It's not that I had a negative reaction, other than boredom and slimmed wallet syndrome. The Vitality Bowls are very tasty and quite nutritious, but not for every day. Maybe I'll go back once or twice a month, but staying an Acai diet is like most other diets I've tried. I lost the momentum before I lost weight. I like to cook, I like to eat, and I like eating for variety more than vitality.
I tried a different bowl each day or a different Smoothie. I liked most of them except the Power Bowl. That's the one with spinach and broccoli in it. I preferred the Nutty Bowl with peanut butter and granola, almonds, and honey, mmm good, but all the bowls and smoothies are very, very cold.
The Acai berries are shipped frozen from Brazil. I was told they don't keep very long after being picked, so the bowls and smoothies are made to order with the frozen berries whipped up in a blender. That's why there's so much noise in the restaurant when the smoothies are being made. I liked to take the smoothies home and let them defrost for 24 hours. I could taste the fruit flavors much better when they were more juice-like than slush.
The management has made changes since I started going there. They extended the closing time from 4 pm to 6:30 pm and now list the ingredients of the different bowls and smoothies on the printed menus. They are also adding new combinations and specials.
The place is catching on. When I tried it out the first time on October 27th there was one other person there. The last time I went it was almost full.
If you go, be sure to allow enough time. The bowls are made fresh and take about 10 minutes to make. I had a doctor's appointment on Thursday in the medical building across the street. I got to Vitality Bowls about 20 minutes before my appointment and had to take my bowl to go because I had just enough time to get to the office. I ate it there in the waiting room. I told the nurse about it and she made a copy of my menu.
This business is going to be big, but I'm not getting any smaller from it. In fact my doctor looked at the ingredients and said they have a lot of calories. The Acai berries, bananas, and nuts are nutritious but they are not non-fattening.
My doctor said I needed more exercise. I told him I'm thinking about adopting an older, overweight dog I could take for walks. My doctor said that's a great idea. So that might be my next venture. Then instead of driving to the Marketplace, I'll be walking to the Delmar Dog Park. Vitality Bowls will do fine without me, but committing to a dog (I already have five cats) is for life.
