Overlooking the luscious green of Post Office Square, Thrive has flung open its doors to an eager Brisbane crowd of health nuts and paleo eaters. Before you roll your eyes along the lines of 'not another acai bowl' you'll be delighted to hear that the menu is carving a new path in Brisbane. Build your own protein-packed breakfast bowl, grab a baked sweet potato to snack on, pick a signature smoothie blend, design your own, or build a lunch bowl. The beauty in the menu is the flexibility, and with so many diets and intolerances these days it just makes sense. We stopped by for breakfast and jumped on the paleo pancakes bandwagon. Six mini dough spheres dusted in cinnamon and drizzled in honey arrive. For an extra $3 you can add spiced strawberry compote or coconut espresso mousse. The coconut flour makes them a tad dry on the tongue, so go the upgrade. The salted caramel smoothie ($6.90/8.90) caught our eye, and it sure didn't disappoint on refreshment, taste and texture. Those expecting something in the realm of a caramel milkshake, steer clear - this one is made of dates, banana, sea salt and cashew butter. Back for lunch, the Thr1ve bowl gives you two bases and a meat ($9.90/12.90). We got sweet potato and cauliflower mash and spinach topped with chicken thigh and pesto, and added a side of smashed avocado ($2). Filling and nourishing, it was a guilt-free lunch, which is always good mid-week. The menu prices seem reasonable until you start adding things - that is where it all stacks up. It was tempting to add an egg and mango salsa, but that would have pushed it towards a $20 lunch in a plastic takeaway bowl. The staff seemed genuinely passionate and had great product knowledge. It's great to have a healthy breakfast or lunch option when you haven't the time to make it yourself.
