Grass Root Organic Restaurant

Editor's pick

4334 S Manhattan Ave., Tampa, FL 33611

(813 221-7668

http://www.thegrassrootlife.com/

Categories: Restaurant

Cuisine: Vegetarian

Features: Catering, Dog-friendly, Kid-friendly, Takeout, Wifi

Cost range: 1.0-10.0

Payment options: Credit cards accepted

Alcohol: No alcohol

Not just vegetarian, but 100 percent vegan. Not just vegan, but much of the menu upholds the tenets of the raw food diet, where nothing is heated above 110 to 120 degrees, which keeps beneficial enzymes alive. Still, this funky outpost in a slightly sketchy neighborhood is not at all about asceticism. At Grass Root Organic Restaurant, diners can dive into platters of "live spaghetti with treatballs," raw sushi, exotic wraps and lush miso "sipp" with sliced coconut noodles. Hardly the food of deprivation and hippie delirium, dishes are colorful, flavorful and satisfying, even for the unreconstructed carnivore.