This entry may be a bit of a departure from Worcester-oriented eateries, but being able to scout out good veg food when you're traveling is vital! I've been hanging out in NYC lately and I'm lovingggg the veg options! Everywhere I go I see vegetarian and vegan plastered on the front of restaurants. I've noticed many coffee and sandwich shops offer soy-milk also which is great. I stopped in a cute smoothie "bar" and with mentioning that the menu seemed to be all yogurt - based smoothies, they were happy to oblige my interest in a non-dairy smoothie with either a juice or soy milk base. I ended up with a freshly made pineapple-orange-strawberry-banana smoothie similar to one I'd make at home. Some other great finds:
Vegan Chocolate doughnut from a shop in the Lower East Side. My friend got up early and waited in a long ass line to get us some vegan doughnuts. I woke up to this chocolate-y awesomeness. Worcester needs more vegan breakfast options. Am I right?Healthy veg selections at a small Turkish restaurant called Döner (Brooklyn / Williamsburg.) One of the girls I'm traveling with is actually from Turkey and this was her first time in NYC. This little Turkish place kind of jumped out at me when I drove by in the cab. She explained to me after that Döner means something similar to hamburger?, and though they do have veg options, they also do have specific meat & grille food as a highlight. I ordered a small falafal appetizer and the shepard salad (diced tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley & mint flavored with extra virgin olive oil & lemon juice) and my friend had the hummus/pita.
Full course vegan goodness! Angelica Kitchen NYC (East Villlage) Angelica Kitchen has atmosphere, service and amazing food. This place has a good variety and does a unique twist on the usual faves. We got a complimentary appetizer of Angelica cornbread with tahini spread to share, and everyone seemed to enjoy it. For a drink I had the fresh lemonade, and it was actually the best lemonade I've ever consumed! Very natural, perfectly sweet and without any of that eye-squinting tang that I'm not a fan of. For an appetizer I also tried the Agrarian Salgado (baked rounds of mashed yukon gold potatoes and herbed seitan, with a basil-walnut pesto center; topped with dill-tofu sour cream & garnished with piquant marinated kale.) The marinated kale was delicious and I liked that portion even better than the actual potato/seitan rounds.
For my meal I ordered tofu & soba noodles with black sesame sauce (wasabi, garlic, toasted sesame oil & sesame seeds) Twas soooooooo good. Two basic vegan foods but with the twist I spoke of earlier- The black sesame sauce was.. well.. unexpectedly fucking awesome.
Although we were all full, we ordered the vegan cheesecake, which we all agreed tasted nothing like cheesecake. I honestly feel like this was another dessert that they mixed up with the cheesecake because other than looking similar to a slice of cheesecake, it tasted nothing like cheese at all. It was really delicious though- light and fruity. I ended up taking two bites (hence that missing portion in the photo...) and saving the rest for breakfast!
Loving Hut is one of my favorite places in Worcester, so I thought it was only fitting to visit the NYC location. The interior is tiny but colorful and chic! The menu has items such as: Crispy Vegan Burger, Avocado Salad, Spinach Quesadilla, Thai Curry, Happy Dumplings, and The Loving Hut Sandwich. There are tons of gluten free options. All items on the menu are vegan and less than $10! Yay. I'll miss all the NYC veg food, but I'll be just as anxious to visit Worcester veg-friendly spots when I return!
