LTH Home

My Vegan-ish, out-of-town friend

My Vegan-ish, out-of-town friend
  • Forum HomePost Reply BackTop
  • My Vegan-ish, out-of-town friend

    Post #1 - June 27th, 2005, 1:06 pm
    Post #1 - June 27th, 2005, 1:06 pm Post #1 - June 27th, 2005, 1:06 pm
    ...is coming in for a visit this weekend. By vegan-ish, I mean that he's a vegetarian with vegan aspirations, or leanings, what-have-you. He's an unfussy, but pensive guy who delights in unrushed conversation.

    If you were me, where might you want to go to break bread with such an individual? Last time he was here, we went (and loved) the food/beer selection at Handlebar. [In fact I was there again last weekend and wondered why I haven't gone more often.]

    Of course, there's a lot positive said about Lula's here and other places, so that will be up for consideration. [My wife has been and really liked it, but I've yet to go.] And it's hard for my friend to get good Indo-Pak food in the middle of Michigan, so I'm sure we'll be on Devon at least once.

    Are there any other places that you'd recommend? Again, not looking for scene-y places like Green Zebra. Good solid, vegetarian(-friendly) food, where we can go and linger a bit.

    Thanks much,
    Zee

    Handlebar
    2311 W. North Ave.
    773-384-9546

    Lula Cafe
    2537 N. Kedzie Blvd.
    773-489-9554
  • Post #2 - June 27th, 2005, 1:37 pm
    Post #2 - June 27th, 2005, 1:37 pm Post #2 - June 27th, 2005, 1:37 pm
    Certainly, Blind Faith comes to mind - just off the Dempster El stop.

    Blind Faith Cafe
    525 Dempster, Evanston
    Last edited by nr706 on June 27th, 2005, 1:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
  • Post #3 - June 27th, 2005, 1:45 pm
    Post #3 - June 27th, 2005, 1:45 pm Post #3 - June 27th, 2005, 1:45 pm
    http://www.atomly.com/vegan/restaurants.php?city=1
  • Post #4 - June 27th, 2005, 8:42 pm
    Post #4 - June 27th, 2005, 8:42 pm Post #4 - June 27th, 2005, 8:42 pm
    Welcome to LTH, atomly. We have a number of people on this site who have their own blogs or sites, but all of them contribute content to this site in addition to posting links to their own. I look forward to your participation in this community.

    Cheers,

    Aaron
  • Post #5 - June 27th, 2005, 9:41 pm
    Post #5 - June 27th, 2005, 9:41 pm Post #5 - June 27th, 2005, 9:41 pm
    My husband and I are vegetarian/vegan respectively and visit Chicago a lot--we also love Handlebar (and have never been wowed by Blind Faith, though the menu is extensive. Also avoid Chowpatti).

    This list will be a little different than what might be recommended by this board--perhaps some of these places are not high on their lists but they all offer interesting vegan options:

    Our fav places, not in any particular order, are:

    Russian Tea Time (about 1/4 of the menu is veg), Udupi Palace on Devon (all vegetarian), Soul Vegetarian is a unique experience on 75th (almost all vegan).

    The all-vegetarian Chicago Diner (http://www.veggiediner.com/) is ok, but really excels at hard to find vegan desserts-- soy milkshakes, German Choc Cake, etc; a little fancier for atmosphere is the new Karyn's Cooked (all vegan, I think) in River East.

    I tried Lao Sze Chuan in Chinatown recently (by recommendation of this board)--their menu is well marked with vegetarian options, including some nice soups. I look forward to trying LTH soon.

    My husband loved Adobo Grill but if your friend doesn't want cheese, you'll want to check their menu or call first.

    Of course, almost all Middle Eastern places (Andies, Cousin's, Reza's) have great options as well as most of Greektown.

    Breakfasts are difficult for vegans unless you just want oatmeal--Lula's, Pick Me Up and Earwax have nice options. I had a good grilled sandwich at Orange this morning but that was one of the only vegan items. Wishbone has some interesting sounding items, but hasn't received good reviews on this board--haven't tried it yet.

    Other places on my to try list:
    Mamacita's (Mexican, http://www.mamacitarestaurant.com/), Semiramis, Ed's Potstickers, Cafe Suron (http://www.cafesuron.com/), Tank Noodle, Spoon Thai.

    Site that often have pics, reviews and/or interesting commentary:
    http://www.veganstreet.com/veganliving/chicagodine.html
    http://www.vegchicago.com/site/restaurants.html
    www.pjchmiel.com/vegan/
    http://vegan.uchicago.edu/dining/

    Please let us know how your weekend goes!
  • Post #6 - June 28th, 2005, 3:16 pm
    Post #6 - June 28th, 2005, 3:16 pm Post #6 - June 28th, 2005, 3:16 pm
    People who eat with vegetarians frequently may want invest in Margaret Littman's VegOut Chicago. It's an extremely thorough guide to restaurants offering vegetarian and vegan dishes, even to including BYOB status and corkage charges.

                Image
  • Post #7 - June 29th, 2005, 12:18 am
    Post #7 - June 29th, 2005, 12:18 am Post #7 - June 29th, 2005, 12:18 am
    I'll vouch for the quality of the food at Amitabul. It's worth the drive. Here is a link to an earlier post about vegan-friendly breakfast spots (and includes a short blurb I posted about Amitabul).


    Amitabul
    6207 N Milwaukee
    Chicago,Il.
    773-774-0276
  • Post #8 - June 29th, 2005, 7:01 am
    Post #8 - June 29th, 2005, 7:01 am Post #8 - June 29th, 2005, 7:01 am
    try Alice and Friends Vegetarian Cafe in edgewater. it's a vegan place without pretension, the food's really good, and you won't be rushed. then you can hop on over to hopleaf, simon's, or some other andersonville bar for some libations.

    Alice and Friends Vegetarian Cafe
    5812 N Broadway St
    Chicago, IL 60660-3518
  • Post #9 - June 29th, 2005, 7:40 am
    Post #9 - June 29th, 2005, 7:40 am Post #9 - June 29th, 2005, 7:40 am
    Vicroty's Banner on Roscoe in Roscoe Village has a great variety of vegetarian and Vegan.

    http://www.victorysbanner.com/

    (note: it is run by some group into meditation. there is plinky music and the staff is in their garb. the food is lovely though and the atmosphere very peaceful)
  • Post #10 - June 29th, 2005, 7:56 am
    Post #10 - June 29th, 2005, 7:56 am Post #10 - June 29th, 2005, 7:56 am
    veghead wrote:I tried Lao Sze Chuan in Chinatown recently (by recommendation of this board)--their menu is well marked with vegetarian options, including some nice soups. I look forward to trying LTH soon.


    I recently had dinner with some close vegetarian friends at LSC. In hindsight, I believe our meal was entirely vegan as well. Our menu included:

    Vegetarian "chicken" stuffed with mushrooms (served cold): This is bean curd shaped and molded to resemble chicken.

    Ma Po Tofu, vegetarian style (sans pork): This is one of the best preparations around, sure to satisfy any vegan who can handle the heat.

    Dry Chili String Beans: Really, anything starting with "Dry Chili" at LSC is a fantastic dish.

    Chinese Eggplant in Garlic Sauce: I smelled the garlic as soon as this dish left the kitchen. Bold and rich, everyone loved it.

    Oh yeah, and I had a plate of Tony's Special Three Chili Chicken on my side of the table. :twisted:

    There are dozens and dozens of vegan options that are full of life and flavor at LSC. It is, however, entirely possible and likely that LSC's woks are used for meat and vegetable dishes interchangably. I would first verify that this is not a problem for your guest.

    Best,
    Michael / EC
  • Post #11 - July 1st, 2005, 3:39 pm
    Post #11 - July 1st, 2005, 3:39 pm Post #11 - July 1st, 2005, 3:39 pm
    I second Earwax; they have a good mix of vegan/vegetarian/meat items and it's casual and quirky. Nice patio in the back, too.
  • Post #12 - July 1st, 2005, 5:04 pm
    Post #12 - July 1st, 2005, 5:04 pm Post #12 - July 1st, 2005, 5:04 pm
    For upscale vegan, try Karyn's on Wells a block or so south of Chicago Avenue. Ethiopian restaurants invariably have vegetarian/ vegan options. Try Ethipian Diamond or Ras Dashen, both on Broadway between Thorndale and Granville.
  • Post #13 - July 2nd, 2005, 9:55 am
    Post #13 - July 2nd, 2005, 9:55 am Post #13 - July 2nd, 2005, 9:55 am
    Lula's cafe. i was there yesterday before the Rachid Taha concert, which was EXCELLENT BTW, and had their Chick Pea tagine and the Corn Chowder. I have not had a better bowl of Corn Chowder. And the Tagine was the better than I imagined. I have made some Moroccan food from Paula Wolfert's book so I know a bit of how it should tase like and this blew me away. It had hints of cinnamon and sumac along with a usting of the spice mixture (ras el hanout??), and wth hints of fiery harissa. And the chick peas were freshly cooked, not from a can! The Couscous was nice and falky, not lumpy and the whole dish was just so melt in the mouth tasty. All this for less than 10 bucks.

    On Devon I recomment Arya Bhavan and Udipi Palace. I am sure you are aware of the differences between south Indian and North Indian food and the former makes tasty NI food and the latter does an excellent job with SI food. If your friend is not picky about retaurants that also cook meat, Try Sizzle India that makes fiery food from Andhra Pradesh. People from AP have cast iron stomachs and eat the HOTTEST foods. If you are interested, stop by at a grocery store and get a bottle of PRIYA cut mango pickle (avakaya) and get an idea of what goes by the term relish for people from AP!
  • Post #14 - July 5th, 2005, 11:29 am
    Post #14 - July 5th, 2005, 11:29 am Post #14 - July 5th, 2005, 11:29 am
    Well, first of all, thanks to everybody who offered up suggestions for this weekend. While we didn’t have enough time or stomach capacity to try them all out, I’m sure I’ll be using this thread as reference in the future.

    We started the weekend, like Indianbadger, at Lula’s. I don’t have much new to say about this place, but after this first visit, count me amongst the Lula-lovers. We were able to sit outside with no wait, but we must’ve come at an auspicious time, as there were clusters of people waiting by the time we’d placed our orders. Food: We all took spoons to the squash soup, which was poured tableside around a (goat?) cheese stuffed squash blossom. The soup was a bit thin for my liking, but was well seasoned. My wife and I really enjoyed the sautéed scallops with beet/orange puree and grilled endive. I had the roast chicken with potatoes, which earned its hype. My wife tucked into the pasta yia yia – pasta, cinnamon, feta, brown butter, and garlic (oh my!). My friend had what seemed like a semi-deconstructed vegetarian pot pie. Lots of good-looking and –tasting veggies served with a round pastry crust on the side. For better or worse, he said he could’ve eaten two of the entrees. Gluttons that we were, we pushed forward with desserts. Chocolate gateau was served with praline ice cream. Fine. But the zucchini bread pudding served with lavender flavored ice cream was the one that got polished off.

    We started Saturday at Toast. There was an easy 20 minute wait at around 10:30am, after which we were seated in the back patio. Quiet, serene, tables not on top of one another. Two of us had omelettes, that were very good, but over-sized. The star of the table was the marscapone-stuffed French toast. They looked like Twinkies on steroids, but with exponentially better taste and shorter shelf-life. My low sweet-tolerance would probably make it difficult for me to finish a plate of these, but these were perfectly executed. For thoroughness, we ordered some steel-cut oatmeal and potatoes. Lovely.

    Pre-Millenium Park, we headed to the Green Eye, a stone’s throw from the Western stop of the Blue Line. This is a great, laid-back bar with a good selection. Nice art on the walls, Johnny Cash on the sound system, and the Sci-Fi channel on mute on the TV.

    We brought another friend along with us for dinner up on Devon. In an effort to compromise on heat tolerances, we shied away from some of the suggested S. Indian vegetarian places and ended up at the more formal sit-down side of Viceroy, after peeking at a few menus along the way. The vegetable somosas were OK, but I prefer the somewhat less oily, flakier crust and spice of those at my go-to Devon eats (Sabri Nehari). Here we shared baingan bharta (eggplant that’s seen the inside of the clay oven, then mashed with tomatoes, onions, spices), chana pindi (chick peas), daal makhani (lentils), and the malai kofta (mild cheese and vegetable “balls” in a tomato stew of sorts). Along with some plain rice, we ordered the bread basket, which included tandoori naan, garlic naan, onion kulcha (one of my favorites), and the aloo (potato) paratha. In retrospect, we probably could’ve selected better – the meal was very tasty, but there were only a few degrees of separation across the flavor profiles of the dishes we picked.

    I didn’t realize how late it was after we left Viceroy en route to the bling-bling Ambala signage further west on Devon. I was crestfallen when we reached the door and noticed that we were 15 minutes past their close time. The owner stopped cleaning with his staff when he saw us and motioned for us to come in. He recognized my wife and I from previous visits and apologized that most of his trays were not on display but asked what we wanted. He asked about my mom, who’d only been in the store once before several months ago. I felt poorly for the imposition, but quickly spit out some requests. He had his staff make up a box of pista and badaam barfi (pistachio and almond fudge-like sweets) for us and wrapped up a kaala jaman (like a donut hole, but richer). I also asked for a few pieces of jalebi – and he gave me the ½ pound of what he had left (gratis – past prime, but still hitting a sweet spot that needed a beating). I don’t recommend coming in past closing, but this is a great example of a place with a warm, welcoming staff and great products.

    At the risk of over-brunching, we went to Flo Sunday morning, which was relatively convenient on the way to the MCA. Our first time here. Modest wait, attentive staff, but otherwise kinda so-so food. Fritatta was fine, as was an omellette featuring artichoke hearts and some banana-chocolate pancakes. Black beans served with the frittata weren’t quite done. Final verdict on this place was that it was OK, but no strong desire to return. [Is lunch/dinner worth a revisit?] [Final verdict on Flavin exhibit at MCA –Home Depot art; bring shades.]

    After visiting the MCA, we headed for a mid-day cocktail at NoMI’s lounge in the Park Hyatt. There was an outdoor lounge, but we opted for the empty indoor lounge/bar. Service was extremely attentive, but unobstrusive. Drinks were outrageously expensive but may have been the best caipirinha(s) I’ve ever had. Wife and I checked out the NoMI space and menu and agreed to try it out some time.

    Sunday dinner was on our deck, watching fireworks, with star standouts being fruits and vegetables from Stanley’s. They had the sweetest corn I’ve had all season this weekend, along with some great avocados. Yum.

    In retrospect, we didn’t hit a lot of places billing themselves as vegetarian (and probably easier for us given that my friend is less vegan-leaning these days), but we did have a chance to try some places I hadn’t gotten around to in the past.

    Thanks,
    Zee


    Toast
    2046 N Damen Ave
    773-772-5600

    Green Eye
    2403 W. Homer St.
    773-227-8851

    Viceroy of India
    2516 W. Devon Ave.
    773-743-4100
    http://www.viceroyofindia.com

    Ambala
    2741 W. Devon Ave.
    773-764-9000
    http://www.ambalafoods.com/

    Flo
    1434 W. Chicago Ave.
    312-243-0477

    NoMi (in Park Hyatt)
    800 N. Michigan Ave.
    312-239-4030
    http://www.nomirestaurant.com/gallery/nomi/home.html

    Stanley's Fruits & Vegetables
    1558 N Elston Ave
    773-276-8050
  • Post #15 - July 25th, 2005, 3:03 pm
    Post #15 - July 25th, 2005, 3:03 pm Post #15 - July 25th, 2005, 3:03 pm


    I'd like to congratulate atomly on winning a recent bacon-off.

    Pics here.
    Ed Fisher
    my chicago food photos

    RIP LTH.
  • Post #16 - July 25th, 2005, 3:47 pm
    Post #16 - July 25th, 2005, 3:47 pm Post #16 - July 25th, 2005, 3:47 pm
    I'd like to congratulate me on my superhuman restraint in not linking a picture of a Jury's burger or the Smith & Wollensky meat locker in this thread.
    Watch Sky Full of Bacon, the Chicago food HD podcast!
    New episode: Soil, Corn, Cows and Cheese
    Watch the Reader's James Beard Award-winning Key Ingredient here.
  • Post #17 - July 25th, 2005, 3:49 pm
    Post #17 - July 25th, 2005, 3:49 pm Post #17 - July 25th, 2005, 3:49 pm
    Hear hear!
    Ed Fisher
    my chicago food photos

    RIP LTH.

Contact

About

Team

Advertize

Close

Chat

Articles

Guide

Events

more