I have to admit I was a little worried date nights would start to get a little boring once we switched to veganism. But I've been pleasantly surprised! I had no idea there were so many places with abundant vegan options! It goes to show that when you're not looking for something, you'll never notice it's there. We can still go to most of our usual places, and have tried new places we probably never would have gone to before. Here are a few of our new "usuals."
Chipotle
Okay, so this one's not really a "new" usual, but it's always been one of our go-to's and I'm SO glad it can stay on the list. I've actually found that I like the taste of my burrito bowls better without meat! And since non-vegans tend to pity those of us who "can't have" meat (that mentality baffles me sometimes... this is my choice, please don't feel sorry for me!) I've found that the portion sizes for veggie bowls are frequently much larger than they are for meat-eaters! I can ask for extra brown rice, extra black beans, as many fajita veggies as the bowl can hold, and they don't even charge me for guac! I also enjoy lots of tomato salsa on my bowl now, which I didn't before. For whatever reason I grew up HATING raw tomatoes. I'm not saying I'm going to bite into one by itself now, but I've been slowly increasing the amount I eat mixed into other things and I'm really pleasantly surprised by how much I like the taste! The cost of our trips has gone down $3, and if I'm really conscious of the portion-size I can get 3 meals out of one bowl (let's be honest, it's usually 2... it's date night, why not?)
Trang VietCuisine
This is one we just recently tried. It has a full menu of meat dishes, but then it has 2 full pages of vegan options in the back of the menu (the pages are a different color, you know I had to make a "back of the bus" joke while we were there...) We shared summer rolls and steamed dumplings which were both fantastic - Aaron is obsessed with the peanut sauce they serve with the rolls at Vietnamese places. I had a "chicken" curry dish with tofu and their own concoction of imitation chicken (I'm guessing some form of seitan - the texture was surprisingly good, and I was very impressed!) and Aaron had a noodle pancake with mixed veggies and some yummy sauce. I definitely don't think we would have ever gone to this restaurant before this year - it's near campus in a strip mall, and isn't exactly the type of place you bring someone to impress them. But the two men who were running the place were SO incredibly sweet and knowledgeable and friendly. Once we were in I loved it, but it took something to get us through that door - knowing they had a large vegan selection. Without that bridge, it could have been right outside our door and we never would've known. And I'll be honest, the real reason I loved it so much was that they had 2 types of vegan cheesecake! I have had dreams about cheesecake since we've vegan-ized this year, and just knowing that I could come here to get delicious strawberry or marble cheesecake has completely put my mind at ease!
Jai Ho
This was one of the first new restaurants we tried after "making the switch" (how many euphemisms for choosing a vegan lifestyle is this post going to contain?) It immediately appealed to us, since the full name of the restaurant is "Jai Ho - Pure Veg." Sounds like our kind of place, right? It's also in a type of strip mall, near campus, someplace we'd never have gone before. Once inside, I think quaint would be the first word that would come to mind. It's a long, narrow space with tables on either side and a mixture of ornate silver decorations and dollar-store-framed photos of food. I loved it. The booths and menus were decked out in bright colors and there were photos of all the food. We first informed our waitress that we were vegan, and asked if there was anything on the menu that had egg or dairy so we could stay away from it. She looked very worried and said she wasn't sure, but she'd get the owner to come speak to us. I was a little worried, based on her reaction, and we started thinking of backup plans, just in case. The owner was SO sweet and friendly, and it turns out almost everything we would have wanted to order was perfectly safe. She made sure to tell the kitchen not to use any butter on our dishes, and answered all of our questions. We ordered 2 appetizers and 2 entrees to share, because we assumed by the prices that the dishes would be small. We were wrong. The pakoras, which were only probably $4 had about 9 pieces, and the samosa were huge! We ordered a masala dosa which hung over both sides of the giant serving platter they brought it on, and we had a never-ending bowl of vegetable "fried" rice! Needless to say we had tons of leftovers and will be going back again!!
Taco Bus
This is another place we had been to a few times before our "change of heart." Everyone in the Tampa Bay area has heard of Taco Bus - it started in St Pete as a food truck, and has grown incredibly because it's so delicious! They now have 4 or 5 locations and have been on the Food Network at least twice. The first time I tried it I was with my mom and mother-in-law coming back from the St Pete Saturday Morning Market and we stopped to get lunch. We were all immediately in love! I don't even know what makes it so delicious but I have not had a single thing there that I didn't absolutely adore. When Aaron told me they serve tempeh, imitation steak, tofu, and 2 other vegan options I was ecstatic! Their refried beans are even vegan! There are many options but I always end up getting their tempeh - it is SO DELICIOUS! Another reason I love love love Taco Bus is that it's a really great place to go to with my non-vegan friends! They have lots of really yummy meat options, so they are happy, and I can eat my amazing tempeh too! So many places have "vegan options" that are just a salad, or beans and rice... it's really nice to have options that both omnivores and herbivores will LOVE. We recently met my cousin there who was in town for work. He loved his dinner just as much as we loved ours! I've even gone with a coworker who ended up becoming a tempeh-convert by the time we left! She now buys it regularly from Publix and has started choosing meatless options much more frequently. I feel really great that I was able to show her that vegan doesn't have to mean less flavor or not delicious!
Greek
Now, I say "greek" here and not a specific restaurant, because living in FL we have ample choices! Little Greek, Greek Village, Athenian Gardens, GoGos, Acropolis, Byblos, Pitas Republic, Pita Pit, Pappas, the list could go on, and they all have delicious food that we can eat! I've always loved falafel, and my love has only grown in the last few months! Also a delicious choice is a simple hummus and veggie pita or wrap. As long as they have a plethora of veggies to stuff in there, it's always a good option! I thought I would miss the tanginess of tzaziki and feta, but I honestly don't even notice they're gone!
Date night is just one more instance where I'm able to stop and reflect on how happy I've been with our decision to choose a vegan life. So many people view going vegan as a form of deprivation - again with that pity-mindset. But honestly I feel like my life is so much fuller now than it was before. I'm lighter - physically, mentally, and emotionally. I'm noticing that I see the beauty in the small things more, and that makes my Saturday dinners with my wonderful husband that much more enjoyable - and that's without even mentioning all the amazing food we've been trying!
I am loving being Vegan! And searching for food in Tampa at the local restaurant has been really enjoyable! I can completely agree that you really don't notice the food that's cut out of a vegan diet. :)
ReplyDelete