rightupmyalley.
Just had a pretty epic meal at The Chicago Diner. I’ll post more later, but for now, marvel at this beauty of a black bean burger.
Trying to find a good veggie burger in New York can be intimidating. But once you find a few, it’s a whole new world out there. Because veggie burgers shouldn’t fall apart in your hands (cough, Mel’s Burgers) or taste like straight-up carrots. When done right, they are just as delicious as their meaty counterparts. Here are three NYC versions you should try, depending on your taste/mood:
For those who like savory + sweet: Head to Community Food & Juice for their (delicious) house veggie burger. It’s served with avocado mayo and spicy tomato jam, as well as all of the usual burger fixings.
Don’t think a veggie burger can be hearty? You’re wrong - so wrong. I recently chowed down on the veggie burger at Westville, which is packed with veggies and topped with mixed mushrooms. I think the only reason I was able to finish it all was because it was my first meal of the day. If you’ve seen me eat, you know that’s saying something.
If you’re looking for a way to try seitan, or gently force it on someone else, the burger at Candle Cafe is probably your best bet. It’s grilled seitan served simply on a seeded bun. Accessible and tasty - what more could you ask for?
Nestled on 9th, between 21st and 22nd, a quaint row house turned upscale vegetarian restaurant “Blossom” sits pretty - complete with a front door that I had to lean heavily into to gain entry.
The first floor of this veggie-friendly haven is nice enough, but you get the full effect when walking up the old, creaky wooden stairs to an equally cozy second floor. At prime time on a weekday night, it was charmingly quiet, minus the lady next to us slurping up the soup of the day - a spicy lentil (I could hardly fault her bad manners; it smelled unbelievable).
After seriously considering the soup, I settled on the Wild Mushroom Tart with a beet puree and figs. The mushrooms were cupped in a light, fried potato shell shaped like a bowl. Each bite had a warm, earthy flavor with just enough crunch, and a fruity finish from the sweet red-purple components on the plate.
It was a dish good enough to rival the vegetarian fare at David Bann in Edinburgh, which is high praise in my book. I’ll be back.
Two Plates. One Herbivore. One Omnivore. Which is Which?
Great article by Robert Krulwich on a underground supper club meal thrown by Mike Lee of Studiofeast.
Excerpt…
One night, somewhere, they won’t say where, but I’m guessing it was a Manhattan loft with a big kitchen, a food anarchist named Mike Lee got 40 people to perform a daring experiment in food camouflage.
Everybody sat down to what looked like the same meal. But it wasn’t the same. Here’s the first course. Half the diners got a spherified apricot puree in a coconut soup with mint. On the other half, salmon roe in Vichyssoise. One recipe for meat eaters. One for vegetarians. Very different ingredients. Yet at first glance they look almost identical, no?
How was I not at this meal?! Unfair. Hopefully I can make it to one of these at some point…
