My First Vegetarian Poké Bowl Experience
As someone who lives, breathes and dreams about food 100 % of the time, when it comes to being the first to sign up for restaurant, cafe and food subscription box reviews, you can guarantee that I am there, at the front of the queue. From being nicknamed the ‘human hoover’ who can fashion an entire meal out of somebody else’s scraps, to creating shrines to food in my dreams, when it comes to ‘vegetarian cuisine’ it seems like I am a dab hand. I was always told off for being such a greedy little pig when I was younger so it almost seems ironic that I am getting rewarded for my ‘greedy ways’, but then again I’m not complaining. You see I’m that embarrassing girl on a ‘first date’ who can’t get through her meal without dropping food or licking her bowl and don’t even get me started on looking at my dates meal plaintively, hoping that they will get the hint and so generously offer me their scraps. It’s probably why I don’t get past the second date club very often, because their scared of where the food might disappear to if they even dare to take a ‘toilet break’. But anyone with an imagination or common sense can guess that the only place the food would have disappeared to is my belly…
What Is An Ahi Poke Bowl?
An Example Of A Traditional ‘Ahi Poke Bowl’ using Yellowfin Tuna @AhiPoke
From Indian To Thai, right through giant slabs of pizza, my ‘food library’ is what I would call the very definition of ‘food porn’. But even as a vegetarian that does not mean that I am very healthy and after a Travel Event in Leicester Square the night before with copious amounts of wine, mojitos and prosecco, I needed a detox and I needed it fast. Queue Ahi Poké , a Poké specialist who offers customized Poké Bowls that are tailored to your preferences. But what on earth is Poké I hear you ask? Despite my friend G mistaking it for a ‘sex toy’, an ‘original Poké Bowl’ is made up of raw Ahi tuna or cured octopus, roughly cut into bite-sized cubes and inspired by East Asian and Japanese cuisine. Originating in Hawaii after fishermen would season the ‘scraps’ or ‘cut offs’ from their ‘catch’ to serve as a fishy snack, the present form of Poke became popular in the 1970’s according to food historian Rachel Laudan. However it wasn’t until 2012 that Poke became popular in mainland United States like Houston and by 2014-2016 countries outside of the US were serving up variations like Vegetarian Poké Bowls too.
The Build Your Own ‘Vegetarian Poké Bowl
Vegetarian Poke Bowls Are Delicious & Full Of Flavour @ahipoke
Now seeing as I yadder on about being a vegetarian all the time, you’re probably confused as to how I can have an ‘Ahi Poke’ bowl if all the main ingredients contain variations of fish. Which is where Ahi Poké in Fitzrovia, London steps in; although they do have a range of signature bowls- one of which is a vegetarian choice- you do luckily have the choice to build your own bowl, which includes fresh fruit and vegetables, sustainably sourced fish, toppings like avocado and spicy sauces like Sriracha Mayo. While I chose to build a Vegetarian Poké Bowl, my companion had a build your own shrimp bowl, which she exclaimed was ‘delicious’. To start with I chose my base, which used egg noodles, kale and brown rice before moving on to the ‘fish and veggie’ component of the bowl where I chose the ‘premium avocado’ and tomato option, which was sprinkled with cashew nuts. When asked what ‘sauce’ I would like, I had an option to choose between salty, sweet and spicy options and I decided to combine Sriracha Mayo with Black Chili to create a spicy, yet tart sauce for the Vegetarian Poké Bowl. For toppings I was truly spoiled for choice and chose Edamame, Radish, Coconut Sweet Potato, Confit Ginger, Pineapple, Carrot and Kimchee Cucumber, which was glazed in a dark liquid combination of mayo and black chili.
Here’s Me Being Healthy For One Day @ahipoke
The Vegetarian Poké Bowl was laced with intense flavour; the black chili had notes of balsamic vinegar intertwined with a subtle hint of spice, while the sriracha mayo was made from a paste of chili peppers, with an underlying taste of distilled vinegar, garlic, sugar and with a small touch of salt. The two sauces together had elements of ‘sweet spice’ and generously coated the fresh sliced avocado and tomato wonderfully. While the toppings like pineapple and coconut sweet potato created a stark contrast to the merging of the two sauces, the Vegetarian Poké Bowl was stopped from being too ‘sweet and saccharine’ with the saltiness of the kimchee cucumber, offset by the fresh grated and sliced carrot peel. But it was the confit ginger, which had been slowly cooked in sugar water and rolled in coarse sugar to preserve it, that stole the show. Sweet yet crisp, the taste of the confit ginger was almost pickled which added a much needed saltiness to the dish.
The Sriracha Mayo Gave Me Life @ahipoke
The Build Your Own Shrimp Bowl
G loved her ‘fresh shrimps’ and praised its taste @ahipoke
G chose the ‘build your own shrimp bowl’ option and praised the freshness of the shrimp, which had been ethically and freshly sourced. G’s base was made from ‘brown rice’, which she chose too drizzle with a sweet tart Sesame Shoyu sauce, as she prefers mild sauce, as opposed to me who is the type of girl to ask for more ‘spice’ because i’m a chili kind of girl. For toppings G chose to pair her fresh shrimp with carrot, kimchee cucumber, avocado, cashew nuts and coconut sweet potato. She thought that the avocado was fresh and ripe, and stated that it melded well with the fresh shrimp. Overall she found the shrimp bowl to be equisite but did mention that she would have chosen a different sauce next time as she found the Sesame Shoyu to be a bit dry and did not have as much flavour as the other sauces. Nevertheless G adored the shrimp and was even happier to know that Ahi Poke works closely with their purveyors to ensure they are providing the freshest local vegetables & fruits, alongside maintaining that their fish is responsibly-sourced & sustainably caught.
The Deserts & Drinks
This Pudding Was The Perfect End To A Delicious Detox Meal @ahipoke
As a desert I chose a chia and pineapple desiccated coconut pudding, with an elderflower presse sparkling drink to quench my thirst, while G who makes homemade ‘date energy balls’ decided to opt for the coconut date balls, to see if they measured up to her taste. The fresh chunks of pineapple were juicy and succulent, while the chia and coconut added some texture to the pudding. Despite my love/hate relationship with ‘chia’ I found that in the context of the pineapple pudding it worked well and added a tartness to the sweet pudding, that was as creamy as it was sweet. G’s ‘coconut date energy balls’ were full of flavour too and was complimented beautifully by her Vita Coconut water.
Overall Impressions
Avocados Are Life. Its A Fact @ahipoke
Having my first Vegetarian Poké Bowl Experience was hugely satisfying and the fact that the staff have regular consultations with purveyors to make sure that their ingredients are fresh, ethical and sustainably sourced was like music to my ears. The interior was bright and welcoming and while the store was small, I loved Ahi Poke’s intimate touches like fresh flower pots and warm natural lighting, which made us feel comfortable and secure. The staff were friendly and eager to help, if we had any questions about the ingredients and interacted naturally with the rest of the customers too. The food was true to Ahi Poke’s mantra and was fresh to the palette, while the selection of drinks and puddings were small but meant the focus was not detracted from the wonderful Ahi Poke Bowl selections.
Have You Ever Tried Ahi Poke Before?
*Disclaimer
Please note I was a guest at Ahi Poke and provided with two complimentary meals but all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Ooo love the sound of these! I am vegetarian too so it’s great that you had lots of options to build your own 🙂 x
This sounds utterly delicious, I’d be so keen for a shrimp bowl but with lots of veggies too. So yummy! Have been wanting to try a poke bowl and now I know where to go!
Mmmm! I love veggie poke, but I must admit I miss fish most of all and I’m always so tempted to get the carnivore version haha. Love the sound of mixed saracha mayo and black chilli sauces. I don’t think I’ve tried cucumber kimchi before either, was it better than regular kimchi?
Haha I will let you off then! Nothing can beat normal kimchi in my opinion- I remember the first time I tried it, it was like heaven! Nevertheless cucumber kimchi is still delicious though xx
They sound delicious. I love the sound of the Ahi one particularly, reminds me of something similar I had in Tokyo. Will be keeping an eye out for this place when I am next in London!
It’s nice that they have a build your own option and the food looks amazing too. Especially the shrimp one, I’d love to try that someday.
I’ve never had this before but it sounds so yummy x
Yum, the foods look delish. We (husband and i ) are trying to eat more vegs so I should look into this and see what I can get for us. I hope you are well Ana, haven’t spoken to you for a while. xx
So nice to see you pop up on my feed! Do drop me a message 🙂 nice to hear from you! Oh I would definitely recommend it. For once I felt like I was being healthy haha! x
These sound really good. I’ve never had a poke bowl vegetarian or non so I must give them a go sometime. Those desserts sound delicious I love coconut.
I’ve never heard of a Poke Bowl, but they actually look really amazing!
I’ve never tried one of these but they look really healthy and delicious.
Those look so yummy! I never had poke bowl before but I know it’s super trendy in California, it’s every where here! But I never knew there is vegetarian poke bowl! I wonder what Coconut Sweet Potato tastes like…hm. It look wholesome lots of fresh veggie and wholesome! I think I’m going to steal it as one of my lunch recipe at home that I can make 🙂
Haha. Well written. Loved that your friend G mistakook it for a ‘sex toy’. Cant blame him though, can I? Had never really heard of the Ahi Poke bowl but sure seems healthy. Theres a first for everything I guess!
I’ve never tried one of these before, but they do look very good. Making me feel hungry now
I too dream about food most of the time but I like eating healthy most of the time too. The Ahi Poke bowl looks like it offers a perfect blend of health and taste! Would love o try someday. Thanks for sharing.
Looks so nice!
I have never heard of these but what a great idea. I usually go vegetarian when I eat out. Kaz x
This is delicious to see! You just made me really hungry I want the Shrimp Bowl with the sweet tart Sesame Shoyu sauce, yummy!!
I have never heard of them before. They look so healthy, I imagine this place will be packed come january when everyone is on a new year new me hype! ALways nice to try something new.
Wow, I’m so delighted to see this vegetarian poke bowl, Sriracha Mayo would have definitely added a great flavour to the healthy yet delicious bowls. Usually I have not aded avocado’s to such bowls, shall try out adding some for sure.
Omg these are my kind of healthy bowls! Glad you enjoyed them. I haven’t got a difficulty in appreciating all vegetable meal because my Mom taught us since we are kids.
I haven’t tried these before and this is really look an awesome idea and I’m sure my hubby would love this too
I would love to try those dishes as they look so delicious and nutritious. Love the desert too!
I never heard it before. Glad I bumped into your post. I think I am going to try for lunch tomorrow 🙂
Hey Ana. I have to say that I really love the Poke bowl when I finally tried it just recently. I went on a date who suggested there and I always love trying new things. It was fantastic. I love all of the different flavors and healthy elements to the bowl. Just delicious. It’s becoming more popular in the area here now which means I am finding it more and more places.
I am not a vegetarian but I definitely love the option of vegetarian Ahi Poke. I can never in my life eat raw fish no matter how delicious it looks or how fancy it is. It is still a raw fish for me.
This looks so good and kind of juicy if that makes sense. I have bookmarked this post to try and recreate something similar at home. I’m doing vegan January and this looks like it’d be easy to make and great for something like that.
Thanks for sharing!
V <3
I have never tried a Vegetarian Poké Bowl , in fact I did not even know about it but it looks similar to building your own salad from a salad bar type of thing. It’s good to know that they offer vegetarian options. The desserts look delicious too.
Never heard of this before but the Poké Bowls sound amazing. We like that they are bite size and heathy!
These look and sound delish!
I’m not a vegetarian, but I do love vege-based dishes so I often order vegetarian meals when I go out for a meal. I can’t say I’ve ever had anything that looks as delicious as any of these though. My mouth was watering all the time I was reading your post! I need to check out Ahi Poke as soon as possible!!
Louise x
they all look so interesting i wonder if i would ever try one of them
These look incredible! I love edamame beans especially and anything involving prawns so I reckon some of those would be right up my street! Thanks for sharing! – also the photography is great x
I’m not a vegetarian and nor have I tried these, I think for me I always struggle with something like this as I don’t really like healthy food hah! Id like to try it though and see what I thought!