Currently viewing the tag: "burrito"
I can’t stop eating it. Mango and sticky rice. I love it. I think I need to do a search for the best–and really, when I say the best I mean the biggest portion. I really have never had a bad batch. Even after this to-go mango & sticky rice sat in its foil container for quite some time, resulting in gummy sticky rice, it was still delicious! This batch was from Pagoda Thai by my apartment and eaten at the foot of the East River in Brooklyn Bridge Park.
When I read that Bushwick Pita Palace, a neighborhood falafel joint, had burritos and Daiya on their menu, I knew I would soon succumb to delivery. On a sweltering summer day in Brooklyn I gave them a ring, pleased as punch with their friendly disposition. I ordered their super veggie burrito which, thankfully did not have squash or broccoli in it. Just the basics: rice, bean, guacamole, cheese, sour cream, fresh tomato and some shreds of Romaine. I ordered a side of their super-hot green salsa to meet the minimum. Beyond the burrito, Bushwick Pita Palace is great. $3 falafels, fast and friendly. I recommend them highly. Unlike the pretentious, hipster-owned, bad-attituded $7 falafel of Yummus Hummus.
Ah, I miss Boneshakers. Now that they closed their space on Kingsland and combined with their bakery Champs, I miss the full sandwich menu. I miss a fresh-made S.a.g. on-demand. When I stopped by recently they had some wrapped up in the bakery showcase made in the morning. They nuked it for me and I devoured it, but it was not the same. Maybe it’s because I can bake pretty amazing cupcakes and cookies myself that I miss the sandwiches so…
After exhaustive veggie burger reporting, I named Tiny’s Giant Sandwich Shop on the Lower East Side as having one of the best in the city. It’s good! But I’ve had much better in other cities. New York, why can’t you have a fabulous all-around vegan veggie burger that I don’t have to worry about eating? And why can’t your servers know if it is vegan? And that brioche buns have egg and butter in it? Is that too much to ask?
Calexico has a food truck at D.U.M.B.O.’s waterfront. Like most carts, the selection is not as robust. Hitting their restaurant in Greenpoint a few months back (see here), we dined on grilled chile-lime tofu, watercress, jicama, etc. But vegan options are limited to bean tacos here. A nice bite but a little uninspired. Sure, authenticity is key in a meat-heavy cuisine, I understand. But Mexican’s highlight of fresh, flavorful vegetables and sauces is the raw material for a truly spectacular veggie burrito. I will gladly act as vegan consultant to any restaurant wanting to appease this hungry mass of eaters! Seriously!
Endless Summer Tacos is a cart stationed on Williamsburg’s Bedford avenue. I’ve seen it countless times but always in passing. Chances are if I am on Bedford avenue, I am likely wanting to get to the next block quickly. [Narrow-hipped males in tight, skinny jeans induce a sort of gag reflex.] This particular sunny day, after volunteering at BARC‘s cat loft, I decided to treat myself, finally, with a taste of their seitan burrito. The burrito was fresh–packed with rice, beans, spicy seitan & double shots of red and green hot sauces. I devoured it on the curb in the dying sunlight, satisfied with its flavor, the convenience… Pitfalls are its location, the service, and the very limited selection for me… plus $7 is steep for a food truck burrito.
Following a lead from veg-partner CandyPenny, a stop at a new neighborhood Mexican eatery was set into motion. Calexico, New York’s best new Mexican restaurant according to Time Out’s readers’ choice poll, has got a cart in SoHo, a restuarant in Red Hook and a brand new location in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. On a Tuesday night we visited to find the place swarmed with people. After a brief wait, we ordered our food and began to experience the draw that had the place stuffed with strollers, dates, and happy hours.
CandyPenny‘s choices: a scrumptious cocktail with blended celery and some adult infusions and a Tofu Asado torta, grilled chile-lime tofu on grilled ciabatta bread with avocado, tomato, and a black bean spread (Their chipotle “crack” sauce isn’t vegan. The waiters understand “vegan”).
Having had that seitan burrito a few hours earlier, I went light: the watercress salad with fresh watercress, jicama, grapefruit, and a pumpkin seed vinaigrette. Very tasty but could use some more texture than the pumpkin seeds and stray and few jicama strips. We also chomped their complimentary plantain chips in a glorious ground peanut, chili and oil salsa. Everything was flavorful and fresh. It’s a nice neighborhood pairing with Papacitos‘ Mexican street food vibe up the street. As you can tell by the Calexico’s lightening, the place has ambiance up the wazoo. This is quite the feat for the spatial lay-out of the place. I hope to soon return!
It was time to find more vegan options in Queens. With a good friend moving to Woodside, we took occasion to explore a vegan lead for dinner… Woodside’s De Mole. As we entered the dimly lit restaurant, I was eager to sit down. For squeezed between the ton of authentic Mexican dishes on menu was a seitan burrito stuffed with garlic spinach, red rice, black beans, Pico de Gallo and tofu sour cream. 
Some scrumptious tortilla longs were shared mid-anticipation of the burrito coming. The salsa served to strengthen the anticipation as a delicious and flavorful housemade salsa is indicative of the quality of the forthcoming meal. Savor your chips slowly as additional bags are not complimentary.
There she is. A girthy giant, a wide-wrapped wonder, the de Mole seitan burrito. Besides ease in ordering (there is no need to exclude any of the burrito’s ingredients), this burrito satisfies in all departments. It was so good. Tender seitan, a thoughtful blend of internal vegetables and a tofu sour cream that was not from a tub. I would definitely return for it or, better yet, to inquire on substituting their succulent seitan in one of the menu’s other creative dishes.
I spent the week at an island retreat. Not an exotic island by any means. I have lived on this geographic island for 97% of my life [fraction to decimal conversion: 32/33 = 0.96969697], the latter 9 in Brooklyn proper, its western tip. But with a warm and cozy home to station at, time and possibilities were bountiful. I spent the week traversing all major highways fulfilling whims, mainly related to food and thriftshopping. Days began with coffee, hearty breakfasts and WQXR, which soothes the kitties in The Electrician‘s absence.
Long Island is home to some good thriftshopping. As long as I can remember it has been the only shopping I can really get into. I try to shop retail but find no pleasure in it. Given my pledge of quality items in 2011 [Thing #6], I must treat thrifting as supplemental. After a lifetime of bag sales and whim-based thrift purchases, I am more discerning as a thrifter now. So though I appreciate the crushed pink velvet chair I don’t buy it. Grudgingly. A day of LI thrifting usually includes: Island Thrift, Selden Thrift and Babylon’s Salvation Army. These are my go-to’s.
Being “with car”, I knew I needed to check off some items off my “To Go & Eat” list. Knish Nosh, in Forest Hills, Queens, was one such destination. I have wanted to check out their hand-rolled knishes out for some time now, especially after reading this post by the now-defunct blog Veganfriendly.com. I got the sweet potato knish and found it good considering the following… it presented poorly, the thin knish skin was very moist from being microwaved and the wax paper it was wrapped in while it was microwaved peeled off much of the skin when I took it off. Yes, it was good–sweet and spiced sweet potato saved the day. I can only imagine how much better it would be fresh, but I doubt I’d make it back there any time soon.
My island excursion had me all the way east, back into the NYC area in Queens and around the western perimeter of the island to wrap me into Red Hook, Brooklyn for … Fairway: the must-stop when you have a car at your disposal. This market truly is like no other. And this location is truly like no other of Fairway‘s locations. The hype is justified. I love this place. Thinking ahead, I purchased my groceries for the coming week–local wild greens, organic rainbow carrots, organic daikon, Minneola tangelos, Bosc pears, crimson raisins, handmade tofu, etc…
Stopping at my neglected apartment to freshen up the place and drop off my goodies, I just had to snap a picture of the beautiful bouquet of produce. Just gorgeous. As a young vegan I often spoke whimsically of a bouquet of root vegetables instead of flowers come that special day. [Just like the teenager dreams of Doc Marten-ed bridesmaids. Ah what society does to the little girl and, later, the woman] Though this is by no means an innovative idea– I’ve silently grunted others sharing their view of the same– it has real functional merit: the veggie bouquets being used for the dinner contributes to the zero waste impact.
Ok, brace for some seriously delicious eats. A bit off the beaten path, near Middle Village, Queens, is a gem of vegan eatery… a delicious discovery of fresh and live food that rivals raw fare from that outer-borough Manhattan. Organic Village has been open for about a year but lived only a few weeks on my radar. Again, with the car, I knew I had to check it out. I was so glad I dropped in. I got the royal treatment from Erin, the sister of the creator, who gave me decadent samples and free-range with my camera. I knew I had stumbled upon something special [like that place in Oklahoma] after trying my first sample [above], their wonderful chili.
Their fridge was stocked with yummy desserts. Raw chocolate bars, three kinds of pie and chia seed and chocolate mousse puddings. Erin let me sample the puddings and they were absolutely mind-blowing. Superb texture and amazing taste–no graininess, not chalkiness–just smooth, clean pleasure in a scoop. I also sampled the coconut cream pie, pictured in the rear right. But allow me to build up to that…
There were also some nutty bon-bon-y type balls I did not try… but will. I am planning to return with CandyPenny soon to relive the magic. So, until then you bon-bons. It is really important to spread the word about a place like this: amazing food, stellar service, no pretention and a commitment to ethical and healthful food values.
How lovely! My lunch! The burrito: Macadamia nuts, Serrano chili, sun-dried tomatoes, Pine nuts, chipotle powder, cashew wrapped in Collard Greens with sunflower sprouts, lime, green cabbage and red cabbage, avocado and a vibrant pico de gallo. The burrito floored me. Fresh and alive, it made you feel the same. I also loved the spiced flax crackers. Next time I have to try their burger.
The final sample Erin bestowed upon me was the kicker. Their coconut cream pie. All raw but no nuts! This is exciting to me because I find nut-based raw desserts very heavy. This piece of pie was unbelievable… smooth, creamy, delicate like a dessert should be. It’s sweetened only by dates and has minimal ingredients. Two words: coconut meat. The difference is their coconut meat is imported from Thailand, shipped frozen. This is a must-taste. And I’ll now be dreaming about often. Organic Village is superb. Get there soon!
Call me nutty but I went ahead and bought myself baby food as a snack, Happy Baby Food. It was 75 cents! And it is 100% pureed mango! I want to eat that too. It’s a great buy for roadtrips: wholesome, nonperishable and easy to suck down while driving. Next time I hit the road I will stock up. Plus, it’s all organic, uses non-GMO fruits and veggies, works directly with farmers and gives back to communities with children in need. That works for me. Call me a big baby.
When it comes to American Mexican food, the West coast puts the East coast to shame. Before Greenpoint, Brooklyn’s Papacitos stepped up to serve authentic and fresh Mexican with a street-food flare, if I wanted a veg-friendly burrito I had to settle for a million and one substitutions (No this, no that and no the other thing.”) or some thoughtless bland tempeh thrown into a dry tortilla and keep my mouth shut. Thank goodness I can enjoy a mission-style burrito not packed with recently-thawed cauliflower but with seitan asada, tofu sour cream and unquestionable beans! I heart Papacitos–for bringing some quality to the veg-Mexican options.
Since I first reported on them in 2008, Papacitos have stepped it up even higher, quadrupling their dining space, fine-tuning their menu and incorporating the much-loved Daiya cheese. And, of course, a Mexican joint is only as good as its chips and salsa. At Papacitos, expect a basket of oil-glistening chips and a cauldron of fresh, house-made salsa with all the bells and whistles.
I ordered the grilled quesadilla (anyone know why this takes the feminine form?), veganized and their vegan burrito (not pictured) to ensure I’d have plenty left over for work week lunch options. Portions and presentations were amazing but the Daiya needed a bit more heat to melt; it was cold and dry. It’s a new element to tackle, this incorporation of vegan cheese, and I’m sure eateries will soon master the melt. That being said, the quesadilla was even better the next day, nuked to perfection. 
Trying out Moe’s Southwestern Grill was kind of a joke and I rarely report on chains, being the high brow food connoisseur I am (cha right), but why the heck not. I appreciate a chain that makes their vegan options known… no beef-stock-blanched potatoes or chicken-stocked rice here! So yeah, the Electrician and I were pleasantly surprised to have left Moe’s satisfied and without sluggishness. Pros: the veggie burrito is named Art Vandalay, both the pinto and black beans are purely vegetarian, they prepare and roll up their burritos in front of you so to ease your mind of cross-contamination and they offer extras like jalapenos, black olives, tasty tomatillo salsa and free chips. I’d definitely go to Moe’s again… with a container of tofu sour cream. 
Vegan Reporting By Location
