A Vegan Tour of New York

Like all good Thanksgiving trips, my travels to New York revolved around food, food, and more food. And like all my trips back to New York, I left extremely jealous of how ubiquitous the vegan options are. Beyond the dozens of exclusively vegan restaurants, I couldn't help but marvel that you can walk into any random bagel shop in Brooklyn and find Tofutti cream cheese -- in a variety of flavors! Here are some highlights along the way...

Sammies Galore!

I can't remember the last time I had so many vegan sandwiches. They're EVERYWHERE in New York. Pictured above are a tofu "egg salad" sandwich from Organic Heights in Park Slope and a Breaded Seitan Panini from Peacefood Cafe on the Upper East Side. Other highlights were a Tempeh Reuben made with Daiya from 'sNice (also in Park Slope) and a "Kevin Bacon" sandwich from Boneshakers (in Williamsburg), with a side of delicious homemade sauerkraut.

Sweet Cuppin' Cakes!

There aren't enough wonderful adjectives in the dictionary to describe how much I loved Babycakes. I stopped in twice: once to sample this brownie cupcake made with the most delicious frosting I've ever tasted and then again on my last day in NY to bring home a variety of sweet treats, the most decadent of which was a cookie sandwich stuffed with frosting.

AMAZING. And they make an effort to include lots of gluten-free options, and avoid refined sugar and flour where they can, opting for agave and natural sweeteners. Whatever they're doing, it's working! Their adorable, but tiny shop on the Lower East Side was packed each time I stopped by. And it's an all-lady business. Seriously, stop being so awesome, you guys!

Fancy Pants!

I was able to budget my money to be able to have two fancy pants dinners out in Manhattan. The first photo is of two small plates from Counter in the East Village. They've got a great selection of organic wines and cocktails and the dishes are great for sharing. I hear their brunch is pretty amazing too. Lastly, I finally got to eat at Candle 79 after several failed attempts on prior trips. Dessert was the highlight. I mean, vegan cannoli?? Definitely an "only in New York" dish that was heavenly. While my entree and appetizer were delicious, I have to admit I felt a little gratified in thinking that Millennium in San Francisco is better. So while NY may win the vegan restaurant war, SF takes this battle.

Lastly, I would be remiss if I didn't thank my good friend Sarv for being a wonderful hostess to me in Brooklyn. Not only did I get to crash on her couch for the week, but her family invited me into their home for Thanksgiving and went above and beyond to make several vegan dishes for me that were great!

You can see photos from all my New York shenanigans including all kinds of embarrassing karaoke pics here.

No Sleep Till Brooklyn

Last time I was in New York was July, right as I was starting to work on Veg Table. I did my best to document my food finds, like Lula's Sweet Apothecary and  Curly's but damn, New York has so many awesome vegan restaurants I feel like I only dipped my foot in the pool. I've been to a decent number in Manhattan, but only one in Brooklyn, and that was five years ago.

You see, when I lived in Brooklyn I was vegetarian, but not yet vegan and it was during the poorest time in my life. My bank account didn't see triple digits for months some times. I almost never ate out, let alone at fancy vegan restaurants. (The fact that I lived in Bay Ridge, which is really more like North Staten Island didn't help.) So this makes me all the more excited that I'll be spending a week in Brooklyn over Thanksgiving break! I'll be staying with one of my best friends who I don't get to see nearly often enough, and hoping to catch up with other East Coasters before I flee the country.

So what restaurants must I check out? Within Brooklyn, I'm thinking Foodswings, Boneshakers, V Spot Cafe, and Organic Heights. In Manhattan I'll probably do peacefood cafe and then I've got a few more upscale restaurants to choose from. How would you rank the following:

Candle 79 - I ate at Candle Cafe for lunch on my last visit and wasn't blown away by the food, considering the price.

Blossom - They have a crappy website which is a pet peeve of mine, but perhaps I shouldn't judge.

Dirty Candy - I've honestly not heard much about them, but I love the name and their menu sounds awesome, though not all vegan.

I can probably only go to one of those three, maaaaybe two, so what should I prioritize? Also, any opinions on 4 Course Vegan in Williamsburg? I love me a good underground supper club. Is it hard to get a reservation? What's the experience like?

Let me know if there are any other restaurants worth checking out, or ones I've listed I shouldn't bother with. I'm also open to suggestions on how I should spend the few hours when I'm not eating. Got any favorite off-the-beaten-path things to do in Brooklyn? (Or, you know, those other boroughs?) And if you're a frequent diner in NY if you could take some time to update the Veg Table NYC pages, you'll be my hero. Maybe I'll even buy you an ice cream cone at Lula's out of gratitude.