The Vegetarian Resource Group Blog

Vegan Restaurants Added to The Vegetarian Resource Group’s Guide to Veggie Restaurants in the USA and Canada

Posted on October 17, 2023 by The VRG Blog Editor

Vegan Jerk Chicken Quesadilla from UnBEETABLE

The Vegetarian Resource Group maintains an online Guide to Vegan/Vegetarian Restaurants in the USA and Canada. Here are some recent vegan restaurant additions. The entire guide can be found here: http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

To support the updating of this online restaurant guide, please donate at: www.vrg.org/donate

Here are some new additions to VRG’s guide:

Angry Vegan Juice Bar and Vegan Food, 536 Main St., Penticton, BC V2A 5C7 Canada

Despite its name, Angry Vegan Juice Bar & Vegan Food makes its customers very happy with its bountiful menu of fresh juices, smoothies, burgers & wraps, and salads. They offer pre-made meals that work well for picnics or business lunches, and well-informed customers check social media to learn of their weekly specials. But you can’t go wrong choosing from their regular menu, with options like the Green Warrior Burger (made from white beans, spinach, parsley, green peas, and oats, served with a house-made cilantro lemon-cashew dressing) or the Rasta Salad (made with rotini noodles, onions, celery, and sweet peppers, tossed with a house-made ranch dressing). Their banana bread gets rave reviews, and you won’t resist the Bugs Bunny juice, made with a blend of carrots, apple, lemon, and ginger.

Dough Joy Donuts, 1316 E. Pike St., Seattle, WA 98122 and 4310 SW Oregon St., Seattle, WA 98116

Dough Joy Donuts offers vegan handmade donuts in 2 locations as well as a Doughmobile. The donut menu includes unique flavors such as everything but the bagel with a dollop of cream cheese in the center, vanilla Biscoff topped with a cookie crumble, and glazed sea salt twist with chocolate drizzle. Classics such as chocoholic and basic B glazed donut are available as well.

Eris Vegan Food Co., 302 Wisconsin Ave., Oceanside, CA 92054

After a day at the beach in sunny Oceanside, Eris Food Company is there to satisfy your craving for burgers, tacos, and pizza. With a casual, comfortable vibe and both indoor and outdoor seating options, Eris Food Company offers a changing menu and generous portions. Burger options include the Bam Bam Burger, served on a handmade pretzel bun with Bam Bam sauce, vegan Jack cheeze, crispy onion strings, and house-made ketchup. There are some gluten-free options as well, including the Sweet Potato Pepper Jack Tacos, made with handmade corn tortillas, sweet potato, avocado, and roasted poblanos. Their pizza flatbreads are wildly creative in both name and toppings—like the “Little Brutus” with a double garlic pizza sauce, pepperoni, seitan, mozzarella and pepper jack, jalapenos, and Bam Bam sauce.

I-tal Garden, 810 North Claiborne Ave., New Orleans, LA 70116

I-tal Garden provides a creative, diverse menu. For starters, breakfast is available from 10am-2pm daily, offering their Breakfast Plate of “buttered” yellow grits with chickpea scramble and maple vegan sausage, or Pancake Platter—starring a double stack of buttered spelt pancakes. There’s also a Fresh Fruit Parfait of cashew vanilla yogurt, granola, and coconut whip cream to name a few options. For an Appetizer surprise, you might try Avocado Fries—crisp, chickpea-battered avocado with a side of remoulade. If you’re fired-up about raw veggies, Hell Yea Kale Yea Salad might be speaking your language with organic kale, currants, veggies, ground walnut, sprouts, lemon zest, cashew cream, and lemon pepper bites. A bowl of classic New Orleans stew, Okra file’ Gumbo combines red lentils, squash, eggplant, okra, and traditional seasonings. Here are a couple of Entrée options. Filet Mushroom Burger sports crispy oyster mushrooms, vegan tartar sauce and vegan cheddar cheese on a sprouted bun with seasoned fries and salad. Cajun Pasta features buttered cream sauce, grilled vegetables, seitan hot sausage, crab-less cake balls, cayenne pepper, and vegan parmesan. Build Your Own Dish lets you choose proteins and combine them with Sides like Quinoa Jambalaya, Jackfruit Ribs with BBQ sauce, Coconut Curry Chickpeas, Creole Potato Salad and lots more. While there are additional rotating Desserts, two staples are Berry Drizzle Cake and Lemon Lavender Cake.

May Kaidee, 215 E. Broadway, New York, NY 10002

May Kaidee offers imaginative vegan dishes focused on traditional cuisine inspired by Thai provinces.  Quality is their top priority. Think slow cooked—not fast casual. They try to source organic whenever possible—particularly soy, oil, and produce. For Starters a couple of possibilities are Pumpkin Hummus (Tam Fak Tong) made with steamed pumpkin, cashews, peanuts, sesame seeds, onion, and coriander with sour and spicy sauce, or (wheat-free, and not fried) Fresh Spring Rolls (Poh Pia Sod) of lettuce, carrot, avocado, cilantro, baby spinach, and ginger wrapped in broad rice noodles, with peanut sauce, tamarind sauce or ginger carrot dressing. If it’s a Salad Day, two of many options are Green Mango (Yam Ma-Muang) with a slightly sweet-spicy sauce, crowned with peanuts or cashews or Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam) with chili, tomato and roasted peanut in a tangy sauce. Both contain carrot, lime, and cilantro. So many soups, such as Cinnamon Soup (Pah Loh) Chinese-Thai soup with carrot, mushroom, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and cinnamon, or Tom Yam Spicy sour soup offering bok choy, tomato, coconut milk, kaffir lime leaf, lemongrass, galangal, chili, lime, and coriander. A few of many enticing entrées are Panang Curry (Gaeng Panang)—cumin-seasoned with coconut milk, cabbage, carrot, cauliflower, onion, garlic, cabbage, and kaffir lime leaf, Haw Mokk Isaan—a thick Curry  made with bamboo shoots, dill, carrot, garlic, onion, coconut milk, tofu, kaffir lime leaf, galangal, and lemongrass, with brown-red rice (Not gluten free) and Glass Noodles with Shitake Mushrooms (Op Wun Sen) featuring garlic, coriander, carrot, broccoli, ginger, black soy sauce, and celery. Numerous sides are offered as well. Dessert offers include Khao Niew Ma-muang—Black Sticky Rice with coconut milk and mango, banana, or both. There’s also Buad Shee—either Pumpkin or Banana in sweet coconut milk, topped with sesame seeds.

Nobody Calls Me Chicken, 2904 Indian School Rd. NE, Albuquerque, NM 87106

Some of their Sandwich selections include a mashed Chickpea Sub of carrots, celery, sprouts, and mayo with dill pickles; BBQ & Slaw crafted with marinated soy curls, pickles, and coleslaw; and their Po’boy which sports battered, fried soy curls, salad fixings, and Cajun sauce. A few Sides that could soothe your comfort zone are Classic Cole Slaw with mayo dressing; Potato Salad of celery, carrots, onion, pickles, and bell peppers; or buttery, brown-gravy- topped Mashed Potatoes. For a sweet, savory dish, you might try Tenders & Waffles – crisp-fried Tofu with a Belgian waffle, butter, syrup, and orange flavored drizzle. Fresh baked Desserts include Classic Chocolate Chip Cookie, or Grandma’s Carrot Cake with Vanilla icing.

UnBEETABLE, 148 Clinton St., Schenectady, NY 12305

A vegan restaurant, bar and arcade, UnBEETABLE has an unbeatable vibe for you and your friends! They provide classic arcade appetizers with different style wings, mozzarella sticks, nachos and so many more to choose from. Their main dishes include different styles of hot dogs, burgers (patties made with the Beyond Meat), tacos, Jerk chicken quesadillas. A kids menu is available and sweet desserts are available along with a gluten-free options for all entrées.

Upstate University Hospital Cafeteria in Syracuse, New York, Offers Vegan Options

Posted on October 16, 2023 by The VRG Blog Editor

A Vegetarian Resource Group member recently visited the Upstate University Hospital Cafeteria in Syracuse, New York and was excited to see that they were offering vegan food options prepared by Strong Hearts vegan restaurant. She said the Vegan Chicken Salad Sandwich was delicious!

Information on Strong Hearts restaurant in Syracuse, NY can be found here: https://stronghearts315.com/

They also have a second location in Buffalo, NY: https://www.stronghearts716.com/

Savory Pancakes

Posted on October 16, 2023 by The VRG Blog Editor

In the United States when people think of pancakes they often picture a pile of pancakes covered with maple syrup. However, did you know that around the world pancakes are savory? Debra Daniels-Zeller shared savory pancake recipes with readers in a previous issue of The Vegetarian Resource Group’s Journal. Enjoy Asian Noodle Pancakes with Sweet and Sour Sauce, Millet-Vegetable Pancakes with Wild Mushroom Sauce, Tomato-Garlic Chickpea Pancakes with Salsa Spread, and more.

Read the entire article here: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2009issue2/2009_issue2_pancakes.php

Subscribe to Vegan Journal in the USA only by visiting https://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

Eat an Apple and Some Broccoli and Call Me in the Morning: Produce Prescriptions Offer Health Benefits

Posted on October 13, 2023 by The VRG Blog Editor

By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

Did you ever imagine that your health care provider would give you a prescription that provides free or discounted produce? Such prescriptions, called produce prescriptions, have been given to people who have or are at risk for diet-related diseases such as heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Often recipients have low incomes. Financial costs of programs providing produce prescriptions may be covered by grants, donations, some Medicare Advantage plans, Medicaid pilot programs, and private insurance companies. Often these are pilot programs and are limited in both duration and in the number of people that can be served.

A recent study examined the effects of produce prescription programs in 12 U.S. states (1). Almost 4,000 individuals received produce prescriptions. About half were adults and half were children. They were all from low-income neighborhoods. Participants received paper vouchers or electronic cards providing from $15 to $300 per month to buy fruits and vegetables at grocery stores and farmers markets. They attended nutrition classes. The median length of program participation was 6 months.

Adults receiving produce prescription ate, on average, more than three quarters of a cup per day more fruits and vegetables; children averaged a quarter cup more per day. Both adults and children reported that their overall health status improved. Among adults with poor health, improvements were seen in blood pressure, glycated hemoglobin (a measure of diabetes control), and body mass index (BMI). These results suggest that produce prescriptions could have important benefits.

At this point, programs that provide prescriptions for produce are small and are unavailable to many Americans who could benefit from them. These programs appear promising and should be considered in any discussion of health care policy.

References

  1. Hager K, Du M, Li Z, et al. Impact of produce prescriptions on diet, food security, and cardiometabolic health outcomes: A multisite evaluation of 9 produce prescription programs in the United States. Circ Cardiovasc Qual Outcomes. 2023;16(9):e009520.

To read more about improving health with nutrition see Ana Negrón, MD. Healing from the Kitchen

Stock up on Vegan Halloween Treats

Posted on October 13, 2023 by The VRG Blog Editor

No Whey Spookie Kookies

Are you looking for places to purchase vegan candy and other treats for Halloween? Here’s some online sources that sell vegan goodies with a Halloween theme, as well as items sold in stores:

Lake Champlain Chocolates Vegan Salted Caramel Pumpkins, Dark Chocolate Squares, and more.

Natural Candy Store Variety of chocolate, lollipops, and more.

No Whey Chocolate Spooky Kookies and a wide variety of vegan chocolates that are allergy-friendly as well.

Unreal Variety of bars, cups, and gems.

Yum Earth Organic lollipops, as well as hard candies.

Need Pregnant Vegan/Vegetarian Women for Research Study Participants

Posted on October 12, 2023 by The VRG Blog Editor

East Carolina University is recruiting pregnant vegan and vegetarian women to participate in a research study that examines urine and breast milk iodine concentration. We need your help in this process.

The following are the basic eligibility criteria:

  • Following one of the following diet patterns: vegan or vegetarian,
  • Currently pregnant,
  • Willing to provide 1 sample of urine while pregnant and one sample of breast milk approximately one month after delivery,
  • Willing to complete a web-based screening survey and a diet questionnaire.

Women selected for the study will receive a gift card to reimburse them for their time.

More information about the study can be found at: https://www.vegstudy.com/

To complete eligibility screening visit (please use Firefox as your browser): https://go.ecu.edu/veg-study

We sincerely appreciate your help.
Roman Pawlak, Ph,D, RD
Principal Investigator
East Carolina University

Where to Buy Vegan Boots in the USA, Canada, and Europe

Posted on October 12, 2023 by The VRG Blog Editor

Bhava winter boot

Are you searching for a pair of vegan boots? Below is a list of online retailers selling vegan boots in the USA, Canada, and Europe.

USA

Bhava Studio Offers women’s boots.

Brave GentleMan Online store out of Brooklyn, NY offering men’s boots.

Mooshoes Offers both men and women’s boots out of New York City, NY.

Sudo Shoes Online store out of Cambridge, MA offering men’s and women’s boots.

Vegan Chic Online store out of Los Angeles, CA offering boots for men and women.

The Vegetarian Site Online store selling boots for men and women.

CANADA

Native Shoes Canadian company offering shoes for kids, men, and women.

Terraluv and Nice Shoes  Canadian company offering shoes for men, kids, and women.

Boots from Ethical Wares

EUROPE

Ethical Wares Online store out of Wales selling a wide variety of men’s and women’s boots. They deliver worldwide.

Green Laces Online store out of Sweden selling boots for men and women.

Nae This Portuguese online store offers both men’s and women’s boots. Ships worldwide.

Noah Shoes Boutique German shop and online store offers women’s and men’s boots.

Veganline British online store offering boots for men and women.

Vegetarian Shoes British online store selling men’s and women’s boots.

Wills Vegan Store This UK online store offers men’s and women’s boots. They deliver to the USA as well.

Quick and Easy Vegan Pumpkin-Based Dishes

Posted on October 11, 2023 by The VRG Blog Editor

Pumpkin is an ingredient to use year-round, but most people think more “pumpkin-y” in the fall and winter. There are two ways to obtain pumpkin as an ingredient: fresh or canned. There is a third option, a pumpkin “stand-in” if you will, frozen winter squash. Chef Nancy Berkoff, EdD, RD, shares some quick and easy ideas for preparing vegan dishes based on pumpkin including a pumpkin latte, creamy pumpkin soup, creamy pumpkin spread, pumpkin rice pilaf, and more. See: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2017issue4/2017_issue4_cooking_tips.php

Subscribe to Vegan Journal in the USA only by visiting https://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

Vegan Options on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor Trains

Posted on October 11, 2023 by The VRG Blog Editor

If you happen to be traveling on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor Trains, you will be happy to know that the café car offers several vegan options including an Asian Noodle Bowl, Blue Corn Tamale, Fresh Vegetable Crudités with Hummus Dip, Pistachio Nuts, and Hippeas Vegan Nacho Puffs.

DAIRY FREE AND EGG FREE SNACKS FROM NATURAL PRODUCTS EXPO EAST

Posted on October 10, 2023 by The VRG Blog Editor

By Charles Stahler

We recently walked the floor at Natural Products Expo East, a trade show held in Philadelphia, PA. Here are a few products of interest.

Outstanding Cheese Balls was a delicious nondairy crunchy cheese snack. See https://outstandingfoods.com/pages/about

Unique and good tasting were pinole chips with 0% saturated fat and made with masa harina flour, brown rice protein, chia seeds, date paste, and sunflower oil. See https://www.bobsnatural.com/products/pinole-chips-traditional

A convenient snack from Mexico that didn’t need to be refrigerated before opening was Fillo’s Walking Tamales. Just open the pouch and eat. Though you may want to warm it up. Contains tomatillo, corn flour, black beans, water, olive oil, garbanzo beans, onion, salt, habanero pepper, serrano pepper, garlic powder, baking soda, brown sugar, onion powder, an dblack pepper. See www.fillows.com

Fabalish Brownie Bites’ first ingredient is chickpeas, but tasted like a yummy brownie. Thaw and it’s ready to eat. See  https://www.fabalish.com/collections/brownie-bites

Looking for dairy free and egg free animal crackers? Try Happy Snacks. See https://marketsquarefood.com/

Totally Bananas has a dairy free chocolate creamy blended covered banana frozen novelty. We saw resistant people take a try and savor the whole sample.  See  https://www.totally-bananas.net/

To carry all these delicious snacks, you can use Pure Sage totes or lunch bags. They use recycled plastic bottles made into fabric, and then turned into bags by employing Jordanian women. See puresagebags.com

Then after eating all these treats, you may want to brush your teeth with Before Toothpaste. Their toothpaste tubes are recyclable sugarcane, which the company says creates a 50% less carbon footprint than traditional plastic tubes. See https://beforecompany.com/pages/our-story

VRG’s Chelsea Chilewa will be reporting more on this show in additional blog postings.

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