Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Life Alive in Lowell, MA Gluten free & organic cafe

How do you judge a good restaurant? The atmosphere,  the menu or the bathroom? I'm happy to share that Life Alive wins on all three... especially the bathroom. The converted dwelling kept the tub and turned it into a wonderful plant oasis. 
A few weeks ago we ventured over to Lowell, MA to meet up with our friend Carol for her birthday. She doesn't eat meat and I don't eat gluten so finding a place to feed us both can be a challenge. Thankfully Life Alive came onto my radar via Urbanspoon and this place fed us not just safely but well.

I enjoyed a Demi portion of the Goddess for lunch and the size was perfect- not too small but I didn't leave the table feeling like I overate.  Life Alive described it in such a way that this non-veggie monster was craving this dish.... (as taken from their website)
Our famous Ginger Nama Shoyu Sauce nurturing carrots, beet, broccoli, dark greens, & tofu gracing short-grain brown rice. 
Somehow they took all my favorite veggies and crafted the dish so well that I didn't miss the meat. I even enjoyed the tofu. The staff was well versed and helped me sub a dressing that was gluten free and paired well. They even had Liz Lovely treats as well... which I couldn't resist but ended up taking home  for later.
We enjoyed a great day with the birthday girl and the pups even snuck in a swim.
Although I'm not sure Sara was too excited about the swim after the monsters shook off onto her...
We were all excited to have a good day with great friends and yummy food and to be able to give the birthday girl her new handknit socks.
It must have been birthday ju-ju as these socks totally knit up as a matching pair- the self stripping yarn doesn't always and it was fun to see them match so perfectly.

Life Alive also has locations in Cambridge and Salem, MA so check them out on your gluten free travels.