Remedy Café — Restaurant in Hood River

I have never written reviews for any restaurant before, but I had such a negative experience at Remedy Café today that I felt strongly enough to warn others about it.

We researched some restaurants to visit during a day trip to Hood River and saw that Remedy Café was well-reviewed. But we had a terrible experience when we actually visited it today. First off, when we asked about the egg bowl and whether it was gluten free or not (it was not labeled on the menu), the woman at the cash register didn’t know. She went to ask her colleague and he said “uh, I think so”. We asked again to confirm whether there were any ingredients that contained gluten, and he glanced at the recipe posted on the wall and said, again, “yeah, I think so”. When you call yourself a health food restaurant, HOW can you NOT know what allergens your dishes contain?? It’s fine if a dish contains gluten, but shouldn’t your staff be trained to know how to accommodate—or at least answer questions about—dietary restrictions? We should have left the restaurant at that moment, because “I think so” is not very reassuring that you won’t get sick from eating a dish you thought was safe.

Anyways, we ordered the egg bowl and the Buddha bowl and took a seat. We watched as they prepared the egg bowl and took a handful of bacon shreds from a bag—as in, a shelf stable, processed bag of bacon bits that you’d get at a grocery store—and add that to the bowl. We then had to inquire about the ingredients in the bacon bits to make sure there weren’t any allergens in THAT ingredient. Also, what kind of health food restaurant uses processed, dried bacon? How is that healthy and clean eating? That moment should’ve been our second sign to just leave, but we had paid for our food and decided to wait.

When our food did arrive, it was a massive disappointment. These bowls are TINY, and cost $15 each. And not only are they tiny, the ingredients are, again, not high quality or healthy. The cheese is literally shredded cheese from a bag—not even melted. The avocado chunks in the Buddha bowl weren’t even ripe! They were so firm I just didn’t even eat them. The black olives and salsa came from a can—again, highly processed, and not what I would consider to be healthy. The spinach in the egg bowl had some spoiled leaves in it, too. I couldn’t even bring myself to finish the Buddha bowl.

Honestly, this was the worst $30 I have ever spent. But, lesson learned: save your hard-earned money and bring a picnic lunch when visiting Hood River.

This establishment touts itself as a health food restaurant, but I am sorry to say that it doesn’t actually appear to be good for one’s health. This place is NOT a...

Dude, this place rocks. Well, it definitely rocked my socks off. I'm trying my best to transition to a little healthier lifestyle, as in when I'm on vacation limit myself to only a few splurges. While cruising down I-84, Remedy Juice Cafe popped up on Google Maps (sorry, Yelp). While it did not seem appetizing at all, we decided to swing on by.

I had my doubts when I walked on in. There's a doTerra stand advertising essential oils which I am not a fan off or any multi-level marketing scheme. I'll stop there because my review is on Remedy. :)

Upon reviewing the menu I noticed how detailed every dish was. They list everything included in their dishes so you know exactly what you're putting in your body. I decided to go for the healthiest sounding thing: the Glory Salad Bowl (brown rice, spinach, Glory sauce (tahini), grated carrots and beets, tofu and sunflower seeds, $9.95). I was very surprised at how much I enjoyed this vegan salad. I think the brown rice is what really made the entire dish. Without, it would have been rather plain. It also helped keep me full for several hours afterwards. Additionally, I've discovered I have a liking for beets which was unknown all my life until today. If I were to order this dish again, I could forgo with the carrots. I've never been a huge carrot fan, especially when served fresh.

My husband order a 16 ounce green island smoothie (orange juice and pineapple, banana, kale, ginger, green super food powder, $8.95). It might seem spendy, however you have realize how much fruit goes into creating this much juice. It definitely takes a lot of product, as I learned from making my own juices. I was not a huge fan of the drink. The ginger was rather overwhelming for my tastebuds. My husband did enjoy it every much and practically inhaled it in 5 minutes. He says it was an A+ smoothie. Since it was his order and not mine, I'll go off his recommendations.

Remedy is conveniently located right off the freeway, making it a super easy detour. I do recommend this place to anyone who enjoys a good salad. I look forward to my next...

We had a really bad experience here. This restaurant falsely advertises itself as a health food restaurant. I ordered an Egg Bowl and asked a simple question: is it gluten free? Neither of the two staff were able to answer with confidence if it was or not. Based on the vibe of the restaurant I chose to bet that it would be, expecting locally sourced, whole and unprocessed ingredients.

While the food was being prepared I observed the bacon shreds being added from a store-bought bag. I asked to see the ingredients of the bacon and while it was gf, it was of course full of all the additives you would expect in super processed food.

The staff are teens and appear to be barely trained. I asked what type of yogurt was used in the lassi drinks. Again, a shrug in response. Thankfully I did not order it out of caution.

The avocados in both our dishes were way unripe. The spinach in mine was withered. The only seasoning I could taste was from the tablespoon of balsamic dressing, so no pepper, no salt, no spice at all. The cheese in my wife’s dish was also from a bag…so again full of additives and not healthy.

The portion sizes were very small for the price seeing as the ingredients were the cheapest that could be found. We had to go for lunch again somewhere else to be full.

I’ll preempt the owner’s gaslighting response “OuR FoOd Is WeLl ReViEwEd, yOu CoUlD hAvE sEnT iT bAcK.” Tell me, what would have been different the second time? Did the staff learn to cook after I received my food? Did they go out and buy healthy ingredients? Did they learn the menu they are serving?

This is an issue of false advertising. This place poses as a health food restaurant and then serves unhealthy ingredients at a high price using untrained, junior staff, riding on its deception to make a buck. Stay away if you care about...