smol café & salad bar

The staff here are incredibly friendly and attentive, which made for a very pleasant atmosphere. However, the food was a bit of a letdown. ​The vegetables in the salad felt a little too raw, and the broccoli and pumpkin were significantly undercooked and quite hard. This made them very difficult to chew, which would be a major concern for senior diners or anyone needing softer textures. ​I’d love to see the kitchen ensure the root vegetables and tougher greens are cooked through properly. It’s a lovely spot with great service, but the food needs a bit more care in the preparation.

First things first: I love that a halal place is celebrating Pride Month with pride. Major kudos to the shop for that. Now, the food. It was a pretty average healthy salad bowl, I’d say. My main issue was with the beef, which was cooked well-done and took a lot of chewing before I could swallow it — not ideal during a lunch meeting. I’d also gladly skip the ginger espresso next time. It sounded interesting, which is why I ordered it, so that’s on me. But taste-wise, it really didn’t work for my palate.

smol’s been a favourite haunt of mine to get healthy and delicious protein bowls since they were at PLQ1. They’ve relocated a few blocks away, to PLQ Parkside now, to a bigger and brighter unit. I love that their menus are flexible and allow for you to build your own bowls. Price is very affordable for the quality served. Macros wise, they could be a little more transparent with the breakdown of each item. There’s a table for the breakdown of macros for proteins, not the base, supplements and toppings, so if you’re looking to track macros/calories, it might be easier to order the best sellers. The best thing about smol is definitely the staff. They are always cheerful and make you feel at home. Janu, especially is always there to greet you with a smile, and I’m amazed at how they remember all their regulars. Right down to which gym you are with. Also love that it’s a woman-owned business and supports various minority groups.

Bowl is pretty. The broccoli cauliflower rice base is nice Quite expensive, chicken is tough, and service is slow

This is my favourite healthy restaurant that I regularly visit every week. Their salad is really fresh and it is delectable. Especially their Kena Salmon ane Under The Sea. The fish is always fresh and tasty. I always order one of them every week. The service here is also awesome. They are always smiling and serve you nicely. The price is so worthy as the portion and packaging for take away are nice.