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I wish this place was closer to me.

5 Posted on 05 / 10 / 2013

If Giva was closer to me, I would eat here every day that they are open. I've dined here once so far, and had the pesto pasta and the avocado soup. Both were lovely, and Pom is very nice. This is the only organic raw vegan restaurant in Chiang Mai, and Pom really knows what he is doing. I will come back as many times as I possibly can.

Updated from previous review on Monday May 06, 2013

Do yourself a favor and try the veggie curry salad. It is amaaaaazing.

Pros: best food in town, only place in CM for raw vegan gourmet, Pom is awesome

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Alien place whit teasty food

5 Posted on 05 / 04 / 2013

I went there on a stormy evening. Outside the street lights where turning on and of an the wind was hauling. I was sitting in a refreshing cool room whit dimmed light under the horns of some wired creature. Soft relaxing music was playing. It felt relay alien and out of this world. But the food was down to the ground testy and healthy. A amazing place!

Pros: great food, ambiente, freindly owner
Cons: pricey

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Eat it...RAW

5 Posted on 03 / 04 / 2013

Lots of good raw food menu choices, carefully prepared by restaurant owner. Owner speaks good English and is very friendly. Prices a bit higher than some veggie restaurants in the area, but still reasonable

Pros: raw, friendly service

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Great!

5 Posted on 02 / 22 / 2013

I couldnt believe my eyes when i found that place. Very small restaurant in a not-busy road. The owner is very nice and friendly, you can do cooking classes there too. Food was great!

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Grateful for the great food here!

5 Posted on 01 / 09 / 2013

I found Giva to offer remarkably tasty and nutritious food in a nice atmosphere and at a reasonable price. The food is carefully prepared, so it takes some time. So if there are a few people ahead of you, bear that in mind. However, when I was there, it was not very busy and the wait was not long. But I would much prefer to wait, knowing that the food is prepared freshly. I found the owner to be a gentle and caring person who loves to serve healthy food. He is very conscientious about what he does. I observed the food being carefully washed, as well as the dishes. I am confident that hygiene is very good. If someone observed a lapse of hygiene, I am sure the owner learned from the negative review and made an adjustment. He is an intelligent and sensitive man.

Regarding one reviewer's comment about her companion needing to go to the hospital, I'm sure there is another side to the story. I ate there many times and the owner is far from being cold or rude. I observed a warm feeling between him and everyone who ate there.

Come, relax, enjoy the soothing background music, and delight in sampling the many tasty dishes. Try to leave room for dessert! I look forward to returning next year.

Pros: healthy food, delicious food, reasonable prices
Cons: none

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Best raw food in Chiang Mai

4 Posted on 12 / 10 / 2012

The owner takes care in preparing each dish. TONS of flavor yet you can still taste each and every ingredient. You can request dishes to be made 80/10/10. My favorite dish is the Curried Veggie Salad.

Pros: excellent quality of food, good portions

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Quiet, Friendly, and Good Food

5 Posted on 11 / 24 / 2012

Today I went to Giva and as soon as I ordered another staff in training appeared to help prep the food so it appears as if the owner has built in some scalability of service for those who have complained in the past.

This was my second time to go and I plan to go again. The food is a bit rich if you are eating mainly fruit as I do, but filling and delicious. I would not go everyday, but this is definitely on my list of places to eat at as often as I can.

Pros: Can call ahead to place orders, English speaking and friendly, Delicious
Cons: Small

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Some Of The Best Food In Chiang Mai

5 Posted on 10 / 06 / 2012

Giva's description reads "small". Actually, it is tiny.

Giva's detractors suggest not stopping in hungry. That is not entirely unfair.

Pom, the owner operator, is a perfectionist. The place is small because that is what his lone hands can handle. He may be slow, but he is certainly expert, creative, clever and zen. This is his life's work...his purpose.

He is a quiet man, Pom. Yet, when engaged, he withholds nothing. He would readily run you through the preparation of any item on the menu if you asked. Such is his enthusiasm for raw food and pride in his creations (which are incredible).

The setting is perhaps somewhat austere, understated, but also intimate and charming. I say Do Come Hungry! Ask Pom if he minds you bring in a "tid-me-over" - He will likely not object. SO, SLOW DOWN. Occupying one of the limited number of seats here is a real privilege. Enjoy the soothing music Giva provides, share a nice conversation with a good friend, and escape the heat in a delightfully air conditioned temple to peace, compassion and tongue tempting nutrition.

Pros: Pom (Owner/Operator), Atmosphere, THE FOOD!
Cons: GOOD FOOD - NOT FAST FOOD

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A real raw food restaurant

5 Posted on 02 / 11 / 2012

Very nice restaurant, proper raw food without too much oil and nuts. I've been there a few times now and I'm always surprised by the tastes the chef proposes to me. Almost every dish can be accommodated if you have special dietary request.
It can be busy and can take some time to have you food prepared, but you will never regret the choice.
If you like spicy food, try the papaya salad or the pad-thai, they are both absolutely delicious.
Very recommended.

Pros: healthy cuisine, big portions, very clean place

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Only raw food rest. in Chang-Mai.

2 Posted on 11 / 28 / 2011

If you are a purist and only eat at raw food rest. then this is your only option in Chang Mai. The main dishes arent impressive or complex and overpriced considering the quality and portion.

Also, when the owner was prepairing my salad (cutting the veggies) I noticed he kept running his hands through his hair which really grossed me out. Then he asked me why I didn't eat it all? What more can I say.

Pros: raw, juices
Cons: sterile space, limited menu, overpriced

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Lovely food

5 Posted on 10 / 17 / 2011

It is some of the best meals I have had

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Fantastic Food and Smoothies..

5 Posted on 10 / 06 / 2011

I felt refreshed and satisfied after eating here.. Raw food can be surprisingly filling.. I didn't wait very long for my food / drink to arrive.. The cantalope, passionfruit and mango smoothie was so tasty! All food is made fresh and it tastes it too. :-)

Pros: fresh healthy raw food, air con, friendly staff
Cons: not enough background music

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Don't come here hungry

3 Posted on 08 / 23 / 2011

We spent an hour and a half in this shop and only ate one salad and a smoothie. It's a very small operation - just a few tables. When we got there there was a couple sitting there with no food, looked like they had been there for a while so we assumed they had finished eating. Not so. After we ordered we waited and waiting.. and when a dish finally came out it was served to the other couple. And then another one, and another one, all a really long time apart.

It took about 45mins to get one smoothie and at least another 45mins to get a salad. We had ordered lots of other things but after the first salad my husband had to be taken to the hospital because he was so famished - no joke! The heat of Chiang Mai had been a bit too much for him that day and he really needed some good, nutritious food to fix the situation. This was not the place to come for that.

When I asked for an ambulance the guy's response was "you're going to have to pay for the food you ordered, I7ve already started making it". Umm... after 1.5 to 2 hours you kind of forfeit that right I'm afraid. My husband threw some money at him, eager to just get out without causing trouble, so as it was he was paid.

The salad we did try was very average. In fact it was after eating it that my husband started fresking out and heading for the emergency room... didn't hit the spot it seemed.

All in all, a disappointment after having experienced great raw food in Bangkok at Rasayana... and without the two hour wait!

Pros: raw food - a pro in itself, aircon, clean shop
Cons: WAY too slow, service problem, average food

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Raw Giva Cafe

5 Posted on 04 / 09 / 2011

One of the only true raw food cafes in Thailand! Only one other that is in Bangkok. This is a new cafe that offers great quality raw food. The main focus is on entrees, salads, raw pastas. There are few dessert options as of febuary 2011. However, the main dishes are more then filling!

Pros: Fantastic quality, Accommodating, Raw food experience