Sunday, May 21, 2017

Vegan Restaurant NYC, Harlem, Best Vegan









Seasoned Vegan
It was balmy May day in the heart of New York City, when I decided to check out the infamous Seasoned Vegan for dinner in Harlem.  After fighting a bit of uptown traffic, I happily arrived at my  destination. The short, 5 minute wait for a table was a promising omen that this was going to be a superior dining experience. And a memorable experience it definitely was!!!

Atmosphere

Aesthetically, the interior of Seasoned Vegan leaves nothing to desired...every detail is well-crated & has the scientific precision of a determined seamstress.  Upon entering, I was immediately impressed with the immaculate, upscale, yet down-home feel. In my opinion, anytime you walk into a restaurant and hear the smooth sounds of Stevie Wonder's "Ribbon in the Sky" record playing over the sound system, you know that you are in for a treat.



Food
Similar the atmosphere, the robust menu consists of elegant, yet familiar options.

I began my experience by indulging the complementary spring mix salad bowl and a tasty appetizer, the Stuffed Avocado.  This exquisite dish was made from a pitted avocado stuffed with almond meat, vegan cheese & topped with home-style Pico de Gallo.  This was the first time in this establishment, I didn't know exactly what to expect but, my pallet was pleasantly surprised by the culinary choice. 

Next, I ventured into my main entree of 'Crawfish' and Basil Sauce.  In a word...Wow! Now I'm a coinsurer of burdock root in it's tea and tincture forms but never have I eaten burdock root as a main course. I had felt I had to constantly ask my server if "real" Crawfish because if so, I'm allergic and need to locate my Epee Pen ASAP...lol. He assured me that the establishment is strictly vegan and that most customers who've tasted the burdock root dish have very similar reactions. I was thoroughly impressed with this entrée and actually learned something new about how burdock root could be prepared for consumption as a meal instead of tea or tincture. 

After experiencing, what I thought would be my feel of food, I laid my eyes on the desert menu.  I scanned the menu haphazzardly, when I set my eyes on the Pecan Chocolate Chip cookie.  Since any desert that involves pecans is automatically one of my favorites, I had to sample this delightful treat.  The crunchy and sweet goodness was a perfect end to my culinary experience here at Seasoned Vegan. Satisfied was the only word that came to mind as I began to mentally prepare for walking to the train back to Mid-Town.
Price
Simply put...This place ROCKS!!! Not only was the food amazing, the price points were well within reasonable range. So much so that I decided to buy a desert for a stranger and gained a new friend.   I escaped this experience only paying about $37 plus tip, which is excellent for any location in the NYC area. #winning

Rating
Given the overall combination of food, prices and atmosphere, Seasoned Vegan scores 5 out of 5 vegetables on the V.W.C. scale. We recommend this restaurant to any and everyone traveling or living in NYC that wants to have the ultimate Vegan experience.  Venture uptown to Seasoned Vegan and tell us about your visit.












Happy Vegan Living!!!

Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Yard House-Chicago

Yard House Restaraunt--North Chicago Suburb
 Yard House
Located in Glenview, IL, 

Yard House
Glenview - Glen Town Center
1880 Tower Dr.
Glenview, IL 60025
(847) 729-9273
Directions |


Atmosphere
Located in a strip-mall setting, the curb appeal of this restaurant seemed relatively generic, but not in a negative manner.  As we walked through the doors, I was immediately impressed with the clean & inviting feel of the place.  The seating arrangements reminded me of a cleaner, and more upscale White Castle restaurant, without the unmistakably obnoxious aroma of  reconstituted (formerly dehydrated) onions.  After being seated, our server promptly arrived with menus and some quick facts about the restaurant. She stated that everything on the menu was vegetarian, but could be made vegan by request.  With that arrow of knowledge in my quiver, a began to peruse the menu ferociously, seeking the most delicious-sounding, yet economical lunch item.

Food
In terms of the actual cuisine, I was pleasantly surprised at the extensive variety across the menu. Check it out:
http://www.tpsiclients.com/chowpatti/takeoutmenu.pdf
Since we were just stopping in to grab a quick lunch, we decided to sample from the  appetizer offerings. I ordered the Special Sev Batata Puri (Loaded Vegan Indian Wheat Nachos), which was a truly delightful culinary experience, albeit I was deeply disappointed by the portion size. I somehow kept thinking that the server had mistakenly brought me a 'kid's meal' serving, but after I'd confirmed with her several times, I reluctantly began to devour my order. Fortunately, every bite was packed with a load of fresh deliciousness. The 6 crispy wheat chips were topped with potato, onion, cilantro and three special chutneys (sauces).  And I still regret the velocity of which I ate that meal; it was over way too fast.  ;)

Price
The Chowpatti Vegetarian restaurant, is a tasty place to visit & try out some 'outside the box' vegan cuisine, but I must warn readers that I consider this establishment more on the pricey side. I believe that their pricing-strategy has a lot to do with their location & the amount of business they see in a given week. My opinion on the pricing strategy of such niche restaurants, is that they have to run a 'happy-medium' between aggressively pricing to cover costs, yet still be attractive enough to draw repeat business.  An appetizer-lunch for two, with drinks, cost me nearly $30...I don't know about your budgetary constraints, but this was definitely not in my food budget for the week. ;(

Rating
Given the overall combination of food, prices and atmosphere. Chowpatti Vegetarian Restaurant scores 3.5 out of 5 vegetables on the V.W.C. scale. We recommend this restaurant to any and everyone. Try it out and let us know your thoughts.

Happy Vegan Living!!!