Grandes - Canberra

As well as the terrific pasta's the sauces are available to take home and wow your friends. There is a raw food menu. The raw food is wonderful. I had the raw lasagna with pesto, sliced lasagna, delicious and beautifully ripe tomatoes. There are great raw deserts as well. You can feel refreshed and healthy not weighed down after a raw food lunch at Grande's. If this is what you order ask Lara to explain the raw food menu and you will get a great introduction to raw food without being lectured at. Take you r own wine and enjoy a great lunch.

My wife and I don't often have the chance to meet for lunch, but this week we found ourselves in Manuka, Canberra at lunchtime with some time to spare. Manuka is known as Canberra's cappuccino zone, where prices are not displayed in shop windows and only those unconcerned about cost should enter the boutique shops. The area is also filled with eateries, which excited us at first. However, we made the mistake of choosing a restaurant with only two other diners, Grandes. My husband ordered the prosciutto open sandwich, which was disappointingly thin and tasteless, priced at $16. Despite this, I have given Grandes 3 out of 5 stars for their fresh and tasty offerings, except for the prosciutto.

I ordered the kelp 'Alfredo ' (which was really a peppered cashew cream) and it was absolutely delicious! Worth the expensiveness, seeing as it was completely organic and something you won 't get anywhere else. There seemed to be a lot if tasty raw food on the menu to try, such as homemade almond and hemp milk, plus kale and kimchi salad. but there is also more ordinary dishes. Great service too and would recommend especially to raw food lovers.

While the restaurant may not have the most fashionable appearance, the quality of the food more than makes up for it. The salmon Panini was exceptional, with the added bonus of artichoke hearts. The staff was friendly and the food was deliciously fresh. With a great value for the price, the flavors and portion sizes are both satisfying and generous.

I 've walked past Grandes numerous times since I started working in Manuka 18 months ago, and the standard italian fare on the menu has never been particularly enticing.. But now they have a 'raw ' menu i.e. uncooked, unprocessed, often organic, and at Grandes, no meat or dairy. I had the 'spaghetti and meatballs ' deliciously crunchy zucchini 'spaghetti ' topped with mushroom balls in a light, fresh tomato and garlic sauce. Perfect on a hot day, and didn 't leave me feeling overstuffed as pasta so often does at lunchtime. I 'm excited to test out their other raw dishes, and recommend having a chat to their chef as she is obviously very passionate about her new recipes. NB: while I 'm a big fan of healthy food and lots of fresh vegies, I 'll also knock over a bowl of creamy pasta faster than my growing brother so don 't be put off by the description of raw food. It might be another fad, but it 's a pretty delicious one!