1020 1st St #104, Snohomish, WA 98290
CALL US: (360) 568-7333
NATURAL & ORGANIC FOODS IN HISTORIC SNOHOMISH
OUR STORY
Certified Nutritionist Opens the First Grilla Bites in Washington
HOW IT BEGAN-2008
Anne Dottai, known to many as Annie, discovered the original Grilla Bites in downtown Chico, Ca when her daughter, Deanna, started college there in 2004. When Anne went to help Deanna get moved into her dorm, Deanna was very excited to take her mom to the cool little organic café she had found. Both Anne and Deanna have multiple food allergy issues and need to avoid dairy and egg, so it was thrilling to find somewhere with lots of vegan choices for both breakfast and lunch. Anne also loved the vegan chocolate chip cookies! A couple years later when Anne was back for another visit, she learned that more Grilla Bites were springing up, so she looked online when she got back to Washington and thought, “this would be so perfect for Snohomish”. Anne had a nutrition degree from Bastyr University and an active nutritional counseling practice in Snohomish, so she had gotten to know the community well and knew that the menu and local, sustainable theme of Grilla Bites would be a welcome addition.
With the help of Mosaic Architecture of Snohomish, the planning began and construction finally started on November 27th, 2007. Anne took great care to make the construction process environmentally friendly, as well as sustainable. She used eco-friendly paints, recyclable carpet, found salvaged building materials and old church pews at Seattle Second Use, frequented GB Murphy auctions where she bought lamps, chairs, and many restaurant supplies. Many of Anne’s friends put in long hard hours helping bring it all together. Just about two years after the seed was planted, Washington’s first Grilla Bites opened in Snohomish on March 13th, 2008.
Five year update: By 2013, all the earlier Grilla Bites in California were sold and changed names and menus, so the Snohomish location became the only one. The original founder, Fred, had hopes of franchising Grilla Bites, but the economic situation at the time prevented it.
OUR MENU-SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE
One of the things we love about our menu is that you can find something whether you are a meat lover or a vegan, and we specialize in providing wholesome foods that are organic when possible, and we avoid food ingredients with hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, or GMOs. For example, our bison burgers and hot dogs are organic, grass fed; our ham and turkey are hormone and antibiotic free; our tofu is organic and from non-GMO soy.
Anne’s background in nutrition and compassion for the growing numbers of people with food intolerances, such as dairy and gluten, make her strive to bring a variety of quality, tasty choices to the menu so that almost anyone can find a number of great things to try. The soups are made in house with organic ingredients, including house made veggie stock. The salad bar has all organic produce and several fun sides like Lemon Garlic Quinoa Salad. All sandwiches are served on artisan organic bread from Essential Bakery, but Anne does offer both gluten free breads and buns when needed, so almost any sandwich or burger can be enjoyed gluten free.
We have proudly served organic fair-trade coffee from Batdorf & Bronson , now called Dancing Goats, since we opened and continue to get rave reviews of our coffee and espresso. Our organic juice and smoothie bar keep us quite busy, with the Green Power smoothie being a running top favorite.
WHERE WE ARE NOW- 2025
During the past 17 years, we have grown to be considered an "institution" in Snohomish by being dedicated to serving our community and beyond our delicious and wholesome foods and beverages. After surviving the pandemic's indoor dining restrictions, we were excited to get back to serving our community indoors again and see our customers steadily return to eating either inside or on our front or back patio. It was the best feeling to reconnect and get back to the normal community vibe in our restaurant!
In 2022, Anne decided it was time to sell the restaurant to someone who would continue to build and nurture the growth of Grilla Bites for years to come. As it turned out, most people wanted to pursue their own vision, but there was one buyer who wanted to make sure it would stay, but was unable to manage the restaurant due to her career demands. A few days after meeting with her, Anne did a simple online search for "co-op business model for restaurants". Well, two long years later, Grilla Bites Co-op Cafe submitted Articles of Incorporation and was issued a business license in Washington and started operating with the new business name on Janurary 1st, 2025.
Our Co-op is primarily an Employee Owned cooperative, but has a multistakeholder model with Leadership/Investor Members, Community Members, and potentially at some point in the future, Producer Members. The official launch, when we have completed the steps to be able to sell memberships, is planned for March, 2025. Our website will be updated to include Co-op FAQs, Membership Information, and an application for Community Membership. We are all very excited to be able to continue what we do and bring even more to the community by involving both Members and non-members in sharing our vision of how wholesome food not only nourishes us but connects us.
"Visions are never the sole property of one person. Before a vision can become a reality, it must be owned be every single member of the group." Phil Jackson