If you are visiting or living near Portland, Oregon, the Adventist Medical Center (AMC) LivingWell Bistro should be on your "to-do" list. This plant-based eatery on the hospital campus offers an array of delicious, mostly raw dishes made of local, organic and sustainable foods. The bistro has received many accolades recently, and AMC has been praised for its efforts to offer this type of dining experience for patients and visitors alike.
"The casual dining atmosphere, vibrant healthy food choices and a wide selection of menu options [provide] a place where people can eat well and be well," says Bo Rinaldi, restauranteur and collaborator on the LivingWell Bistro project.
AMC doesn't know of any other medical facility that has a dining experience like it. The bistro serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. With menu items such as the tofu breakfast scramble, black bean veggie wrap and portobello pizza, patrons are sure to go home satisfied.
"We want to show people that eating in this manner can be really flavorful — it's just good food," says Lyndee Lawrence, AMC hospitality services director. "Health is so important in terms of preventing the need for treatment, and eating a largely (if not completely) plant-based diet is a major step towards health."
While the LivingWell Bistro specializes in offering a healthy, plant-based menu, it also serves as a springboard for questions from visitors and patients about the Seventh-day Adventist health message and belief system. The bistro has received a lot of press coverage in the Portland area, much of which explains that a vegetarian diet is part of the Adventist health message.
The LivingWell Bistro has been at the center of promoting plant-based dining to the local community. Earlier this year, several events, including the Delicious Fair of the Heart, promoted a plant-based diet and brought hundreds of community members to the hospital to try out the bistro's unique dining experience, meet local health-food vendors, and access other health and lifestyle resources.
The bistro supports local businesses and farms by using their products. From farm to table, the LivingWell Bistro supports an estimated 14,000 jobs in Oregon by using locally sourced ingredients and products.
For more information about the LivingWell Bistro, including a menu and directions, visit livingwellbistro.com.
The LivingWell Bistro features fresh, healthy ingredients made from scratch and served with a smile.
The bistro's creamy lentil soup. (CJ Anderson)
Among the bistro's breakfast options is country-style oatmeal. (CJ Anderson)
The bistro offers a quinoa bowl with soy curls. (CJ Anderson)
Butternut squash and black bean enchiladas are just one of an array of plant-based entrees served at the LivingWell Bistro. (CJ Anderson)
The LivingWell Bistro features a pizza-type oven.
The LivingWell Bistro's menu includes delicious vegan desserts and treats.
The LivingWell Bistro combines plant-based foods and a welcoming atmosphere to offer patrons a unique dining experience on the Adventist Medical Center campus.
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