We’ve sampled a lot of interesting products on Bite of the Best, but some new ingredients I never thought I’d see on the national food stage. While the debate about the uses and safety of marijuana will likely continue to rage on in the United States for the rest of foreseeable time, the situation does seem to be continually changing. Though the U.S. has long considered the plant illegal, nowadays, more and more states are flirting with the idea of decriminalizing ‘medicinal marijuana’. The whole system is quite confusing to be frank; it seems a convoluted maze of local, state and federal laws and authorities, each contradicting the other. But, in the absence of any absolute ‘you can’ or ‘ you cant’ do that… Capitalist innovation marches on (at least until the next federal raid or local law revision).
Foods made with marijuana are not entirely uncommon, but it is very surprising to see that chefs are now ‘heightening’ the art of cooking by dabbling with marijuana… And doing so out in the open! A new medical-marijuana restaurant called Ganja Gourmet recently opened in Denver, Colorado. Ganja Gourmet actually serves cannabis-infused foods, a a dizzing array of them actually… with appetizers, entrees and a number of desserts. Top that, you say… How about the fact that a Caribbean restaurant on the other side of Denver is planning to offer cooking classes on how to make full meals, with marijuana in every dish. The times, they are a changing…
There is even a (very) low-budget TV show out of Southern California called “Cannabis Planet”. The show has gathered viewers with outrageous cooking segments, featuring marijuana in dishes from teriyaki chicken to shrimp capellini.
Ganja Gourmet is the true pioneer though. Their eat-in or take-out menu includes an olive tapenade called “ganjanade, lasagna called “LaGanja”, and a “Panama Red Pizza”. Desserts include cheesecakes, muffins, brownies and more. Suspiciously slow-moving employees apparently all wear tie-dyed shirts proclaiming, “Our food is so great, you need a license to eat it” … which is true by the way… “All patrons at the Ganja Gourmet must show a medical marijuana card that proves they have a doctor’s permission to use pot for some kind of malady“.
Don’t think this is rote fare (how could you)… This is one of the priciest menus in town, with a pizza costing $89!
-bryan
Marijuana can be used in cooking because its key ingredient, THC, is fat-soluble, meaning it binds with oils or fats. Chefs will process marijuana into a green flour, which is then added to oil or butter. The resulting ‘cannabutter’ contains high amounts of THC, and can be used for cooking or baking.
I traveled from my house in the Wash Park neighborhood to check out Ganja Gourmet in hopes of finding good food, reasonable prices and nice people. I found none of these. Never have I ever been treated like a criminal like I was at Ganja Gourmet. The staff where incredibly rude, claimed that my paperwork (identical to paperwork that a friend who went with me had) was fraudulent, it took 3 employees (while one stopped in the middle of our conversation to go get high) to verify that it was in fact correct after they ‘noticed state seals’ on my notorized paperwork. In an attempt to be nice the owner gave us a tour which consisted of looking at a refrigerator. When my guest and I decided to leave we where asked outside if we ‘bought anything’ or ‘stocked up on supplies’ by an employee, with no thought towards asking how our experience was, in essence we where treated like cash cows. In conclusion, if you want to be treated like a no nothing consumer with deep pockets then this is the place for you. If you like clean, professional caretakers who know exactly what they are talking about then go almost anywhere else. Ganja Gourmet is not only overpriced but thier employees where incredibly rude to us.
found your site on del.icio.us today and really liked it.. i bookmarked it and will be back to check it out some more later
Medicinal marijuana patients can rest assured that rapid advancements are happening politically, genetically, and socially regarding the cannabis sativa plant. Online dispensary guide StickyGuide.com for example offers a place to find doctors, dispensaries, and medicine in Sacramento Valley, San Francisco Bay Area, Denver, Boulder and LA on the way….