Écru Raw Food Restaurant in Rome

A place to eat healthy, to eat well and to eat natural

Raw food, explains Katia, founder, chef and director of Écru, is energising and rich in protein, environmentally friendly and suitable for coeliacs, vegans and lactose intolerant people, as well as creative, full of intense flavours and colourful dishes that everyone can enjoy.

Raw cooking leaves the nutritional qualities of food unaltered; its techniques do not involve the use of fires and cookers, but alternative methods, such as fermenting, marinating, a process called ‘massaging the vegetables’, which serves to soften the fibres, giving a cooked feel to the product without it actually being cooked (!), and dehydration.

With these techniques, Katia and her staff prepare both savoury and sweet dishes: breads, crepes, salads, sandwiches, tartare, sushi, vegetable purées, fermented cheeses made from dried fruit and more. Their menus change according to the seasons, but there are some evergreens that have been on the list since the place’s opening, seven years ago. Among them, are the hummus, made from uncooked sprouted chickpeas, the vegetable sushi, which is always in great demand, the avocado tartare, special fruit and vegetable salads and the sandwiches, made with a handmade, yeast-free, semi-dehydrated, protein bread that is very nutritious.

In general, Écru always tries to build balanced dishes, in terms of protein, fat, carbohydrate and fibre content, following the advice of expert nutritionists from whom they have been followed over the years. They avoid using refined sugars, sweetening with dates, just fruit or coconut sugar, which has a very low glycaemic index so many people with glycaemic or diabetic problems can enjoy their desserts.

All of Écru’s products are made up of locally sourced vegetables, sprouts, berries, nuts and other fruits. Each product comes from the Italian region where it grows, the almonds, pistachios, dried tomatoes, avocadoes and tropical fruits from Sicily, the hazelnuts from Piedmont, quinoa from Marche, peanuts from Tuscany, and the product-search is always ongoing and evolving.

The restaurant is open from morning till evening, the menu is a la carte and offers the possibility to eat anything at any time, thanks to a kind of eternal brunch; you can have breakfast at dinner time, with a bowl of fruit and muesli, have lunch for breakfast with one of their salads or sushi, and enjoy a sweet snack at lunch time.

This place, modern, innovative, but at the same time as essential and healthy as it could be, was the secret dream of Katia, who arrived in Rome from Sicily some 30 years ago to study and work in dentistry… it was, in her own words, “her plan B that over the years has become plan A”, realised thanks to her curiosity, passion, study and devotion.

Écru is a place we recommend to Romans, vegans and all passers-by who want to taste the products of the Italian land, in their full potential. In addition to their dishes, you can taste some of their delicious natural wines, buy some of their products or participate in their raw food cooking classes. Follow Écru on FB or Instagram to stay up-to-date!