on solo dining

I forgot how much I enjoy cooking for others. A nice American meal: baked seitan, mac n' cheese, salad with herby vinaigrette.
Table for one at Bogota Latin Bistro. Where the vegetarian plate reigns supreme. With sides of amazing steamed yucca, beans n' rice, green quinoa and my new favorite tropical slaw (think coconut, papaya, and so on). The plantain chips come with their legendary aji sauce.
Sweet potato and black bean tamales. I made these back in Texas too. Something that is better assembled with more pairs of hands, but a productive endeavor nonetheless.

On dining solo, not always an easy task as some places are just not that conducive. I'd like to thank Dirt Candy for their Solo Diners Week.

What's new, New York?

New bars like the Brooklyn Taphouse that have a vegan corner on their menu. It's nice to have Bratwurst with beer, just the store-brought variety, but an A for effort all around. Check out another Thursday night bar with vegan eats at Halyards.
Like any good New Yorker who has worked in the west village for the past 8 years, I know Melvin. Melvin Major is the juicer extraordinaire at Lifethyme. Now his good vibes juicing can be found at Miss Lily's. It's amazing to see Melvin's Juice Box in this bright new place, surrounded by happy juice swillers.
I had the curry vegetables and rice with a side of sweet & dandy juice. If you go for dinner they have a vegan Bushman plate.

Melvin and his juicers.

• see also, Ital Crown Heights exploring

Ginersnap's Organic takes the raw standard and presents it in a fresh and elegant way. I especially liked the spacious cafe with high ceilings and open windows. We need our air and light in January. The pizza: walnut hemp seed crust, sundried tomato, garlic kate, and brazil nut ricotta perfect, light, and lemony.

Very decadent chocolate ganache pie.

It's not new, but I've never been. Caracas Arepa Bar
plato vegetariano: baked tofu, guasacaca, white rice & beans, leek-onion-tomato stew.

Lacinato-a love story

Dear Lacinato Kale, or Dinosaur Kale, or Brassica Oleraca,

Collards can be too chewy, regular kale too curly, swiss chard too slippery, mustard greens too yucky (there, I admit it). Lacinato, you are practically sweet and the prettiest shade of green. Maybe it's because you are Italian, but all I know is, you are the green for me.

The Day Trippers

2012 is off to a sweet start! Pedal to the metal KZ and I hit the high road to Philadelphia. First, we stopped at Dun-well Donuts-right here in Bushwick. I never thought I'd see the day when you could get a freshly baked donut at 8AM in a charming spacious establishment. These guys are good at what they do and were kind enough to let our curious cameras capture the racks.





I had The Elvis-peanut butter and banana frosting. I like that there was no sweet overkill.
1st stop in Philly, Memphis Taproom. A traditional place with a standout vegan option: The Vegan Rooster. Their blood sausage was light, cardamom hinted, and grain filled. The coconut bacon was also a unique addition. While I enjoyed it, the sheer smokiness of it was a bit intense.
Then it was off to Bethlehem for Vegan Treats. VT are sold throughout the city, so it was neat to see their roots. Their display case was a sight for sore eyes, beautiful bedazzled little cakes in so many colors and combinations.
I opted for the caramel pecan cheesecake and cannoli. Sweet tooth fixed for a while I hope.


Dinner at Vedge, from the same people that brought us Horizons. Was it really 3 years ago that we went there?
I'm sorry to say that my camera just doesn't hold up in that romantic lighting. This was one of my many little plates, each one a powerhouse of flavor. Will words suffice?
Roasted rutabaga salad, little leaves, charred onion, farro, and pistachio
Fresh hearts of palm, garbanzo crepe, curried gold lentils, green harissa
Baby green kale as caldo verde, garlic crouton, potato broth
fresh baked bread and fruity olive oil to start

2011 CP

It's been a savory year. Here are a few of my favorites:

Housemade Vegan Merguez Sandwich-The Eights, Buffalo NY*

The real thing, with sweet potato fries.

Earth Burger-Good Karma Cafe, Red Bank NJ

I can't get this burger out of my mind, and the queso..the queso.

Enchiladas Suizas-La Casa del Pan, San Cristobal MX

I'm proud to say I have visited all of LCDP branches in Mexico.

St. James Benedict-Julian's, Providence RI

How many ways can you say this is brunch done right? The hollandaise alone..

Token Tofu Sandwich-Wild Mountain Smokehouse, Nederland CO

There is something to be said for tofu at a smokehouse.

Honorable Mentions:

• Babycakes at the Beach
• Mexican-American in Sunset Park
• Cinnamon Snail comes to NY

*Special thanks to Karen, who understands the rationale behind driving for hours for food.

Five Years

The 5th Annual Vegan Holiday dinner hosted at the Sparrow residence. You've got your mashed potatoes, stuffing, greens, brussel sprouts, lentil loaf, and some amazing nut based mac and cheese. Just add good friends and traditions.

Austin Redux

There's nothing like your first meal off the plane. I've eaten my way through Austin many times and am pleased to report on some old favorites and new additions.
Oven Cake breakfast from (the new) Bouldin Creek. I dream about their tofu scramble.
Red Rabbit Cooperative bakery donuts (procured at Wheatsville).
Zandunga Mexican Bistro-the fantastic aguacate relleno. That's an avocado filled with delicious things!
Dirt and Worms Sundae from Sweet Ritual (located inside Daily Juice, brand new!).
A concha right out of the oven from Mr. Natural. There is nothing more heavenly than this.

Vegan Shop Up!

Over at Pine Box Rock Shop was the holiday Vegan Shop Up. I got there early and treated myself to some presents. Monks Meat Seitan, Peanutella from Woodside Bakehouse, and peanut butter chocolate cup from Gone Pie.
Electric Blue Baking Co: spelt foccacia with chipotle roasted kabocha, walnut, chives, and cashew ricotta.

Super Foxy Sweets

Cake Bites (my favorite, salted caramel)

Gone Pie (pumpkin was perfect)

So many tasty samples, I left full and inspired by the vegan community here in Brooklyn.

In a gadda da vida, honey

In Ricotta Da Vegan

Paulie Gee's Greenpoint Pizza
Housemade sausage & cashew ricotta
the kind of pizza that reminds me of the Grimaldi days
Thanks Kz for the pic and rec!

Quest for herbivore

New York amazes me sometimes. One minute you're walking amongst the many in Nolita, the next you are whisked away to the Yucatan in the open and airy Tacombi. Food is served out of an old Volkswagon Van from Playa del Carmen.
I had the tostada de aguacate and vegetable tamale. So delicious and so very fresh.
Everyone knows Burritos don't shoot well, I was going to get the tacos, but I was hungry! Kz and I stopped in to Hotel Tortuga (sister restaurant to Curly's and now defunct Burritoville) one evening and while it is decorated to feel you are far away, you are most definitely on 14th street. I had the green tortuga, a burrito filled with posole like items. Kudos to the house made tofu sour cream and while I envisioned a higher freshness to starch ratio, it was still very tasty.

You can find Pequena in Fort Greene and Prospect Heights. They offer a Mexican Vegetable filling (a standard medley) served here over tostadas.
Maya Taqueria caters to their vegan customers. This is a traditional taqueria, a little frenzied, but with tofu on the menu, how can you go wrong? I had the Shy Mayan salad and black bean & kale tacos. Lots of hominy, corn, and garlic added zing to these dishes.
A few blocks over in Prospect Heights,
Taqueria De Los Muertos: vegetarian taco with beans and lots of fresh toppings (squash, corn, pico de gallo). A massive side of rice and refried beans with more fresh pico de gallo and guacamole.
Ancho Chili Seitan Burger with piri piri whiskey sauce, arugula, beer braised smoked onions, and horseradish cream on herbed foccacia.
It's not everyday The Cinnamon Snail comes To You, for one special day they were serving free lunch near work. It was pretty cool.

Fancy Feasts

My dear friends Tim & Andrea got married, the dinner party was at Candle 79! Maybe it was all love in the air, but this was one of the most memorable meals ever. Not seen here are the appetizers.
Cannoli: vanilla cream filling, ginger-pumpkin ice cream, chocolate sauce. I love cannolis and hold a high standard for the vegan version of this classic. The tangy light cream and flaky shell really brought this cannoli to great heights.
Chili-Grilled Seitan: sauteed chard, quinoa pilaf, avocado salad, cipollini onion-cannellini bean sauce. I wish I could make seitan taste this good.
There are many occasions to brave the Upper East Side.
It was Kz's birthday and we went to V-Note. Brought to you by the Blossom folks. The Seitan Medallions Au Poivre may not look like much under the harsh glare of my flash, but I'll tell you it was something else (until I just saw there is a new addition to their menu Crispy Pine nut & basil Seitan..)

Pie, Oh My

Sometimes I'm inspired to drop dough and take a class. I'm excited about Vegan Pie in the Sky, even though I rarely make pies. I signed up for Terry Hope Romero's class at The Brooklyn Kitchen to learn more.
My individual apple pie, topped with cut out cats and bats of course. Baked the following day for breakfast.
Terry helps us conquer the fear of proper crust making. We used the olive oil method which was really interesting.

Terry's Apple Garam Masala Pie (with pie bird!)

Pumpkin Cheesecake

This is no ordinary cheesecake. There is no tofu substitute stuff thickening it up, just banana, silken tofu, and cashews. I see this cheesecake in my future, beware!