Patient Information

Wendy Yu

Brandon and I love to eat out when I’m too tired to cook but you won’t find us at a place like the Olive Garden or El Torito. We love good food made from the highest quality ingredients. So after repeated requests from patients about where to eat a tasty AND relatively healthy meal, I’ve compiled a list of restaurants that reflect our vision of respect for health and the environment. I’ve put an (*) next to the places that I have not yet tried but have researched. Also keep in mind that I'm becoming more and more critical of my culinary experiences so if you've had more positive experiences at some of these places, let me know. Please feel free to e-mail wendy@herbalroom.com if you have suggestions or comments.

Please note: Although eating “raw” is currently in fashion, we at ECCM don’t trust foods that have been prepared in this fashion if you have a weak digestive tract, hypochlorhydria (insufficient stomach acid) or if you are taking medications for acid reflux. On more than one occasion, we or other patients have personally had very adverse culinary experiences after eating raw foods since most restaurants do not clean their vegetables as well as one would at home.

Casual dining

My new favorite in Pasadena. Clean, healthy, homemade, non-fussy Japanese food right next to the Ice House. Organic items are designated on the menu. I really like the green tea soup, curry and teriyaki dishes. Trust me, these are unlike any teriyaki or curry you've had before because everything is made from scratch. Excellent tea selection too.

Mid-city café serving breakfast and lunch using seasonal produce and organic items whenever possible.

Aside from the Slanted Door in San Francisco , where else can you find organic Vietnamese food? Favorites include the curry, Niman Ranch beef pho, crepe and porridge. 8 minutes from our LA office so we often rely on this place for fuel.

If you want to feel bloated or have a yeast infection, this is totally the place for you. Using old French bread-making methods, they create a number of different artisan breads that all sound incredible. Some of the flours are organic. Probably not a good place to break your detox or if you have dysbiosis but it sure looks fun.

Home-cooked Italian food served at this cozy family-owned nook in the Valley. They offer rice pasta for those who need to avoid wheat and other gluten-derived grains.

Healthy options and organic coffee. My favorites are eggs in a hole and the antioxidizer. Great people-watching brunch spot with WiFi. Very Westside.

Organic Chinese cuisine in the San Gabriel Valley. WHAT? It must be a scam and the food must be filled with some crazy Chinese toxic lead. Or maybe not? I must go check this place out.

This place makes a decent effort at using fresh organic ingredients and their menu offers a variety of dishes to please different dietary needs. Although the kelp noodles I ordered weren't very tasty, the other dishes on the menu looked really good.

Some organic ingredients including baked goods. Spelt bread, granola parfait, organic coffee.

Locations include Westwood, Brentwood, West Hollywood, Santa Monica , Manhattan Beach , Studio City and Old Town Pasadena. For some reason we haven't done well with their salads and the Pasadena location's vibe is strange and somewhat annoying.

Innovative raw vegan cuisine. We don’t necessarily trust raw food when dining out but they do have the most incredible smoothies made with fresh homemade almond milk.

So great. A simple hot dog stand with 100% grass-fed beef hot dogs with none of the junk. The woman who started this company was Alice Waters' former forager up in Berkeley so you know it's gotta be good! So if you're jonesing for a hot dog without the guilt and shop for furniture at H.D. Buttercup, head to Culver City. By the way, 100% grassfed hot dogs are commercially available at, you guessed it, Whole Foods Market with Applegate Foods in the frozen meat section.

I can’t believe I’m actually promoting pizza. The reasons why I like this place are because it’s tasty and they make a concerted effort to use locally grown and organic ingredients whenever possible. The produce is incredibly fresh, nitrite-free deli meats are incorporated into their menu and if you’re going to splurge and have pizza, this is a great place to do it. Not to mention, any restaurant that uses burrata cheese is a big plus in my book.

One of the original organic vegetarian dining establishments in LA. Please be careful if you have a gluten sensitivity since they have some seitan on their menu. When I used to go, I'd always get their basic 3 or basic 4. I’ve gotten incredibly sick once after drinking one of their fresh juices.

Cute little breakfast/lunch place behind the Scientology building in Hollywood . Although the parking is extremely crappy, this place has really fresh and tasty food. The egg dishes and brioche French toast with seasonal cold fruit topping are great. Fresh local ingredients using small organic farms whenever possible. All meats are hormone free.

Very tasty salads using produce from small farms and organic whenever possible. Free-range chicken and grain-fed beef. I love going to this place when I am forced to fly in or out of LAX.

In my opinion, LA can't have enough quality breakfast places especially if they're within walking distance of the Hollywood Farmers Market on Sundays. However this place does not add tothem. Although they tout farmers market fresh and artisanal ingredients, great hours, a gluten-free menu, vegetarian, vegan-friendly items and a pet menu, I can't even describe how thoroughly unimpressed I was with this place. I even decided to go for the gusto and get a waffle thinking, "It's called the Waffle so they must have good waffles." Well, when it came out, it was no better than an Eggo. I couldn't believe it. Well, let me know if you have better luck at this place.

Although this place is nowhere close to organic or sustainable, the food is always consistent and easy to digest. They have a great lunch buffet. My idea of the perfect meal here is the vegetarian Nepali set meal with daal, rice and veggies. Brandon ’s idea of the perfect meal is the chicken thukpa, which is a type of soup that is very simple and nourishing. The owner, Karma, was extremely helpful before our trip to Tibet since he used to be a trekking guide and cook, leading people up to the base camp of Mount Everest .

The Urth salad is fantastic (although I found a friendly little worm in it one day), as are the soup selections. The baked goods aren’t necessarily organic, however they are very tasty and the portions are large enough to split between a few friends. They have organic coffee and teas.

Healthy, organic foods, free range chicken and grass-fed beef at affordable prices.

This chef uniquely fuses American, Asian and European cuisines while incorporating organic farmers market produce. Niman Ranch is used so we feel okay about ordering meats here. We weren’t too excited about the truffle fries but the firefly squid and smoked salmon pancakes are tasty.

I highly respect their valiant efforts in emphasizing quality sourcing and sustainability and it's a model that a lot more restaurants should follow through with. I loved the fact that they don't even offer the neurotoxic artificial sweeteners. However, the food failed to knock my socks off and I probably wouldn't go out of my way to dine here again unless I happened to be in Culver City. Although my Asian genes prevent me from alcohol consumption, the thing that I did think is worth checking out here is the alcohol - sustainable wines and organic vodka-based cocktails with freshly squeezed seasonal fruit and vegetable juices with fresh herbs.

Located on La Brea close to the unfathomably expensive furniture and design stores, Brandon and I came here for Sunday brunch and were really impressed. The interior has a very clean feel and the menu is fairly creative, incorporating seasonal and local produce. I need to go back and check out their dinner service because the menu looked great.

*Angeli Caffe

Host of KCRW’s Good Food program, Evan Kleiman is the executive chef of this restaurant on Melrose . Incorporating local farmers market produce, this restaurant specializes in Italian cuisine and her menu changes seasonally.

Suzanne Goin. Very high quality ingredients. Loves local farmers. Mediterranean-style tapas. Brilliant and delicious.

“Soul food from California ” that boasts locally grown and organic ingredients.

This hip little Silver Lake joint has some farmers market produce and solid American dishes.

2903 Rowena Avenue
Silver Lake 90039
323.660.1882
www.blairsrestaurant.com

As part of Downtown LA’s renaissance, Blue Velvet is housed in an environmentally conscious building and has a full lunch, dinner and lounge menu. The concept is fantastic but the execution is awful. The service was terrible. The appetizers were good, but the entrees were cold by the time we got them and, given the price of the meal, we expected something much more impressive... perhaps if they were served within a half hour of when they were ready it would have been a different experience. Somehow we were still in the middle of our small portion main course at 10pm (our reservations were at 8:30) and it turned into a loud, obnoxious nightclub. It was then a full half an hour from the time we finished our dinner to the time they acknowledged we had finished and brought the dessert menu. By that time we didn't bother trying any desserts just on principle.

750 S. Garland Avenue
Los Angeles 90017
213.239.0061
www.bluevelvetrestaurant.com

I actually saw a chef from Craft carting away a big box of apples at the Greenmarket in NYC so I thought that was a good sign. Their location in LA uses seasonal produce and the menu looks really great but extremely expensive. I've heard mixed reviews about this restaurant but conceptually it looks good.

This place gets it. They know where their products come from and they make sure that everything they serve is of the highest quality. It might not be considered “healthy” but for those of you who have been denied dairy products, I *might* actually consider this okay because a few of their cheeses are artisanal and from organic, 100% grass-fed cows.

Harrison Ford’s son, Ben Ford, has created this hot Culver City restaurant that features really good American cuisine that is seasonal and organic whenever possible.

Executive chef and Iron Chef champion Neal Fraser can be spotted every Wednesday at the farmers market in Santa Monica . He puts together some of the tastiest and most inventive meals. If you want to go for a special romantic date or business dinner this is the place to be. There’s grass-fed beef on the menu! Neal and Amy have recently started a "close to home" menu where 3 nights a week, a five-course menu is offered using farm-fresh ingredients that are sourced within a 400 mile radius. Neal was recently interviewed by KCRW (www.kcrw.org) about his views on the importance of sustainability and trying to be environmentally responsible (great interview, click here to listen). Some of the best meals (and desserts) we have had have been at Grace.

Not only does Hatfield’s have a daily market menu but their general menu features produce from locally grown farmers. The appetizers were great but somehow the entrees and desserts we chose didn't have the flavor we expected. But I appreciate their effort and vision.

Hippie restaurant situated next to a babbling stream in the middle of the woods of Topanga Canyon . One of the most magical and romantic restaurants at night but also a great brunch spot by day. If you’re planning on proposing to your future wife or celebrate an anniversary, this is the perfect place. All local and organic, extremely tasty food.

Elegant yet casual restaurant with a great menu using local farmers market produce and organic meats. Every Wednesday they offer a prix fixe farmers market menu. This place was definitely on the pricey side but totally worth it. I went in the fall so they had a special concord grape sorbet which was really flavorful.

It's easy to miss when driving past it but in our opinion, this is the best Italian restaurant in Pasadena . We like to chat up Nino, who recently was upgraded to be in charge of wines. He is very knowledgable and if wine is something you like, they have a wonderful selection which Nino will gladly describe in intimate detail. He spends the entire day testing various wines, so by the time the evening rolls around, he has quite colorful descriptions of what will happen to you when you drink it ...you may just want to order a wine for the entertainment value of Nino's descriptions . Although they don't advertise it, t heir chef uses fresh, local produce from the farmers market.... Almost everything is excellent. We love the homemade bread with white bean dip, carciofi salad, any of their soups, risottos and lasagnas. They recently had an incredible grass-fed beef on the menu and they also have fantastic soups especially the pasta fagioli.

The original Suzanne Goin restaurant on Melrose with careful detail to seasonal, local food from sustainable and organic sources. Known for Sunday Supper theme night.

Cozy and intimate vibe with splashes of hippie culture. Organic and sustainable whenever possible.

A place in Glendale that uses farmers market and artisanal ingredients??? I can't believe it. I have yet to try it but the Mediterranean menu sounds interesting.

Casual setting and great Italian food derived from local and organic growers, whenever possible.

Dramatic interior and fantastic ambiance but somewhat stuffy atmosphere and cultish-looking uniforms worn by their waitstaff. This place features primarily seafood (and you know how we generally feel about seafood), fresh local produce and a dessert tasting menu. Their desserts are extraordinary and according to our waiter, they change very frequently (sometimes hourly) due to a perfectionist pastry chef. We had a very weird experience with our reservations but as soon as I tasted my salt and pepper ice cream and cucumber sorbet, all was forgiven.

Not only is the Getty a great place to take your friends from out of town, but it’s also the perfect place to show them what makes California cuisine so special. The chef very obviously makes a big effort to support local farmers markets. One of my absolute favorite restaurants. Great view of the mountains and Pacific Ocean simultaneously being kissed by the sunset.

I really liked this place. Located just next to our friends at the Tao of Wellness in Santa Monica, the ambiance was casual and comfortable. Their frequently-changing menu features sustainably raised meats and farmers market produce.

Local and organic whenever possible, this Mediterranean-style dining establishment on West 3^rd Street , across from the Grove and next door to AOC, features a simple and elegant menu in a romantic setting. The Little Door Next Door on weekends is nuts and incredibly crowded and the parking sucks. But they do have one of the top 3 eggs benedicts in town.

Hip wine bar across the street from Yujean Kang in Old Town Pasadena. I like the concept of small plates to minimize stuffing yourself. Upon initial inspection of their menu, I didn’t note anything of particular interest but their market fresh produce and natural meats make the food shine. We love the beet salad, mushrooms with escarole and the grassfed lamb.

Fresh, seasonal and organic in Santa Monica . Dedicated to the environment and local community but incredibly overpriced and somewhat disappointing. We had a party of 4 and we all ordered different things but somehow nothing really tasted that great. They seemed to have a hot lounge area so maybe that's what lures people in.

If you have a special occasion and want to celebrate with a relatively guilt-free dessert, Ghalia does a fantastic job. There’s no storefront so desserts must be pre-ordered and they deliver too.

Organic cocoa, organic fruit, spelt, coconut oil, agave, xylitol, gluten-free options… What more can you ask for in cupcakes, cookies and brownies?

Green construction and organic goods using farmers market produce packed into the Brentwood Country Mart. Known for their pretzel croissants and I must say that they are pretty addictive.