For the past four years, the husband-and-wife team have been leading the raw charge at From Earth and Water.

While not all items on the seasonal menu are entirely raw, all have at least one element on the plate. Most dishes are also vegan, with the only two animal products used being free-range eggs from a local farm and house-cured salmon. Highlights include a Snickers dessert made without gluten, dairy or animal products, and a beetroot, fennel and apple slaw with roasted eggplant.

FLU FIGHTING WEAPONS IN THE KITCHEN

COAST DIETITIAN DEVELOPS PASSION FOR IMPROVING FOOD FOR ELDERLY

“When we first started, our philosophy was that we would do all raw food through the whole cafe,” Nicki says.

“Over time, we started learning that was going to be really difficult because people weren’t ready for it — and they’re still not,” she says.

“Now, we’ve moved into a broader repertoire of food. We try to make food as healthful and nutritious as possible without sacrificing the elegance of restaurant-quality food. I’d say 99 per cent of our customers don’t eat raw all the time. But what they do know is they can come here and get something they feel good about.”

Nicki says she puts an emphasis on food that’s unprocessed and unrefined and employs alternative “cooking” methods such as fermentation, pickling and dehydrating, as well as sprouting grains to make them more digestible.

“When we’re thinking of creating a dish, we’re always thinking, what’s an element we can bring to make it nutritionally dense? For example, everyone is doing quinoa at the moment but we’ll sprout it instead of cooking it.

“By sprouting it, we bring it to life, essentially. We soak it and go through the traditional sprouting process to grow it, basically, and then we know it’s ripe and ready to eat. For the diehard raw person, they can get tacos made with dehydrated shells and sour cream made out of cashew cream. Then there’s things like our burgers, which aren’t raw but we serve them with a sprouted hummus.”

For those wanting to try the trend at home, Noosa author Scott Mathias has just released Let’s Eat Raw. Before changing his diet, Scott spent 45 years living with chronic health issues ranging from extreme reflux to depression.

“Six years later, I’m in my early 60s with no health problems,” he says. “I’ve lost 24kg and I have tremendous levels of energy. Having said that, it was a slow process … and one size doesn’t fit all.”

With recipes including uncooked zucchini fettuccine, vegetable coconut curry and lime pie with berries, Scott doesn’t stick to carrot sticks.

“I don’t go without creamy, savoury, sweet, sour and salty experiences,” he says.

“Using different techniques, you can often replicate the cooking process but still get 100 per cent of the nutrients.

“I do a lot of marinating, which is basically cooking in lime juices, and I also substitute things like cauliflower prepared so it can be used like rice. It’s a form of alchemy, really.”

But is the Coast ready to go raw? Nicki certainly thinks so.

“When I first started out with raw food, it was with a stall at the Brisbane markets. I was making green smoothies and people thought I was bonkers.

“The other day I saw a group of teenage girls walking past. A few years ago, you’d see them with a can of Coca-Cola in their hands but they all had a green smoothie. It made me smile.”