Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Vegan sliders!



Look what I came across in the frozen foods section at the Target near Southdale! I tried 'em tonight and they're quite good. Has anyone seen these at other Twin Cities area locations? Gardein seems to be producing rather popular vegan products these days.

Monday, November 12, 2012

Wok in the Park

This was my first visit to Wok in the Park, located in St. Louis Park. It's nice when a menu says this: "Vegetarian? Got it. Vegan? Got it. Gluten free? Got it. Epicurious? 100% MSG FREE? We're all over that." I had the Slayer Stir Fry with tofu. Great dish! Without even asking about the deserts, the waitress asked if we'd like some vegan pumpkin ice cream, which they apparently make themselves. Yum! 
Slayer Stir Fry at Wok in the Park

Vegan Pumpkin Ice Cream at Wok in the Park

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Yogurt Lab

Yogurt Lab has been popping up in various locations in Minneapolis in recent weeks and months. I've been to the 50th & France and IDS Crystal Court locations. They have non-dairy (and gluten-free) options. Walk in, pick up a cup, and go crazy! They have a ton of healthy and not-so-healthy options to pile atop your non-dairy treat. Yes, those are Oreo crumbles on top of mine. I typically get a fairly small portion size and pay between three and four bucks. FYI: I just sent a message to the company through their web site, just to be completely certain that there are no animal-based ingredients in their non-dairy options. I previously sent a message to some Yogurt Lab in another state and had included the wrong hyperlink in this post. I'll let you know what I hear from the correct (Twin Cities) Yogurt Lab.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Mill City Vegan Visits Boston & Cambridge (Again)

I was fortunate enough to spend a few days in the Boston area again. Most of my time was spent in Cambridge, so I'll mention three wonderful establishments that I visited in that fine city.

I made multiple trips to both the sister restaurants of Veggie Planet and Veggie Galaxy.

My favorite from Veggie Planet was the pizza with Daiya vegan cheese.

In addition to the great Glazed Seitan Loaf, which was really tasty but not particularly photogenic, I indulged in the vegan Oreo cheesecake (pictured below).

And I couldn't leave Cambridge without buying another pair of shoes at one of the greatest vegan shoe stores around, Sudo Shoes.

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Foxy Falafel

Yes, I occasionally venture into St. Paul for vegan food. Foxy Falafel is one good reason to make a trip right across the municipal border. Perhaps you've seen Foxy Falafel at local farmers markets. They recently jumped into the food truck business and opened a cool restaurant in the University & Raymond area. For you Minneapolis folks who get around by bus or bike, Foxy Falafel is very easy to reach. Oh, and the falafel sandwich is great! The menu is clear about which items are vegan (as well as which are vegetarian and gluten-free) and it states that the fryer is exclusively vegetarian and gluten-free.

Saturday, September 8, 2012

Galactic Pizza

For a change of pace at Galactic Pizza, I tried the vegan version of The Alamo, complete with barbecue sauce, mock chicken, onion, mushrooms, red peppers, and vegan cheese. Ya gotta love Minneapolis' most distinctive pizza place!

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Pizza Lucé - Richfield

We made it to Pizza LucĂ©'s new location in Richfield. They did a great job of renovating the building and giving it new life and character. For a Pizza LucĂ©, this location is really large.  We went for the weekend brunch and had the Giant Green Tofu Scramble and Apple Quinoa Cakes. Let's just say...we will return again soon!

Saturday, August 18, 2012

Mill City Vegan Visits Georgia

Here are just a few of my vegan dining delights from a recent trip to Georgia.

From Atlanta:

We had to go to the Soul Vegetarian on Highland. I had the country fried steak and some ice cream.












Dulce Vegan Bakery and Cafe was fantastic. I had some kind of delicious sandwich and a lemon scone:


































And we had a great breakfast at the Radial Cafe, where I indulged in a stack of buckwheat pancakes:
















We spent four nights in Savannah. In a smaller city, of course, it can be a bit more challenging to find vegan food. Be sure to check out Vegguide and/or Happy Cow. Here are few of my favorites from Savannah:

Your Pie is a pizza place that has Daiya vegan cheese. We went there twice. I ordered The Hippie both times, without the pesto.Your Pie has a number of locations in the Southeast U.S.
















The Green Truck Pub, which really does have a green truck sitting outside, makes a really vegan great burger and fries:
















Finally, I had a breakfast burrito at the Sentient Bean, which (to my knowledge) is the only completely vegetarian restaurant in Savannah:


Sunday, August 5, 2012

The Bad Waitress

In my humble opinion, the most amazing vegan sloppy joe is the one served by The Bad Waitress. If you haven't tried it, do yourself and favor and get it soon!


Saturday, July 7, 2012

Twin Cities Veg Fest

Twin Cities Veg Fest 2012 takes place Saturday, July 14th, at the University of Minnesota's Coffman Memorial Union. Food, speakers, exhibitors, etc.!

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Seward Cafe

I decided to go with something other than one of my usual meals at the Seward Cafe. The Tofu Mock Muffin is pretty darn satisfying! 

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Kindee

We checked out Kindee for the first time. I had the Pad Thai with mock duck and no egg. My wife had the Stir-Fried Vegetables with tofu. Both were a little bland, but worth checking out if you're hungry and in the area. A good spot for a pre-Guthrie dinner. Be sure to ask for the vegan menu.
Pad Thai with mock duck; no egg
Stir-Fried Vegetables with tofu

Friday, May 11, 2012

Saturday, April 28, 2012

Hola Arepa Food Truck

I finally tried Hola Arepa food truck. Check their web site or follow 'em on Facebook or Twitter. They serve up the goods in both Minneapolis and St. Paul. In Minneapolis, the truck is often located at 6th & Marquette during lunch time. Get the black bean arepa without the cheese for your vegan satisfaction. At first glance it didn't seem like a lot of food, but I found that it's most definitely worth the five bucks!
Hola Arepa

Monday, April 9, 2012

Mill City Vegan Visits Washington, DC

Not only does this post include a few of our vegan favorites in Washington, DC, but we had quick layovers in Chicago and also discovered that Amtrak is actually quite vegan-friendly.  

Between visits to Smithsonian museums and various memorials and monuments, here were our DC highlights:

Java Green. I had visited this all vegan place on a previous trip to DC. It's definitely worth a return visit. I had the Vegan Chickn' Java, which includes soy chickn', roasted red pepper, spinach, Daiya cheese, and veg-mayo. 
Java Green
Cafe Green. Located near Dupont  Circle, this is the sister restaurant to Java Green. I had another sandwich, the "Steak and Cheese" sub. Definitely a winner! 

No vegan should visit DC without at least one trip to Sticky Fingers Bakery. The fantastic options aren't limited to just the sweet stuff. My two visits this time included a Chili 'n Cheese Dog and Cheesy Mac. To finish things off, I had a wonderful cupcake one day and a Cowvin Cookie the next. Unbelievable! 
Sticky Fingers Bakery
Sticky Fingers Bakery

We also had a quick meal at Whole Foods Market near the Friendship Heights Metro station and breakfast at a little neighborhood joint called Pumpernickel's Deli.Thanks to our veg friends for showing us their vegan-friendly neighborhood deli a short walk from their home.  

It had been three years since I last traveled on Amtrak. I've still never ordered their vegan meal. They request that you order it a few days in advance of your trip. The extremely pleasant surprise, however, was the fact that they offer a vegan burger in the lounge car (the less formal option compared to the dining car).  I love the fact that they label it as "Vegan Burger" on their menu. This means that you're not put in a position of asking the staff whether the veggie burger is vegan, only to get a confused look or surly review of the list of ingredients. 
Vegan burger at Amtrak's lounge car
A great thing about traveling between the Twin Cities and DC on Amtrak, in addition to being more eco-friendly than flying, is that there is enough time to indulge in Chicago's vegan dining options each way. On the way out to DC, we made it to Karyn's Cooked, which has definitely become one of our favorite places in Chicago. On the way back, The Chicago Diner satisfied our appetites as it always does. 
The Soul Bowl at The Chicago Diner

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Gorkha Palace

We've been enjoying Gorkha Palace recently. While I think they eliminated my favorite entree when they updated their menu, I did enjoy a mushroom and potato dish called Chyau Tarkari. You must really enjoy mushrooms if you plan to order this particular meal!

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Seward Cafe

Vegan Green Earth breakfast with pinto beans at the Seward Cafe.  A tasty mix of hash browns, broccoli and pinto beans. I usually get a half order but I was hungry enough for the full order this time!

Saturday, February 25, 2012

3rd Annual Vegan Chili Cook-Off

Sorry about the late notice, but this is happening at the Seward Cafe at 7:30 TONIGHT!
http://www.exploreveg.org/events/3rd-annual-vegan-chili-cook-off

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Saturday, February 11, 2012

One Year Anniversary of Mill City Vegan!

I started Mill City Vegan one year ago. Over the course of the past year:
- Number of blog posts: 63
- Number of blog page views: 2,172, not including the Facebook page
- The post that has been viewed more than any other: Vegan Shoes at Journeys
- Other than the United States, the three countries where most Mill City Vegan blog viewers reside: United Kingdom, Indonesia, Russia
- The type of food I've written about the most: Probably pizza (Pizza Luce, ZPizza, Mesa Pizza, Whole Foods Market). Somehow I haven't written about the pizza at Galactic Pizza and I still haven't tried the vegan pizza at Psycho Suzi's or May Day Cafe. I'm sure there are others. I'll try to cover those by this time in 2013!

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Ginger Hop

We made our first trip to Ginger Hop, choosing the Steve Segal Burger and the Yellow Curry. The burger comes with a choice of sweet potato fries, wonton chips or a side salad. Vegan items are clearly labeled on the menu. Will return!
Steven Segal Burger with sweet potato fries. Ginger Hop. 


Yellow Curry. Ginger Hop. 

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Vegan Valentine's Day - A Benefit for Boneshaker Books

Looking for a very vegan Valentine's Day? On February 14th you can enjoy a gourmet, four-course vegan dinner that will benefit Minneapolis' Boneshaker Books. This will take place at the Seward Cafe and will be prepared by vegan chef Joshua Ploeg. Choose from 7:00 or 8:30 p.m. Check out this link for the menu and for information about Boneshaker Books. Reserve in advance. Enjoy!

Cupcake

I finally made my first visit to Cupcake, located in the Prospect Park neighborhood. I enjoyed the tofu scramble with sun-dried tomatoes and spinach. The chocolate cupcake was also great. It's worth a visit from local vegans, for sure. Keep this place in mind for large cupcake orders. Their vegan cupcake is a Double Chocolate Delight.

Monday, January 16, 2012

Triple Rock Social Club

After countless trips to the Triple Rock throughout the years, I finally ordered the Mother Biker during the weekend brunch. It's a plate full of tofu scramble, home fries and vegan cheese. Toast on the side. Good stuff.

Friday, January 6, 2012

Evergreen Chinese Restaurant

Rather than ordering one of my usual items at Evergreen, I went with the Pepper Fried Mock Pork. A little spicy, very vegan, and quite delicious.