One of my favourite shops on Gloucester Road, La Ruca is filled with ethical and tasty treats. Among their stock they have a whole host of herbal teas, hundreds of aloe vera products and vegetarian friendly sweets. But the best thing about La Ruca is it's range of fresh Mediterranean foods from stuffed vine leaves to garlic olives. The warm, friendly lady behind the till always has the energy to raise a smile and wish you a good day - which is one of the reasons I love La Ruca. read more

La Ruca - Latin American Near Me - Bristol, BST

A good place to take your vegan/veggy friends for a light lunch or coffee and cake the cafe carries on the hippie feel of the shop downstairs using organic and fair trade ingredients plus lots of gluten free options. It has some nice Spanish original foodstuffs. The shop is a surprisingly useful with a choice of the Ecover products and a ridiculous selection of tea of the flowery kind. read more

La Ruca - Latin American Near Me - Bristol, BST

This family run place on Gloucester Road are a hippyish health food shop and café. The shop's pretty good with almost everything fair trade and organic. As well as having the usual things - tea, chocolate, weird breads, they've got a range of Ecover products. Got a good chunk of the necessaries for a weekly shop which makes it great for anyone concerned with things like fair trade. The café downstairs is what makes La Ruca worth a visit. The hippy theme continues and is joined by a Latin American feel, with things being run by a family of Chileans. Don't just go for a coffee as the mouth watering enchiladas and other delights may well get your ordering. Lots of adventurous drinks (ever tried a soya shake?) to be had as well. If you're a vegetarian you'll be in seventh heaven here, with loads of the menu meat free. They do have a lovely English breakfast though. Ethical and chilled out, La Ruca is a good place to get taste of South America or buy your groceries. read more

La Ruca - taken from their website - Latin American Near Me - Bristol, BST

Lovely food, very friendly staff, and not too damaging on the wallet either. Great tortilla-based food, and the breakfast (veggie or otherwise) is the best value on Gloucester Rd. Downstairs, if you're in a hurry, you can get a very tasty spinach and pine nut omelette for about a pound, and other lovely treats too. read more

La Ruca - Latin American Near Me - Bristol, BST

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I've heard some really good things about La Ruca cafe, which is above the La Ruca shop. So I decided today was the day that I checked it out; and I wasn't disappointed! The smell of the shop as you walk in makes you instantly feel a bit healthier. The walls are covered in shelves that are filled with healthy snacks, environmentally friendly shampooos and lost of hippy things that I wanted to buy, but didn't really understand! But I wasn't here to buy, I was here to eat - and eat I did! Upstairs the cafe is very basic with about 10 tables. Behind the counter is lots of different herbal teas with a kitchen just behind it. I ordered the nachos and a lemon and ginger tea. The nachos were really good. Better than the nachos in Casa Mexicana just down the road, in fact! The plate was filled inches high and piled with cheese, guacamole and a delicious salsa. It was almost too much for one, but I powered through. The tea was delicious and although it was a pre-made tea bag, it wasn't one I recognised. The cafe was packed and every bit of food that came out I instantly got food envy, it all looked so good. I really want to come and try one of their breakfast - actually, I want to try it all! read more

South America meets South Gloucestershire in this quaint little cafe. There's a hint of spice, a dash of chilli and a grating of cocoa to every dish and my soul sizzled when I tucked into the traditional south-of-the-border nosh. True home cooking from a Chilean family who natter away and bake some outstanding cakes (it's like being spoiled by your Granny) and you can pig out proper with churros and dark chocolate sauce. La Ruca is also host to a delightful monthly storytelling night with puppets, banjos and traditional verbal arts, plus they run a Spanish group. Nourishment for the brain too! read more

La Ruca - Offical website - Latin American Near Me - Bristol, BST

This place is one of the main reasons I would love to live in or around Gloucester Road. It's a sort of old school grocery shop with a baffling array of peculiar products on the shelves and a café upstairs serving chicken burritos. You can't say a shop has a lot of personality until you've been in here. The food of the upstairs café area is delicious and certainly the highlight of this establishment. The cuisine is Mexican/Chilean I guess and they do some awesome chicken enchiladas I have sampled on more than one occasion. You might think that this place is a hidden gem, well I guess it is, but everybody seems to know about it as it's busy whenever I go in. read more

La Ruca - Latin American Near Me - Bristol, BST

Despite walking past this place many, many times, I only actually went in here for the first time this afternoon, looking for a place to grab a bite to eat. As you enter La Ruca you may be a little confused as to where the café is, simply go around the left side of the central aisle and up the stars and you'll be transported to a bright green room full of Latin flavour. Whether you just want a coffee and slice of cake - organic of course - or a huge salad or chimichanga, there should be something to suit your budget. There is a ridiculously large range of herbal and fruit teas on offer, as there is on sale in the shop downstairs, and the option for takeaway too. The shop itself is packed floor to ceiling with organic, fair trade and generally environmentally friendly products from food and drink to washing up liquid and lip balm. Great for the ethically and environmentally conscious and anyone who fancies a tasty lunch. read more

Run by Chileans, La Ruca is an independent coffee shop slash organic food store which also hosts occasional Latin American themed evenings. Not a tall order at all then. Which is why the panache with which this interesting combination is executed is all the more impressive. There's an excellent range of quality food stuffs for sale at prices that while elevated beat many other delis out there. There's also some excellent Latin American food on offer, a cuisine generally relatively hard to come by in Bristol. I've yet to try out the themed evenings but a night of Colombian music? Yes please. read more

This is a wicked little health food store and cafe with a Chilean twist. It's run by an uber-friendly family who have worked out exactly what their local customers are after and successfully catered for that niche. There's a good range of products for peope with skin complaints- dead sea and aloe vera skin care items as well as a variety of health foods. They stock the lovely Pukka teas, Ecover cleaning items and dried fruits and grains by the bag. But the piece de resistance here is the little cafe which serves mouthwatering burritos, shakes, big hearty breakfasts and a range of wraps and sandwiches. There is a big vegetarian thrust so a good place to bring the veggies for a feast. read more

La Ruca - Latin American Near Me - Bristol, BST

Why are there always really unstylish mugs for sale in front of this shop? It's always baffled me. They're always there: boxes of terrible, twee, old lady cups for £1 each, bearing no relation to what's inside La Ruca, which is a very cool organic foodstore and a rustic cafe upstairs. The shop is really nicely laid out, with wooden shelving that makes it all feel quite homely. It sells all the standard things: organic teas, pastas, biscuits, coffee, Ecover cleaning products, dried fruits and nuts. But it is bigger and more enjoyable to browse than nearby Scoopaway which sells all the same stuff, and it has the added bonus of a thriving cafe upstairs; as you shop you can hear the chatter and laughter of happy eaters above you. The cafe, then, is a real treasure of Gloucester Road, and worth a visit. You can get a great, wholesome, good value lunch here, knowing that you're supporting a small, family-run, eco-friendly business. read more

A warm welcome awaits the whole family in La Ruca, a cafe on the Gloucester Road run by a Chilian family, situated above their shop which sells wholefoods, organic fairtraded brands and home-made tortillas and stuffed vineleaves to take away. the cafe is very reasonably priced offering all day breakfasts - meat and vegetrarian, hummus filled pitta breads, felafel and delicious milkshakes - dairy or soya. For a sweet treat at the end of the meal try the sugar wheat and dairy free fruit topped flapjack with soya creme - fantastic! read more

La Ruca is a lovely warm little cafe above a wholefood shop. It serves up no-nonsense delicious chilean food, perfect for veggies! Its easily affordable and it has a wide range of drinks choices. The atmosphere is lovely, and everyone is welcome. If you havn't got time to sit down and eat you can pick up fab homemade treats from the deli downstairs. read more

What a great find this is! I first heard of it when a leaflet appeared on my mail box and left me curious about it. I just though that it was a bit far from the city centre and I still do, but there is something about the location that adds to the experience of visiting. When you enter you will get the feeling that this is one of those antique furniture shops, because that is what you will see right away. But I suggest you explore a bit further, specially downstairs, you will be amazed with all the novelty and antiques that you will find. It seems like you are stepping back in time. Inside of this enormous warehouse you can even find a small Victorian arcade with tiny little shops filled with great collector's items. I was tempted to buy some stuff there, but as skintness prevails I couldn't And I felt that it was more like a visit to the old ages than a shop till you drop experience! Go there and you won't regret it! read more

Great stock of wholefoods and toiletries in the downstairs shop are the first things that may pull you in this amazing place. But once inside it would be criminal not to try some of the food that is on offer from the small deli counter and upstairs restaurant. The range downstairs is limited to a few choice items including chicken and vegetarian chimichangas (for the uninitiated these are fried filled tortillas), falafel, spinach and couscous tortillas. I would highly recommend all of these items. Upstairs there is a small cafe that is run by some of the loveliest people in town. Actually that can be said for the whole place. The choices upstairs are more extensive but focus on freshly cooked, Latin American flavoured offerings. The portions are a good size and very good value for money. I think the worst thing about this place is that it is often full. read more

A great little Chilean cafe offering treats like tasty chimichangas for a reasonable price. Not much seating so you may not be able to eat their in busier times. I'll often take friends from out of time as it's the sort of great little indie cafe Bristol does so well. Downstairs is a whole foods shop. The olives from the small deli counter are wonderful. read more

This is a really special little place. Comfort food, delcious! You have to walk through the health food shop to get to itdon't let that put you off! When you get there, you'll find that a whole lot of people have found their way too. and when you get your meal-eventually!- you'll know why. It's the place to go for juicy enchiladas and milk-shakes. Yum! read more

A rather nice place to eat and grab a quick drink. Its not as spacious as other places, but its has more of a quaint feel to it. Great staff. read more

Lovely people , really warm place and amazing chimichangas :)

One of the best little places in Bristol is La Ruca. The health food shop sells a variety of products; herbal teas, groceries, eco friendly cleaning products and re-fill service and beauty products. It has the feel of an old fashioned grocery store with a giddying number of products on its shelves. Upstairs the café cooks up some of the best burritos in town. Spicy chicken or veggie, they are stuffed full of ingredients and are as excellent value for money as they are tasty. I think they do other meals as well but to be honest, I'm addicted to their spicy chicken enchilada and have to have it every time I'm there. I know, I'm a creature of habit. I do know however, they do fantastic fresh juices, milkshakes, fair trade coffees and home made cakes all served up with a smile. La Ruca also has a Spanish speakers club on a Monday night. It welcomes all levels in an informal, chatty style of environment and is great fun to practise your language skills. read more

Another nice little wholefoods shop on the Gloucester road. Has some delicious fresh deli style food downstairs (afraid to say I never made it upstairs but have heard wonderful things!) and plenty of organic dried food incluing fantastic breads pasta and cereals. It also stocks a wide range of exotic foods - some of the best things to make a curry, stir fry or perfect pasta dish. However, the best thing (for me) about the shop is the variety of vegan friendly produce. Just two doors down from scoopaway its a vegan must to pop into la ruca. read more