New Green Discovery : Go Salad's 100 Peso Gourmet Salads and Green Smoothies

It's always a delight to see healthy restaurants opening in commercial areas to give people an alternative to fast food. A new entrant in the Eastwood Ortigas area, GO SALADS, gives you a great and greener option for your lunch, snack or dinner. It's located at the 2nd floor of Eastwood Technopark 2 (just a stone's throw away from Robinsons supermarket). This is actually their second branch already (the first is in Katipunan - beside KFC). However the original branch just sells salads and not smoothies.

Go Salads is the brainchild of Cibbie Gonzales, a budding young chef/entrepreneur, and who turns out to be a colleague of mine at the FCI (French Culinary Institute) in New York. It was through my interview that I found out we went to the same school! Small world! Cibbie grew up with parents who were advocates of wellness. They have 3 farms in Cavite, Nueva Ecija and Nueva Viscaya that grow greens and herbs organically (free from pesticides and preservatives) which they actually distribute in local groceries (mostly SM supermarkets) and brand as Good Life Greens.  And so he thought about using their produce and came up with the concept of Go Salads.

This is what makes them unique : They literally grow their own greens and use it for their salads and green smoothies. This is why they offer their meals/smoothies at a lower more budget-friendly price because they are the direct supplier of of their main ingredients. Sustainability at its best!

 The restaurant sits about 25 people with the tables outside included. You have the option to dine in or do the grab-and-go (perfect for the busy working crowd in Eastwood). They offer a variety of salads, starters, smoothies and sugar-free cupcakes which... all guilt-free food! 

Here are the bestsellers I sampled for lunch;

Garlic Hummus with warm whole wheat pita Php 50.00

I love anything with hummus so I was sold even before tasting it! Hummus was smooth with a hint of citrus/lemon which I like!

The Guzzler Php 100.00

Bananas + Oats +  Sugar Free Peanut Butter + Coconut Sugar + Greens + Spirulina + Soy Milk

This was amazingly yummy. It's a bit heavy because of the bananas but it's the perfect post  / pre-workout drink or simply energy booster which you can take anytime of the day! 

Sgt. Steak Salad Php 100.00

Mixed Greens with sauteed mushrooms, steak and chimichurri dressing

I have to admit that I'm a little (just a bit *wink*) hard  o please and snobbish when it comes to salads as I've been making my own salads and dressings at home for a long time and I think (and so does everyone who has tried my green concoctions) I make pretty mean combinations. So I was nervous to have to judge this in front of the owner (hahaha!). To my delight, it had a perfectly-balanced mix of flavors. The combination of greens, mushrooms and pieces of well seasoned steak strips (though a tad bit dry so it could be more tender!) and the chimichurri ( this green sauce is typically made of finely chopped parsley , minced garlic, olive oil , oregano, and white or red wine vinegar) dressing just married perfectly well. I devoured the salad and practically inhaled it! Cibbie's eyes lit when I finished chowed down the last piece of lettuce. Hahaha!

 Here's their full menu :

They also offer bottled hummus and dressings  which you can enjoy at the comforts of your home;

Basil Hummus - 160 grams Php 185.00

200 ml Tomato Honey Dressing Php 200.00

They also offer a selection of guilt-free. sugar-free cuppcakes. I took home a sea- salted chocolate cupcake which I enjoyed on my way home!

Sea Salted Chocolate Cupcake

Php 65.00

Go Salads aims to make healthy food more accessible and more importantly more affordable for everybody. A lot of people think that eating healthy is costly and so take the path of least resistance and just go for what they are used to...when they want something quick, they go for just fast food which sadly has very minimal nutritional content. 

Their Php 100 peso Salads and Smoothies will hopefully  make you rethink of buying a fast food combo meal for your next lunch/snack/dinner and instead make you end up grabbing a real "Value Meal".

 They will be having their grand launch tomorrow, June 7 at 6:30 pm. Do swingby if you're in the area. They will be giving gift certificates and some give-aways!

Choose green, ...Green is good!
Pattie

My satisfied smile after a refreshing meal with Go Salads owner Cibbie Gonzales

Go Salads

Shop 7 2nd Floor, Eastwood Techno Plaza 2

Eastwood City

Facebook : /gosalads

Instagram: @gosalads