VegNews Eats New York (1st course)

Who: VN Publisher Joseph Connelly and VN Associate Publisher Colleen Holland
What: First of Two Weeks in Veg Heaven
Where: The Big (Vegan) Apple: New York, NY
When: April 11–17, 2010
Why: Yo, we gots some business to take care of...

The Scoop: After the PCRM 25th Anniversary Gala, Colleen and Joe jetted off to NYC for a two-week jaunt filled with business meetings, eating, visits to our favorite restaurants, eating, gathering with contributors, eating, taking lots of photographs, and did I mention eating?

Rather than bore you with the gritty details of why we had a secret meeting in New Jersey or whether it was the F-train of the #6 Line that shared its platform with various rodents larger than our office mascots Khane and Cal, I’ll present instead a Top 10 photo montage from each of our NYC weeks. Do check back tomorrow for Course Two of VegNews Eats NYC, and leave a comment if you'd like to see and hear more, 'K?

Week One Highlights:

10. Co-owner Craig Cochran (second from right) and the staff of the newly opened Terri Restaurant (60 W. 23rd Street).

9. Just a few of the vegan cookies at LifeThyme Natural Market (410 Avenue of the Americas).

8. After a delicious dinner at Vegetarian Dim Sum House (24 Pell Street). That’s HSUS’ Patrick Kwan and his partner Seth Carlson with Colleen.

7. Tuesday is the day Bethlehem, Penn.'s Vegan Treats delivers to Atlas Café & Bakery (73 Second Avenue). We were there. It's our job.

6. Sweet and savory at Candle 79 (154 E. 79th Street), where we enjoyed a fab vegan meal with Joe’s aunt and uncle. Check out those cannolis!

5. Yes, that is a vegan egg cream from Lula’s Sweet Apothecary (516 East 6th Street)

4. Just around the block from our apartment was Pinisi Bakery & Café (124 East 4th Street), which always had a few vegan options, such as these.

3. Oh yeah, we hit the world famous Dosa Hut in Washington Square Park! (West 4th Street at Sullivan)

2. At the end of the week we enjoyed what may be New York’s worst kept vegan secret: The 5-star, 3-course Friday Night Dinner at the Natural Gourmet Institute (48 West 21st Street).Vegan Important Persons Chef Fran Costigan (left) and Photographer Linda Long joined us.

1. After a Saturday stroll on the East River Bikeway, we brunched at Caravan of Dreams (405 East 6th Street), where Joe chose the “special of the day”: spelt pancakes with tempeh.

Let's recap. This was just our first week in NYC, and the next week was even busier (can you believe?). Don't miss the second course... follow VegNews on Twitter and we'll keep you in the loop.

PCRM Celebrates 25 Years

Who: VN Publisher Joseph Connelly and VN Associate Publisher Colleen Holland
What: The Art of Compassion: PCRM's 25th Anniversary Gala
Where: The Lot, West Hollywood, Calif.
When: April 10, 2010
Why: Celebrating a quarter-century of PCRM’s extraordinary accomplishments

The Scoop: If you picture the folks at the Physician’s Committee for Responsible donning white lab coats rather than party gowns, it’s safe to say you weren’t in Hollywood last month. The organization known for advancing preventative medicine and ethical research let its hair down for a glorious and star-studded celebration for nearly 500 friends and supporters at The Lot—the former home of Warner Hollywood Studios, United Artists Studios, and the Samuel Goldwyn Studios—a venue which proved as fitting as the dresses and tuxes for the who’s-who of compassion that paraded and pranced around the stages where the classic films Robin Hood and West Side Story were filmed.

Event Chairs Tom and Kathy Freston kicked it all off with heartfelt words on why they are supporters of PCRM, including Tom’s admission that he never expected to end up vegan. Following the Freston’s were four-time NBA champ John Salley, the actors and actresses Marilu Henner, Jennifer Landon, Cloris Leachman, Melissa Rivers, Larry Sullivan, Mariana Tosca, and Persia White, and CNN's Jane Velez Mitchell. The evening’s entertainment included a rousing musical performance by Leona Lewis and a short yet hilarious stand-up routine by comedienne Carol Leifer. PCRM founder and president, the ageless Neal Barnard, MD, closed the ceremony with a recap of the lengthy accomplishments his organization and vision have ushered to fruition over the last quarter-century.

PCRM President Neal Barnard, MD, with VN's Colleen Holland

The gala wouldn’t have been complete without it’s quartet of awards. The Benjamin Spock Award for Compassion in Medicine was given to Baxter Montgomery, MD, a Houston cardiologist who developed a “nutritional boot camp” to assist his patients in breaking unhealthy habits; The Henry Heimlich Award honored Gilman Veith, PhD, founder of the QSAR Foundation to Reduce Animal Testing, which uses computer models to predict the toxicity of chemicals without using animals; and The Art of Compassion Award, bestowed upon Robert “Skip” Trimble, the legislative chair of the Texas Humane Legislation Network, which promotes the humane treatment of animals through advocacy, education, and legislation. Lastly, two Voice of Compassion Awards were given to Ellen DeGeneres and Marilu Henner, which honors those who, “by word or example, have communicated caring, compassion, and the highest ethical principles.”

VN Publisher Joseph Connelly and Dr. Henry Heimlich share their maneuvers.

The delicious vegan dinner, coordinated by Tal Ronnen, was an all-star line-up of dishes from the nation’s best veg restaurants and chefs: hors d’oeuvres by Millennium, salad by Candle 79, soup and entrée from The Conscious Cook, and desserts from Seed Kitchen, Sublime, and The Veggie Grill.

Congratulations to everyone at PCRM for all the organization has done in making the world a healthy, safer place as well as for inviting us to your party. All of us at VegNews look forward to working with you over the next 25 years.

Sugar Plum Vegan Bakery

Who: VN Managing Editor Elizabeth Castoria, VegWebmistress Laura Hooper Beck, and three honorary VN staffers
What: Northern California's first all-vegan bakery!
Where: Sugar Plum Vegan Bakery, Sacramento, Calif.
When: April 18, 2010
Why: The reason why we do most things: awesome vegan food

The Scoop: Maybe you've never considered the California state capital to be a "destination" city. Perhaps you've heard that it's not as glamorous as Napa, not as hip as San Francisco, and not as savvy as San Jose. Maybe you are wrong, dead wrong. On a recent staycation Sunday, a few brave adventurers—namely Laura, Peter, Khane, Cal, and yours truly—made our way up highway 80 to Sactown.

The case o' greatness at Sugar Plum Vegan Bakery

First of all, it was a gorgeous day, which always helps when falling in love with a new city. Second, we went straight for the good stuff—aka Sugar Plum. Having already thoroughly oggled the online menu, we were pleasantly surprised to arrive just as a batch of SPV's oversized cinnamon buns came out of the oven. Yes. We ordered two immediately.

Hello, cinnamon bun. Do you see that frosting?!

When the general excitement of the cinnamon smell abated long enough for us to be able to read again, we picked a tofu breakfast burrito, tempeh Reuben, and chef's salad. Um, let's talk for a second about Reubens, and why we should all eat one every day. It's because they are delicious, insanely so. SPV's version featured lightly toasted rye, crisp pickles, punchy sauerkraut, and perfectly flavored tempeh, all enveloped in vegan cheese and thousand island dressing. Heaven? Yes. Everything we ordered came out of the kitchen in record time, and was incredibly delicious. While we sat in the sun-drenched front patio and gorged, a steady line of eager diners marched into Sugar Plum, which we took as a good sign for the very recently opened eatery.

Tempeh Reuben. We could have eaten a dozen of these.

We easily could have eaten twice as much as we did, but only if we'd also thought to bring our extra stomachs with us. Instead, we took a leisurely (read: stuffed) stroll around the tree-lined neighborhood, sprawled for a while in a grassy park, stumbled upon Gluten Free Specialty Market—a totally gluten-free store, which carried a bunch of vegan goodies like the new retail packages of Daiya—and then headed back to SPV to pick up some sweet treats for the ride home. Among them were a chocolate cupcake with chocolate icing, an oatmeal-cookie sandwich, a burger (OK, that one's not-so sweet), and a cheddar biscuit. Amazing. Every last one. We are thrilled to announce that as soon as we convince the rest of the team, VegNews is officially moving to Sacramento. We're pretty sure the only convincing they'll need will be a taste of SVP's fantastic food.

Green Goodness

Who: VN Editorial Assistant Abigail Wick, VN Office Manager Lyndsay Orwig, and the rest of the VN crew
What: SF's first springtime Green Festival
Where: San Francisco's Concourse Exhibition Center, San Francisco, Calif.
When: April 9–11, 2010
Why: The gathering of like minds for a good, old-fashioned green time

The Scoop: Last weekend, San Francisco hosted one of the country’s premier environmental-justice conferences, the Green Festival, sponsored in part by VegNews Magazine. This event marked the first spring iteration of the event, which is usually held just once per year in cities across the country. Despite the torrential deluge outdoors, inside the San Francisco Concourse Exhibition Center, attendees created a warm, hospitable atmosphere. Some of the special guests included musical artist Chuck D of hip-hop group Public Enemy, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Alice Walker, Democracy Now journalist Amy Goodman, along with another 120 green speakers, educators, and activists.

Lyndsay and I handle the VegNews booth.

Three hundred and fifty eco-businesses erected booths and promoted all manner of goods and services. Sundry offerings included the homemade vegan corn dogs and garlic fries that Lyndsay and I devoured. Domestic items encompassed everything from green-manufactured, organic-cotton, screen printed dresses to soft hemp linens. Services ranged from a sustainable construction company to on-site, hour-long massages. Media purveyors varied from the local (Oakland-based anarcho publisher PM Press), to the progressive (Utne Magazine), to the prestigious (The New York Times). There was also a special sighting—Hollywood actor Danny Glover, a Bay Area local, came strolling through the Green Festival late Sunday afternoon.

VegNews' youngest (and shortest) fan!

All in all, the Green Festival was a fantastic event that brought sunlight to an otherwise wet, cold day in our City by the Bay.

Homemade Hustle Does Beats 'n' Brunch

Who: Editorial Assistant Abigail Wick

What: Beats and Brunch

Where: Bollyhood in the Baobob Village, San Francisco, Calif.

When: Saturday, March 27

Why: Delicious vegan food, friends, and sunshine. Obviously.

The Scoop: Babs Barry and Nikole Lent typify modern-day Renaissance women—they are clothing designers, founders of humanitarian fashion collective fAction, vegan activists and local-foods innovators. Operating under the moniker Homemade Hustle, Babs and Nikole wear funky, hand-crafted garb and dispense “guerrilla, vegan street food.” The pair's latest project is hosting a weekly vegan brunch at Bollyhood, part of the Senegalese-rooted Baobob Village.

Babs hustlin' in the kitchen.

Their inaugural event, Bollyhood Beats and Brunch, happened last Saturday on a splendid San Francisco afternoon. The eccentric crowd wore campy-chic duds, ranging from rhinestone cowboy and full-on Indian sari, to Turkish belly dancer and sweet-home-Alabama retro. People dined al fresco, sitting on rickety chairs at tiny café tables scattered across the sidewalk on 19^th and Mission Street. The quirky, inviting company comprised a colorful backdrop for the main attraction—sumptuous, simple fare.

Nikole serves salad with a sweet smile.

Homemade Hustle’s menu boasted “Big Guurl Salads” called No You Didn’t!—baked tofu, caramelized onions, snappy green apples, candied walnuts, shredded purple cabbage, avocado, and scallions with ponzu dressing on a bed of greens—and the fantastic Ya Herd Meh?—rigatoni pasta with creamy cauliflower and white lima beans, fresh grape tomatoes, shredded purple cabbage, onions, garlic, and lemon on tahini-dressed greens, with fresh cracked peppercorn.

The sandwiches included the Jesus, Joseph, and Mary—shiitake and trumpet mushrooms with barley, butternut squash purée, garlic kale with caramelized shallots, and avocado on homemade flatbread. One word: holy-mother-of-god. Homemade Hustle also offered the Durty 30—pulled seitan with purple cabbage slaw and sesame aioli on the aforementioned homemade flatbread.

Marika and vegan pancakes go hand-in-hand.

My vagabond friend Marika, back in town from a year hitchhiking through Mexico and Central America, ordered one of the pancake offerings, Mama Said Knock You Out—two vegan “buttermilk” pancakes topped with fresh, seasonal stewed fruit and covered with a whopping dollop of chocolate mousse. Yes, Marika had tears in her eyes—not only because her entrée tasted so good, but because she was too sated to order Fo’ Sho’—Korean pancakes with broccoli, scallions, and kim chi, served with rice vinegar and soy dipping sauce.

A whirlwind of snacks, sweets, and sides rounded out the affair—from Brazilian-Nigerian Acarajes to Badankadonk Bread Pudding. What, with terrific folks and tip-top food, Bollyhood Beats and Brunch is sure to become a local, Saturday institution. Three cheers to Babs and Nikole, the brains behind Homemade Hustle!

LA Whoa! Man

Who: VN Publisher Joseph Connelly

What: A week of non-stop publisher duties in the Angel of Cities

Where: Hollywood, Torrance, and Anaheim, Calif.

When: March 8–15, 2010

Why: To live and dine in LA

The scoop: My week-long, über overflowing sojourn to the giant suburb that is our nation's second largest city could have yielded a Press Pass post every day. Alas, I know you are busy, so I've distilled it into this Top Ten Moments of Extravagance from the town that invented the concept. For additional photos of my festivities, check out VegNews' Facebook page. What? You aren't our friend? Better remedy that pronto. In no particular chronological order:

10. Cruzer's Pizza—Los Feliz's charming pizza joint has gone from meat to Daiya cheese to 100-percent vegan. I sampled the soon-to-be-on-the-menu VegNews Pizza, oozing with housemade pesto, mozzarella "cheese," artichoke hearts, tomatoes, spinach, and roasted garlic. Can you resist?

The first VegNews Pizza at Cruzer's

9. Exsalus Health & Wellness Center—I enjoyed a long chat with Dr. Matthew Lederman, co-founder of Exsalus (along with his wife, Dr. Alona Pulde). The couple has written a book, Keep It Simple, Keep It Whole. They practice plant-based nutrition in the style of Drs. Klaper, McDougall, Esselstyn, and Greger, and have plans to open clinics nationwide.

8. LifeFood Organic—For lunch, I dined with rauwthor Ani Phyo at this brand-new café in Hollywood with an outstanding menu of fresh, incredibly tasty, raw, live, organic foods. Chef Laurel Anderson has relocated from Seattle and added this steady gig to her catering uncookery, The Good Life Raw Food.

7. Real Food Daily—Though not all that hungry due to the late and scrumptious lunch, I could not turn down a chance to chat and chow with three phenomenal colleagues: fellow Bay Arean Marti Kheel, author of Nature Ethics; local activist extraordinaire Libra Max, and Rory Freedman, co-author of Skinny Bitch and VN's 2008 "Person of the Year." The food: Excellent. The company: Priceless.

6. Maggie Awards Judging—I ventured to the R.R. Donnelley plant in Torrance for a day of judging the Western Publishing Association's annual Maggie Awards, the longest running and most prestigious industry awards in the West. It was my fourth year as a judge, and quite a rewarding experience as I get to see what other magazines are doing.

5. Veggie Grill—The newest in the four-restaurant chain (the fifth in Santa Monica opens this October) which I've dubbed "the Sunset Grill," as it's located on Sunset Avenue in West Hollywood. Dinner company included co-founder Kevin Boylan and a trio of vegan athletes: Jon, Jesse, and Henry. Jon Hinds is the founder of Monkey Bar Gymnasium, and yes, he's big, and yes, he's vegan.

4. Babycakes NYC—On my way to Anaheim, I stopped at the brand-spatula-new Los Angeles satellite of The Big Apple's award-winning Babycakes NYC for some photo ops and staff treats. GM Jennifer Frizzell made sure we were well-desserted, which this "cookie sandwich" photo of our hard-at-work staff, just arrived from SF, clearly shows.

The VN crew kicks off Expo West weekend with dessert by the pool

3. The Natural Products Expo West —A three-day orgy of natural foods and products, the ultimate reason we are all here finally arrives. So you did follow Elizabeth's tweets and Abby's Facebook updates? You will be hearing more about Expo West in the days, posts, and magazines to come, including which companies were awarded the coveted Best of Show Awards™ on Sunday.

Sharing a pizza with Rory Freedman, Libra Max, and Heather Mills at the Expo

2. Hoa Sen Vegetarian Restaurant—You'd think after being surrounded by ample samples for eight hours no one would be hungry. You don't know Joe (or his staff). This adorable, local, vegan Vietnamese restaurant over-delivered with delicious real food, which isn't easy to find at the Expo. We ate well.

1. Tofoo Com Chay—The staff had all flown their separate ways, leaving me to drive the rental back to San Francisco. Lonely and hungry, I made a quick stop to this favorite spot from back in the day when VegNews was located in the South Bay. This tiny restaurant/deli is still large on taste, so I took home several meals worth of soups and sandwiches. The detox starts now.

Yes, that comes to seven delicious veg restaurants in eight days, each unique and each excellent, from raw foods and pizza to ethnic eateries and desserts. It's so easy being vegan.

Gracias Madre Fiesta

Who: VN Office Manager Lyndsay Orwig, VN Publisher Joseph Connelly, VN Associate Publisher Colleen Holland, and VN Editorial Assistant Liz Miller

What: A celebration of the opening of Gracias Madre

Where: The Mission District of San Francisco, CA

When: Monday, February 22, 2010

Why: To honor Latin American culture with delicious organic, vegan food.

The scoop: Mexican fare is not hard to come by in the SF Bay area, especially in the Mission District. Almost every block has a taqueria of some sort, where you can grab a big burrito with all the fixin's, including beans, rice, veggies, and guacamole. These places are great, but unfortunately none of them is specifically organic and vegan. And maybe sometimes a burrito just won't suffice, and what you're really in the mood for is a tasty tamale, or an overstuffed quesadilla. This is where Gracias Madre comes in—the new, all-vegan Mexican restuarant from the owners of Café Gratitude. To celebrate the restaurant's recent opening, the owners, Matthew and Terces, cordially invited close friends to a special evening of food, drinks, and fun.

The owners and staff among the gorgeous spread.

The first thing you notice when you step into the restaurant is its atmosphere. It has a beautifully designed interior with a quaint bar on the side, and gorgeous paintings and embroidered quilts adorning the walls. This is no "In and out" dining experience, but a place in which to enjoy yourself and share.

Upon entering, we were greeted by the owners and managers of the restaurant and served mojitos, made with fresh mint, lime, and agave with soju—oh so refreshing. After some mingling within the crowd, we were invited to serve ourselves from a beautiful buffet of the Quesadillas de Calabaza, the Tamal (or tamale), guacamole, and fresh salsas. Everything was truly delicious, but the favorite was definitely the Tamal—stoneground heirloom masa (corn) steamed in the husk, and filled with butternut squash and green chile. It was so good, some of us had seconds. And though we were stuffed and satisfied with these dishes, we just couldn't pass up on dessert. Hugo, one of the managers, graciously helped us with our decision, and we were served the Flan as well as the Mexican Wedding Cookies with a cacao-cinnamon sauce. Both were marvelous.

Quesadillas de Calabaza

The end of the evening was near, and to finish it off, Terces and Matthew stood up to say thanks to all those who came, as well as to introduce the amazing staff and to give a bit of history of how Gracias Madre came to be. Being their seventh restaurant in a span of six years, it was mainly their love of the Latin culture that inspired the restaurant, as well as their wish to bring local, organic fare to the Mission District. Being farmers themselves—both in Hawaii and the Bay Area—they wanted to share how delicious fresh and organic produce can be. We think they've definitely proved their point.

Liz and Lyndsay show off the delicious desserts.

With our stomachs full and our palates satisfied, the night came to an end—some of us are already planning a return trip. Among the plethora of wonderful restaurants in San Francisco, Gracias Madre is a great addition and one that truly stands out.

Vegan Night at Mission Street Food

Who: Editorial Assistant Abigail Wick

What: Mission Street Food's Vegan Night

Where: Lung Shan Chinese Restaurant, San Francisco, Calif.

When: Thursday, February 18, 2010

Why: Date night starts right with a Mission Street Food jaunt!

The scoop: The scene at Mission Street Food (MSF), San Francisco's funkiest underground restaurant, is bumpin'. You go if you dig slow-foods community meals and love the fact that every night is a benefit fundraiser—not to mention it all goes down in a Chinese restaurant.

MSF bills itself as an “occasional restaurant” and sets up shop inside Lung Shan Chinese Restaurant’s commercial kitchen and dining area every Thursday and Saturday evening. Local guest chefs with a DIY spirit volunteer their talents—ranging from classic French cuisine to molecular gastronomy—and throw themselves into the preparation of multi-course fine dining for the masses. MSF aims to accomplish two things: 1) Donate all proceeds to San Francisco-based non-profits that address systemic hunger and lack of sustainable food sourcing, and 2) create innovative, communal food experiences that even working folks can afford. It’s all about food artistry and accessibility.

Lung Shan is a hole-in-the-wall eatery nestled in the Mission District. It’s a cute joint with metal chairs, posters of painted bamboo forests and bright birds, and strings of pink and white Christmas lights lining its interior. The music, ranging from Yo La Tengo to Morrissey, floated into the room. The coveted reservations, dim lighting, and artsy, bohemian clientele gave the restaurant the feeling of a speakeasy.

Fine folks waiting for Mission Street Food to commence!

Each MSF event benefits a different organization, and on Thursday evening, the local chapter of Food Not Bombs (FNB) was in the spotlight. FNB, founded in Cambridge, Mass., in the '80s, shares free vegan and vegetarian meals with those in need in hundreds of cities around the world, as a “protest of war, poverty, and the destruction of the environment.” MSF has also benefited organizations like the Women’s Building Food Pantry, Youth Meal at the LGBT Center, La Cocina, and Groceries for Seniors. Last year, it gave more than $22,000 to charity.

MSF founder and chef Anthony Myint developed Thursday’s Vegan Night small-plate menu. My boyfriend and I salivated over the selections—panisse cakes and cassava fritters with spicy guacamole, pickled honeydew, and fried almonds! We wanted everything.

We ordered two drinks. The first, a Huckleberry-Earl Grey, Cava, and Spumante Aperitif, tasted like a fine kombucha. The Blueberry-Acai Soju Cocktail was like grazing on wild, liquid blueberries under a late-afternoon summer sun. We settled on four small plates. Our first, a snap-pea salad, featured pomelo wedges, spears of crisp jicama, a zesty cranberry purée, and—get this—house-made vegan white chocolate. It crumbled like feta cheese and tasted like golden cacao cream.

Snap your fingers to the tune of snap-pea salad

Next up, the yuba dumplings: an oily, crackly, tofu-skin purse containing a treasure trove of maitake mushrooms, scallions, and cauliflower, floating in a shallow dish of coconut curry and green shoyu tapioca—savory and bright with a surprising, spicy finish. We voiced various exclamations, ranging from “Oh my god!” to “Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!”

Yummy yuba dumplings surprised my taste buds

Following the ecstasy came an elegant plate of Black Garlic Stuffed Tofu, which melted on the tongue like custard. Waxy preserved lemon zest, sharp arugula leaves, and nutty beluga lentils accented the earthy, out-of-this-world tofu.

Dessert consisted of a dense, decadent coconut olive-oil cake crusted with toasted macadamia nut pieces, served warm. The chef paired the cake with a rich, vaguely sweet taro parfait, served chilled.

While Mission Street Food isn't exclusively vegan, it sometimes provides a vegan option and every few months hosts a vegetarian dinner. It's cash-only and BYOB, with a small corkage fee.

Golden Lotus: A Gastronomic Love Story

Who: Editorial Assistant Abigail Wick
What: Golden Lotus
Where: Downtown Oakland, Calif.
When: Saturday, February 13, 2010
Why: The perfect mixture of Valentine's Eve, starving artist boyfriend, Supreme Master TV, and vegan avocado smoothies.

The Scoop: Let’s face it—San Franciscans look for every excuse to avoid schlepping to the East Bay. We spend our days in blissful seven-by-seven insularity, indifferent to the charms of Oakland, which could just as well be as far away as Shangri-la. But sometimes the mood to travel strikes—especially when the cupboards are bare, love is in the air, and your boyfriend starts hankering for Golden Lotus.

The completely veg restaurant is an unassuming operation—think vinyl booths and beige-tile floors. It serves primarily Vietnamese cuisine, with a healthy side of pan-Southeast Asian fare. Prominently featured Supreme Master slogans and iconography define the décor, and a flat-screen TV streams Supreme Master TV into the dining room. (Vietnamese-born Supreme Master Ching Hai is a media-savvy Buddhist activist, who promotes veganism and environmental stewardship.)

As at any Vietnamese eatery, I gravitate toward the country’s culinary hallmark, the fresh spring roll. The Golden Lotus doesn’t let me down: rice noodle, red lettuce, julienned carrot and daikon-radish, mint, shredded fried tofu, and succulent mock-chicken bits all come wrapped in a delicate rice-paper roll. A savory-sweet peanut dipping sauce rounds out the flavor.

Spring rolls so good you spring from your seat and shout, "More, please!"

The entrée selection is vast, including lemon chicken, broccoli beef, and ginger fish—all vegan, of course. Jason and I split the house special—spicy gourmet chicken—a delectable combination of fresh relish, zesty chilies, and flavorful mock-meat. Sweet-pickled zucchini, daikon radish, carrot, and hot pepper proved perfect bedfellows, and a bed of small-grain brown rice left my palate with a nutty finish.

Crispy, spicy, saucy...so naughty

At Golden Lotus it’s necessary to share the main course, lest your belly become too full to relish the array of after-dinner treats. Vegan carrot cupcakes, mocha chocolate cake, and caramel flan are just some of the options. We shared the avocado smoothie—two straws, please! With great glee we slurped-up and gulped-down the smoothie, which was delicate and not too-sweet. Sigh…

Jason's all dreamy over his creamy avocado smoothie.

The best pre-Valentine’s Day date ever? You bet!