New Whole30 Restaurant in Boulder: Flower Child

I’m done with Whole30 now, but spending a month focusing on eating only healthy, natural foods was eye opening. One of the biggest challenges was giving up my regular schedule of eating out since so many restaurants lack in the ability to do a true Whole30 compliant meal. 

There are only a handful of places that can be called a true whole30 restaurant in Denver. Lucky for me, Boulder just welcomed a brand new fast casual restaurant who fit the bill for eating out AND staying Whole30 complaint.   Located just off 28th street, Flower Child focuses on healthy scratch made food that makes eating out and eating healthy a breeze. 

From the moment you walk into the restaurant it’s obvious this isn’t another mass produced chain where volume matters more than the time you spend eating. The bright colors, fun decor and welcoming seating makes it feel like you’ve gone over to a friends house for dinner. 

The open air kitchen allows you to see into where the food is prepared, demonstrating first hand that fresh produce is an important part of the menu. 

While Flower Child is not exclusively Whole30, the ability to customize each dish made eating there super easy. We started off with three of the small plates. Intended to be shared, these tapas style dishes are a great way to experience the depth of the Flower Child menu. 

The first dish we tried was the Heirloom Tomato and Watermelon. This simple dish was full of fresh flavors. Using mint, basil, vinaigrette and sea salt, the robust flavors make this dish one of my favorite options on the menu. 

 
The red chili glazed sweet potato combined flavors you might not naturally think to go together. Red chili sauce complimented the natural sweetness of the sweet potato and the bok choy and sesame seeds added texture to this hearty side dish. 

Adding avocado to a meal was my whole30 staple so I definitely wanted to give the Avocado, Sea Salt and Olive Oil a try. The olive oil gave the avocado a more refined flavor, making it the perfect addition to the top of my entree.

I ordered the Strawberry Fields Salad topped with grass-fed steak. To make this dish Whole30 compliant I dropped the toasted oats, goat cheese, and substituted in the lemon avocado dressing (sugar-free, dairy-free, gluten-free dressing). I’ve never had dried mulberries before so this topper was a fun experience that I’ll definitely be putting on salads at home in the future. The arugula and strawberries added a fresh natural flavor while the steak was the perfect hearty compliment to make this salad a full meal.

My dining companion was not eating Whole30 so she had one of the Flying Avocado and didn’t make any changes to the intended dish. Smoked turkey, gouda, romaine lettuce, tomato, avocado and hummus all wrapped up in a whole wheat wrap made her selection a filling and flavorful meal.

Overall I loved the atmosphere of the restaurant and I can’t wait to go back and experience some of the items that are not Whole30 as well. It’s so nice to find a Whole30 restaurant who also has plenty of options for people not eating a special diet. I’m looking forward to seeing Flower Child expand with more locations throughout Colorado. 

Interested in learning more about my Whole30 experience? Read my week 1 take on Whole30.

I was hosted at Flower Child to facilitate this review. I did not receive any additional compensation and all thoughts and opinions are my own.