If you’re anything like us, you’ve been trying not to think about how many servings of scalloped potatoes you ate during the holidays—and don’t get us started on the casual slices of pecan pies, Bûche de Noël, chocolate tarts and all things sugar-coated and pumpkin-spiced. Our bad, waistlines.
Leave it to L.A. restaurants to give us that little bit of a healthy incentive, though, when it comes to sticking to our New Year’s diet resolutions. Whether you’re trying to lose weight, cleanse those holiday cookies or strive toward a healthier lifestyle, here are three January-only specials to help you reach those goals.
Detox by Way of Bento Box
Lest you be tempted to order that award-winning fried chicken at Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill, please divert your eyes to a much less diet-devious option: The Detox Bento Box. Through the end of the month, find the lunch-only special at all Blue Ribbon locations, which means that here in L.A., you can snag this while hitting some of the Grove’s wellness-minded spots. (Like Athleta or, say, maybe Sugarfina for those green-juice gummy bears. What, those don’t count?)
Skip the wagyu bites and opt for the bento, wherein you’ll get a sampling of lighter fare from the sushi menu, such as salmon carpaccio with mango and truffle ponzu; kale salad with watermelon radish, avocado and soy vinaigrette; green tea soba with sesame; and tuna poke with scallions, Asian pear and chili oil. $25.
I Am Saving (with Cafe Gratitude’s Cleanse Special)
Whether or not you buy into Cafe Gratitude’s “I am [INSERT AFFIRMATION-AS-MENU-ITEM]” ordering format, if you buy into cleanses, this seems like a solid deal. When you start a juice or food cleanse anytime this month, receive half off the ticket price, be it for one day or five.
Each day of the totally vegan meal plan includes breakfast, one juice, lunch, one wellness shot, dinner and one milk, with goods such as pad Thai kelp noodles, Japanese grain bowls, superfood parfaits and an anti-inflammatory juice blend of pineapple, pear and ginger. Speaking of juice, if you go the liquid diet route, receive six total juices, milks and infused waters per day to be slurped every two to three hours. Honestly, after all that feasting, are you really going to argue with elixirs purporting to restore your hair and nail growth / flush your liver / boost your immune system / and aid your digestion? We thought not. Check out the full menus and place your order here, available for pickup at any location. $27.50–$162.50.
Vegan Ice Cream, Because Come On, You’re Going to Cave Eventually
Starting today—that’s January 5, for those of us still groggy from too many NYE parties—and running through February 1, Salt & Straw is taking the dairy edge off your frozen-treats cravings with its small-batch, hand-crafted “Vegan New Year” ice cream series. At all L.A. locations, find five limited-run flavors, including a collab with vegan-doughnut dream outfit Donut Friend. Now presenting: The Happy Birthday Elvis, with banana-and-coconut ice cream, swirls of marionberry jam, peanut butter fudge and bits of candied coconut that allegedly taste just like bacon, all in honor of his birthday (which is January 8, hail to the king).
You’ll also find Chocolate Hazelnut Fudge, which is made with both hazelnut milk and hazelnut butter, cocoa powder and house-made gluten-free brownies; Mint Chip Whoopie Pie, a coconut ice cream with freckled chocolate, pure peppermint oil and house-made whoopie pies; Candied Mango Faux-yo, a coconut cream frozen yogurt made with mango purée, vanilla and just a pinch of green cardamom, not to mention a few pieces of candied mango; and the Donut Friend MC5 Spice, a recreation of Donut Friend’s Chinese five-spice doughnut in ice cream form, made with Chinese five spice, coconut ice cream, vegan white chocolate bark studded with toasted macadamia nuts and, of course, some of those MC5 Spice doughnuts, for good measure. $4.90 per scoop, $10.50 per pint.