C.C. Glenn A bowl of Peter’s Pot soup at Quintessence, 263 East 10th St.

Some people eat to live, and then others eat to achieve an altered state of spirituality. Devotees of a raw vegan diet claim that all those veggies and nuts can help you become spiritually “lighter.” Can bliss be found in a bowl of soup?

My quest took me to Quintessence, a cozy raw vegan restaurant on 10th Street where I slurped a bowl of Peter’s Pot soup, an orange-colored concoction blended from cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes. For those unfamiliar with the concept, a raw vegan diet involves foods (such as a blended vegetable soup) that are uncooked and never heated above 118 degrees.

Mid-soup, I tried to imagine myself slowly moving towards the so-called spiritual “light” that other customers claimed they had found. The chilled vegetable melange was tasty, but I didn’t exactly transcend gravity.
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