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Does the mention of Raw Foods
conjure pictures of boring veggie sticks and salads?

Smell, Taste—then, Think again! Sylvia Thompson did in May of 2005.


On the way to Bermuda, at a stop in New York
with her husband, Pete, they dined at a raw food restaurant, Pure Food and Wine.

“That’s when the lights went on,” Thompson says. “Each bite was so vibrant, I didn’t even think—oh, it’s raw—and when the dessert came, I had to ask, if it was vegan (containing no animal products).”
That first experience at a raw restaurant made a lasting impression on her, much more than the three vegan cooked dinners she had several nights before at several of New York’s highly-rated, fine dining French restaurants.
Before returning to Hawaii, they took in more raw meals at Café Gratitude in San Francisco. Sylvia picked up a stack of raw recipe books there, and began “un-cooking” meals and sharing them with friends at jazz venues.

While attending the San Francisco Jazz Festival in October ‘05, a lemon “cheesecake” at the raw restaurant Alive, turned Sylvia’s and her friend, Becky Woodland’s head around, and they registered for May-June (2006) raw food classes at the Living Light International Culinary Arts School. Returning as Certified Chef/Instructors from culinary school, Sylvia with the help of Becky, launched Licious Dishes.

Licious Dishes was conceived after Sylvia read an article in the New York Times in January of ’06 about meal assembly centers called Super Suppers and Dream Dinners. She realized that it was a way to express her passion in making raw vegan meals available to people without having to get stuck at a food establishment until late at night. “I’m too old for that. I enjoy spending my evenings with my hubby.”

Foods To Go: Daily - at our deli-fridge, a store near you or by subscription A customer told me frankly that people don’t want other people touching their food who are “yackin’ away” with their friends. Besides, convenience is a big part of the Licious Dishes mantra. We take all the shopping, chopping and mopping out of our customers’ meal preparation. Why make them package it? Besides, there is a crying need for raw-vegan gourmet packaged meals to-go. People live busy lives and don’t have time to go out to restaurants or to pick up meals to-go everyday. The packaged meals can be eaten at dinner time or taken to the office for lunch.
Sylvia began cooking vegan meals in January 2004, after Pete had a heart attack two days after Thanksgiving. “When Pete’s cardiologist had me bring
our Will to the hospital, my heart pounded loudly and I cried.” Pete was to have a stent implanted in his blocked artery the following day, and he vowed to never return to the hospital again. Becky had dropped off a copy of Dr. Dean Ornish’s book, REVERSING HEART DISEASE, as well as her cookbook, The Blonde Vegetarian to Pete. Then the couple started their vegan journey.

“I’ll never forget the way I felt. Even with Becky’s cookbook, I felt lost—like I wasn’t sure my cooking would ever be tasty enough for either of us. I mean
here we’d eaten at almost all of the 3-Star Michelin restaurants in Champagne, Burgundy, and Paris, and the top restaurants in San Francisco, New York, and Hawaii, and I felt like I would be cooking with one hand tied behind my back.”
  With guidelines from the Ornish book, Sylvia experimented with various “vegetarian” recipes leaving out the creams and cheeses, and turning them into vegan meals, as well as cutting back on the amount of oils used. She soon realized that she didn’t need to add heavy creams and cheeses to make flavorful vegetarian meals. Even their meat eating buddies at various jazz venues continue to enjoy her creations. With all that support, Sylvia kept cooking.

She joined Pete at the Coronary Health Improvement Program (CHIP), a month-
long seminar put together by Hans Diehl, the lead researcher for the late Dr. Pritikin, who combined his research with international studies of the historic
effects of various diets on peoples’ health. This seminar shows conclusive
evidence of the damage the Western diet or the Standard American Diet (SAD)
has had and continues to have on those who continue to consume animal products, refined, and fast foods. The studies have found that the major
diseases of this century such as Diabetes, Cancer, Arteriosclerosis,
Osteoporosis, Obesity, etc. have its roots in SAD and the sedentary lifestyle.
 
“CHIP taught us that by taking charge of our own health through a healthy diet and exercise, we would not need to rely on doctors and their medicines that only treat symptoms and not the root of the health problems. Pete wanted to get off of those blood pressure medicines, and pills like Lipitor that lower the cholesterol with bad side effects on the liver. He was successful in cutting out all of those strong medicines with the exception of the lowest dosage of Lipitor,” says Sylvia.

The following year, February to March of 2006, she volunteered to cook for CHIP (with the help of Becky) and then for two
of Becky’s wedding receptions of 50 people each. These were entirely vegan meals (mostly raw), and the loving feedback from the diners and the experience of cooking for so many, empowered her to form Licious Dishes.

Sylvia has been an active Realtor since 1987. She started her own real estate company in January of 2005, never dreaming a passion for food production was right around the corner for her. She keeps her Realtor’s license active and meets with her many clients from the past twenty plus years. With the help of her sister, Nedra Chung of Nedra Chung Realty, she is able to maintain the high level of service necessary for the closing of successful transactions. In addition, she continues to invest in real estate for herself and her husband.



She obtained a BA in Ethnic Studies, with a minor in creative writing at the University of Hawaii, Manoa campus. She was a student-teacher in the Ethnic Studies Program, the study of Hawaii’s peoples’ history and culture and helped to develop lectures at the university as well as running lab classes (smaller classes meant for discussions and projects). These studies were later taught in public high schools which in the ‘70s was non-existent. Ethnic Studies develops an awareness of the power of the people in making changes in our society as well as fosters progressive politics.

After college, she worked in the food and beverage industry starting at Duke Kahanaumoku’s (a now defunct popular Hawaiian showroom) and ending with the Halekulani Hotel (one of the few 5 Diamond hotels in Hawaii), learning the art of high-end service for the carriage class.
  She is a member of Hawaii’s elite Burgundy Club (see: http://www.thatsburgundy.com for tasting notes) which meets at least four times a year with their members bringing vintage champagnes and burgundies from deep within their cellars. Wines are raw and many of the best wines have not been fined or filtered. Since 2004, the meals paired with the champagnes and burgundies for the Thompsons have all been vegan (not featured on the burgundy website).
 
  Her love for music started as a fifth grader when she passed the Seashore test in grade school. She was then selected to play the violin and played in the schools’ orchestra until the end of her Sophomore year at Roosevelt High School. In addition she was selected to fill the first violin chair for the last four years at
school as well as selected to play in Hawaii’s Youth Symphony Orchestra in
the last two years of her involvement.
A passion for the jazz genre has since blossomed and she and her husband
Pete join up with their friends combining jazz with food and wine weekly at either the Honolulu Club lounge, Wards Rafters (jam sessions at Jackie Ward’s home) and/or in the back of the Musicians’ Union (where they earned the name “the tailgaters”—i.e., after the tail gate partiers at the stadium).

A daily regimen combining running, weights, yoga, and sometimes spinning keeps her physically fit, her mind sharp and creative juices flowing. It’s a big part of her healthy lifestyle.