scene very well.