June Eats (Part 3): Santa Monica (Kippy’s Ice Cream & Real Food Daily)

June Eats is a 4-part post recapping all the fabulous plant-based restaurants that I visited in the month of June. I was so fortunate to try so many new places last month that I decided to break up this post into 4 different parts separated by location. For example, Part 1 describes my trip to Cinnaholic and Ike’s Place in the San Francisco Bay Area, Part 2 is about Juicy Ladies and the new Veggie Grill location in the San Fernando Valley, Part 3 is about Kippy’s Ice Cream and Real Food Daily in the Santa Monica Bay area, and Part 4 is dedicated to Doomie’s Home Cookin’ in Hollywood. Enjoy!

Part 3: Santa Monica Bay (Kippy’s Ice Cream & Real Food Daily) 

 

Kippy’s Non-Dairy Ice Cream, Venice

Kippy Miller is behind the brand Truly Raw Gourmet Sorbet. She sells her delicious dairy-free sorbets in many Whole Foods locations in SoCal. Her Truly Raw sorbets are made with fresh coconut water, fresh fruit, and are sweetened with raw, local honey. Very recently Kippy decided to transform the store front of Truly Raw Gourmet into an ice cream shop (I even blogged about it here). It is now open to the public (just in time for summer) and features five ice cream and sorbet flavors including: chocolate creme, chocolate cappuccino, vanilla cappuccino (both coffee-free), strawberry coconut, and strawberry lemonade sorbet (with more flavors coming soon!). There are also a number of toppings to choose from and, if you are dining-in, your ice cream is served in a cute hand-painted ceramic bowl (Kippy even lets you pick your bowl).

What I got: a generous scoop of chocolate cappuccino and a scoop of strawberry coconut; served in a rose-pink bowl (which was my choice, naturally). 

 

WOW! First of all, this was probably one of the best non-dairy ice creams I have ever had. The chocolate cappuccino and strawberry coconut tasted so great together. It had a creamy consistency, much like gelato. The texture was just right and the taste was so light and refreshing. It was the perfect blend of flavor and texture. It truly is a guilt-free treat that has a very not so guilt-free taste.

I wish Kippy’s was closer, because I would be there every day! Either way, this ice cream is amazing and worth the drive. Kippy even says that she might have a completely vegan ice cream in the works, along with gluten-free waffle cones and banana splits. This is exciting news, to say the least. So stay tuned! I can’t wait until this idea goes big, because I really see non-dairy ice cream as the next big thing (with Kippy’s leading the way). 

 

Real Food Daily, Santa Monica

Real Food Daily is the only restaurant in the Los Angeles area that serves a 100 percent plant-based menu using foods grown exclusively with organic farming methods. It also boasts THREE SoCal locations: Santa Monica, West Hollywood and Pasadena. The Santa Monica location was the first one opened by founder Ann Gentry and just celebrated its 20th year in business.

What I Ordered:

The Caribbean Quesadillas (one of their Seasonal Specials): featuring an island coconut lentil puree, baby spinach, caramelized onions, vegan pepperjack cheese, toasted whole wheat tortilla with coconut cilantro crème, mango salsa, guacamole, and grilled plantains.

I am so glad I ordered this. Not only do I love lentils, but I am a big fan of Caribbean food (especially mango salsa) and I love plantains (plantains are one of the random food-items that I constantly crave). With this dish, I did something I rarely do: I ate it very slowly. I wanted to savor every bite- that’s how good it was. Everything went together so perfectly. I wasn’t sure what to order when I walked in, but, needless to say, I was very happy with this decision.


I hope you liked Part 3 of June Eats. Be sure to read Part 4- this post is dedicated entirely to Doomie's Home Cookin' in Hollywood.

-S&P