Smoothies, toasts highlight Rio Fresh menu
Rio Fresh Cafe quietly offers breakfast and lunch with a focus on local, natural and organic ingredients.
The cafe’s storefront on North High Street Downtown is small, marked mainly by the front patio. The interior, on the other hand, is spacious and sparsely populated with tables; the color palette leans on white and green colors with natural wood accents and occasional colorful lighting fixtures. Guests order from the counter.
Leading off the breakfast menu are almost 20 different flavors of smoothies blended from a variety of fruits, juices, leafy greens, almond milk and other ingredients. The dragon fruit smoothie ($7.75) mixes pitaya (aka dragon fruit), pineapple, banana and coconut water, while the Detox Green ($7.75) combines kale, spinach, cucumber, mango, pineapple and coconut water. The smoothies are a meal by themselves and come in enough varieties to appeal to most palates.
Toasts are the big feature on the nonliquid portion of the breakfast menu. Toppings range from fresh fruit and Nutella French Toast at Rio Fresh Cafe Rio Fresh Cafe at 50 N. High St., Downtown chocolate-hazelnut spread to peanut butter.
The French toast ($7) arrives as a single large slab of challah bread covered with sliced strawberries, a light dusting of powdered
sugar and a small side of organic maple syrup. The thick slice of bread is very custardy in the center — almost to the point of being underdone — but is crisp and caramelized around the
edges.
The savory avocado toast ($7) also uses a challah base but is loaded generously with slices of avocado, diced onions and peppers, and crumbled feta cheese. At first, the aroma of the feta threatens to overwhelm the senses, but the ingredients mesh surprisingly well.
The turkey and cheese croissant ($5.50) is exactly as advertised: a croissant filled with slices of turkey and provolone cheese.
If all these toasts and smoothies feel too “healthy” for you, the baked doughnuts ($2.95) are a must. The lightly glazed confections are soft, cakelike and should more than satisfy any sweet craving.
While heavy eggs, sausage and bacon won’t be found on Rio Fresh Cafe’s menu, it offers a wholesome alternative of colorful and health-minded breakfasts.