To Live and Eat in L.A. - A Vegan Food Photo Blog

Every once in a rare while you get to taste something that is so delicious and such a cut above the rest, that even while you’re experiencing it, you realize that this very moment is going to be memorable. That’s how I felt on my recent visit to Shojin, the vegan Japanese restaurant in Little Tokyo. Specifically, my rapture revolved around their exquiste BBQ seitan, but I’m getting ahead of myself.

You may recall my previous visit to Shojin restaurant back when my lucky friends and I were invited to their special pre-opening tasting dinner. That meal was excellent in every way, so it’s a mystery to me as to why I hadn’t been back since then.

To correct this oversight, one of my lovely foodeating assistants treated me to lunch at Shojin. The lunch menu had a limited selection from the full menu, but there were plenty of great options to choose from. To start our meal, our main entrees were served with soup and a side salad.

Even though it was a really hot day outside, the warm soup was light and refreshing. It was a delicious quinoa soup made with fresh organic vegetables that our waiter proudly and excitedly let us know had been acquired fresh just a few hours earlier at the nearby farmers market. Awesome! The small salad was crispy, tasty and super fresh as well.

We also ordered the Cold Green-Tea Buckwheat Noodles: Garnished with shiso leaf, grated radish and ume paste (pickled plum), mixed sea vegetables, kaiware sprouts (sprouted daikon radish seeds) and scallions, topped with roasted sesame seeds and nori (seaweed). This was beautiful and came served with a slightly salty, I’m guessing soy-based dipping sauce. I really liked the green tea noodles but I’m not a huge fan of sea-flavored stuff, and this had a bit too much of the ocean going on in it for my taste. If you are a lover of all manner of seaweeds and sea veggies, this one is for you.

Ah, but when our main dishes arrived is when things got really exciting! We both ordered the Shojin Style Bento Box which changes with different daily specials from three kinds of traditional vegetable dishes, brown rice and a choice between the Crispy Seitan Cutlet, Barbecued Seitan or Garden Seitan ball. Thank goodness there were two of us so we could each try the others! I went straight for the BBQ seitan while she got the cutlet.

From top left to right up there, first is the Kale & Mashed Tofu Salad: lightly steamed kale in mashed tofu & sunflower seeds. This was ok but the flavor was very simple, almost bland, so it was a little bit overwhelmed by the other stronger flavors it came served with. On the top right is a hijiki seaweed, carrot and gobo salad which I wasn’t crazy about. I know I should get over it because it’s all so healthy for me, but still I can only take so much of that sea taste. A little goes a long way.

On the bottom left of the bento box are some of the most deliciously prepared lotus roots that I’ve ever tasted. These were so good, done in the traditional Japanese style, but done perfectly. Then we get to exactly what made this a meal I won’t be forgetting any time soon… the barbecued seitan.

Shojin’s BBQ seitan is pan fried with their secret sweet soy barbecue sauce. It’s fantastic, I’m literally drooling right now as I’m remembering it, trying to explain it to you while knowing that mere words just aren’t enough. I’ve never had seitan that tasted anything like this before, the texture was the work of a true seitanic master.

This will probably gross some of you out, but have you ever tried eel before? Yeah, real eel from a sushi restaurant. Well, eel does not have a fishy taste at all and has a very silky, fatty texture a lot like salmon (eel sushi is usually not served raw, but grilled). Ok, gross part almost over- point being that this seitan achieved that same type of texture which reminded me a lot of eel… it was silky and had a fatty mouth-feel to it, without being at all oily or greasy. Slighty crispy on the edges with a meaty bite to it, this seitan is what finger licking good is all about, though I did not use my fingers. The BBQ sauce was totally amazing, sweet and savory and bold and just… wow!

Here’s a close-up of my friends pick, the Crispy Seitan Cutlet: Deep fried crispy seitan cutlet with home made miso demi-glace sauce. This was equally great, the seitan we already just discussed was incredible… so just imagine “incredible” times “fried” and this is what you’d get.

We both loved it, all of it, even the parts we didn’t love. The BBQ seitan seriously blew me away and I can’t wait to go back there to get the full order of just that. The folks who run Shojin are just so friendly and eager to please that the whole time we were there we couldn’t wipe the smiles off of our faces. It’s almost like going to a fancy spa, but with great food instead of a massage. While it’s true that the location is a little odd (inside a Japanese mall on the edge of Little Tokyo that’s about to become a Korean mall), I actually really like going there. It’s a totally different world, and Shojin offers a wonderful way to experience it. Go there for the lunch specials or go there for a more elaborate dinner with unique Japanese desserts. Either way it’s a win/win situation.

Speaking of dessert, it’s one of my favorite reasons to visit Little Tokyo. In particular, my sweet tooth satisfies itself at Fugetsu-Do Sweetshop which specializes in traditional mochi treats.

“Mochi is a Japanese confection, found usually in the shape of a small, round rice cake which can be eaten with condiments such as kinako (roasted soy bean flour), manju (sweet red bean paste), soy sauce dip, and seaweed. Traditionally, mochi is made by pounding steamed glutinous rice in a large wooden mortar, called the usu, with a wooden mallet called the kine. Mochi-tsuki is the Japanese term for the old-style method of pounding the steamed glutinous rice used to make mochi.”

They’re usually filled with sweetened red, white or azuki beans as well as various tasty fillings. Most all of them are completely vegan. I’m 100% addicted to mochi desserts and if left to run wild in their cute little shop, I could do both myself as well as their inventory some serious damage.

We got ourselves a nice assortment. Those on the top row that are wrapped in shiso leaves are my favorite. They are called Kuzumochi: Mochi filled with sweet azuki bean paste. Their website says that this is a seasonal item which is only available in the month of July, but they usually seem to have it available whenever I got there (and this was mid-August when we got them). While they are sweet they’re also slightly salty, a really nice combo. The pink ones are filled with white bean paste and the texture reminds me a lot of… wait for it… testicles. It’s true, but in a good way. Soft, chewy & tasty pink baby testicles. Don’t blame me, I didn’t invent the stuff. I don’t remember exactly what the other two had going on, but you can rest assured it probably involved some kind of sweetened bean (if I recall correctly the orange ones were indeed orange flavored). Mochi treats are awesome, and frankly, I’d rather see mochi take over the world than cupcakes.

I suggest indulging in a fun and filling afternoon in Little Tokyo. Ease the stress factor by riding the Metro into Downtown and choose your own adventure depending on which of the nearby stations you exit at. Head on over to Shojin on 3rd St. at Alameda for a remarkable lunch, then walk on down to 1st to Fugetsu-Do and get your fill of sweet mochi to wash it all down with. Don’t forget to enjoy all the fun stuff in between, you’re going to need to walk off some of that food.

(Update) - I just also discovered that Fugetsu-Do has a branch location inside of the Mitsuwa Market, which guess what… is situated inside of the same mall as Shojin! I have not had the mochi from there and I would still suggest checking out their main shop on 1st because it’s really cute, but now there’s no excuse to avoid the mochi if you’re at Shojin, since all you’ve got to do is walk to the other end of the mall to get yourself some. Sweet.

www.theshojin.com
www.fugetsu-do.com

Tags: bbq, Japanese, mochi, seitan

So I’m sitting here watching Anthony Bourdain’s new Egypt episode, full aware that at any moment I will be either insulted for being vegan or accosted by scenes that will make me want to gag, or both. What can I say, I’m a glutton for punishment I guess, and world food and travel fascinate me. Anthony Bourdain is pretty entertaining when he’s not deliberately being an asshole.

Anyhow, after making it through the scene where he’s enjoying eating stuffed pigeons, much to my surprise, he featured a traditional Egyptian food that is totally vegan… and boy did it look good. It’s called Kushari, described in the Wikipedia as:

…a popular traditional Egyptian national dish, normally eaten in specialty Kushari restaurants that serve this dish exclusively. It consists of a base of rice, brown lentils, chickpeas, macaroni, and a topping of Egyptian garlic and vinegar and spicy tomato sauce (salsa). Caramelized onions are commonly added as a garnish. Kushari is normally a vegetarian and usually a vegan dish, possibly reflecting the vegan diet of Coptic Orthodox Christians during Lent and other fasts. It is becoming common to add fried liver or shawarma meat as an additional topping. It is often found in fast-food establishments that also serve ta’meyya/falafel. Smaller restaurants may serve either Kushari or ta’meyya while larger ones (often chain restaurants) usually serve both. It is an inexpensive dish, and serves as a staple food. Kushari is one of the most common and most popular dishes in Egypt.

Other than the liver and such this sounds absolutely delicious, and I’ll admit that for once Anthony was actually eating something that I very much wanted to try. He also showed some street vendors selling Foul, a vegan dish made from fava beans (it’s pronounced like ‘Fool’) which I’ve had a lot of and really like (though they were serving them here topped with egg). Imagine that, Anthony Bourdain turning vegans on to new dishes! Crazy I tell ya…

Of course just a few minutes later we were treated to a scene of a goat being ritually slaughtered and consumed, so don’t get too excited about Anthony Bourdain’s momentary foray into veganism via grains and legumes.

Does anyone know of any Egyptian restaurants in Los Angeles serving kushari? I’d love to try the real thing before attempting to make it on my own, though I welcome you to share some of your favorite kushari recipes in the comments.

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Update: I found a vegan Kushari recipe online and then the page I found it on soon after disappered. Since I can’t link directly to it anymore I’ll reprint it here. This seems like a very simple recipe, I’d be interested in finding out if there are fancier versions as well. Enjoy, and let me know how it turns out if you give it a try!

Egyptian Style Kushari Recipe

Ingredients:
10 cups water
8 oz macaroni (dry from the box, or fresh)
2 1/4 cups stock
1 cup long grain rice (uncooked)
2 - 4 tablespoons olive oil
2 large onions, minced
2 cups canned diced tomato
8 oz can of lentils
pepper to taste
salt to taste
1 bunch parsley, minced

Directions: In a large stock pot, pour in the 10 cups of water, and place on the stove over high heat. Place the lid onto the pot, so that it comes to a boil more quickly. In a separate deep sided pot with a tight-fitting lid, heat the stock over high heat.

Mince your onions. Open up the can of tomatoes and lentils. Do not drain the cans of their extra liquid! In a large, shallow skillet, heat the olive oil over high heat. When the oil gets hot, add the onions, and a healthy sprinkle of salt and pepper. Let cook over high heat for about five minutes, or until soft. Turn down the heat to medium, and add the canned tomato and lentils.

By now, the stock should be boiling. Add the rice to the pot, and wait for the stock to come up to a full boil (uncovered). When the water is boiling vigorously, turn down the heat to a simmer, and cover the lid. Give the skillet with the tomatoes a quick stir.

By now, the ten cups of water should be boiling. Liberally salt the water, and add the macaroni to the pot. Leave the lid off, and allow the macaroni to cook fully according to your liking.

The rice should take a total of twenty minutes to cook. The macarnoi should take no longer than ten minutes to cook. By the time the rice and macaroni are cooked through, the sauce will be the perfect consistency. If it looks a little too loose for your liking, turn up the heat to high, and allow it to cook down for a few minutes.

Drain the pasta, and put it back into the large pot. Stir in the sauce. Stir in the cooked rice. Generously garnish with the chopped parsley.

Serves: 4
Preparation time: 30 minutes

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Another Update!

Check out the delicious looking and super easy to make vegan Kushari recipe that just got posted over at the What Geeks Eat blog… I don’t think you’ll need to look any further…
Kushari - because carbs are good too

Tags: Anthony Bourdain, Egyptian, kushari, lentils

While it’s true that Disneyland can be really fun if you’re six years old or a first time visitor from rural Kazakhstan, for some of us (especially SoCal locals who’ve been going there since we were born) a trip to the Happiest Place On Earth™ can be more of a hassle than it’s gargantuan cover price is worth. It’s really hard to maintain a positive attitude when you’ve been standing in lines all day in 103 degree heat, surrounded by overheated, oversugared children and their scary mutant parents. Having to worry about if there are any decent vegetarian or vegan options to eat doesn’t help. I’m here to tell you that there is a light at the end of that mouse-eared tunnel, and it’s name is vegan gumbo.

More specifically, it’s name is Royal Street Veranda, the little counter service restaurant located in Disneyland’s New Orleans Square where you will find this unexpected treat (it’s just across the way from the Pirates of the Carribean). It has been verified by those in the know that this delicious bowl full of goodness is indeed vegan. You might find old information stating that it is made with butter, however that is not the case as that info is from an old recipe. Today they use cornstarch as a thickener, so there is no dairy in there.

This hearty veggie gumbo comes served in a nice fat sourdough breadbowl. They fill it to the brim with soupy gumbo that is so tasty you’ll want to go back for another serving. To tell you the truth I have no idea if it’s anything like authentic New Orleans gumbo, I’ve never been. But I can tell you that without having anything to compare it to, I think this stuff is awesome. It’s thick and chunky, filled with vegetable and long grain rice (I didn’t say it was gourmet, I just said it was good). The flavor base is like a yummy tomato stew, very savory and just a little bit spicy. The “bowl” nicely soaks up the gumbo while you’re eating it and at the end you get to munch away at all the now gooey and flavorful bread.

The line outside of this place sometimes gets crazy long but it moves pretty fast and is definitely worth it. Besides, you’re at Disneyland, so you’re already used to waiting.

For someone who’s just visiting Disneyland for the day, there’s really nothing to stress over in regards to finding plenty of veg-friendly food. Most all of the sit down restaurants have at least a few vegetarian options that could be easily veganized, along with many salads as well as fresh fruit stands through out the park. Apparently their pretzels are vegan as well.

But really, there’s nothing there that’s going to be as good as the gumbo. It’s really delicious, and not just because it’s an alternative to lesser options. Back in the day when my friends and I had Disneyland season passes, we’d go there just to eat the gumbo, watch the fireworks and then leave… and we weren’t even vegetarians then, that’s how good it is! This time around I had the gumbo for lunch, then found other nice vegan options for dinner (which sadly did not photograph well), but I just as easily and happily would have made my way back for another serving of the gumbo instead.

Tags: Disneyland, gumbo

A recap of my awesome vegan Portland meals, just in case you missed any…

Nutshell * Flavour Spot * Blossoming Lotus * Farm Cafe * Tin Shed * Voodoo Doughnut * Kinta Malaysian * Veganopolis * Vita Cafe

Hopefully this list will grow someday when I get to sample more of what the vegan mecca of PDX has to offer!

Tags: Portland

I almost missed my chance to eat at the fantastic Vita Cafe. My short visit to Portland was nearly over, with nothing left to do but get me to the airport on time later in the afternoon. My clever friend remembered that Vita Cafe was one of the restaurants on my secondary list (I had a “must eat at” list and a “if I can fit it in” list) and she realized that it was directly on our way to the airport. How perfect. I was going to get to leave this town as full and satisfied as when I came in!

Vita Cafe serves primarily, though not entirely, vegetarian and vegan fare. They’re organic, local, sustainable, blah, blah, blah…. you know the drill, most all of these places in Portland are doing the right things whenever possible, and I think that’s awesome. But seriously, as I’ve told you time and again, I’m really most interested in the eating of it all… so let’s eat!

Vita Cafe is almost synonymous for one of the dishes they are most famous for, their vegan biscuits and gravy. The biscuits are homemade… the most amazingly fluffy, tender, chewy and delectable biscuits I’ve ever had. Not being a Southern girl or anything like that, my primary schooling in what biscuits are supposed to taste like came in the form of the artery-clogging offerings provided by Kentucky Fried Chicken when I was a child. I know, gross, but you’ve got to admit their biscuits were tasty, especially back when you didn’t know any better. Now imagine that tastiness times about a million, now double it in size, subtract the lard and trans-fats, and add in a healthy dose of “made with love by people who care”, and you might just come close to fathoming how delicious these massive biscuits are. And I haven’t even told you about the gravy yet.

The gravy can only be described as heavenly. I have no idea how it’s made, all they tell you on the menu is that it’s made from almonds, yes… almonds! It didn’t really taste all that much of almonds to me, it tasted like thick, sumptuous, nutty, slightly spicy & slightly salty gravy. Not too salty which I can’t hang with, but just right. A more well-spoken reviewer might describe it as “full of flavor” or “well seasoned”. I’ll just tell you that it frakking rocked! As you can see this gravy-of-the-gods came heartily smothered over the two giant biscuits, turning the whole thing into a moist mountain of lumpy, chewy fulfillment. My words and not-so-great photo are not doing any justice here, this was truly one of the best things I ate on my whole trip and I will be fantasizing about it until I can return to Portland again and indulge once more.

Now, you didn’t expect me to just order biscuits & gravy and head on home, did you? Of course not. The other items that caught my eye as soon as I was handed a menu were the corn cakes. You know how I am with corn, I am powerless against it in it’s many forms. Resistance was futile.

Here we have the Thai Corn Cake: with sliced bananas, ginger, cilantro and coconut syrup. Just when I was thinking that nothing on earth could possibly taste better than those biscuits, this giant plate of love arrived. Basically it’s a huge corn pancake with the bananas, ginger and cilantro cooked right into it. I’ve had similar, smaller and a lot less exciting versions of this on the street here at home in Thai Town, but never anything this good. It was perfectly crispy around the edges and soft and warm in the middle, each bite filled with exciting and surprising flavor combinations. The coconut syrup took this not only out of this world but all the way out into the far deep inner reaches of outer space. It was creamy and thick and within a few seconds I had it slathered all over this beautific corn cake.

Really, each one of these plates would have been a full meal for a normal person. But this was my only chance to try them, and I’ve never told you that I was normal. I ate them both, and I left there stuffed like a glutton with just enough time to catch my plane… and it was good.

All in all, Vita Cafe was a top-notch establishment with more vegan offerings for breakfast, lunch & dinner than you could shake a stick at. If I was a local, I’d totally be a regular (though I don’t know that I’d make it much farther into the menu than the biscuits).
www.vita-cafe.com

And thus concludes this installment of Foodeater Does Vegan Portland. I had such a great time and ate so many excellent meals… I hope you all have enjoyed tagging along on this fun vegan quest with me. I’m already looking forward to my next Portland visit! For now though it’s back to lovely Los Angeles for a while, and not a minute too soon considering just how many incredible L.A. meals I have yet to tell you about. I’ll just need a moment to digest…

Tags: biscuits & gravy, Portland

[Update 9/08] Veganopolis has closed up shop and moved to Chicago.
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There’s no way I was going to Portland to miss out on eating at a restaurant with a name like Veganopolis.

I’d heard mixed reviews about the place, some extremely positive, some not so nice. Still, the name was too cool to pass up and I liked how they described themselves on their website:

“Veganopolis Cafeteria is a 100% vegan dining and retail establishment. We serve casual gourmet and offer vegan lunch buffets M-F, 11am-3pm. Saturdays we offer an extensive Vegan Breakfast Buffet from 9am-5pm. We also offer fresh grilled sandwiches, Fresh Salads, a Kid’s menu, Counter service and a relaxed child-friendly environment. Espresso drinks, Vegan desserts including Shakes, Floats and Sundaes. We are a casein free zone and we refrain from serving honey. Baked goods made fresh here are wheat free and all organic.

Sounds good to me! I’d planned to spend part of the day at Powells, the ginormous bookstore downtown, so I stopped for lunch at Veganopolis first as it’s just a few blocks away. I decided to forgo the buffet and order something off the menu… the main reason being one of my all time favorite names in the language of culinary delights: Reuben.

It’s true, I’m a vegan Reuben sandwich addict and I have to try them whenever I’m am lucky enough to come across one in the wild… it’s like spotting a rare bird or one of those special flowers that only blooms for a day. The quest for vegan Reubens is particularly rewarding because no matter where you go, the restaurant will have it’s own unique interpretation of just what constitutes a proper one. Above is Veganopolis’ tasty version: Braised corned vegan ham, soy mozarella, house thousand island and sauerkraut piled on rustic rye.

It’s was pretty good. Not as great as the Follow Your Heart Reuben but it was still good in it’s own right. The veggie ham was tasty and very meat-like. I don’t know that I would have guessed that it was supposed to be corned ham had I not read that on the menu, but it was a perfectly suitable vegetarian stand-in for it’s real life fleshy counterpart. The thousand island dressing was a little too sweet for my taste, but the sauerkraut helped balance it out. The bread was fresh and the whole sandwich was grilled nice and crispy. The fries were roasted potatoes, the flavor was good but not having been fried the texture was a wee bit soft, though nothing a squirt of organic ketchup couldn’t handle.

They’ve got a lot of other tantalizing sandwiches on the menu as well as a salads, vegan shakes and all kinds of other goodies, including their ever changing buffet. Veganopolis made for a very satisfying lunch spot and while it didn’t blow my mind, I don’t always need lunch to rock my world. Sometimes all I’m after is a good sandwich to fortify me for a full day of book shopping. I got my good sandwich, and I ended up with a bunch of great books too… I was a happy camper.
www.veganopolis.com

Stayed tuned for ‘Foodeater Does Vegan Portland’, Pt. 9…
The final installment!

Tags: Portland, sandwich, Vegan Reuben

Kinta Restaurant serves what they call “New Malaysian Cuisine”. My Portland friends suggested it to me as soon as they learned I was on a mission to try as much of the awesome vegan & vegetarian places in their lovely city as I could. Kinta is not all vegetarian, they will add in chicken or shrimp by request. Most of the menu is totally vegan however, with exception of the egg noodles, though vegan rice noodles are available for any of those dishes instead.

If you’ve never tried Malaysian food before, imagine a well-crafted blending of Thai food, Chinese food and Indian food… well, that’s what it always makes me think of when I eat it. There used to be a great little Malaysian restaurant here in Hollywood years ago (on Wilcox if I’m remembering correctly) where I had developed a major obsession with their cashew curry. Damn that was good! Then one day they were just gone… that was well over a decade ago at this point and I hadn’t had Malaysian food since then, so I was very excited to have it again here and now in Portland.

For starters we had the sweet potato fritters and curry puffs shown above, both delicious. The batter (made of chickpeas) on the sweet potatoes was thick and crunchy and lightly spiced with something unidentifiably great. I don’t know if these are made with an egg wash or not, so be sure to ask if you need to. The curry puffs (pastry shells filled with curried potatoes, shitake mushrooms and crunchy woodear mushrooms) were of an equally high yum factor, tasting a lot like an Indian style samosa. The dipping sauce was just ketchup, which actually worked quite well.

These refreshing drinks are a tart and perky tamarind & lime concoction, two of my all time favorite flavors. Reliable as always, here they did not let me down. I wanted many refills.

Here we have the Tropical Malaysian Curry Soup: Curry in house-mixed Malaysian spices. The way it works here at Kinta is you choose your entree item, be it a noodle soup like what I chose, a noodle stir-fry or a rice dish, and then you choose from an impressive list of fresh and mostly organic vegetables. They’ve got a standard list of items like bean sprouts, broccoli, carrots, eggplant, etc… but they’ve also got stuff that gets added to the menu as it comes into season, including some of the more interesting Asian greens and veggies. The silly thing is that I don’t remember what all items I picked to go in mine, though for sure I got the broccoli, tofu, and beet greens. There was more in there as well that I’m forgetting.

This soup was so delicious. Along with the cuisines of other countries mentioned above, Malaysian food also reminds me of Indonesian food, as it’s got a similar sort of pungency to the flavors that’s always quite striking. I’m gonna say that it’s a sort of flavor that’s got a bit of funky going on… it’s not exactly foul, but there’s a certain dark musky or mustiness to it that while being super delicious also always makes me think of dirty socks or B.O. Now don’t go letting me ruin your appetite or turning you off of Malaysian food… I mean, just look at that incredible soup… of course it was good! I’ve got nothing against funk when it’s done right. And I tell you with funk this good, I think Malaysia should change it’s official name to Funky Town.

OrganicGirl ordered the Macadamia Curry: – Malaysian curry spices infused with Macadamia nuts. Wow, this was out of this world! I think she got it with the onion infused tofu, eggplant, amaranth greens and I’m thinking perhaps those little brown guys in there are shitake mushroom. This dish was particularly rich in the funkified goodness of secret Malaysian curry magick that I described above, and the macadamia nuts gave the entire thing a most wonderful, full-bodied silkiness. Outstanding.

Overall I loved Kinta…. loved the food, the concept, the friendly service and plenitude of vegan options. The simply prepared food was simultaneously beautiful to look at and a pleasure to eat. If you enjoy Asian and especially Southeast Asian food, or even if you’ve never tried it and are open to full and exotic new flavors, move Kinta to the top of your Portland food list for a rewarding foodie experience.
www.kintarestaurant.com

Stayed tuned for ‘Foodeater Does Vegan Portland’, Pt. 8!

Tags: curry, malaysian, Portland

The magic is in the hole! Or so they say over at Voodoo Doughnut, the place itself being a teeny-tiny little hole in the wall the size of a large walk-in closet. Voodoo Doughnut is a well established and somewhat legendary donut shop in downtown Portland. They’re open all night and are an obvious choice for grabbing yummy sweet treats after shows or when the bars let out. I’ve been told the scene there late at night is quite fun and exciting, a real taste of Portland. Truth be told however, I wasn’t there to check out the scene, I was there for the vegan donuts I’ve heard so much about.

We stopped by there in the afternoon and there was a line out the door snaking around the side of the building. There was a brewfest going on just a few steps away by the river, so that may have had something to do with the crowds. The line moved quickly though, especially considering there was only one woman both serving the donuts and running the cash register, and soon enough I found myself with a front row view of the display case. The vegan donuts are nicely segregated on a plate in the spinning display case so you can easily see which ones are available.

Maple bars have always been one of my favorites in the non-vegan donut world, so of course that was my first choice to try here (that’s the one on the back right of the plate, the one that’s not chocolate, or a bar for that matter). It was pretty good, the fact that it was vegan made it better. I do like my donuts to be of the lighter and fluffier variety, while this donut was more of a cake donut, very thick and dense. The flavor was great, the maple frosting delicious, but the actual donut itself was too much for me to get through much of, and I was thankful to have a bottle of water with me to wash it down with otherwise it would have stuck in my throat.

I also tried the donut that you see there at the front left of the plate. I don’t know what they call this one, but it had a very sweet white frosting which was coated in toasted coconut. I loved both those flavor toppings, the white stuff was sticky and gooey in a very good way and well, it’s pretty hard to go wrong with toasted coconut. The donut itself was the same as the maple bar, so again it was thicker than I would have preferred and hard to get down without a beverage. I guess it’s true that for some girls, size does matter. And lube always helps.

They were both very tasty donuts, even though I was only able to get through half of each before feeling totally stuffed and over the craving to have donuts again anytime soon. If they had been a lighter type of donut I could have easily made my way through three or four. Maybe I’m just spoiled by the mindblowingly light and airy donuts I had at Madeline Bistro back in May (which I still haven’t gotten around to blogging for you yet but you can get a peek over at VegYogini’s blog), because those donuts were so incredible that there’s no way you’d know they were vegan, nor would it matter. In my mind those are the vegan donuts that all others will be measured against. I can’t say that the Voodoo Donuts came close in comparison, but I can say that they were quite enjoyable for what they were, and any place that will provide me with fresh made vegan donuts be it 12 noon or 12 midnight is alright by me.
www.voodoodoughnut.com

Here’s a cute 10 minute documentary about Voodoo Doughnuts called Gimmie Doughnut (some of which is NSFW)

Stayed tuned for ‘Foodeater Does Vegan Portland’, Pt. 7!

Tags: donuts, Portland