Richmond bites

Enjoying the rocks on Belle Isle

Here's a brief respite from healthy smoothies. This past weekend my boyfriend and I made a mini trip to Richmond, VA. We went to a beautiful park, called Belle Isle, which is an island in the James River. It was a POW camp in the Civil War and later used for industrial purposes. Now it's a revitalization project with an impressive retrofitted pedestrian bridge under the car-centric Robert E. Lee Memorial Bridge. The revitalization seemed to be working, as the scene was vital -- with lots of brave bathers in the rapids.

The park would make a fine spot for a picnic. However we were also in Richmond to dine out, which we did at these three veg-friendly spots.

Vegan breakfast burrito with salsa and grits

821 Café 
We hit 821 Café for brunch.  Located at 825 West Cary Street, this busy café had a kitchen staff of very energetic punks. It was fun to watch them slice massive amounts of onions from the counter bar stools. My boyfriend and I both ordered the vegan breakfast burritos with sides of grits and salsa (above). The burrito was filled with curried tofu, vegan sausage, rosemary potatoes, and black beans. My boyfriend thought his burrito was too bland but I doused mine in the readily available hot sauces.

The grits were rather meh; like Cream of Wheat. But I think that's a style. (We are spoiled by the delicious jalapeño vegan grits at DC's Smoke & Barrel.) 821 Café also had an impressive draft list, good coffee, unsweetened tea (hard to find sometimes in the South), and spacious bathrooms.

Vegan Buffalo Wings

Strange Matter
Next we visited Strange Matter, a barcade/music venue at 929 W Grace Street, for pints and classic 1980's video games. We weren't going to get any food but could not resist the Vegan Buffalo Wings, served with vegan ranch dressing (above). Made of tofu, these greasy, breaded faux wings did the trick. Overall, Strange Matter is a little funky but lovable. Half of the arcade's games are out of commission but that adds to the charm of the few working machines. It's like playing in a video game graveyard.

Panda Veg Buffet plate

Panda Veg
Finally we ended our Richmond excursion at an old favorite, Panda Veg, located at 948 West Grace Street. Okay, I guess this restaurant has, in fact, changed their name to "Panda Garden" and they are no longer all veggie. They now offer meat. But the inviting sign on their facade continues to read "Panda Veg" and that's what it is in my heart.

Panda Veg still has an all vegan buffet on weekend nights. Yes, an all vegan Chinese food buffet. The quality and quantity of the buffet was very good on the night that we visited. Although some of the dishes are laughable. Like the salt potatoes, which are my boyfriend's favorite buffet item. I enjoy the donuts for dessert but you shouldn't overdo. (Once, with my parents, we got an entire Chinese take-out container of them. Too much of a good thing.)

Dessert of oranges and donuts

Norfolk, VA bites

 

Amtrak recently extended its North East Regional service to Norfolk, VA. My boyfriend and I love to explore cities via train, so we decided to make a mini-trip to this new end of the line. An otherwise sleepy, Southern city, Norfolk has one of the most active ports I've ever seen. We gawked at the naval vessels, rode the free ferry for kicks, and spotted Peta's headquarters on the Elizabeth River. And, of course, we sampled some of the vegan fare that Norfolk has to offer. Here are some highlights:

In the Ghent neighborhood, we split a sandwich at Cogan's Pizza, 1901 Colonial Avenue. This vegan "chicken" Philly sub (above) was a delicious mouthful. I think Gardein and Daiya have been discovered big time in Norfolk. The sandwich was packed full of these mock products. It also had sautéed onions and peppers. There was a high charge for our vegan substitutions ($4). However, the friendly staff split the sandwich into two baskets, each with pickle and chips. Cogan's has a good beer selection and ample outdoor seating in their welcoming front patio area.  

In Downtown Norfolk, we visited Hell's Kitchen for dinner. Located at 124 Granby Street, Hell's Kitchen is convenient to the light rail and not far from the waterfront. This chill bar/restaurant/live music venue has a small vegan menu with some pricey items. (However, they have no hidden vegan tax.) I ordered the BBQ Grilled Burrito. I asked for black beans but it came with fake chicken instead, which was fine. This tasty burrito featured a sweet, tangy BBQ sauce. I thought the provided steak knife was a joke at first but it really was helpful for cutting.

My boyfriend had the Buffalo "Ficken" Wrap (below). This wrap was less inspired, with limp lettuce, dry tomatoes, and, you guessed it, more Gardein. As for the side veggies, the asparagus was great, the broccoli terrible. I can't recall when I've had broccoli that tasted so much like cardboard. Still, it was nice to have green sides after all the processed food.  

Overdosing on fried foods, a Guy Fieri-inspired post

If you are looking for a laugh, I recommend two recent reviews of Food Network star Guy Fieri's new Times Square restaurant. One in The New York Times (paywall) and another in The New York Observer. I read these articles with schadenfreude and some regret. Because I too fell into a Fieri-style trap and overdosed on unhealthy fried foods last weekend.

Clare and Don's Beach Shack is the scene of my crime, located at 130 North Washington Street in Falls Church, Virginia. This beach-themed restaurant in a landlocked suburb is a 20-minute walk from the Metro. That long walk was the only thing healthy about my Clare and Don's visit.

When you ask about vegan options here, the staff digs out a much-worn pink menu with the vegan and vegetarian preparation options detailed in full. It's painful to admit that my boyfriend and I didn't even attempt to order something redeeming from this menu, like a side veg or chopped salad. 

Photographed here are three deep fried dishes, with "dippin' sauce." From the top is the "Phish and Chips," in the middle is the "Uncrabcake Sandwich" and below are "Tofu Balls."  All of these dishes ended up tasting the exact same. They had a great first bite but crashed me into the fried foods wall quickly. Just looking at the photos, days later, makes me nauseous. I think I've now officially exceeded my annual quota for battered and fried tofu. Maybe I'll skip it entirely in 2013.