Rockin’ Raw (CLOSED)

Uninitiated diners may raise an eyebrow at a vegan raw-food restaurant—one where the ingredients are never heated above 104 degrees. But the ambitious, raw Japanese-Peruvian menu at this funky café could sway even the most ardent omnivores. Though not exactly ringers for the real thing, eclectic appetizers like the “Rockin' Roll”—a sushi revision with pulverized cauliflower standing in for rice, and a zingy filling made of jicama, avocado and mushrooms—were delicious in their own right. The same is true of entrées like the South American Tallarines a la Huancaina, a vegetal illusion of toothsome "pasta" (long thin strips of zucchini) tossed with mushrooms, spicy peppers, choclo (a large-kernel Peruvian corn) and a nut-based "cheese" sauce. Dessert also offered unusual thrills. Lucuma pudding was a rich blend of lucuma fruit (a Peruvian cultivar with a delicate caramel flavor), Irish moss, coconut and cacao.