Vegan in NYC

I just got back from a great long weekend trip to NYC.  One of the highlights was definitely the food.  It seems like a great place to be vegan.  Here are some of the highlights:

Longans in Chinatown–these are sort of like Lychees, but tastier and without that annoying papery part next to the seed

Vegan Kebab (somewhere on the Lower East Side)–Authentic Afghani?  Maybe not, but it was spicy and tasy in a grilled wrap with veggies.

Song (Park Slope, Brooklyn)–really fantastic Thai food (and cheap!) with a nice atmosphere.  The flames shot a few feet above the woks in the open kitchen.  We had basil chili wide rice noodles and green curry.

Chinese in Flushing, Queens–Almost like being in China!  Some amazing steamed dumplings at a veg chinese restaurant, and a fried sesame ball.

Indian in Jackson Heights, Queens–A few subways stops away, fantastic Indian food at the Jackson Heights Diner.

Vegetarian Dim Sum–Chinatown, Manhattan–This was actually the name of the restaurant.  Fried banannas, dumpings, steamed buns, tofu rolls, potato balls.  Yum!

Imhotep (Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn)–The first vegetarian restaurant in Brooklyn.  It was more of a grocery store with a deli, but the Carribian rice, bbq ribs, tofu, pumpkin, and chicken-y stew (all on one plate) were amazing.

I also cooked up some black beans and rice with fresh thyme, fried plantains and yucca, jerk tofu, avocado and lime juice.  All in all, a great food weekend!

Ade Abeba Ethiopian

I’m lucky enough to live within walking distance from at least half a dozen Ethiopian restaurants.  If you’ve never been, they’re really a boon to vegan diners.

One of my favorites also happens to be the closest to me, Ade Ababa on 21st and Union.  I met a friend there last night.  It looks a bit run down from the outside, but inside it’s cozy and warm, with well-tended house plants growing everywhere.  It was totally empty, as usual.  We ordered the $10.00 vegetarian combo–a variety of brown lentils, yellow lentils, spiced vegetables, beets, salad, and greens arranged on a sheet of injera, the sour Ethiopian flat bread.  It’s served with additional injera, and is enough food to feed 3 people.  It’s great to have such a variety, and scooping up the injera underneath the dishes with the sauce all soaked in is especially satisfying. 

Each restaurant I’ve been to has slightly different items, and even day to day they’re spiced differently.  Still, It’s always tasty, vegan, healthy food.

Oh, and they’re also super friendly and gracious.

Vegan at The Palace Kitchen

It’s an experience that all vegans regularly go through.  A group dinner (in this case for work) at a restaurant with a menu like this.  Not only are there no vegan items on the menu, but there’s nothing that could easily be substituted.  It’s easy to ask for no cheese on the pasta, but a bit more difficult to ask for no eggs or milk in the custard.  Sometimes it’s more fun this way–I’ll just ask for something vegan, anything that the chef wants.

In this case it turned out ok (well, It was actually pretty tasty, but not worth the $14 they charged me).  A pile of couscous with some grilled radicchio with a few hot sauces and some date vinaigrette. 

I apologize for the poor quality of some of the photographs on this site.  I’m taking most of these pictures on my cell phone!

Pho in Seattle

There’s two Pho shops on Capitol Hill that I frequent:  Than Brothers and Pho 900.  For the record, Pho is pronounced “Fuh,” and is a steaming bowl of mild soup with rice noodles, tofu, and few vegetables.  It’s served with bean sprouts, lime wedges, Thai basil, and green chili slices.  Hosin sauce, Sriracha sauce, and chili flakes in oil are available on the table for seasoning.  It’s the perfect thing on a cold winter day.  Or pretty much any other day.  It’s spicy, salty, fragrant, and sour with plenty of umami (the fifth taste, “tasty,” identified by a Japanese researcher, that led to the production of MSG).

Both these restaurants make an excellent bowl, and both are affordable–a large (big enough to swim in) is less than 7 dollars.  Pho 900 us the more upscale Pho experience.  Than Brothers feels a bit grimy, they use less vegetables, more MSG, and is about a dollar cheaper.  There’s something about the atmosphere mixed with the simplicity of the menu (they only serve Pho) that makes it feel more honest.  And stumbling out after slurping up a few days worth of sodium makes me feel as satisfied as I imagine meat-eaters do after a big mac and a large fries.

Objectively, though, I have to say that Pho 900 makes the better Pho.  The atmosphere is nice, there’s lime slices in the ice water, and the Pho comes with chewy yuba skins, generous amounts of tofu, and a nice amount of broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, and snow peas.  That’s why I chose it when going out last night with three friends.   Our order was easy, “four large veggie pho, please.”