Where We Eat: Love Food Central

I was ready to drive all the way to Orlando to celebrate Father's Day when I came across Creative Loafing's 2017 food issue. The issue featured a rundown of the newspaper's 50 favorite sandwiches in the Tampa region. One portion of the rundown was reserved solely for the best vegan/vegetarian sandwiches in the area (dubbed the Classics Go Veg).

Looking thru the list, I realized that I had only eaten two of the five sandwiches highlighted. So I made it a point to knock one of the other three off the list. A friend had hyped Love Food Central in St. Petersburg numerous times the past few months so I selected that as the place.

I knew what I was getting before I even walked through the door. The jackfruit bbq and a nut milk shake called to me and promised that they would do me well. J-Fur came to the conclusion that the g-mash toast (smashed garbanzos, avocado and toast) was where it was at. Z-Bot, who doesn't normally like anything we order for her at solely vegan restaurants, was slightly more of a challenge. I went over the menu three times to no avail. Just as I was about to give up and order her a piece of pie for lunch one of the employees came by to announce the father's day specials. The specials included chocolate chip pancakes. Bing, bing, bing. There it was. Z-Bot loves pancakes like squirrels love to fall in our backyard pool. That is to say, a lot.

The Pulled BBQ Sandwich was everything Creative Loafing and my friend hyped it to be. Love Food Central's "bbq" is created by smothering savory jackfruit in their homemade bbq sauce. The jackfruit is then topped with arugula, avocado and Veganaise and served on toasted sourdough. The subtle flavor of the bbq sauce, slightly peppery arugula and buttery avocado pair nicely with the creamy Veganaise. On typical bread, a sandwich like this would turn into a sloppy mess. But the toasted sourdough that Love Food Central serves (from Sami's Bakery) has some sort of magical ingredient that allows it to hold up to those creamy and saucy ingredients well. It completes the sandwich magnificently.

Pulled BBQ Sandwich

The nut milk shake didn't really do it for me. The shake consists of nut milk and Love Food Central's homemade vegan ice cream. There are a whole slew of toppings that can be added to the shake to pep it up a bit. The shake's taste was fine. It wasn't too sweet or overly strong. That I liked. It was the shake's consistency that left me wanting more. Instead of a uniform creaminess throughout, the shake was very thin in places and slightly thicker in others. That's not how I remember milk shakes being. With all the other vegan desserts on the menu, I regret that I wasted my time, money and calories on the shake.

The Nut Milk Shake

Love Food Central's Father's Day deal was a free soft serve ice cream for all fathers. Even though I had already consumed the milk shake, I wasn't going to turn down a chance to try their free ice cream. The bowl of soft serve was absolutely incredible. As wrong as the consistency seemed with the milk shake, the soft serve consistency was that right. It was absolutely spot on. The flavor was mirrored the shake in that it was not overly sugary like I've come to expect from some vegan ice creams. The flavors of Love Food Central's soft serve changes (not sure how they rotate it daily/weekly/etc.). Unfortunately I didn't catch what flavor they were serving on Father's Day.

Vegan Soft Serve 

While I sort of snickered as J-Fur ordered the G-Smash (what a simple dish!), I wound up being super impressed with this open faced sandwich. The garbanzo mixture had a nice garlicky taste to it. The creaminess of the garbanzos and avocado, offered an incredible contrast to the the toasted sourdough bread. J-Fur (and I) liked this item so much that we have recreated it at home three times since that day. Yes, that includes going to Sami's Bakery and getting our hands on their gluten free sourdough.

The G-Mash Toast

Z-Bot ate as much of the pancakes as her little stomach could. What she left, I finished. By the time I got to them the chocolate chips had melted throughout the pancakes so each bite was a rush of vegan chocolate. Texture wise they reminded me of your typical, non vegan pancakes. That's a good thing, especially when you are trying to get a four-year-old to not think that vegan restaurant food is weird.

Overall I was as impressed with Love Food Central. The only unfortunate thing, aside from the nut milk shake, is that it is such a long drive from Wesley Chapel that we won't be able to visit regularly. Maybe my letter writing campaign to get them to open a location up here near all the other places that are opening up will work. Only time will tell. If not, we always have birthdays and fatherly celebration days.

Food like Love Food Central's is the type of thing you fantasy and dream about. That's why Violet Days single "I'm a Dreamer" was played on repeat during our ride across the bay.

Where We Eat: Farmacy Vegan Kitchen & Bakery

It is 7:45 on a Sunday morning. Both Z-Bot and our newest addition, Special K, are making lots of noise. J-Fur is pounding my back telling me to wake up and do something so that she can sleep a bit longer. I take a deep breath and I wonder what a vegan daddy of two should do so early on Sunday. Church? Nah, still too early for that. A run? Special K is still too young to put into a jogging stroller. Then it dawns on me. Creative Loafing. That's where it's at.

A recent edition of Creative Loafing, Tampa's free newspaper that has everything about everything that is happening in the world of Tampa, ran an article about the opening of a new vegan bakery and quick service restaurant located inside Duckweed Urban Grocery in downtown. The joint, called Farmacy Vegan Kitchen + Bakery, features a bevy of desserts (think donuts, muffins, raw cheesecakes, brownies, cake pops, cobbler, breads and power balls) all made sans meat or dairy. Farmacy also serves a handful of vegan meals including lentil soup, Avocado BLT and a hummus wrap, kale salad, lentil salad, Shepherd's Pie, veggie lasagna and black bean meatballs. So here we are, Sunday morning, with two kids craving a new adventure. Let's go get ourselves some vegan treats.  

When we arrived on the Farmacy scene, I realized quickly that deciding on one thing wasn't going to be an easy task. There was a lot to like (by the looks of things). Z-Bot made her decision quickly, a vanilla donut with sprinkles. I went with a vanilla donut with Oreo cookies and caramel and a sticky bun. Special K was fine just drinking breast milk.

Our assortment of donuts and sticky bun

The donuts were really good. Their consistency reminded me of the vegan donuts you can get at Buttermilk Provisions in Wesley Chapel. They were soft and moist and held together well. They had a consistency that I normally associate with cake. Unlike Buttermilk Provisions, which glazes all of their donuts, Farmacy's were topped with chunks of fun (be it Oreo or sprinkles or something else). The toppings added a subtle sweetness, a slight flavor contrast and a different texture to the cakey donut. I really liked that about them. Normally when it comes to vegan donuts, Z-Bot doesn't always finish them (yeah, more for me). At Farmacy, she scarfed that entire sprinkled beast down. I asked her how it was and her eyes lit up and she said "Good!" That's about as animated as I see her when it comes to food. I'll chalk her up as a fan of Farmacy's donuts as well. 

Speaking of fandom, I grew up a huge fan of sticky buns. As a youngster, that was my "breakfast dessert" of choice. But it had been years since I had eaten one. This abstinence was partially because no one else seems to have the same affinity for sticky buns as I do (and I wind up eating the whole thing myself) and partially because I haven't found a good vegan one in Florida. Unfortunately, I still haven't. That's not to say that Farmacy's version was bad or inedible. It absolute was not. I just didn't find the taste of their sticky bun to be all that interesting. I wanted a little something more, something that stood out and caught my attention. I think consistency wise the sticky bun was excellent. It showed great promise. Tastewise, eh. I found myself wishing I had selected multiple donuts instead of the sticky bun.

My goal for my next visit, yes there will be a next, is to convince the kids that they want to sleep in just a little bit longer so that I can do a sort of brunch thing that meshes Farmacy's donuts with their Avocado BLT. That would probably just about make my Sunday.

Making my Sunday's for the last two months (yes, this track has been sitting in my inbox since the end of March) is You Are Number Six's "Midnight Blue". The track has a sugary darkness to it. That's why it seems like the perfect musical metaphor to a donut topped with an Oreo.

Expect a new YANS track, "Sealed With a Kiss", sometime this week. Expect to see it on the blog sometime in September.

Just kidding.

Sort of.

Where We Eat: Retrobaked

Are you serious right now? These cupcakes are vegan AND gluten free? How do they taste so good? 

That's pretty much the conversation that bounced around my head as I sat on Retrobaked's cute front porch a few weeks back and ate my cupcake. As a vegan, I feel that most of the time it isn't possible to eat gluten free. I mean limiting yourself to one or the other (vegan or gluten free) can make it difficult to eat tasty food. Doing both? Nearly impossible. But somehow Retrobaked has managed to do just that.

Retrobaked is not the kind of place you can just show up and buy from their shelves. Most of the time you have to order ahead. But on the first Friday of the month they are part of the Bradenton First Friday Art Walk. During this event they open their doors from 6-9:30 (PM) and you have free reign to buy whatever they are selling (which they do a good job of promoting on Facebook in the days leading up to the show).

April's art walk featured Retrobaked's vegan and gluten free version of a chocolate chip sandwich cookie, oatmeal cream pies, brownies and four or five different cupcake flavors. I purchased a key lime cupcake for me and a peanut butter and chocolate one for my daughter. I then took a sandwich cookie and oatmeal cream pie to go (they were already wrapped making them the logical eat later snack).

Key Lime and Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Those cupcakes, whoa, best vegan cupcakes I've had in a long time (maybe ever). The cake was moist. I really couldn't tell that it was vegan or gluten free. The icing was perfectly creamy without being too sugary. I loved the hint of lime taste and the gingersnap crust in the key lime cupcake. My feelings about the peanut butter and chocolate cupcake...pretty much the same. Not too sugary, perfectly creamy and dreamy and moist.

As far as the to go items, um, not as much as a fan. For both the cream pie and cookie, again I could not tell they were vegan or gluten free. But both of them were just a little bit too sweet for my liking. I think it was the icing. They were good, but not the image of perfection that their cupcake brethren were.

Will I be back to Retrobaked? Hell yeah! Will I special order a cake? Got my birthday order ready to go. Worth the drive from Tampa on the first Friday of the month? Yep. Will I order anything other than cupcakes? My calories for sweets are limited, I gotta stick to what's best.

The drive to Bradenton was fueled by the new (or is it old?) the Dirty Nil LP called Minimum R&B. Minimum R&B, which is due out next Friday, features eleven tracks from the Dirty Nil's back catalogue. It includes such "hits" as "Little Baby Metal Fist", "Cinnamon" and "Nicotine." Also included from the back catalogue is "Guided by Vices," one of my favorite Dirty Nil songs (before I met Higher Power). One new track, "Caroline", is also included on Minimum R&B. You can check that one out below:



Pre-order the album here (if you live in the US) or here (if you live elsewhere).

Where We Eat: Hablo Taco

A really big football game came to Tampa a few weeks back. This football game brought with it a lot of fancy little popup events that took place all through our downtown. I was invited to one of those popup events, probably because the masterminds behind the event know of my blogging prowess, and I took them up on their offer. I spent a few hours mingling with others in the field of blogging, getting a massage, taking pictures of myself holding a bunch of different trophies and grabbing whatever free stuff I could find.

One thing that was severely lacking in the free realm was food. Chick-Fil-A (not much vegan happening there), soda (no thank you) and popcorn (I'll pass) were all I could track down. Needless to say, I was pretty famished when I left that event. I grabbed a couple of my other blogger friends (yes, bloggers do have friends) for a late afternoon meal. One of them suggested we check out Hablo Taco. I wasn't super keen on this, I mean gringo-centric Mexican food in a part of town where everyone is young and wears sunglassess inside with shorts and a buttoned up shirt never seems to go well. Those places are usually all about the drink with the food being a distant afterthought.

We were seated and given menus almost immediately upon entering Hablo Taco. A round of guacamole was ordered as a precursor to our meal. I was intrigued to see that the place offers three different versions of guac. There is the "house" guac made up of jalapeno, lime and tomato, the "holy" guac with peppers and beans and the "sriracha" guac that includes...you guessed it, sriracha. We opted for the less fired up house version. Despite the fact that the guac contains one alarming ingredient (cilantro) and another borderline one (jalapeno) I was pleased with the flavor. It didn't lean too far in any direction. It wasn't too spicy or limey and I couldn't even taste the cilantro. So far Hablo Taco and their gringo inspired menu was a-ok.

The House Guacamole and Basket of Chips

Hablo Taco had a few options on their menu that appeared like they could be veganized. I really only considered two. One was a salad, one was a bowl. I've been sort of on a bowl kick for the last month (ordering one recently at Chipotle and Capital Tacos) so that's what I went with at Hablo Taco. Their bowl, dubbed the Bueno Bowl, typically contains black beans, queso blanco, pico de gallo, kimchee onions, and either cilantro-lime or Mexican rice. You can add guacamole and kimchee jalapenos for no extra charge. I removed the cheese and added the kimchee jalapenos. I opted for the rice that didn't contain cilantro. Wow. This bowl was a lot better than I ever imagined. The creamy salsa and beans morphed together to form a soft, chunky sauce. The jalapenos and onions retained some of their crunch while offering a pungent, slightly sour note to the dish. They also brought just the right amount of heat. The rice, which was puffed nicely, really took on the flavor of everything else. From where I stand, Hablo Taco probably could've gotten away with adding unflavored rice to the dish.

The Bueno Bowl

Hablo Taco is as gringo as it comes. The crowd is mostly white. The workers are mainly white. Know this before you go in, otherwise you will be sorely disappointed. There is nothing "authentic" in this place. California bro...don't waste your time. I don't want to have to read your review about how this "pales in comparison to taco places in California" and "these guys don't know how to make authentic tacos". That being said, I was perfectly ok with my meal. I'm not saying I would drive out of my way to go here, because I wouldn't. What I am saying is that next time some big football game is in town and the powers that be invite me to hang out with my fellow bloggers while gifting me lots of free stuff, I wouldn't think twice about paying Hablo Taco another visit.

I'm thinking LA based newcomer Ella Vos' knows a thing or two about California tacos. I mean her stunning single "Down In Flames" seems to be all about that time when someone she knows ate food that was just too spicy and spent the evening in front of the toilet aka down in flames. You don't have to be from California to be able to relate. Ella's stellar vocals float beautifully over an expansive soundscape. She is probably the first artist I've come across who can make that fiery taco end (or any end for that matter) feel like a soothing lullabye. Check it:

Taste of Brooklyn (Part 2)

Only three days in Brooklyn, eh. That's simply not enough time. So, I went back. This time I spent three and a half days there! But with no wedding to attend, I was able to get in even more of good vegan eating. Here is a snippet of what I was eating and drink when I wasn't eating bagels.

Chickpea & Olive |  Smorgasburg, East River Park

I crawled out of bed our first day in Brooklyn feeling just a wee bit hungover. Thanks to some shenanigans caused by the federal government in conjunction with a rogue hurricane, my evening flight had morphed into a redeye with a 3 a.m. arrival. My only eats for the past twelve hours had been the free goodies that the airport crew passed out in order to appease their angry clientele. I needed some real food and I needed it now. Thankfully it was Saturday and that meant that Smorgasburg was raging over in East River Park. Chickpea & Olive here I come. Smorgasburg can best be described as a culinary free-for-all crammed into a space about the size of church parking lot. On the Saturday we visited, Smorgasburg was extremely crowded. Had it been just J-Fur and I, I probably wouldn't have been aware of all the people around me, but Z-Bot was along divaing it up in her giant jogging stroller. I steered that monstrosity (magnificently I must say) through throngs of bearded hipsters that always seemed to be going the opposite direction of me. You know exactly what I'm talking about.

Eventually we found our way to Chickpea & Olive. This vegan eatery is famous, at least on Yelp, for its beet burgers. I halfheartedly looked at the menu but really I had known what I was going to order since the day I left Brooklyn two months earlier. It was the beet burger melt with avocado or bust for me. The burger was served on thick toasted bread and sliced in half. I walked with it for a bit looking for some open space to relax and enjoy it. Talk about food porn. People walking by kept eyeing my burger and commenting on how amazing it looks. I'm pretty sure I heard a few catcalls as well.

When I finally found that coveted open space, I dropped everything and took a bite. I don't say this lightly: that was the most flavorful veggie burger I've ever had. The beet burger, vegan cheese and avocado all melded together into a blissful bevy of flavors and textures that held together bite after bite. The thick, toasted bread offered a salty, crispy backdrop of support for the burger to rest its magical head. Some people might balk at the price (13 dollars with avocado added). To those people I'd say, stop treating this burger like your typical veggie burger and start treating it like the hand crafted piece of art it is. You'll quickly realize 13 dollars is a steal.

Georgetown Cupcakes | 111 Mercer Street New York, New York

When my cousin suggested we pay a visit to Georgetown Cupcakes I have to admit, I was quite hesitant. My other vegan cupcake experience in New York, at famed Babycakes, had not gone over so well and I didn't want to waste precious calories on lackluster vegan desserts. When she told me that the place had been featured on some famous food television show and that they have a cupcake camera where you can sit at your computer and watch people make cupcakes all day, my desire to visit dropped even more. Can you say gimmick? But J-Fur and Z-Bot were interested and my cousin espoused their cupcake virtues to no end so I decided to part with some of my precious calories and give their vegan cupcake a go.

The one vegan option that was being sold on the day we visited was apple cinnamon. I could handle that. I'm all about fruit desserts. The cupcake was not overly sweet and moist. Just that in itself made it a better experience than Babycakes. But the pleasure was only beginning. The apple cinnamon cake was topped with an incredible icing that was really creamy. Best of all, this creaminess was not created by fake butter (or at least it had no fake butter taste). A fantastic vegan cake! I hate to admit it but ever since I ate that cupcake, I've been unable to go more than 12 hours without checking in on the cupcake cam. Sometimes I even find myself loosening...nevermind.

The Pulp & The Bean | 809 Franklin Avenue Brooklyn

I had four goals during this visit to Brooklyn. The first one was eat a beet burger from Chickpea & Olive. The second was to get a donut sundae at Dun-well Donuts. Once those two were out of the way, I set my sights on finding some Brooklyn Kombucha on tap. If there is one thing Tampa has going for it right now it is kombucha. I wanted to compare the two cities, see if they were as far apart as I imagined. I conducted an online search for kombucha on tap and the closest one to where we were staying was The Pulp & The Bean, a coffee shop in Crown Heights. Unfortunately the kombucha was all out. I wasn't really in the mood for a latte but Yelpers had kept talking about the soy rose latte, so I got one iced. I wasn't blown away by it. For one, it wasn't sweet enough for me. When I drink coffee, I like it to be sweet. The cool thing was that the latte wasn't overly expensive. I think I even paid less for it than some of the ones I get in Tampa. One thing worth noting about the Pulp & the Bean is their excellent customer service. I loved that even though they were four customers deep the barista ran thru my entire order to make sure she got it right.











Hungry Ghost | 253 Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn

I achieved goal number three by walking about a mile and a half to Hungry Ghost. The only reason the walk matters is that by the time I arrived, I had to piss really bad and there isn't a space for this at Hungry Ghost. I ordered my kombucha, grape is what they had on tap, and I drank it way too fast. It went down smooth, it was unique (not a flavor I had in Tampa before). It didn't strike me as being any better or worse than Mother Kombucha here in St. Petersburg. That's a good thing (both for Brooklyn Kombucha and Mother Kombucha). After chugging, I went across the street to Starbucks and waited in a long line to use their restroom. Best I could tell is that none of the other coffee shops in the area, and there were a lot, had a bathroom either. That's the only reason I could see so many people in Starbucks when there were a lot of other options around.

00 + Co | 65 2nd Avenue, New York

My final goal this trip was to pay a visit to 00 + Co. I mean there just isn't anything creative going on with vegan pizza in Tampa. If they have any it is simply some fake cheese thrown over their normal crust and sauce. At 00 + Co, vegan is at the center of everything they do. I convinced a large group of friends to join me here so we shared three different pizzas. There was a smoked carrot pizza topped with crimini mushrooms, shaved fennel and parsley-mint pesto. I loved the cheese and balance of flavors on this pie. We also ordered the confit and tomato arugula pie. This one didn't quite have the pizzaz of the carrot pizza. It left me wanting more. The farro sausage pizza was also really good, with a nice spiciness to it. The dough at 00 + Co was incredible. It was charred and chewy. The table also got an order of zucchini noodles and farro. This was my favorite dish of the night. I thought the farro sausage performed really well when placed on top of zucchini. 00 + Co is definitely not cheap. It is the kind of place that vegans can go when they want to splurge and have a nice romantic evening. That being said, I recognize the time and effort required to make vegan cheese so I can fault them for pricing their pies a bit high.

Where They Eat: Techtonic at Ezell's Famous Chicken

Seattle based brothers Evan and Tyler Gilsdorf, the duo behind Techtonic, have just released their new track "You Told Me." The single is a hymnal for all those who worship at the feet of summery, future bass. For those of us who just pass by every once in a while to toss an egg or scrawl graffiti on the religious shrines, the song is simply a catchy as hell bender that really challenges your inner dance self.

Despite what the track says, anyone can't really do this shit. It takes a special duo (and then some) to pull off a song like this off. According to whispers I've heard around the future bass community (and posts I've read on future bass message boards), Techtonic couldn't have pulled off "You Told Me" without first selling their soul. They found a buying partner in Seattle stalwart Ezell's Famous Chicken. Here's Evan describing Ezell's and how their chicken relates to "You Told Me":

Ezell's Famous Chicken is that one spot in town where you drive by and your mouth starts watering even if you just ate.

"It's not in the best neighborhood in town either (good soul food rarely is) so you've really gotta commit to making a trek to the other side of town if you want to get it, not to mention the line out the door. But oh man, is it worth it. I feel the chicken fingers are kind of like this song for a few reasons. One, the breading is nice and airy, kind of like the start of this track. But once you bite into them you get the full flavor, and then the spice - just like the 2 drop tiers of the song. The middle section is a call and response rhythm, much like the constant dipping of the chicken in homemade ranch. But most of all, these chicken fingers remind me of a bright summer day hanging with friends and enjoying the simpler things in life, much like was the inspiration for this track."

Get out your finest dancing shoes, grab a jigger of that homemade ranch and experience "You Told Me" how it was meant to be.

The City of Tampa According to Tofu: Thinh An Kitchen & Tofu

Five spring breaks ago my wife and I spent a few days in Asheville. We were spending two nights in a hostel before moving to a bed and breakfast for a night before coming back to the hostel for one more night (if you didn't catch that the first time, you have my permission to reread the line until it makes sense). When we arrived at the hostel the owner took us on an abbreviated tour. As he showed us the kitchen he said "Some local commune gave us a bunch of homemade tofu. Feel free to take as much as you want while you are here. Hell, you can even take some with you when you go." A solitary tear rolled down my face as I thought about homemade tofu and why Tampa can't seem to get nice things.

Hey, it may have taken until 2016 but thanks to Thinh An Kitchen & Tofu, Tampa finally has gotten nice things (at least in the world of artisanal tofu making). Thinh An Kitchen & Tofu is a unique place. When you walk in half of the business is a restaurant that serves boba tea, Vietnamese desserts, Pho and other traditional Vietnamese dishes. The other half of the building is a grab and go with coolers of homemade tofu, soy milk and various meats that might be necessary for cooking Vietnamese at home. There are also a number of metal trays that hold freshly made items. It was here, in these metal trays, that I found the artisanal tofu I was looking to take home.

According to Laura Reiley, food critic for the Tampa Bay Times Thinh An Kitchen & Tofu churns out seven different flavors of tofu. When I visited they had only four (ha, only four, like four flavors of tofu is a normal thing around here). These four were original, lemongrass and chili, onion and mushroom. The mushroom and onion were sliced into large rectangles. They were priced at four for a dollar. I filled a miniature plastic baggie (yep, that's how you take things to go here) with eight of each. The lemongrass and chili came in two forms, large rectangles (like the onion and mushroom) and a block similar to how traditional tofu in a grocery store is sold. I grabbed four of the rectangles and a big block. I was absolutely astounded when they lady rang me up for the block of tofu and it only came out to two dollars. The only place that I have found tofu that cheap in this city is Whole Foods (organic, $1.99) and MD Market (full of GMO's, $1.29). The lady at the register asked if I wanted any sauces with my tofu (options include chili paste, soy sauce, fish sauce and another one  that I don't remember). I settled on some chili paste.

My Plate of Different Flavored Tofu from Thinh An Kitchen & Tofu

I would love to say that I waited until I got home and ate that tofu properly but I didn't. I ripped into the rectangles as soon as I got to the car. Each tofu flavoring was subtle, it wasn't going to overwhelm you with whatever it was covered with. I liked that because it gave you the option of eating it with a dipping sauce or using it in a recipe. The different tofus had a nice chewy shell on the outside of them. Inside they were soft and creamy, almost like a custard. It was absolutely and without a doubt the best tofu I've ever eaten. J-Fur wasn't as instantaneously taken in as I was. She would not go on record as saying that it was the best tofu she has ever eaten. But when I pressed her to name a place that had better tofu, she couldn't. I took that as a motion seconded.

I used the lemongrass and chili block to make Thug Kitchen's Spring Veggie Bowl with Red Curry Lime Sauce.  I adore this recipe but hate the time it takes for the tofu to finish baking and marinating. Already marinated and baked tofu made this a total win scenario. I was very pleased with how the tofu held up when I put it in Red Curry Lime Sauce to warm. There was no crumbling or falling apart and it kept its chewy shell and creamy interior.

Where We Eat: Buttermilk Provisions

Rumor has it Dana M., owner and chief baker of Buttermilk Provisions in Wesley Chapel, used to go on all out baking binges around the holidays. She would ask anyone important enough to be worth inviting to come to her place and eat some of the hundreds of donuts that she was baking. When I asked Dana about this rumor she laughed and said "I don't do that anymore. They want my donuts, they have to come here to get them."

Buttermilk Provisions can best be described as a bakery, coffee and tea shop. The shop is located in a strip mall just north of Wiregrass Mall. While the outside screams "typical Florida business experience" and "nothing unique to see here" the inside is anything but typical. The left side of the shop is lined with couches, chairs and coffee tables. This is usually where we wind up because Z-Bot prefers her coffee and donut experiences to be of the slightly more comfortable variety. The right side includes high tables, barstools and an entire wall covered by an old school chalkboard. This board has been decorated with chalk designed donut and coffee art, propaganda and quotes. It also serves as a coffee education zone (what makes a latte a latte?) and menu board. Buttermilk Provisions offers four rotating donut flavors per day. At least one flavor will be gluten free. Some days they offer vegan donuts, other times vegans will have to forgo the donuts and try out some of the vegan banana bread. Whether it is donuts or banana bread, Buttermilk Provisions makes it a point to have at least one vegan option daily.

My first experience with Buttermilk Provisions was a slightly dry slice of vegan banana bread that my friend brought to me at work during their soft opening phase. I wasn't really impressed with it so I felt no urgency to return. This summer that same friend told me that Buttermilk Provisions had rolled out a chocolate vegan donut. She, being a meat and dairy eater all the way, had gone out of her way to sample the donut. She loved it. When a second co-worker, also not a vegan, exclaimed how good it was, I decided it was time to give the bakery another go. I rolled in with my daughter last Friday and inquired about the vegan chocolate donut I had been hearing about. Dana informed me that they had a dairy free chocolate donut that day but she had unfortunately covered it with an egg filled caramel sauce. I'm sure my face didn't hide my displeasure. What the hell? Why go halfway vegan? (She later explained that people had been clamoring for her caramel sauce and she thought pairing it with the chocolate donut would be perfect. Once she finished she realized that she had now taken her vegan donut and made it not vegan.) I was informed that they had a vegan banana bread and I, begrudgingly, ordered a piece of it. For Z-Bot, I got her one of the halfway vegan chocolate donuts.

This time around I was blown away by the banana bread. It wasn't nearly as dry as the first time. I liked how the banana bread was dense and had only a slight banana taste to it. It wasn't overly sweet. There were chunks of vegan chocolate and walnuts spread throughout. They helped break up some of the denseness of the bread and assisted in making each bite a slightly sweet, crunchy, chocolatey affair. I was so impressed with the bread that when I returned today, and they had a vegan donut, I opted to get both the donut and the bread.

Banana bread with a fancy plastic cup of water

Today's vegan donut was a chocolate glazed, chocolate donut that was also gluten free. It was baked, like all Buttermilk Provisions' donuts are. Since I ordered the donut for Z-Bot, I only wanted to break off a small piece. When I did, about half the donut crumbled in my hands. It did not hold together very well. The donut was moist, something that is often times the downfall of vegan desserts. It looked, felt and tasted more like cake than a donut. Just know this. If you are vegan and expecting a donut that feels like a donut, uh, go to Brooklyn. If you are okay with a vegan donut that acts like a cake, go for it. I was pleased that the donut did not have any weird lingering aftertaste of earth balance or something fake tasting like that (another pitfall of vegan desserts). Vegan desserts are hard to pull off and Buttermilk Provisions seems to be doing a decent job of it. I'm interested to see if Dana continues to play around with more vegan donut variations or if she sticks with the tried and true.

The vegan chocolate donut and banana bread

Buttermilk Provisions serves about ten different flavors of artisan tea from Kaleisia. Their coffee consists of a cold brew, an espresso and a hot brew all from Buddy Brew. I decided a latte was in store for today. The latte was made with Buddy Brew's Double Dog Espresso (the same one I brew at home) and almond milk. Currently that is the only vegan milk that Dana offers. She has had a lot of inquiries for coconut milk but she is just tracking demand right now. Other options could come in the future or they could not. I liked that the latte wasn't overly sweet like other versions (ahem, Starbucks). You could really taste the Double Dog. This wouldn't be a good thing if the coffee wasn't up to par but, as far as I'm concerned, Buddy Brew's Double Dog is definitely a winner. The only thing I didn't like about the latte, my error of course, was that it came out warm. On a 90 degree day, I don't want warm coffee. I want it iced. But I failed to mention that when I ordered it. I've actually done this twice in the last few weeks. I'm so used to icing my own at home that I just assume everyone ices a latte. I guess I could've sent it back to have the barista fix it but I figured I wouldn't ever learn if I constantly have baristas fix my errors.

My almond milk latte, hot. Just how it should be on a stifling day in Florida

You want to make your own tea or coffee at home? Buttermilk Provisions also offers loose Kaleisia Teas and bags of Buddy Brew for sale. The Buddy Brew is especially awesome because I don't have to make the trek down to South Tampa when I run out. It is slightly more expensive than at the Buddy Brew roastery but it is the exact same price that Jug and Bottle and some of the other places that sell it around Tampa have it for. Buttermilk Provisions also has growlers for sale. 

Prices at Buttermilk Provisions are really inexpensive. This is a bit surprising considering that they use "locally sourced ingredients" and everything is "made from scratch daily." These descriptors usually mean that a business can tack on an extra dollar or two and nobody would flinch. The coffee and almond milk run you about four and a half. The banana bread is a little bit over two dollars and the donut is a little over one. Put that together and you've got two snacks, coffee and a tip for ten dollars. I am more than okay with that.

Just like Dana perfected her donut making craft over a number of years, Future Generations' new album has been an extended process. Eddie Gore had this to say about the new album: "This album has been at least 3 years in the making and we are extremely excited to finally be releasing it out to the world. We've grown so much through this process and I have to say that is probably the biggest theme through the whole thing: Growth." The album's new single, "Thunder in the City," fits nicely into my coffee, donut and banana bread runs because, well, it is summer in Tampa. That means everyday there is a period of lightning, thunder and rain. 

Taste of Brooklyn

Back in April, an invitation arrived for J-Fur and I to attend a wedding in Brooklyn. We were stoked. We started making plans for a weeklong tour of the city. I bookmarked the sh** out of all the vegan restaurants in the area and began taking detailed notes about the different dishes I wanted to try. She scoped out tattoo parlors and laundromats (or whatever it is that she is into now-a-days). But then my job came calling, offering me a pretty unique two week summer gig. And Google came calling J-Fur, asking her to do a bit of technical support. Just like that our weeklong trip to Brooklyn became a two day one. That Brooklyn eating extravaganza I dreamed up? Reduced to a period of about four hours.

With only four hours to eat, I had to make my calories count. I sought out things that I can't get in Tampa. Our first stop was Dun-Well Doughnuts. Up until recently, there were absolutely no good vegan donuts in the Tampa area. With the opening of Buttermilk Provisions, and their one type of vegan donut, this might not be the case anymore. I say might because I have yet to give the vegan donut at Buttermilk a whirl. Anyway, Dun-Well doesn't play the whole regular donuts with one vegan option game. Everything at Dun-Well is vegan. This includes the lattes, ice cream, milkshakes, sundaes, donuts, horchata and egg type things. I really wanted to try everything that Dun-Well had to offer. I wanted to come back six days in a row, sampling a different thing each time. The doughnut sundae caught my eye. So did the milkshakes and the lime doughnut. But having just a four hour window forced me to make a decision. I only had one go at this, I had to make it right. So I went with the one most recommended on Yelp, the Peanut Butter and Jelly doughnut. J-Fur ordered a straight chocolate donut. Because there was a ten dollar minimum for credit card usage, J-Fur also ordered a tea and I tacked on a lavender lemonade. Our bill...ten dollars exactly. One thing about Dun-Well's brand of doughnuts, they are certainly not cheap.

The chocolate frosted and peanut butter and jelly doughnuts.

I bit into the PB&J and did a bit of a mind gasp. I'm not a doughnut fan in the least, but this one, it was delicious. The peanutty glaze was not sugary, like I feared, it still had a strong peanut taste. The doughnut was fluffy, sort of like a dough pillow for the rich peanut topping to rest it's weary head. The jelly inside the doughnut was a nice sweet contrast to the rich peanut glaze and doughy doughnut. I offered a bite to J-Fur who remarked "It's way too sweet" after she tasted it. I shook my head in disbelief. I think her tastebuds have just been worn down by all the Dr. Pepper. J-Fur and I both agreed about the chocolate doughnut, it was too salty. Had it been a chocolate and sea salt doughnut, it would've been right on the money. But because she only wanted a chocolate doughnut, it completely missed the mark. I'm not sure if Dun-Well offers a salted chocolate version but, if they do, perhaps it was bartender error that led to the less than stellar doughnut.

My last foray into the world of lavender lemonade came at Kaleisia Tea in Tampa and I wasn't super impressed by it (don't construe this as a knock on the lavender lemonade, it is more a celebration of how awesome the matcha limeade is). The Dun-Well Doughnut version was just how I like it. The lemonade wasn't super sweet and the lavender offered a slight little flavor boost to the drink. It was very refreshing on a sweltering day. 

While returning the handcrafted pottery plate that our doughnuts were served on to the dish collection area, I overheard the bartender talking about Champs Diner. This was one of the places that I had bookmarked. I decided to approach him with my own take on one of those deserted island questions. I said "If you only had four hours in town, were vegan, and really wanted to experience what New York vegan food was all about, where would you go?" He replied, "Champs Diner" is really worth it. So we headed that direction. 

Champs is only about a block away from Dun-Well Doughnuts. Like Dun-Well, Champs is completely vegan. The diner describes itself as serving "Americana comfort food with a no-fuss, laid-back attitude." I contemplated filling the table with various dishes so that I could just sample a bit of everything. I wanted some mozzarella sticks and buffalo wings and seitan asada fries and a grinder and reuben and Philly Cheesesteak. S**t man, I wanted the whole menu. When I realized that Champs was a cash only joint, I had to temper my desires a bit. I had come with limited cash so I'd have to stick with one menu item for me, one for J-Fur and one for Z-Bot. I settled on the buffalo chick'n hero, J-Fur ordered an Awesome Bowl and we ordered Z-Bot the mac and cheese.

Buffalo Chick'n Hero

The Buffalo Chick'n Hero consists of spicy buffalo chick'n, greens, tomatoes, sautéed onions and ranch dressing on a hero. I've eaten a version of this at my house and I love the combo of spicy buffalo sauce and creamy ranch dressing. For some reason, and I couldn't place what it was, the Champ's version seemed overly salty. I remember having the same type of issue with a lot of the items on the Chicago Diner menu back in the day. While the sandwich was still good, it fell short of the perfection that I was hoping for. 

'

The mac and cheese

You know what didn't fall short of perfection? The mac and cheese. This dish was total bomb squad. It was cheesy and creamy without the weird texture or aftertaste that a lot of vegan cheeses seem to suffer from. My daughter only ate a few bites so we took the leftovers home. Later in the evening I pregamed for the wedding by eating the rest of it. About the only negative with the mac and cheese is that it is very oily. Be careful with it, especially if you take it to go. You don't want your three year old to swing it and hit you and ruin a pair of your shorts. 

The Awesome Bowl

The Awesome Bowl was full of quinoa, tofu scramble, bell peppers, garlic sautéed kale, home fries and hollandaise sauce. With that list of ingredients, it sounded like it should be one of the greatest things I've ever tasted. It was. But a large reason for that is because I ate from the side that was not drowned in Hollandaise sauce. Unfortunately, for J-Fur, she couldn't finish the dish because it had too much sauce on it. She loved the part that had only a smattering. Next time, she'd do it on the side.

By the end of our meal at Champ's, I was stuffed to the point of almost being uncomfortable. I knew then that I would be unable to hack a beet burger, New York style pizza or Chinese food. I threw in the white flag and headed home, satisfied, but not downright floored.

Check out my other Tastes of posts:
New Orleans
New York
Orlando
Savannah

Vegan in Tampa: A Guide to Eating Vegan in Wesley Chapel, New Tampa, Lutz and Tampa Palms

I've been living in the Wesley Chapel, New Tampa and Tampa Palms area of Tampa for almost ten years. I have been vegan for four of them. Through research, trial and error and online recommendations I've been able to find some really good vegan friendly dishes, drinks and desserts in this area of town. Here are some of the fantastic vegan options you should check out next time you’re in this part of Tampa!

Capital Tacos #2 |  27209 FL 56 
Wesley Chapel

    

Because Capital Tacos #2 has an out of this world collection of burrito (or if you prefer taco/salad/nacho/bowl/wet burrito) flavor combinations it has become one of my go-to's when out-of-towners come visit. It is really hard not to find something for everyone here.

You want Tex-Mex? Done. Seafood? Got it. Fried Chicken? They've got those too. But what do they have to offer vegans? While Capital Tacos #2 does not have any vegan combinations on their menu as is, they are perfectly willing to adjust their two vegetarian options to make them dairy free.

The first option is the Simon Pure. This burrito contains grilled portabella, black beans, pico, bombera salsa, Mexican street corn, jack and cheddar cheese and rice. Ask for it without the cheese and Mexican street corn (cooked with butter) for a vegan version.

Even after taking off the cheese and street corn, the Simon Pure is still bursting with flavor.

The other vegetarian option is the Mean Verde. The Mean Verde consists of breaded and fried avocado, refried pintos, queso, lettuce, pico, jack and cheddar, crushed chips and poblano ranch salsa. For a completely dairy free version ask for the avocado to not be fried, replace the poblano ranch salsa with a dairy free version and subtract the jack and cheddar and queso.

Capital Tacos #2 offers a number of dairy free sides to compliment your main course. Make sure you don't leave without trying out their chips. They are not your typical scrawny little yellow tortilla chips that seem to be the standard at Mexican restaurants. Capital Tacos #2's version are deep fried and golden and much thicker.

You can't go wrong with any of the salsas (mild, medium and hot) or the guacamole. Just ask them to hold the cheese (which they will sprinkle overtop).


Kwan Ming | 27607 State Road 56 Unit 105 
Wesley Chapel

For the most part fresh and Chinese food seem to exist on opposite ends of the spectrum. Kwan Ming has made it a point to fuse the two together. They have six options that are labeled vegetarian on their menu. Some of these can be made vegan.

My dish of choice, by default, is the tofu with black bean sauce. This dish contains fresh veggies and tofu (that is not breaded) cooked in a black bean sauce. It is served alongside a plate of rice. Why the default?

Because my real number one, my bae so to speak, is the garlic fried rice. 

It is loaded with fresh cloves of garlic that are sliced and fried until they are golden brown on the outside. They are then tossed with your typical fried rice veggies to create a masterfully blended dish. Not too salty. Not too fried. Just bite after bite of blacking out in Tampa and waking up in Gilroy, California. I happily breathe this dish for hours afterwards.

The garlic fried rice is my wife's bae as well. So instead of ordering two of the same dish, I default to the tofu in black bean sauce. Make sure to ask for the fried rice without egg.


Nutrition S'Mart | 1821 Bruce B. Downs 
Wesley Chapel

Keep your eyes pinned to the ground as you walk through Nutrition S'Mart. That way you won't see all the overpriced vegan/vegetarian friendly items they have on the shelves. You don't need that stuff. You can do better (and cheaper) elsewhere.

The important part of Nutrition S'Mart is the far back corner. It is here that the Wesley Chapel location of this chain got wise and built a juice bar/sandwich area.

It is in this juice bar/sandwich area that one can procure some of the cheapest (and tastiest) kombucha on tap. One twelve ounce glass can be yours for just $2.79 plus tax. That's not a mistake, that's the real deal. 

Nutrition S'Mart serves Kombucha Tampa brand kombucha. Flavors on regular rotation include the Blueberry, Hibiscus Berry and Mango.
Don't bother with the growler as, unless my math is wrong, it is a worse deal than just buying a twelve ounce cup.

As far as the rest of the juice bar/sandwich area goes, they have a number of vegan options. These include build your own sandwiches with vegan cheese and a bevy of smoothies. I can't vouch for any of these because I've never gotten past the kombucha.


Ciccio Cali | 17004 Palm Pointe Drive 
Tampa Palms

There are a lot of things I don't like about the Ciccio collection of restaurants. I don't like their weekend brunch menus or their jacking up the prices for dinner. I don't like that they consistently seem to remove my favorite things from their menu with no warning.

Ultimately, as is the case with any restaurant, if the food is done well it can make everything else moot. I must admit, I've never left disappointed or underwhelmed by what I've eaten at a Ciccio restaurant.

Ciccio Cali in Tampa Palms has a menu that is littered with wraps, bowls, pizzas, salads and stirfrys. These items feature a large variety of fresh vegetables, some of which I've never seen offered at any other restaurant. These include kale blends and spaghetti squash.

Ciccio Cali meets the needs of their vegetarian and vegan customers by providing the option of switching out any meat for a veggie and broccoli mix (I don't understand why more restaurants don't do something like this).

My meal of choice at Ciccio Cali is the Fire Bird. The veggies are tossed in buffalo sauce, paired with rice, then wrapped in a pressed tortilla. Delicious! 

Other vegan options include the vegan, thai, fitness and citrus bowls (replace the chicken with veggies in the latter three), all the stirfrys and the entire line of side dishes.


Cappy's Pizzeria | 16019 Tampa Palms Blvd.
Tampa Palms

Since the beginning of time pizza has remained virtually the same, the sum of four amazing parts (sauce, crust, topping and cheese) joined together as one.

Some people like to mess with this perfection. They subtract or alter one of those elements to see just how dreadful the result is. I must admit, I'm one of those people. I love me some pizza. I don't love me some cheese.

Cappy's is one of the few places in Tampa that can pull off a vegan pizza. 

This is because their flaky deep dish Chicago style crust and their tangy, slightly spicy, red sauce are flavorful enough that removing the cheese doesn't hinder them.

I usually top my deep dish pizza with fresh spinach and artichokes. Make sure to specify that you want it vegan, otherwise they may sprinkle Parmesan on top of the sauce.


365 Caffe Italiano | 28211 Paseo Drive, Suite 10 Wesley Chapel

Need a vegan dessert in the Wesley Chapel/New Tampa/Tampa Palms area? 365 Caffe Italiano is the place to go. Each and every day (365/7) this shop offers at least 3 different dairy free gelato options. Some days they even go all crazy and stretch it to four.

If you are in to chocolate and mint and desserty flavors like that and are dairy free, well, you are out of luck. At 365, those all contain the animal stuff.

But if you are like me and hate those flavors with a passion, no big deal. It is the fruit options at 365 Caffe Italiano that contain no dairy. Mango and berry blast are just two of the vegan versions I've tried. Sweet, cold, refreshing and tasty.

Buttermilk Provisions | 2653 Bruce B Downs Blvd
Wesley Chapel

Buttermilk Provisions can best be described as a bakery, coffee and tea shop. The shop is located in a strip mall just north of Wiregrass Mall. Buttermilk Provisions offers four rotating donut flavors per day. At least one flavor will be gluten free. Some days they offer vegan donuts, other times vegans will have to forgo the donuts and try out some of the vegan banana bread.

Whether it is donuts or banana bread, Buttermilk Provisions makes it a point to have at least one vegan option daily.

Most days they offer a vegan banana bread. I wasn't a big fan of it during my first go round. But subsequent go rounds have me pretty blown away by it. I like how the banana bread is dense and has only a slight banana taste to it. It isn't overly sweet. There are chunks of vegan chocolate and walnuts spread throughout. They help break up some of the denseness of the bread.

The vegan chocolate glazed, chocolate donut is baked, like all Buttermilk Provisions' donuts are. The donut is moist, something that is often times the downfall of vegan desserts. It looks, feels and tastes more like cake than a donut. Just know this. If you are vegan and expecting a donut that feels like a donut, uh, go to Brooklyn. I was pleased that the donut did not have any weird lingering aftertaste of earth balance or something fake tasting like that.

Buttermilk Provisions serves about ten different flavors of artisan tea from Kaleisia. Their coffee consists of a cold brew, an espresso and a hot brew all from Buddy Brew. Lattes can be made with almond milk, currently the only vegan milk that Buttermilk offers.

Ice Dreamery | 23912 State Road 54 #2
Lutz

Ice Dreamery is an ice cream lounge in Lutz that makes small batch ice cream. That means they produce one (or is it two?) painstaking gallon(s) at a time. Why? So you can have the freshest hand dipped ice cream around.

I know what you are thinking. Ice Dreamery set up shop right across the street from Dairy Queen. If I want my chocolate or vanilla ice cream why don't I just go there? In short, you should. I mean those flavors are too ordinary for Ice Dreamery. This place is into flavors that are unique and bold. Take, for instance, their inclusion of adult only flavors. Both times I visited, Ice Dreamery's menu featured at least two different ice cream flavors that incorporated alcohol. Rum Haven, Nutty Drunken Praline and Bailey's Coffee Chip are just three of the alcohol/ice cream combinations they have featured. The kid friendly flavors are just as edgy. You could get your hand on some Butter Beer, Cookie N Dream, Mango (with a jalapeno ice cream cone pairing in the works), Chocolate Bacon Toffee or Smooth Chocolate Velvet (which features just a bit of Nutella).

So what does all this have to do with vegans? Nothing. But this next part does. Each day Ice Dreamery offers at least two different coconut based ice cream flavors that are dairy free. During my two visits these flavors were the almond joy (almond extract, chocolate powder and coconut ice cream) and a plain coconut version.

The vegan ice cream was soft and creamy with little flakes of coconut in it. I had a hard time believing that it was dairy free. 

That's how convincing Ice Dreamery was.

If that's not bold enough for you, try this on for size. Via their website or an in person visit to their lounge, Ice Dreamery will take flavor suggestions. Yep, that's right, you the customer can partially control what comes next. If they choose your suggestion, they will blast your name all over social media and let everyone know that it was you who came up with it. So go ahead, come up with something crazy, something so bold and daring that you think it can't be done. I'm sure Ice Dreamery is up for the challenge.

FYI: I've already suggested a lavender coconut vegan version so if you were thinking that, just stop now and head back to the drawing board.

Where We Eat: Market on South

I was minding my own business, surfing through some of those guns and ammo lover chatrooms, when the screen name @wmdprankster asked for a private chat. I decided to go for it, thinking maybe I could get a fire burning on some real hot gun porn. But when I entered the private room @wmdprankster had already left leaving only a video behind. I watched the video, a grainy surveillance tape with the date blurred out. It appeared to be footage of a coffeeshop in Orlando selling a vegan cheesesteak panini. I had to check this out in person, see if this video was legit.

I took a weekend and drove out to Orlando. I stopped by the coffeeshop, called Sleeping Moon Cafe, and walked to the front register. I knocked twice on the wooden counter, cleared my throat and said to the barista, "I heard you guys sell vegan." The lady hemmed and hawed for a few seconds and then responded with a "Not really." She went through the entire menu and only found one thing a vegan could eat. I ordered a wrap, not something she suggested, and asked for it without the cheese. I forked over seven dollars. Once the barista had my money, she motioned for me to lean in and whispered in my ear, "Are you vegan? If so, you might want to check out Market on South. I'm not a vegan or even a vegetarian but I appreciate how good their food is." I thanked her, ate my very mediocre sandwich, and found a hotel room where I could hole up, eat some local jams and contemplate my next move. I had already been fooled once, did I really trust a barista at some coffeeshop? On the other hand, why would she send me to a different business than the one she was working at unless she really believed in it? Eventually, I decided to go for it. That's the long story of how I wound up at Market on South.

Market on South is really the brainchild of three different vendors who were looking for a place to showcase their products. Dixie Dharma provides the southern inspired vegan comfort food, Valhalla Bakery fills the dessert case with vegan sweet treats and Humble Bumble Kombucha brews up the refreshing kombucha combinations that are found on tap.

The menu is limited, only twelve items from top to bottom, but that doesn't make it any easier to decide what to get. Do you go with a Pulled Carolina Jackfruit BBQ Sandwich? Maybe a Georgia Peach Sloppy Joe or a Tempeh Lettuce and Tomato Sandwich? I decided to go with my ol' Southern standby, the Fried Green Tomato Sandwich. The Market on South version is topped with garlic kale, chow chow and smoked eggplant remmy. As a side I ordered crispy brussels. J-Fur got the Hail Kale Salad with Smoked Tempeh Bacon. For Z-Bot, we wanted Market on South's Mac and Cheese but they were all sold out. They suggested cheesy potatoes as an alternative so we gave it a go. To wash it all down, Citra Hopped Humble Bumble Kombucha.

       Fried Green Tomato Sandwich

Market on South's Fried Green Tomato Sandwich includes two extremely thick sliced tomatoes served on bread that is also sliced thick. It reminded me a lot of Texas Toast because of how wide it ran. The top of the bread is sprinkled with paprika. While I didn't really taste anything different with the paprika dusting, it made the sandwich look really cool. As far as the taste goes, whoa baby. The tomatoes were nice and crispy and the breading held up nicely to it each bite (nothing worse than losing all the breading after just one bite). The garlicky kale and pickled veggies were a nice touch adding a punchy, slightly sour note to the tangy tomatoes. 

                  Crispy Brussels

Don't be scared away by the extra dollar price tag for the Crispy Brussels. These little bad boys are totally worth it. They are fried and seasoned to perfection and by that I mean that I've never had brussels sprouts that tasted this good before. These definitely aren't your mama's brussels.

                 Cheesy Potatoes

I don't suggest you eat these potatoes expecting them to taste like their non-vegan counterparts, you will be disappointed. That's because they are much more flavorful. While most regular cheesy potatoes do their taste making solely from the dairy, these spuds didn't have the option to fall back on that pattern. Instead the combination of spices and marinades created a nutty, umami packed flavor bomb. I'd love to say that my daughter enjoyed these potatoes but she was so set on Mac and Cheese that she didn't even touch them. Oh well, that meant more umami for me.

             Hail Kale Salad

This salad had both its good and uh, not bad per se, more like just adequate. First, the good. The homemade croutons were extremely flavorful as were the greens. I loved, loved, loved the pickled red onion and watermelon rind which contrasted the greens nicely. The greens themselves were really well done with just a hint of garlic to them. The adequate? That would be the smoked tempeh bacon. I expected something salty and contrasty, that's what I remember about bacon. This version was way too sweet for my liking. I never was a hickory smoked fan.

At this point, after the initial tasting frenzy took place, Z-Bot had a melt down. No mac and cheese meant not only was she not happy but everyone else should follow suit. So J-Fur rushed her out to the car, salad unfinished, and allowed me to finish my meal. I grabbed some sweets to go. While the whole case looked amazing I decided on, after recommendations from the cashier, a Lavender and Vanilla Bean Yolo and a fruit bar. The fruit bar was soft and moist, not overly dry like a lot of vegan fruit bars I've had. I thought the fruit taste was much more muted than I would've liked. I like my fruit bars to taste super fruity.

       Lavender and Vanilla Bean Yolo

The star of the dessert show was definitely the Lavender and Vanilla Bean Yolo. A Yolo is basically two cookies surrounding a cream center. There was definitely a lot that could've gone wrong with this dessert. The filling and cookie could've been too sweet, too dry or too oily (just to name a few). But both of them were oh so right. I could've sworn that the filling in the middle had dairy in it because it didn't seem weirdly textured or flavored in the least. There was a hint of vanilla bean that existed throughout the dessert but it was the lavender that was king. This Yolo had a strong enough to notice, yet subtle enough to not be overkill, lavender taste. If you aren't a fan of lavender, don't think this dessert will mask it. It's all there for the tasting. If you are a fan of lavender, might I suggest you find your way to the Milk District of Orlando and hit up Market on South pronto.

I was very much impressed with my accidental visit to Market on South in Orlando. Its memorable food and completely vegan menu has me counting down the days until I can return for some more. Hey, You Only Live Once, right?



The musical version of Market on South is Austin's Ultraviolet. I say this because the band's sound is a "modern spin on classic shoe gaze sounds of the early 90's" that is created by groaning guitars and ethereal vocals. It marries opposites that support each other in the most beautiful and delicately balanced way. I'd say that about sums up the triumvirate mingling of Valhalla Bakery, Humble Bumble Kombucha and Dixie Dharma.