Tag: restaurant review

We went to North Carolina in September and I’ve been meaning to post this review ever since.

We flew into Charlotte and our first priority was lunch. I googled “eating vegan in Charlotte” and Luna’s Living Kitchen came right up. Only 15 minutes from the airport, we headed over and enjoyed a fantastic lunch.   

The restaurant has a great open atmosphere. It has a sort of industrial space vibe, with high ceilings, brick walls, and big windows.

For an appetizer, we took this chia seed pudding out of the to-go refrigerator because we were starving. It was creamy and delicious and very cinnamon-y which would normally bother me but I actually liked it. It came with a little raspberry sauce on the side.

We couldn’t order everything on the menu (I wish!) but we tried several amazing dishes.

First, this arugula salad which came with with avocado, pears, candied walnuts and cranberries and a scoop of homemade cashew-basil cheese.

Then we tried the Lunasagna, layers of mushrooms and zucchini with sun dried tomato sauce and the cashew-basil cheese. It was good but I have to say that I am over raw lasagna. Remind me not to order it anywhere again. It is too filling.

And check out this quinoa-kamut veggie burger on multigrain bread! This one was called Fire and Brimstone because it was spiced with chipotle sunflower hummus, onions, cucumber, salsa verde and house hot sauce. Phenomenal.

I also had to try the zucchini bolognese which was made with walnuts. Loved this version of “noodles” and sauce. Very tasty.

And on the side, this gorgeous beet and carrot salad. Light and refreshing. We also got a great broccoli Waldorf salad but sadly I didn’t get a shot of it. It had walnuts and cranberries. Or maybe raisins.

The little side salad on the Lunasagna plate was tossed with this amazing dressing which I am so going to make myself.

And of course, dessert. A raw chocolate cake. Yum!

For the road, we grabbed a couple of bottles: Luna’s almond milk which was made with coconut nectar, almonds, water, vanilla, and salt and the Pura Vida juice which was carrot, apple, orange and lemon.

We left totally full and totally satisfied, but wanting more! Luckily, we went back for brunch on our way home a few days later.

We all ordered this psychotic “Biblical Breakfast” which was 3 warm slices of freshly baked cranberry-walnut bread topped with organic peanut butter, almond butter, and coconut butter. Then they added a layer of fig preserves. Then they topped it with bananas, maple syrup and a sprinkle of white chia seeds. Holy heaven!

We also got the El Luchador smoothie which was made with hemp milk, banana, peanuts, raw cacao and agave. Delicious!

If you are in Charlotte, you have to go to Luna’s!

This summer we found a new restaurant on Long Island that serves fantastic vegan dishes. Tula Kitchen is in Bayshore, on the south shore, near the ferries to Fire Island. If you are on your way out east, this is the perfect stop for you. Lots of vegan options, a great atmosphere, and friendly staff. If you go after 6pm, you might need a reservation. We have stopped in several times since and we have been happy with our meal every time.

This bean salad comes to the table complementary. And it is so good we like to order more. It is made with black beans and chickpeas, peppers and carrots, red wine vinegar, and seasoned crispy pita triangles.

We love the edamame appetizer bowl. It is sprinkled with lots of sea salt. This was the falafel special one night. My son was thrilled for the extra pita.

This is the Tula lentil burger. It is fantastic. We love the sweet potato fries and caramelized onions. Plus, it comes with a side of hummus.

This is the sesame crusted tofu with sautéed broccoli rabe over coconut basmati rice. Very flavorful but way too much broccoli rabe!

And the finale. A vegan cupcake with a crazy creamy center.

If you are near Tula, go!!

On our way down from our annual visit to the Catskill Animal Sanctuary for the big Shindig party celebrating compassionate living, we stopped at this cute little cafe in Nyack called Art Cafe. I googled “vegan eating” as we were driving and this place came up. I checked the menu and the reason why we stopped there was because many of the dishes were list as vegan. The actual word “vegan” was printed on the menu and this makes me happy when eating out. To me that means the restaurant thought about it, understands it, and I can be free and happy while eating there!

Art Cafe has a cool organic coffee shop vibe.

My husband ordered this St. Peter’s organic ale. Love the bottle!

We started with hummus. Very traditional Israeli style with lots of za’atar and super thick pita bread.

And check out this malawach which is thin Israeli dough that is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Loved it!

Then we ordered these little rice bowls. I got the Kahlo Bowl which was like a salad of chickpeas, cucumbers, red onion, and fresh herbs with sweet tahini dressing over rice and my husband got the Specialty Bowl with organic tofu slices and a flavorful pistachio and almond mix served over hot basmati rice made with israeli spices.

Easy, fun vegan lunch at a cute local joint. If you find yourself around Nyack, go there!

Last month we made a trip to Asheville, NC. We stayed at Inn at the Biltmore, a beautiful hotel on the grounds of the Biltmore, one of the Vanderbilt estates. What a gorgeous place especially the gardens and butterflies!

Luckily there lots of vegan eats everywhere!

First stop was The Laughing Seed and we dug right in! I had the special entree because I love trying different variations of cashew cream, this one was a cashew alfredo. The dish was cavatappi with artichoke hearts, red peppers, capers, arugula and savory tempeh crumbles tossed with the alfredo. The dish was so beautiful topped with microgreens and a beet puree. Look at that color!

This here is your basic vegan meal. Brown rice, avocado, and perfect and super delicous locally made tempeh.

I am a big fan of good french fries and these are gooood! Check out those fried jalapeños in there. Surprise!

For lunch on our second day, we visited the local Whole Foods which was originally Greenlife Grocery. Whole Foods bought it at some point but the place kept its original charm. These carrot cashew croquettes were an original Greenlife recipe and they were phenomenal. I plan on recreating them in my kitchen soon. The sauce was ridiculously good too. They said it was made with coconut milk, cashews and cayenne. I plan on working that up too! The quinoa sweet potato cakes were a little dry but luckily I had that great sauce. And just look at the pretty stuffed tomato.

After our Whole Foods lunch, we stopped at The Hop Ice Cream Cafe. They make all of their own ice cream in house and they always have several vegan options! Lucky for us. The shop was totally cute and old fashioned, especially the formica tabletops.

The ice cream was divine. We had vanilla cookies and soy creme in a cone and chocolate banana creme in a cup with homemade coconut whip.

Our last meal was at Plant. It has been named one of the top vegan restaurants in the country. No wonder. It is a gorgeous restaurant with super creative dishes. It’s only open for dinner so I made sure we scheduled for it.

My son started with the house lemonade. His most favorite drink ever.

I love when a restaurant serves an amuse-bouche. This one was carrots in a little acid.

Next we ordered the cheese plate. I have to applaud a vegan restaurant with a cheese plate, homemade too! This is aged cashew, a farmer’s involtini (which is a small bite of food consisting of some sort of outer layer wrapped around a filling in this case vegan cheese wrapped in a slice of zucchini), rosemary peaches, pickled peppers, black garlic oil, and homemade focaccia.

My son got a plate of gherkins. Very gourmet!

We also had the smoked hummus plate. If you like smoked, this is your hummus. I prefer not smoked but it was still great. The roasted garlic bulb on the side was brilliant (I will be duplicating this at home) and the toasted bread was excellent.

Next we had the red curry tofu. What a great sauce! It was served with jasmine rice, kaffir lime cakes, and teriyaki green beans with thai basil.

 

Finally, dessert. The black out pie was excellent. It had a chocolate peanut butter fudge center with a cookie crust. And a creamsicle ice cream which was good but it had too much ginger in it for my taste.

  

Overall, the entire weekend was food filled and delicious. Go to Asheville just to eat!