Except for the vintage blow-up photo of Twiggy and a couple of peace signs toward the back (photo: http://bit.ly/2yRnX1R), I wasn't feeling the heavy-duty hippie-dippy vibe I was expecting from a restaurant called Flower Child. I even wore my favorite Summer of Love tie-dyed t-shirt with matching love beads and headband. OK, I didn't but the Jefferson Airplane was in my head, man. Groovy. Anyway, this place is all about the organic revolution with its heavy emphasis on local sourcing. I came here on a recent business trip to Phoenix and I was trying to keep to healthy eating.
It's an order-at-the-counter type of spot with a lot of seating. The menu appears to span the globe encompassing entree salads, mix-n-match sides, protein-optional bowls, and whole grain wraps. I was intrigued by the $9 Thai Cashew Quinoa Bowl because it mentioned three things I like right off the bat. Since I was going to expense it and didn't eat that much that day, I had them add salmon for an additional $7. The sum product was quite a hearty portion with the red quinoa mixed with zucchini, snap peas, onion, celery, shiitake mushrooms, jalapeño, Thai basil, and of course, cashews.
That was quite a bounty of flavor which I kicked up a notch with a liberal dousing of hot pepper sauce. But no, that wasn't enough for me as a slab of fresh salmon was piled on top of it (photo: http://bit.ly/2Cyp0Gv), and yes, it was a seaworthy piece of overkill. Tasty but I really didn't need it to complete the bowl. Meanwhile, I wet my whistle with a $3 Cranberry Pomegranate Lemonade which just hit the spot with a puckery sweetness (photo: http://bit.ly/2B6Bzwe). Free refills were a nice treat of which I took full adventage. It seemed fitting there was a lemonade stand out on the sprinkler-spritzing terrace. Peace, love, and lemonade, man, and put some flowers in your hair.
FOOD - 4 stars...plethora of fresh flavors though the salmon was too much for me
AMBIANCE - 4 stars...spacious but not quite groovy
SERVICE - 3 stars...I ordered it, they brought it, the end
TOTAL - 4 stars...where are my love beads?