02/29/2020
Whether it's for dietary, cultural, religious or moral and ethical reasons, many people have set out on the journey through vegetarianism and its more restrictive relative, veganism. Despite the increasingly growing population that practice the lifestyle, many restaurants don't necessarily make the effort to accommodate vegetarians or vegans. One of the responses I have often seen to questions about those type of menu items is to “Just have a salad” or something along those lines. Of course, if that was all that was available then it would get boring as I have had some patrons of my restaurant attest. Crafting vegetarian and vegan dishes used to present a pretty steep challenge as you would lose access to some of your favorite fats and flavoring agents so most chefs didn't want to be bothered. Food has evolved, of course, and chefs have become more accustomed to substitutions and playing with ingredients and textures.
I decided to go vegetarian for month to challenge myself and explore some the cuisine the city had to offer. When I did it last year, it was more of a scramble and I was pretty unprepared, but help from a friend of a friend helped guide me as I tried to partake in vegetarian lifestyle. This time around, however, I decided to veer more towards veganism as the last time I still used dairy and egg products to make things easier. This came with a bit more prep work, but I already had experience under my belt so I was wiser and more prepared. I also made a list of restaurants I wanted to try early on so I wouldn't be spending time searching when I was already hungry to expedite the process.
There were some early inconveniences since I did have to replace a lot of things in my kitchen temporarily while I took on this self imposed challenge. I slowly did so as it got closer to the end of January so I could hit the ground running. The cost was sometimes undesirable as many products are more costly than their non-vegetarian equivalents as well as fresh produce itself often being pricier sometimes even more so than some meat items! There was a lot of label reading to be done as even some vegetarian products that are sold in stores often use eggs or dairy in some way, shape, or form preventing them from being vegan. I still had my list from my friend's friend so that made things a bit smoother. I switched over to a vegan protein supplement as well as I had started working out more regularly a few months back and my new diet wouldn't necessarily supply the same level of protein as my usual diet without some serious consumption. Speaking of nutrients, I seemingly avoided being sick like everyone else at my job was this past month and I had more energy as well. My increased consumption of fruits and vegetables probably contributed a lot to that. My skin appeared to be brighter and clearer as well. I did lose weight over the course of the month, but that was more of a nice side effect as opposed to intention. It also probably had to do with my increased fiber intact as well as I often found myself excreting my existence far more regularly than before.
Now let's talk about the restaurants that helped my along the way this month. One of my favorite dishes came from Full Bloom on South Beach. The Carbonara is made with thick, hearty spelt noodles with a lucious, rich, flavorful cashew cream accented with turmeric, mimicking the color of egg effect, Kala Namak and Shiitake Bacon, to add the traditional meaty, smokiness to the dish. Despite the small list of ingredients, the dish was packed with flavor and I almost ordered a second bowl, but reluctantly convinced myself to try a couple of the other dishes instead.
Next, was Plant, which was an interesting experience. Many of the products are locally sourced including the many edible flowers that adorn their plates. While I was here, the server explained to me that everything is served only slightly warm to room temperature to preserve the integrity of ingredients that are used in each dish. Given this explanation and seeing their plating, it seemed as if they had a level of respect for their ingredients, demonstrated by the care put into each dish. The Seared Lion's Mane from this restaurant was one of my favorite dishes this month as well. Earthy, juicy and mildly meaty, the giant mushrooms paired well with the crisp, sweet carrots that featured as part of the dish. The plating was also gorgeous as it looked like a beautiful garden carefully laid on my plate. I almost didn't want to disrupt it. Also of note was the ceviche that featured a Cucumber Sorbet. This was such as great idea as the cool, creamy, savory sorbet played off of the tender Hearts of Palm and acidic, spicy heat of the dressing.
I had wanted to try Charly's Vegan Tacos for a while now so this month presented a great opportunity to do so. The Nachos Machos was once of my favorite plate of nachos I have had. It was massive and carefully layered so there wasn't a dry chip to be seen, but at the same time every chip was crisp the whole time I shoveled everything into my face. Usually I find that chips start to get soggy as you go on which make it a little less appetizing, but in the case of these nachos, they were crunchy from start to finish. The flavors were on point as well with seasoned Seitan serving as the Carne Asada and layers of beans, sauces and cheese carefully weaving through each crevice of the dish. The tacos were good as well, rounding out my meal while I was there.
Screaming Carrots and Planta were also features during my month of Plant Based Discovery, but I already posted about them separately so you can see me gush about them in their respective posts. Overall, it was a fun and sometimes challenging experience and I even worked with some produce and food products I probably would otherwise had not under normal circumstances. I'm definitely less likely to shy away from the Vegetarian and Vegan dishes I come across on any restaurant menus going forward. If you have any questions, feel free to let me know in the comments below or maybe you've had some Veggie Experiences that you want to share.
