Festal Paleo Cafe

Yes, the last post on Manna was about plant-based meals, so the conventional thinking would be that an unhealthy gluttonous food adventure was to follow.  Well you would be wrong as we did some paleo and keto dining at Festal Paleo Cafe in Downtown.  We did get back on the meat train, but went easy on the carbs.  As much as paleo and keto diets have become more mainstream, there is a general lack of dedicated restaurants.  Now the biggest problem for me isn't the availability, rather it is about taste and texture.  I was curious if Festal could win me over.

We ordered a wide range of dishes including the deliciously-looking Butternut Lasagna featuring local grass-fed beef, butternut squash, spinach, cashew cheese, creamy coconut tomato sauce & fresh Italian herbs & spices.  Sure, there was a lack of noodles in this lasagna but I really didn't miss it due to the "layers" of textures and flavours (sorry for the pun).  This included tender meat, creamy cashew cheese and a noticeable spiciness to go with the tanginess of the tomato sauce.  This was so large of a portion, it could easily divide into 2 meals.

My absolute favourite dish  had to be the Bolognese with zucchini noodles, raw cashew cheese and cassava foccacia.  Zucchini can be a finicky vegetable as it can overcook easily.  The "noodles" in this dish were perfect being soft and cooked through without becoming mushy.  It was bathed in a flavouful and meaty bolognese with the sweetness of onion and carrots.  We fought over this dish and finished it easily.

Another well-executed item was the Butter Chicken with marinated chicken breast, spiced tomato, cashew and coconut sauce.  For a version that did not include heavy cream, this was still rich and ate very much like butter chicken.  The sauce had a thick viscosity while being "creamy".  There was a nice balance including a tangy finish with spice.  The large cubes of chicken were tender and moist.

Sticking with the theme of the restaurant, the Sirloin Burger did not come with a bun.  I really could care less as the grass-fed beef patty was topped with thick cut bacon and a giant glob of bacon jam.  The patty itself was rather lean, so it wasn't exactly juicy.  Yet it wasn't dry either.  There was plenty of natural beef flavour and when combined with the tangy jam, it was just plain delicious.  Definitely a fork and knifer.

Working our way through the menu, we decided to get a couple slices of Paleo Pizza including Wild Hawaiian (crispy bacon, Canadian black forest ham, pineapple, cashew cheese and tomato sauce) and Meatlovers (beef, bacon and Canadian black forest ham).  As much as the pizza crust was a bit dense (no grain dough), it wasn't heavy and was relatively thin.  There was no lack of toppings, which made it a hearty meal (I guess it justified the $13.95 for 2 slices).  The creamy cashew cheese was a fine substitute reminiscent of Virtuous Pie.

Completing our savoury dishes, we tried the Spicy Chicken Waffle Sandwich sporting local free-range chicken breast, bacon, no-grain waffle bread & colelsaw.  Once again, the lack of grains didn't detract from the waffle's texture.  It was soft and fluffy while holding everything together.  The chicken was thin, yet still moist and the abundance of crunchy coleslaw added moisture and messiness.  The side of cassava chips were light and crunchy.  Completing the dish was a generous portion of real maple syrup.

Onto dessert, we had a good selection including Keto Almond Croissant, Raspberry Log Cake, Keto Blueberry Muffin, Keto Chocolate Brownie and Keto Boston Cream Donut.  Since all of them employed alternative flours such as coconut and almond, the textures were predictably more dense.  However, they were still good in their own way.  I thought the raspberry log was fluffy enough and had a good balance of sweetness and tartness.  The donut was mildly sweet and almost pudding like.  I found the muffin to be close to custard quality while sporting enough sweetness from the topping.  The croissant was rather dense while the brownie ate like a typical version being chocolaty and rich.  Now I've had paleo food before at various other restaurants in town, but the one thing that sets Festal apart is that they elevate the food.  In this way, I didn't feel like I was giving up anything necessarily to go paleo and keto.  Flavours were impactful and they did their very best to keep the textures appealing.  I would definitely return with the lasagna and bolognese at the top of my list.

*All food and beverages were complimentary*

The Good:

- Impactful flavours with spice

- Nearly all the items had an appealing texture despite the lack of conventional flours

- Wide range of items

The Bad:

- Predictably, some textures were more dense, not much you can do about that

- Pizzas are a bit pricey

Nourish Kitchen & Cafe

Although Nourish Kitchen & Cafe has built up quite the following in Victoria and beyond, I wasn't really familiar with the place.  By virtue of staying nearby (Inn at Laurel Point) and walking past it daily for the past 4 days, it was a given we were going to dine there eventually.  So we decided to hit it up for brunch on our last day staying in Downtown Victoria.  So what makes Nourish so special?  Well consider that it appeals to Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten-free and Paleo-diets as well as everyone else.  Wait, is that even possible?  I guess we were about to find out.

To start things off, we had the Hummus with Roasted Veggies.  At first, I thought this would be a small appie, but since it was on the lunch menu, I guess it was enough for a meal.  Featuring perfectly roasted parsnips, peppers, broccoli and cauliflower, this would've been delicious (not to mention healthy) by themselves.  However, they rested on a bed of hummus that was probably intentionally chunky.  There was texture and smoothness combined to create a great dip for the sweet veggies.  I would've liked a bit more tang, but that didn't make or break the dish.  I also got a small cup of their All the Power Chicken Bone Broth with ginger and turmeric oil.  This was flavourful and full of umami complete with substantial natural chicken flavour.  Tasty, yes and also good for you!

Onto my main, I went for the Sleeping Beauty Pancakes with featuring cardamom oat pancakes, apple compote, organic pomegranate whipped cream, bee pollen sprinkles, maple syrup and smoked bacon (added for $5.00 more).  These were thick, but surprisingly light considering the use of oats.  Slightly fluffy with a firmer exterior, these were sweetened by the compote and syrup.  When eaten with the smoky lean bacon, the pancakes had a fruit sweet and smoky salty combo flavour.  Surprisingly good considering this was gluten-free.  My son was appalled that we brought him to a place like this and had his eyes only on the Normal Breakfast.  This consisted of 2 farm fresh eggs, salad, buckwheat seedy toast and smoked bacon (also added for $5.00).  As much as this was gluten-free, he loved the crunchy and nutty toast.  Eggs were perfect and the bacon was lean and meaty.

Viv ended up with the Bonita Bowl sporting 2 soft poached eggs, cilantro hollandaise, molasses and chili baked beans, roasted squash, avocado and apple salsa, salted cabbage, pickled jalapenos and crumbled chorizo (also $5.00 more).  This was gluten-free and could be had as dairy-free too.  This was pretty substantial with a wealth of meaty and mild chorizo and 2 perfectly poached eggs.  The hollandaise was tangy and light with a bit of herbaceousness.  Lots of things going on including flavours from all of the ingredients that included sweet, spicy, tangy and of course salty.  Miss Y, who joined us, and my daughter both had the Benny Gone Nuts with 2 poached farm eggs, blanched kale, mushrooms, baked sweet potatoes, turmeric cashew hollandaise and haus verde pork sausage ($5.00 more).  This was gluten-free and dairy-free, but was no worse for wear because of it.  Hollandaise was earthy and tangy, eggs were runny and the use of veggies rather than bread made a unique but ultimately tasty concoction.  Sausage was meaty and full of flavour.  Yep, we liked this place despite my initial reservations.  If you are nearby, give it a try.

The Good:
- Appeals to all forms of diets
- Food is actually tasty
- Quaint house

The Bad:
- It ain't cheap, but fair for Downtown Victoria

Caveman Cafe

After a so-so meal at Two Rivers Meats in North Van, Miss Y was in search of more paleo eats that didn't involve her cooking at home.  Actually, she loves cooking at home since it lets her control what she puts into the food.  Hence, it was more like I wanted to find eats and needed an eating buddy.  I ended up grabbing Miss Y and made our way to the Caveman Cafe in International Village.  This was as close to pure paleo that one can get in terms of eating out (some items are not really all-that-paleo, but again, close enough). 

I started with a bite of the Chicken Wings (added on for only $2.99 with a meal) drizzled with a spicy BBQ sauce.  As for the positives, I really enjoyed the sauce as it was as spicy as advertised.  There was a bit of sweetness at the tail end of each bite.  The wings themselves were a bit dry and overdone.  Furthermore, the skin was not rendered at all being fatty and broken.  Onto the Caveman Lasagna, I chose to have it with meat sauce and regular cheese.  The rest of the ingredients included zucchini, eggplant, carrot, onion, turnip, ginger, garlic and celery.  I decided against having noodles or potato which meant the whole thing was rather wet.  Nothing they can do about that since there was no carb to soak up the moisture.  With that in mind, I enjoyed the lasagna for what it was.  Flavours were there and the amount of melted cheese was generous.  I probably would've liked to see the zucchini and eggplant sliced thin and layered rather than chunks.

I also got the Beef Cheek Platter Feast with spiced rice with black beans and a meal-sized custom salad (with pomegranate dressing).  For around $10.00, this was a fantastic value since there was more than enough food.  Secondly, the generous amount of beef cheek was tender and gelatinous.  There could've been a touch more seasoning, but it didn't make or break the dish.  In addition, there was some hummus and spiced yogurt to complete the platter.  For Miss Y, she had the Caveman Pizza featuring a veggie crust.  It wasn't really a pizza per se, rather it was a combination of ingredients on top of a falafel-looking flatbread (it didn't taste nor have the texture of falafel though).  The chicken was fairly mild-tasting, but still relatively tender and not too dry. Ultimately, there are some items that might appeal strictly to those on paleo diets.  However, with the platter feasts, one can customize their meal at a very affordable price.

The Good:
- Fantastic value
- Loved the build-your-own feast
- Great for those who are on paleo or similar diets

The Bad:
- Some items may not appeal to those not on paleo diets