If you didn’t know any better, the pamphlet on the tables at Grezzo in the North End might scare you off. It lists 40 reasons to eat raw, ranging from something like “It makes your skin GLOW!” to somewhat dubious ones like, “Cooking kills off 50% of essential enzymes in food.”

Nothing is heated above 112 degrees, so if you order tea, the water is warmed, not boiled.

Health claims aside, the creativity required to make conventional dishes is mind-boggling. Pasta becomes ribbons of squash. Bread becomes dehydrated sheets of vegetable pulp. Brownies are made out of mashed dates. Dairy is redone (surprisingly successfully) as macadamia or cashew pulp.

After tasting some raw home cooking in Mary’s kitchen, I’d been itching to try a restaurant version. Grezzo, as far as I know, is the only all-raw, easily accessible place in the Boston area. Prices are reasonable – in the low 20′s for entrees, 10-12 for appetizers, but definitely a splurge for a college student. The nice thing is that their portion sizes are large, plus eating a lot of creamy nut paste is not a joke. You’ll definitely feel filled up.

I was introduced to Grezzo originally from my friend Mark, who insisted on renting a ZipCar to transport us there. We ended up getting really lost several times and arriving an hour late. The space is pretty small – about 20 seats altogether – and I got seated next the door which blew in gusts of arctic air.

I left my camera at work, and had a mini panic attack as I contemplated eating  a meal without photographing it. The horror!!

California Maki Roll - quinoa "krab" salad, cucumber, avocado, spicy mayo

We decided to get two appetizers each rather than entrees. I sampled the California maki (“krab” salad, quinoa, avocado), which was stunning – creamy, intensely flavored, and far preferable to run-of-the-mill avocado roll. There’s no way that soy sauce was raw, however. The spaghetti carbonara was dense, rich, and creamy, with uncooked peas adding a pleasant crunch. One of the interesting things about raw food, I’ve found, is that raw food flavors are much more intense than their cooked counterparts. Particularly for things like onions, garlic, and greens, they’re actually naturally spicy.

Mark, during the course of dinner, convinced me not to run for a position on the Crimson.

Then they massively messed up.

We had ordered a pizetta. 15 minutes when by. Then another 15. I saw the table next to us, who had arrived later, get served a pizetta as I craned my neck to shoot the kitchen impatient glances. What had gone wrong?

The waitress finally let us know that they had accidentally served another table our order. They’d also run out of pizettas. What would like to have instead? I decided on the Thai coconut soup, expecting that after a faux pas like that, it’d be comped.

They still charged us for it! Seriously! Grezzo, if you’re reading this, you should be ashamed of yourselves. Somewhere in vegan hell, a baby fed on nut milk just cried.

Proving that I’m a glutton for punishment, I ended up going back this weekend for a second time.

Mediterranean Pressed "Lasagna" - marinated layers of zucchini, baby spinach, shiitake ricotta petite herb salad

This time, no major service issues. Had the maki again, which didn’t have as much avocado this time. “This list could really be reduced down to ten,” my dining partner said of the 40 reason list, but thought the food was delicious. I finally got to try my hard-won Greek pizzetta – the black olives on top were too salty, but overall, pretty amazing. The “crust,” made from some kind of dehydrated pulp, made a valiant effort at filling in, and the garlic white sauce was amazingly creamy.

Greek pizzeta - garlic white sauce with baby spinach, cured olives, tomato, red onion and baby lettuce salad

If you’re at all interested in trying out the whole raw thing, definitely recommended. But Grezzo, I still want to be consoled for that infuriatingly pizzetta mixup.

Find it!

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Grezzo

69 Prince St
(at Salem St)
Boston, MA 02113
(857) 362-7288

Related posts:

1. Adventures in Raw Food: Part 1 out of 2
2. Delightful, delicious Veggie Planet Pizza
3. Some food porn from Harvard Square
4. Giving Raw Food the College Try
5. So fresh it’s wriggling: Sushi at Fish Market in Allston