The sun gleams through the many windows of Green Life Cafe, highlighting colorful plates and vivid mason jars of smoothies and fresh juices.
Since its opening last June, the juice bar and creperie cafe maintains their “from plant to plate” motto, opting for local and organic ingredients as much as possible.
Replacing the former location of Matcha Tea House at 1934 Monroe St., Green Life Cafe offers a bright space to sip on refreshing, customized drinks and made-to-order dishes.
Walking off Monroe and up the entryway, Green Life already feels cozy. Tiny porch, front lawn and all, the shop appears more like someone’s house than a business — in a good way. Welcoming and emanating a neighborhood feel, the cafe’s façade proves promising.
Staff promptly greet new guests, offering menus while allowing diner’s their pick of seating options. The tables on the main floor are supplemented by upstairs dining in various rooms that are cleverly converted from what had clearly been second floor bedrooms and closets.
The cafe is consistently colorful in décor and brilliantly illuminated from the sun. Green Life is simply charming overall.
Coloring books are offered throughout the cafe and the staff is generous in their hospitality. Unlike typical cafes rushing to serve customers so they leave, the Green Life staff genuinely invites guests to stick around for as long as they’d like.
And with such enticing menu options, the offer to stay and chill a while becomes hard to resist. The dishes and drinks at Green Life are just as bright as the sunny atmosphere.
Crepe options range from both sweet to savory. The Sassquash is a savory crepe that’s not only interestingly named, but also creatively concocted. The buckwheat crepe is stuffed with roasted squash, dried cranberry, walnut, wild rice, kale and fall spice gastrique. Flavorful and generously sized, this crepe is a winning option for an appetite seeking healthy flavors.
Aside from crepes, Green Life Cafe also serves an array of salads, sandwiches and wraps, and each is brighter than the next with their emphasis on colorful vegetables and bold ingredients.
The cafe has a specials board as well, which most recently featured a vegan-veggie curry. Lest the special disappears soon, rest assured there is also a savory curry-themed crepe on the menu. I can vouch for this crepe. It’s studded with yellow curry tinted potatoes and brilliantly reminiscent of real deal curry.
While drinks can be customized from the ground up, the cafe also provides a menu of signature smoothies with expertly matched ingredients.
The Kombucha Berry smoothie, for one, is incredibly refreshing and visually stunning in its deep purple color from the combination of berries. Crafted with strawberries, blueberries, Nessalla kombucha and coconut water, the smoothie is ideal for those looking for something thirst-quenching and lightly sweet, but without the heaviness of traditional yogurt-based smoothies.
The cafe also recently featured a turmeric-infused smoothie made with primarily banana and pineapple. Thick from banana, the smoothie holds chia seeds interspersed throughout, which makes for an exciting visual. The drink is certainly refreshing and representative of the cafe’s quirky appeal.
Good vibes shine strong at Green Life Cafe. Sunny, fresh and relaxed, Madison locals embittered by cold could use some of Green Life’s energy and cheer.
