Sage's Cafe - Vegetarian Organic: Salt Lake City

After our recent trip to Texas where I ate so much barbecue, I was not feeling well. Even after we got home and several weeks went by, I just couldn't seem to shake it. Judy and I watched "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead," about an Australian man who went on a 60 day juice diet. I was so inspired I went out the next morning and bought a juicer and began a juicing diet that I followed for nine days. I lost about 12 pounds and felt much better. I introduced some avocados into my diet for several days, the only solids I'd had in eleven days, and then went out to a French restaurant for Judy's birthday dinner where I had a normal and very wonderful meal. Then I had to travel to Salt Lake for my cousin's funeral. On the flight up I started to read Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., a book mentioned to me by several friends, two of whom have had heart attacks and had this book recommended to them by their doctors. I was compelled to try out the lifestyle he recommended which is basically a vegan diet with no added fat. Without my juicer and my own kitchen, I went online to find the highest rated vegetarian restaurant in Salt Lake which was Sage's Cafe located at 473 East 300 South (801-322-3790). 

I ate there twice, 

the first two days of my vegan diet. As I write this I have been on my vegan diet for ten days. I have been to two vegan restaurants with my son, Andrew, Sage Organic Vegan Bistro in Echo Park, which I went to before starting my vegan diet, and Flore Vegan Cuisine in Silver Lake, which I went to after starting my vegan diet. I also went with Judy on my birthday to Bright Star Thai Vegan in Rancho Cucamonga. I have learned that being vegan and going to these restaurants still involves a lot of fat, primarily oils, that Dr. Esselstyn recommends not eating. I have found that the diet is almost impossible to follow, even at vegan restaurants, and I have given in to some extra oils when going to those restaurants. That said, Sage's Cafe doesn't hold a candle when compared to the California restaurants I just mentioned, from the standpoint of the number of options available, but I found the food good. I had an apple and pear juice 

which was very tasty and a side salad with carrot, tomato, daikon, beet, zucchini and different types of lettuce. 

I avoided the vinaigrette on the side which would have made the salad much better, but had the oils I'm trying to avoid. The nice thing I have found about vegan/vegetarian restaurants is that the fruit and vegetables are very fresh and good. I got an entree which included a salad very much like the side salad I ordered, and a dish I don't recall the name of with brown rice, black beans, tomatoes, Greek olives and zucchini. 

It was bland, but very good. The next day I had a spicy cabbage soup which was wonderful. 

It had some sort of vegan version of sour cream on top, but it was nice and spicy and very good on a cold Salt Lake day. It was by far the best thing I ate at Sage's. It was wonderful. I also had grilled vegetable tacos on thin corn tortillas which were paper thin and broke easily. 

I appreciated the tortillas, because not knowing what was in them, they seemed relatively free of fat. I avoided the extra guacamole, which Dr. Esselstyn recommends not eating, and the sour cream. 

As a first time vegan on a restrictive diet, it was nice to have the option that this provided.