[Update 9/08] Veganopolis has closed up shop and moved to Chicago.
****
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.
Stayed tuned for ‘Foodeater Does Vegan Portland’, Pt. 9…
The final installment!
- Vegan Reuben sandwich at Follow Your Heart
- The World’s Best Vegan Reuben Sandwich.
- Vegan Nachos & Reuben sandwich at Real Food Daily
- Foodeater Does Vegan Portland, V.5: Tin Shed
- Foodeater Does Vegan Portland, V.3: Blossoming Lotus
You are not alone! Chicago Diner has the best Reuben IMHO
I agree with Lex – CHICAGO DINER has the best!!! Just blogged about it :-)
oh no! i am so sad that the series is coming to an end! well you have definitely inspired me to travel to portland and eat until i fall over…as soon as i can. as far as reubens go, i have never had one! i will have to try it out. you are not the first person i’ve heard rave about the one at FYH. i think that may be the next thing i try there…
VeggieGirl & Lex: The best vegan Reuben is in Chicago you say? Hmmmm… don’t think I’m not tempted to get on a plane to verify these claims!
quarrygirl: Yeah, I could only eat so much with only 4 days in Portland… I think I managed to do as much damage as possible though! And don’t worry, I’ve saved one of my favorite meals for last. Then I’ve got all this backlogged L.A. food to get back to telling you all about too!
I’m really oohing and ahhing over this post, as a fellow vegan Reuben addict. I’m sure I would have ordered the same thing! Usually Reubens don’t photograph well, but yours looks fabulous! I love the press lines on the bread, and the veggie ham sounds sooo good.
Well the reuben and fries sure look spectacular, but then again you can do that to a meal. I always want to devour whatever you have photographed.
Hey, just wanted to tell you that YOU came in so handy yesterday.
My husband is working in Woodland Hills right now. I pack him a lunch and snacks everyday, but for some reason he ran out of food yesterday. He had to work late last night. He calls me at home and asks if I can order him some dinner for pick up from FOLLOW YOUR HEART. Well, right away I knew what to order….THE REUBEN sandwich. He LOVED it!!! I told him that it was recommended by you. He thanks you. You saved him and his stomach last night. Thanks so much!!!
I didn’t make it to Veganopolis during my last trip, but did love Powell’s. And I’ve never had vegan reuben!
Vegan Tickles: That is so great… I’m so glad I could help! I’m especially glad that he actually liked the sandwich too!
Lisa (Show Me Vegan): I pity your non-vegan-reuben-having status and I command you to go hunt one down immediately! This is for your own good…
In my previous omni incarnation I loved Reubens of all guises. I have been fortunate as a vegetarian to have made one of the best reubens ever – my Fauxstrami Reuben which I did using Light Life’s Smart Bacon (which I seasoned like it was pastrami). It was fantastically delicious. For me I always thought the best reubens ever were at Zingerman’s in Ann Arbor, thus that will be what I try to create next is a vegetarian version. I love your travels and food reviews, very well-done.
Nikki: Your version sounds great. Nice to see someone’s being clever and figuring out how to make their own faux-Reuben!
Oh my, that looks so good. One of my favorite things are reubens, and even though I’m not vegan, that would most defintely be something I would get, it looks soooooo delicious!