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• Cafe Viva Natural

We ended up here since we wanted a vegetarian place in this part of town. While I had expected the place to be ultra casual, counter space kind of place, the menu looked interesting and the reviews were not bad. The place is a hole in the wall, run entirely (kitchen, cashier) by Hispanics. While they did a decent job with most of the items, Italian cooking is not exactly second nature for them. The split pea soup was a bit on the bland side, though it was very hearty and substantial. The garlic rolls that come with the pasta and the soup, as well as the toasted garlic bread we ordered were disappointing. The underlying breads tasted stale and tough to chew. The pizza was barely acceptable. The only decent item really was the margherita linguini I had. Since it is primarily a takeaway and delivery place, most of the plates eating utensils are all plastic and that really affects the taste, no matter how good the food. [edit by staff- see ToS] It is not a place I will be going back to. Updated from previous review on Saturday January 28, 2012