Raw food restaurant located a short walk from Third Street Promenade shopping area. Suitable for both casual and semi-fine dining. Except for bee products in some items, food is mostly vegan. Dine indoor or al fresco. Juliano is the man that people love to hate because of his unconventional characteristics, plus he is a celebrity in the raw food world. MARCH 2013 Confirmed closed by HappyCow. REOPENED ANOTHER LOCATION FALL 2013 IN WEST HOLLYWOOD.
-
609 Broadway Ave (at 6th St), Santa Monica, California, USA, 90401
-
Loading...
-
- Outdoor seating
- Wheelchair accessible
- Accepts credit cards
-
-
Last update on 04 Dec 2013 by Guest
Update business info -
Are you the owner?
Claim this business
-
-
31 Reviews
First Review by No1_Vegan_Goddess
Blind_Mary
Points +44
WARNING: DO NOT ENTER! - Edit
I'm not sure which restaurant you all are referring to, but surely not this establishment. I went there with three of my friends, and it was one of the worst experiences I've ever had. The service was slow (understandable), but they were out of ingredients (and did not know ahead of time, making my friend wait an additional 45 minutes for her dinner after having to re-order), and the waitress we had was completely rude. The only upside was the food, but only slightly. The cost out weighs the food itself. Overall I'd say find somewhere where they appreciate your business and don't waste your money or time here.
Read moreCons: Wait staff is rude, Over priced, Small portions
Guest
zgeist
Points +40
Which Restaurant Are People Reviewing - Edit
This Is The Best Vegan / Raw / Restaurant I Have EVER Eaten At.
Read moreThe food is absolutely incredible! To die/live for! It looks amazing, tastes outstanding, and when your'e done eating it you feel estatic. I have never had a bad meal there. It's incredibly consistent, and every component is dialed in to a tee.
This is a Health food restaurant, yes they do use honey istead of agave and I absolutely love that about Planet Raw. I hate when agave is the only option which is almost always the case, agave has no health benefit. Juliano doesn't use bananas or any other hybridized fruits or vegetables.
I must say I have only one complaint, it's small and it is almost always recurring in restaurants, I imagine because they are hard to staff. The food highly outweighs it. The servers can be "strange" at times. That and they have this strange relationship with the kitchen, sometimes one server can get something one way, and the other server can't because the kitchen workers don't like them. Other than that, I have zero improvements to even recomend, even the hours are incredible. I think they are open till midnight on the weekends and are open early enough for a late breakfast everyday.
If you want healthy food, this is the healthiest restaurant I know of, anywhere and you won't know it by the taste.
The cheezy kep, nachos and chocolate shake are my favorites.
Pros: Best Food Anywhere, Healthy and you feel amazing after, Dazzling Presentation
Cons: Staff can be strange, There's only one location, I don't live close enough to it
Guest
StacyOwens
Points +249
Amazing! - Edit
Awesome eats.
Read morePros: Outdoor seating, Unique store
Cons: Pricey
Guest
Chia
Points +3635
Original raw cuisine - Edit
I had read about this place on happycow, and here's my Planet Raw review.
Read moreOver the years I've eaten at Planet Raw several times and have had mixed experiences. My first tries were so-so, though the last 2 meals here have been good.
The food prices are average, not out of the ordinary for dining in this part of Santa Monica (high end). It is creative raw cuisine, in a very nice part of Santa Monica.
The presentation is incredibly attractive and colorful, like art. And the different sauces used in the food is pretty awesome. Eating this food is like an extraterrestrial adventure for my taste buds.
I like the pumpkin tortellini, apple tortellini, spring rolls, pumpkin "salmon" sushi, kleem smoothie, and there is an delicious chai smoothie with goji berries and cacao nibs garnish.
Yes, I agree that Juliano is a controversial figure, but I don't care. I never see him there anyway. If you are curious about or like RAW food and you are in the Santa Monica area, definitely give it a try. At least once.
Pros: original raw cuisine, nice location, good food
Guest
whosmeggyn
Points +155
Decent - Edit
For my overpriced, scant meal, it was decent. The presentation was great. Most of my meal was the salad the put on the side. I ordered the lasagna and I was still hungry after. The pumpkin ravioli was good. Overall, it was not worth the price. The seating was cramped and it was full of people with their nose in the air.
Read morePros: presentation, location, freshness
Cons: honey? (not vegan), too expensive, cramped
Guest
Rolandmh
Points +64
Santa Monica raw - Edit
Solid raw cuisine. Excellent quality. Was there a couple of years ago so I don't recall the specifics.
Read morePros: Good food, Healthy cuisine
Guest
veganfoodie85
Points +28
Won't be going back any time soon - Edit
The food was good but overpriced, the portions were small and the staff came off as very snooty. Don't think I'll go back.
Read moreGuest
Its_Just_Me
Points +30
Nice but dont think I be in a rush to go again - Edit
The restaurant was ok, there was seating inside but it was so cramped and dark it didn't feel very inviting. It was a beautiful day so we chose to sit outside. The hostess who sat us didn't seam thrilled about our presents and asking to be seated out side. Kind of odd might have just been her personality.
Read moreThe menu was nice yet the prices reflected a meal that should come with a much higher level of service and ambiance.
The food was good and the plating ok it just wasn't worth it.
The service was friendly enough but again at the price. I am vegan and enjoy raw food but this restaurant really wasn't worth it for me.
If someone were to take me there I might suggest another place in the area. Not that I wouldn't try it again I just wouldn't be up to paying for it and really wouldn't want for someone else to treat me to it unless they insisted we go there.
Pros: they have food? , the company I was with, The outside seating
Cons: The value, The inside seating
Guest
Thefreeganvegan
Points +44
Raw delight - Edit
On my venture to check out raw cuisine, I decided to try Planet Raw. I truly did not know what to expect. I tried new things each of the 6 times I visited and everything was delicious, except I did not care for the spring rolls. The macho nachos, zucchini fries, kelp pasta, and chocolate mouse are my all time favorites.
Read morePros: delicious, location, parking
Cons: pricey
Guest
Jj
Points +13
Great Food / Ify Service - Edit
Juliano is brilliant in his knowledge of food as medicine and I'm so thankful for the information he shares about his innovative findings through his experience with food. You feel like you're beiing nourished through and through eating this stuff.
Read moreI hope that in the future Juliano finds a way to staff the restaurant with people who carry the same integrity as the food. Servers truly wishing to grant good service would be a great addition. Patience, invitingness, etc.
Pros: Excellently nourishing food, Healing food, I feel my body get stronger every time I go
Cons: More care, goodwill from waitstaff would nice
Guest
West Side Vegan
Points +65
Planet Snob - Edit
Despite the horrible service, my husband and I eat here fairly often because we just LOVE certain menu items (Macho Nachos, Cheesy Kelp, and the Endive appetizer). As long as you stick to the menu, and avoid the specials (which are usually around $18.95 - $23.95 for no more food than you would get for $12 on the menu) the prices are generally higher than most, but OK. We have always been of the opinion that the quality of the food made up for the absolutely terrible service and ambiance. As for the service they get two big thumbs down and a big ol' :-PpppPppppp There is ONE helpful employee there. Her name is Chalyse and you will recognize her by her cute platinum blonde bob, facial piercing, and her SMILE (the only one in the whole place who is friendly and helpful!). If she isn't your server, I'd get up and leave and try again later. Seriously. For your health, don't let anyone else serve you. We were there on Sunday and Ariel, Ariana, and Ally were working. Ally was our server. Ally and Ariana were busy stuffing their faces on the floor, using the wine rack by the register as a table, taking huge, unladylike mouthfuls which caused them to have to use their fingers to get all of their bite into their mouth all while facing those of us dining there, and then licking their fingers. They were doing all of this in between running food to tables, and they DID NOT WASH THEIR HANDS between bites and running food! Juliano didn't care or didn't notice. He's too busy being pretentious to care about silly things like hygiene and good service. To top it off, we then saw Ally wipe her nose with her sleeve while talking to customers at another table! Not to mention she was dressed in daisy dukes, 4" wedges, a tank top and a sweater. Not appropriate server-ware at all. On another occasion, Ariel was serving us. She never once noticed when our water glasses were empty. We'd sit for what seemed like ages trying to get her attention to ask her for more water. Then she saw some friends of hers on the sidewalk through the side door and ran to the door to call after them to come see her. Then she and Juliano and their friends stood around several inches from the tables and gabbed while she continued to ignore her tables. As far as the vegan issue, they are not 100% vegan. They use honey. From what I've been able to learn, it's only in the desserts, smoothies, shakes and kale chips. Smoothies & shakes can be made with agave.
Read morePros: Yummy!
Cons: Pretentious, Poor Hygiene, Expensive
Guest
aniles5
Points +24
Great Evening Out - Edit
Had a date night here and had a great time! The ambiance was amazing, the food was fresh, the service was adequate but friendly enough. I think people complaining about the price forget the value of fresh, organic food. I think our server temporarily forgot about the drinks but no biggie. The food wasn't mind-blowing, but still really good. Definitely worth a trip back to try a few more dishes.
Read morePros: Ambiance, Freshness, Friendly Servers
Guest
RawMatt
Points +48
Juliano's is Alive! - Edit
This place is a close second to my favorite raw food restaurant. I had the lasagna and apple pie. WOW! If you are within 50 Miles of this place it is a must do.
Read morePros: Outstanding Food, Service is top notch, Hey It's Santa Monica
Cons: Not \
Guest
Cubbyg
Points +31
Beautiful Food, Abundant Attitude - Edit
This restaurant is set in the shabby chic motif. Open ceiling, lotsa artistic designer touches; Love it. The food selection is wonderful, very beautifully prepared and presented, a signature of Juliano. I agree with the other posting, the service has serious attitude. Hey, all I want is good service and a wonderful meal. Service was fair, I found the flavors to be a bit conflicting in the dishes. Pricing is a bit expensive, to go with the attitude throughout. I hope next time they cheer up!
Read morePros: great menu selections, beautiful presentation
Cons: Lotsa Attitude, Fair service
Guest
Flamingo123
Points +20
Julianos Santa Monica - Edit
Staff was unpatient and unfriendly. Every time I went felt like I had to kiss ass and always made me feel like I was a bother when I ordered. I was always nice and kind to them all but even Juliano and Ariel were not friendly and looked unhappy to be there. You would think when eating clean you would be happy and happy spiritually. Food was ok, some food and smoothies I will say are very good. Just very small portions and way overpriced. To make your own smoothie came to 17.00 dollar for a small cup! Not including dinner. They should also state when there are specific nuts in what meal. Should be a requirement so it makes it easier to order because of a few but allergies not only for myself but for other people who are allergic to a certain nut. Parking is convienent.
Read morePros: Parking, Food was overall good
Cons: Overpriced, Small portions, Unpatient/Unhappy staff
Guest
The Veggie Cook
Points +1201
Creative Cuisine - Recommended - Edit
Two friends and I ate at Juliano's Planet Raw restaurant today. We all had been here a few times before separately though a long while back. Our past impressions varied (good and not so good), but we were eager to give it another try.
Read moreToday was a nice sunny day, so we sat in the back patio area. We took a while to examine the menu, and our waitress was very patient with us. All the other staff (waitress and kitchen people) were also very gracious with us.
The prices are average/typical to Santa Monica sit-down dining, not expensive not cheap. The fact that it's pure veg and organic is worthwhile to me.
I had a Chai smoothie which was an interesting blend of berries and chai spices topped with bits of walnut, cacao, goji (very tasty - I especially enjoyed the topping bits).
For appetizers, we shared the Spring Rolls, which had interesting wrap and filling accompanied by a creamy sauce (attractive, okay taste) and the Bruschetta which was olives and baby tomatoe halves over a savory nut cheez on top of cracker/bread (rich, delightful, but salty for my liking).
For main, a friend and I shared the Thai Salad (very delicious dressing, nice greens, avocado) and the Monster Wrap (many flavors in a nori wrap, filling, tasty, spicy).
Overall, we all enjoyed our meal. The presentation of the food was artful, attractive, and colorful. The portions were good (fair), and the taste somewhat complicated and very interesting though a few things a bit on the salty side (I usually eat low salt at home).
I definitely would recommend Juliano's Planet Raw to anyone interested in gourmet raw food cuisine.
Pros: friendly service, beautiful and flavorful cuisine, fair prices
Cons: gossip about owners
Guest
Hugo
Points +53
Miss... - Edit
I have been to Juliano's Raw a few times since I have gone raw. Peculiarly, their menu indicates that they don't use Agave, Carrots, Kiwi, Bananas, Dates, Pineapple, Navel Oranges, and several other foods, citing that these items contain disaccharides. You do your own research. I did mine, and I don't feel that the presence of disaccharides in these foods merit their omission from our RAW diets. If you maintain a balanced Raw+Vegan+mostly alkaline diet, you WILL have a strong and healthy small and large intestinal tract to overcome indigestion. I tried the Hot Cacao (which for some some reason WAS actually hot, way abover 118 degrees). I was expecting a RAW Cacao drink you know. Since it is a RAW restaurant. The jalapeno poppers were OK. But the red dipping sauce in the middle of the plate needed salt. We asked (3) different waitresses for salt. It took literally 12 minutes before it was brought to our table. Big no no. I tried the fat cheeze melt next. It was pretty good. But didn't merit an $11.09 price tag given its portion size. Had the chocolate bliss balls which were good. And topped off my meal with their 'best ever cheeze cake' which came almost frozen for some reason (had to wait several minutes before being able to sink my fork into it). The best item I had which I failed to mention, was the strawberry smoothie. It was very good. I noticed a pervasive use of buckwheat on the menu. Word of caution: avoid - at all cost - any buckwheat cracker or any item on the menu containing their buckwheat crackers. It tastes awful. The looks, the texture, and the taste of their buckwheat cracker is repulsive. In summation: This is why RAW restaurants have such a bad stigma. RAW restaurants do NOT have to be 'hit or miss'. Moreover, the vibe of the restaurant is VERY L.A. Very cliche. Too trendy. I think people patronize this restaurant because its trendy, and because people want to say they have eaten there. I definitely don't think that someone can ever gloat about having a really delicious lunch or dinner here. I highly doubt it. It was probably my last visit to Juliano's. I definitely would not recommend this restaurant to one of my friends. Sorry guys!
Read morePros: Questionably Vegan (use of Honey), RAW (except for near boiling temp Cacao), Strawberry smoothie
Cons: Horrible tasting buckwheat crackers, Service
Guest
Vegyogini
Points +88
Juliano's Raw - Edit
Really delicious raw vegan food. Just make sure to request agave instead of honey in some dishes. Definitely worth the price.
Read moreGuest
Jbella213
Points +16
AN HONEST REVIEW AFTER MANY MANY VISITS - - Edit
My wife and I have been RAW for years and have eaten at every RAW place in So. Cal. We have eaten at Juliano's RAW regularly over the years and have a very clear picture of the place. While we like the food we have disappointed by the inconsistent quality - example: we LOVE the chocolate shake, but 50% of the time its watery and less sweet... We love spring rolls - but the other day I ordered them and they were small and one of them had NO filling it ! We have gotten used to the VERY high prices and realize (because we by nothing but organic food) that the cost of raw materials is high, but the portions here sometimes border on insulting (and sometimes not) - again, inconsistent. We are baffled by the way that Juliano and Ariel (his partner & wife) continuously ignore us and have never so much as said hello - this after hundreds of visits. We wonder why they linger in the store with stoic long faces looking as though they just hate life as opposed to being friendly and cheerful host like we encounter at EVERY other raw restaurant. Several times we have made eye contact and they look away without even smiling or nodding. Also, once we overheard Juliano give a terrible review of Au Lac (a superb raw place in OC) that was totally inappropriate. Au Lac is totally superb, consistently great, awesome prices and portions and has VERY warm friendly service (particularly world famous chef Ito who is very humble and personable - he often gives his regulars free samples). Lastly, once we left our credit card there and after calling them they promised to keep it safe till we could return for it. Several days later we came for it and it was gone - we discovered that someone had tried to charge 400 dollars on it !!!! Juliano made no attempt to make up for this and was rude to us on top if it all. He didn't even apologize !! rather he said he would cooperate if we wanted to get the police involved - a sincere apology and a free dessert would have done the trick. in summation: there is no doubt that arial and Juliano are expert chefs and have a good thing going... if they could get it together as host/spokespersons - be consistent with the flavor and portion - and make the prices less outrageous they would be a PERFECT restaurant.
Read morePros: The food.
Cons: bad service, price/portions
Hugo
I concur with everything you say in your review Jbella213. I second you lauding Au Lac, and have also experienced stellar service at their restaurant. I really hope that Juliano and Ariel are reading these reviews because these reviews are coming from the very people that are spending money at their restaurant and lining their pockets. Oh, I also failed to mention in my review, certain items which were on display for sale at Juliano's; colored disco lights??? What gives?
Read moreGuest
Jacquie
Points +16
JULIANOS RAW - Edit
Very impressive to say the least. Casual vibe yet deliciously gourmet dishes. Fast service, reasonable prices and easy to walk in for a table or to get take out. I love this place and would highly recommend it. They believe in eating desert first here which is fun and try their blood drink if you're into juices or even if you're normally not.
Read morePros: Lots of choices of the menu, Positive, chill, progressive atmosphere, Good prices ($7-10 entrees)
Hugo
"Fast service?" LoL. You definitely work there!
Read moreGuest
FinalTwilight
Points +68
Not too bad - Edit
This place is pretty chic- smallish portions for biggish prices. The food is not really all that good, either. I cannot suggest Au Lac strongly enough if you want delicious raw food :P But, this place is better than some (118 Degrees).
Read moreWhat's good? I had the Fat Cheez Melt which I think may be one of the best dishes. I was very happy with it. Has raw things one it that taste just like mayonnaise and ketchup. Tastes like a burger. I sampled the pasta fresco, and it wasn't that good, but I really don't like zucchini. The people I was eating with complained the salad was overdressed, but I liked it fine- not super delicious, but good. The dessert drinks, though, were -great-! The chocolate shake and the mocha shake were really, really good.
Most of the desserts aren't completely vegan, though, most of them have honey in them, and if you get the shakes you have to ask for agave instead of honey, because they normally put honey in things. So, not 100% vegan as it claims to be. A bit pricey, and the portions are a bit small. But, we sat next to Alanis when we went here, so I guess that counts for something :P
Pros: Good drinks, Some items very good
Cons: Not 100% vegan, Pricey, Some dishes suck
Guest
ShantiDass
Points +24
Not sure what is vegan - Edit
I have the recipe book and a lot of items contain honey. The waitstaff didn't seem to know which items contained honey. I also don't eat soy so no Nama Shoyu, liquid aminos or miso for me. Again, blank looks from the staff. The restaurant is commonly referred to as being raw vegan but because of the honey is not. I went down the street to RFD for some truly vegan food.
Read moreCons: Not sure what is vegan, Not sure which meals are soy free
brainyblonde
Funny I found Real Food Daily's food to be bland and definitely soy. Most "vegans" I eat (and many raw foodists who eat no dairy meat eggs and only eat 100% raw) still eat honey. Juliano explains in a little pamphlet there why they use the honey candles and to me (even though I eat honey) which foods had honey in them. Sorry it was not a good experience for you (It wasn't for me but for other reasons) but still WAY better than RFD.
Read morechalyse
I think honey is a personal choice that some vegans choose to eat. Also, it's hard at Juliano's to know much about the food when you first start working there, there is no training, so if you are new to raw foods it takes a little while in order to be able to help people without asking the kitchen(and even harder if you don't speak Spanish.) I think nama shoyu is the only soy product used in the restaurant.
Read moreGuest
gr8vegan
Points +2359
Eel Sushi is good! - Edit
I have to admit I'm not a fan of raw food restaurants, but its a fun novelty (INSULT! j/k) for me every once in a while. We went to Julianos for some raw sushi! Its basically fat rolled in nori with mustard on it, but the "eel" roll was tasty. The rest were sort of repetitive. They serve honey there so I wouldn't call them vegan. I had some wine based drink w/o the honey... vomit! However if you are into raw or just want to experience it this place is really nice, you can sit outside and enjoy a nice evening. Don't order the bottled water because their filtered water is really good and free!
Read moreCons: honey, fat, sugar
Guest
judacia
Points +37
visited once, unsure about a return - Edit
I went in to only have dessert & a beverage. Their brownie was very small and covered with sour fruit. Their macadamia nut milk was tasty, but the serving was too large. They were expensive, and not what I would serve to anyone as it was served to me.
Read moreGuest
leafekat
Points +197
Not as bad as the reviews say - Edit
We read the review before we visited.
Read moreYes, it is a couple of dollars more than other raw eateries in the area.
Yes, the portions are smaller (we only ate desert here).
Yes, the staff was not as polite as they should have been.
But, the food tasted great and the menu is huge.
We will eat here again, but not for a 3 course meal.
Pros: variety, taste
Cons: staff, portion size
Guest
Mimi710
Points +559
disapointing - Edit
I finally got to eating here after many times in SF. I should have saved my money and gone to Real Food Daily (my favorite restaurant in the world). The food was mediocre, even the desert wasn't that good, the portions were small, and it was expensive. The blood drink however was good. But seriously --- save your money and go to RFD. I believe they have one raw dish, but if you are just looking for vegan, seriously go to RFD!
Read morePros: the blood drink
Cons: expensive, small portions, food not good
zgeist
RFD is greasy and heavily processed. You leave feeling overly stuffed and lethargic. The service is better I'm sure, but its definetly not even remotely as healthy, your wallet may thank you as your body curses you. Madelines Bistro in Tarzana is basically right between these two places when it comes to taste and price and from what I hear is the only non raw restaurant Juliano will eat at.
Read moreGuest
brainyblonde
Points +104
Not what I expected :( - Edit
I suppose I've been spoiled by raw restaurants in Florida, but when I went back to California (used to live there for 8 years) I figured this would be the best raw food ever. I was disappointed. I did like the soups and the "blood drink" (forget the exact name, but admit that was good) but the entrees and desserts (I even went back a second time to see if it would be better) weren't up to par. The raw version of the burger that my friend got wasn't too tasty. The sushi rolls were so so.
Read moreWe ate two deserts (usually the best part of the meal right?) but neither were that great. They weren't especially nice to us either (though at least Juliano did say hi) I give it 2 stars and am willing to try it again only if in Los Angeles and very in need of a raw meal out... but won't hope for too much. I'll probably stick to a soup and salad :(
Pros: soups were good, servers were polite, liked outdoor seating
Cons: entree wasn't that good
Guest
For Members
Why was my review removed? Guidelines for writing a review View our privacy policyFor Business Owners
Claim this business See inaccurate information? Submit an update here Link to this page from your site See an unfair review? View full terms & conditionsThis page has been viewed 8746 times.