Raw Power

WHEN I THINK of raw food, it doesn’t usually get my salivary glands working. In fact, many people appear to have an aversion to the non-cooked, vegetarian, dairy-free fare that makes up a raw diet.

But at Rockin’ Raw, Luis Salgado has made it his goal to prove naysayers wrong by serving up a rich menu filled with Peruvian, New Orleanian and Creole-styled cuisine—all raw.

The restaurant, which Salgado co-owns with his partner Tere Fox, doesn’t have the usual hippy love fest mood that many vegan restaurants tend to exude. No, Rockin’ Raw is decked out in tapestry-covered chairs and Mardi Gras beads, while rock music blares over the stereo. It also has a beautiful garden with fig trees, roses and quaint furniture—a prime spot to sit in the warm months, if they put out some citronella candles or find a way to keep the mosquitoes down. I wish my friend and I had come prepared, instead, we each left after a recent dinner with about a dozen bites each.

Bugs or not, if you want to try raw food or already eat raw, this is a good place to indulge in the cuisine. None of the dishes we had were bland. In fact, the meal left the impression that we had just indulged in a deep-fried butter fest, but nothing could be further from the truth.

We started out with lavender-vanillahoney “milk” shakes ($9) made with avocado and cashews, and a plate of jicama covered with a dairy-free Huancaina sauce ($8).While the latter dish usually is made with potatoes, the peppery crisp of the jicama worked well with super spicy raw Huancaina and the salty sprinkling of olives on top. Another small plate, the “soul chips,” made from dehydrated seeds, and dip ($6), which tasted of cream cheese and scallions but was really made from coconut meat, could easily be my new favorite snack.

After the tasty and filling appetizers, we delved into the main courses. Billed as “live pasta,” the noodles in the “tallarines verdes de la lala” ($13) were made from slivered zucchini and tossed with a mild pesto sauce. The first bite brought a burst of pesto flavor, but as I chewed, the water in the zucchini overpowered it. I liked the sensation and the light, summery texture, but my eating buddy thought it tasted bland.

As a take on another Peruvian dish, the tacu-tacu ($15) was the only plate that really tasted like raw food. Minced to look like ground beef or maybe bean puree, the wild rice, jicama, walnut and mushroom entrée had a strong raw nut flavor that lingered in my mouth.The plantains on the side added a much-needed sweetness to the dish and cut the strong flavor of the mash considerably, but not enough that I would recommend this entrée—although my roommate loved the leftovers I brought home.

For a side dish, we tried the “N’awlins Rings,” which are not rings at all. Instead, they are coin-sized patties of dehydrated onions, fruit and spices. They definitely had the onion flavor down, and the spicy tomato cocktail sauce they came with was divine.The only problem I had was with the sticky, chewy texture, but that’s part of vegan and raw food.

Rockin’ Raw does nice things to raw vegetables, nuts and fruit; if you can get over expecting things to taste like they always do, you’ll surely enjoy your meal. In the end, I wanted to try more but felt completely satisfied with my choices and my doggy bag. While we walked away stuffed, I was glad I didn’t feel guilty about it.

>Rockin’ Raw

178 N. 8th St. (betw. Bedford & Driggs Aves.), Brooklyn, 718-599-9333.