Pie Marathon

Buddakan, Parc, and Distrito in the past week and I think the most memorable hours I spent were during Pie Day. We baked the following, along with a pecan and an extra apple cheddar crumb.


Chocolate Meringue (Stunning. A keeper.)


Boston Cream Pie (The only cake that can hang with pie)

Apple Cheddar Crumb

Pie Cocktail (leftover apple sludge mixture, bourbon, topped with apple cider, garnished with lemon peel)

Get Your Brunch On

Kenzinger and seitan are two of the most versatile ingredients a veg can keep on hand. This Sunday, Mi Lah will show us why. For too long, we have gone without the trashy Southern cooking that we deserve, but the $20 prix fixe vegan brunch at the veggie byo is bringing grits, lumberjack plates, and biscuits n' gravy back to our skinny hearts.

Side Dish

• If you haven't been turned on to it, Lotus Cake Studio's vegan pumpkin cheesecake is an exceptionally creamy alternative. This year, you can buy a whole one to not eat by yourself. Each 9" cake has about 12 servings and removes $36 from your cashmo'. To place an order, call up my boy Ming at 215-627-4500 by Monday for a Tues-Thurs pickup. NEW HARMONY, 135 N.
  9th Street

• Nothing going tomorrow? South Philly's Brio Vim is holding their First Annual Vegan Thanksgiving Potluck Feast from 5-8pm. The rules are few. Depending on your name, bring a beverage and:

A-G: appetizer
H-M: side dish
N-S: main dish
T-Z dessert

• If you haven't been to Brio Vim, the pay-what-you-can yoga space at 1543 S. Mole Street is also planning a vegan brunch for Dec. 7th. At $10 a plate with a waffle bar, you can almost call on me being there.
• More reason to Bloody Mary: Mi Lah has vegan brunch all set for Nov. 30. The word on this soon.
• Did you know that Franklin Fountain carries soy ice cream? I had to pass, though. You cannot guess my flavor.
  

Veg Out: Argan Moroccan Cuisine

When I think of Moroccan roughage, I expect hearty tajines, mounds of couscous, and savory pastries spun from phyllo. Platters meant for sharing, lots of eating with the hands, that kind of thing. I don't want it to be so authentic that I have to show up with a live chicken as an offering to the household. But I want it close.

This Argan, days old, is but a sandwich shop. There's a more traditional menu coming as it grows, but the vegetarian pickings make nice enough lunch grub. On the weekday that I visit, it meets some major criteria: the smells are instantaneously seductive. The interior is warm, clean, and inviting. Sandwiches are $6.99. Alright, I'll hang.

The Zaaluk sandwich boasts eggplant, but more importantly has a name that begs to be uttered with full effect. My loyalties bed with the smoother Baba Ghanouj, however, and I add on my choice of three toppings: tender, buttery potatoes, protein and fiber-rich white beans, and passable tomatoes. It's not the most exciting sandwich in the world, with so many mellow flavors, but the pita bread it comes on is no regular pocket. The fluffy flatbread is yellow and incredibly fresh-tasting, nothing like falafel-joint-caliber pitas.

I'm still let down that there are four sandwiches that are nearly the same thing and not much else to choose from. There's no mint tea, nothing dessert-like to exert extra dollars from us. If they can expand the selections quickly, I'll pop up again. Until then, I'm already bored.

Argan Moroccan Cuisine, 132 S. 17th St. (next to Bonte, easy to miss)

My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys

With all of the faux turkey opinions floating around (check today's Metro), I want to cover my ears and find a way out. It's all about the wine and pie for me.

I almost let a Celebration Roast from Whole Foods into my cave for testing, but shook myself. We're better than that.

I now believe that Epicurious' Pot Roast of Seitan may be the way to go.

But if any vegan chefs want to plate something for me, or even tempt me with their thoughts, I've got all week.

There's little romance in cooking acorn squash pancakes for myself or releasing a Tofurky from the freezer.

Vegans Live Again

When I heard that the soy shake shifters behind Viva Las Vegans, the Drexel lunch cart, were starting up Lulu's Sweet Apothecary in NYC, I flew into a jealous rage and pretended that I lived in West Philly and would be dramatically inconvenienced by its closing. Between us, I've visited only a handful of times, and it was always a good idea.

Even though their vegan dessert shop is demanding high amounts of attention in that OTHER city, Viva Las Vegans will still be around on Mondays and Tuesdays from 11:30-3pm, starting on Monday. Slim, slim, slim visitation options, surely, but let them know how you feel about it.

Viva Las Vegans
33rd St. (between Market & Chestnut)

Veg Out: Viva Las Vegans

From Sketch to Canvas

Sketch is now open for lunch, 11:30 AM on. There's a lot of missed opportunity I have to make up for. Phyllis made a genius move in adding vegan garlic mashed potatoes to the menu, along with her desserts.

Canvas Cafe has a new owner, but will have the same menu. It should reopen any day now.

Sketch, 413 E Girard Ave
Canvas Cafe, 400 E Girard Ave

Veg Out: Lucky 13 Pub

The range of scenes to be found on Passyunk Ave. never fails to bewilder.

Every 8 steps of the foot there is a reason to stop and eat something or exchange how are ya's with an old roommate.

There's even an unlikely psychobilly bar where you can order a tempeh on rye called the Ace of Spades, samosas, and quinoa-black bean salad. Lucky 13 has been serving food for a few weeks now, though it's the bar that seems to be getting the most attention. We stopped over on a quiet night to find an empty dining section, but the front bar soon found its groove with Dogfish Head, Magic Hat, and those that drink it. Among the young and tattooed, there was a well-behaved older couple sipping vino and dining quietly. I sent them a high five of the eyes.

In the Ace of Spades, I found regard for the chef, who was sending out high gastro sandwichery. Most pubs won't even mess with tempeh, but Ben Johnson has a way with it, caramelized onions, sprouts, and all. Give this laidback watering hole a shot. You already spend enough time at the PoPE.

Lucky 13 Pub
1820 S. 13th St

Now Open: Bella Vista Natural Foods

My quick drop into BV Natural Foods (Molly's Books turned into a veg mini mart) gave me immediate relief that it would be a sanctum for future foraging. The Italian Market retreat beckoned with a bushel of apples out front, and what set it apart from other produce vendors was that these apples appeared to have some crunch left in 'em.

BV makes the most of what little space there is inside by stocking the basics and favorites. You'll find one brand of yogurt, but it's the best: Pequea Valley. Tofu knishes, vegan sandwiches, and frozen products like Amy's Burritos are in a cold case towards the back. Pantry staples and healthy snacks line the shelves, bulk bins of granola and legumes hang off to the side. Vegan cookies and granola bars are near the front, and there are also a few books devoted to dietary lifestyle, in a true nod to the shop's former identity.

It's open until 7pm every day.

Bella Vista Natural Foods
1010 S. 9th St.

Veg Out: Kingdom of Vegetarians

I've been going to Kingdom of Veg for many years and return for 2 major reasons:

1) Vegan cheesecake from Lotus Cake Studio
2) Cheapo lunch box deals

And recently a third:

3) $10 All You Can Eat Dim Sum

I normally steer clear from this because it's just too much food, but you can take the extra home and turn it into next day's Dim Sum Casserole.

From K of Veg's dim sum, I discovered the steamed roast pork buns. A normal order of the appetizer includes 3 puffy buns. The dough tastes like Pillsbury and expands in your stomach as such, creating a super filling snack that will kill any appetite. Start the steamed pork bun diet today and in about a week you'll look a little better in the bedroom.

Kingdom of Vegetarians
129 N 11th St.

Veg Out: Bombay Express

What's that all wrapped up street-food-style in some ugly chic foil? Allow me. The perfect cross between a taco and a kebab, the khati roll is a portable way to get your Indian on. These rolls are rare findings in our city, so ignore the fact that Bombay Express has a strip mall appearance and stroll in like you know something.

Sad rows of lassis are pre-made, sweating in the tacky lighting. Even more unsettling, smoothies and protein shakes show up for this beverage menu party. 'Ho America. The choices are simple and nearly everything is already cooked. Less than 10 specials of the day wait to be added to veg or non-veg combo platters. Naan or garlic naan, don't you dare conceive of any further options. Veg samosa or samosa chaat, rid yourself of grander ideas.

Here's where the menu gets even skinnier. For something different, there's a veggie burger, no regular burger. Ironic types, they're talking to you.

Assuming you're here for none of the above, we get back to the khati roll. Your choice of chicken tikka, paneer tikka, or aloo tikka tucked in rolls of paratha is slid before you for a wee $4.50-4.95. With just enough grease and spice to cause a vision of yourself in a Bombay McDonald's, I expect a thank you note bound in paratha by next Wednesday.

Bombay Express (free delivery within 5 blocks)
12th & Sansom

New Love: Beer-Battered Green Beans

The Pro Tap's lager-dipped side is such a hot plate that at one point I believe everyone in the bar was munching on the crispy green beans. Let the fries go, it's time for an oil change.

Prohibition Taproom
501 N. 13th Street

Veg Out: the Market at Comcast Center

We each have our inclement weather dining right. Mine happens to be the underground cafeteria at Comcast Center. It's significantly less depressing than most food courts and nowhere near as crowded. Jacked-up gourmet to go is okay, it's rain food.

Posts from Bros. DiBruno and Termini are next to each other, LaScala's pizzas increase the Italian blood. A juice bar called Squeeze is adjacent to a produce market, there's coffee and sushi to dry off with.

I die hard for DiBruno Bros., yet I manage to buy everything except cheese there (red velvet cake defeat). This visit is no different, as I reach for a Mediterranean Wrap stuffed with olives, cabbage, hummus, and rubiks of feta. I wager that it will be ordinary, as the descriptor "Mediterranean Wrap" often implies, but that it ain't.

Comcast Center Market
1701 John F Kennedy Blvd