Green Peas: Making Vegetarian Life Appealing

To make up for my search for the —and to eat healthier in general—my choices often lean towards an increased consumption of veggies and salads.  So when a good friend emailed about having dinner before she picked up a family member at LAX, I knew exactly where to meet: Green Peas.

Located on the corner of Sepulveda and Braddock, just a few blocks south of Culver Boulevard, Green Peas advertises itself as “Casual Food” with vegetarian and vegan options.  Walking up to the restaurant, and ignoring the overly complex font on the marquee, I noticed the eating patio located in front of the restaurant. Having walked by many times, I have seen that people are always happily eating and talking, complete with lots of coffee and laptops. 

Yes, Green Peas also has an extensive Fair Trade-based coffee menu and free Wi-Fi, making it a perfect hang-out spot. 

This second point is solidified when you walk in and see a group of big modern couches on one wall, balancing the regular two and four-person dining tables in the rest of the place.

Once inside the restaurant, you see multiple well-written chalkboards with all the menu items. It can be a bit daunting. With a menu consisting of breakfast, sandwiches, gourmet quesadillas, salads and pizza, there is a lot to take in.  On this first visit, we decided to go with the Prosciutto Pizza and a Vegan Chicken Curry Salad.  

Not being the vegan food type, I’m always a little wary of things like “Garden Chicken Breast.”  Now, in no way did this taste like chicken to me; however, that didn’t stop me from liking this simple curry powder and “veganaise” based scoop of fake chicken, raisins, almonds, cinnamon and scallions over a bed of mixed greens tossed in a very tasty balsamic dressing.  The touch of cinnamon really sets this apart and—given my concerns about the vegan options—I believed the actual chicken-based version would be incredible.  I confirmed this a few days later. No offense to garden chicken, real chicken tastes better to my caveman sensibilities. 

There are other salads I want to try, like the Tuna Cranberry Salad made with albacore, red onions, cranberries, parsley, lemon juice and mayo.  I spoke to someone who had this salad, and their response was simply “mmm, ooh, good.”  It was a wonderful reccomendation if I've ever heard one.

The pizzas, I’m convinced, are the hidden gem of Grean Peas. The Prosciutto Pizza with sweet and tangy buffalo mozzarella, basil and a very light cover of pizza sauce was a huge winner with me.  Perfectly crispy, the crust could be the star in and of itself and—paired with the simple toppings—this is the type of pizza that reminds you what good pizza is supposed to be. Simple. Rustic.  

For my second visit I ordered the Genoa Salami Pizza, which included the same pizza sauce and mozzarella, some very tasty salami and chopped black olives to give it a nice balance— cutting the fat and spice of the nitrite-free Genoa salami.

Finally, I would be remiss not to mention the free flavored water.  Instead of serving regular tap, Green Peas takes it up a notch with infused water. The days I visited, cucumber water (great for a hot summer day) and lemon water was served.  Placed in the corner under the TV, it is a nice touch to have the infused water presented in clear basins, showing off the infused item’s color.

Next time, I'm going in with my laptop and plan on enjoying those comfy sofas, free Wi-Fi and sampling some of their coffee creations.  The Green Peas Mocha Bianca with a swirl of caramel sounds delectable.

So if you want a casual meal for breakfast, lunch or dinner, I can confidently recommend Green Peas as a place to visit.  And if you are a meat eater, give one of the vegan options a chance—you might be surprised.

I certainly was.