Restaurants & Dining
Zed's Not Dead, Baby
The Northside's Zed Cafe proves that cuisine can be eco-friendly and quite tasty at the same time.
Kent J. Brockwell/Richmond.com
Michele Stuchell
Richmond.com
Friday, October 12, 2007
I love the Northside. The community, the parks, the people, the architecture. Redevelopment and energy.
Zed Café on Lakeside Drive is trying to add to that character. Attached to the Body Zen Soul Aveda Concept Salon, Zed Café has been open for close to 15 months. Starting out by making baked goods for the salon, the café has morphed into a Wi-Fi friendly restaurant whose mission is to produce food that is good for the body, community and planet. Using fair trade, locally grown and organic foods, recycled and compostable products, non-chlorine bleached papers, natural plastics such as cups made from corn plastics and biodegradable straws, Zed is a dedicated to carrying out it's mission in every way possible.
The olive green and taupe walls, brushed concrete floors, exposed air ducts and wood tables are accented by red eastern pendant lights creating a very minimalistic environment. Local art on the walls adds to the local flavor and flair. Currently, the art is from a show by Virginia Commonwealth University seniors and will be on display through the end of the year.
The mismatched dark wood furniture, new soon-to-open wine bar and small staff gives me cause to wonder and a want for this to be the real deal. We went for lunch, but after pursuing the dinner menu, I was eager to come back. Appetizers such as Local Figs with Faith Farms Raw Honey and Craime Fraiche ($8) and Crispy Frog Legs over Spicy Slaw ($10) and entrees like a Roasted Rockfish over Mashed Potatoes, Bok Choy & Corn Sauce ($24) and Pan Seared Sea Scallops with Swiss Chard Gratin & Ginger Lime Sauce ($22) intrigued me.
As for our visit, it took a long time before we were waited upon after being seated. The service was very pleasant, but very slow. Maybe that was part of the Zen sense of calm? In the meantime, we were salivating over the lunch and specialty drinks menus. A full espresso bar featuring Counter Culture Coffees, 100 percent Certified Organic bittersweet cocoa from Intelligent Nutrients and 100 percent Certified Organic agave, Rishi Organic Fair Trade Teas and Elixirs made to order with organic fruit and organic milk or organic almond milk such as the Protein Warrior ($5.95).
Even the non-alcoholic libations such as Liquid Sunshine ($5), fresh orange juice, organic cranberry juice and agave seemed to be enough to make me come back. To be simple, we tried the Organic Lemonade ($3). Obviously fresh and tangy with just enough sweetness to prevent the pucker, I could have kept drinking it all day.
It took at least 25 minutes before our soup came, which was homemade Eggplant Lemon Soup ($3.50 cup, $4.50 bowl), but it was worth the wait. Simple and clean, the roasted eggplant was pureed and highlighted by fresh lemons.
Another wait and our lunch entrees arrived. The Curried Chicken Salad Sandwich ($7.50) was tasty, although not necessarily what was described on the menu. Chunks of roasted chicken were mixed with a subtle blend of curry spices and chutney, which was a savory and spicy mix, was served on whole grain bread. Disappointingly missing were the toasted almonds, coconut and currants as described on the menu.
Zed's Roasted Beet Salad ($7.50) was delicious, but again missing a key ingredient. Freshly roasted beets were tossed with mild goat cheese and a piquant pomegranate vinaigrette but we had to ask for the toasted walnuts.
The day's fish for the Wild-Caught Fish Sandwich ($10) was rockfish. Two small pieces of grilled fish were topped with a wet Asian chili flavored slaw of Napa cabbage, carrots and onions and served on homemade bread from The Flower Garden. The flavors were wonderful, but the slaw was so wet the bread was soaked by the time the sandwich reached the table. The sandwiches were served with a choice of sweet potato fries or greens with the house vinaigrette. The sweet potato fries made up for the soggy bread, however. They were the best I've had. Not greasy at all and sprinkled with kosher salt, the freshly cut fries were sublime.
For dessert, we chose the Flourless Chocolate Mousse Cake ($6) and the Almond Cake with Fresh Strawberries ($7). Both were definitely worth the wait. Seemingly crisp on the outside, the torte was surprisingly moist and rich on the inside. The deep dark chocolate melted in my mouth and begged for a cup of coffee, red wine or milk. Delicious.
The Almond Cake was just as sumptuous. Light and moist, the subtle almond flavor thankfully lingered with each bite. The strawberries highlighted the clean and fresh flavor. I only wish there had been more.
So ... Zed café. Good food, though not always exactly what was on the menu, but always fresh and delicious. The service was a little slow, but always friendly. Though it didn't have the most comfortable seating, Zed was eco-friendly and offered a good selection.
We say try it. Zed has energy and that's what the Northside is all about.
Zed Café
5109 Lakeside Ave.
(804) 261-5656
www.zedcafeonline.com
Lunch - Tuesday – Friday, 10:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m.
Dinner - Wednesday – Saturday, 5:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m.
Brunch - Saturday, 9 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
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