Currently viewing the tag: "VV kansas"
Deep Thoughts: While I was driving south down the I-35 today, in the “road zone”, I began to think about… [wait for it]…human beings.
I began to think about how it was that a lower order of primates evolved to eventually have me sitting snug in a moving machine, barreling down a leg of this man-made intricate interstate system with a device playing digital musical files, reading and interpreting a multitude of semiotic systems, using tools–technology–to gratify all my whims as they arise: hotel reservations in Oklahoma City, checking in with my boyfriend in New York, conditioning the air around me, locomoting from state to state, city to city, mile to mile. I began to think of how amazed I am about… [wait for it]…life. That I am here and I am free and that I have the capacity to embrace being here and being free. No, it wasn’t the countless pro-life billboards (We are in the Bible Belt.), it wasn’t the delirium of thousands of miles under my own belt, it wasn’t too much coffee or that K2 “incense” I have been reading about in the news. It was a thought born of having thought everything else far more frivolous the past 12 days I have been on the road.
Breakfast: Cafe Seed, an all-vegan cafe in Kansas City that served me a perfect breakfast this morning. I hold that meal partly responsible for my elated state. My breakfast, the bacon-scramble tofu biscuit with potatoes and fruit, as well as the rest of the cafe’s weekend brunch menu, was straight-forward, unadorned, fundamental deliciousness… downright paradisiacal. Fueled by the cafe’s distinct energy of rebellion and activism (complemented by the Afrocentric art and photography about its walls), I was reminded that my veganism is a deliberate act, a conscious decision based on justice, fairness and principle. Eating at a place that makes this connection feels good. …Aaannnd they also had the best coffee I’ve had in all of my trip so far.
Cafe Seed’s biscuit, a real biscuit… not a roll or a dense cake… but that distinguished biscuit texture, was filled with a fabulous tofu scramble. This is the kind of scramble I love. It wasn’t overly crumbly and held together, not too yeasty and hippy-like. Place some salty vegan bacon on top (packaged, not sure which brand) and there it is. Making use of their delicious jam, the sandwich was smeared on all sides. A good serving of potatoes (or “nature’s prozac,” says CP) and some fresh fruit. That’ll hold me for 3 hours or so… until we reach our lunch destination.
Lunch. I don’t know how I found this place but wow. Wichita, Kansas’s all-vegan (my favorite compound word) d’Sozo is only about a month old but Executive Chef Miguel Larcher’s vision is fully developed. The huge space houses a natural foods store, a full-service cafe including a buffet and bakery, a juice and smoothie bar and plenty of room for seating. The extensive menu includes sandwiches, pizza, soups, crepes…. uh, vegan crepes!!! All food is the result of Chef Miguel’s extensive culinary background (read up on it here or take my word that the man has years of prestigious international training in vegan cuisine).
My crepe choice, the Asparagus Petite Crêpe [asparagus, béchamel sauce, pimento and fresh parsley] was a absolutely wonderful taste of savory French cuisine. I have had several vegan crepes in my travels (Atlas Cafe‘s in New York City and River House Creperie in Seattle come to mind) and none of them have been truly crepes. This was a crepe, a scrumptious and flavorful one stuffed with even more scrumptiousness and flavor. On the side, some more natural prozac, enormous wedges of seasoned potato. 
The Chef, who we had the pleasure of talking vegan with, offered us complimentary slices of his cheesecake. Much like the crepe, I have had several slices of vegan cheesecake in my day… nothing quite as delicately decadent and authentic in texture as his. Most vegan cheesecakes are dense bricks of ground nut or cold, gelatinous globs. This cheesecake I’d eat again and again… and again.
Here is Chef Miguel, who graciously allowed us to snap some shots. We had to! d’Sozo was a very special and unique find on our vegan roadtrip and I am happy to sing its high praises. And look, he even reads my blog! (Actually, I forced him to.) 
Wow. I am amazed by the last few days of eating. The last two weeks actually. It makes me so happy that there are vegan eateries popping up coast-to-coast, vegan eateries with a love for fresh and flavorful with innovative and creative menus… it does my heart and belly good.
After a strenuous drive back east on I-70, succumbing to the erratic weather fits of the land’s high elevation, we arrived back in Denver, Colorado, a quick stop-over on our route into the Great Plains. I will happily bid the Rockies a fond farewell and look forward to the flatlands. This trip has brought, thus far, a balance of city and nature, decadence and humility, sweet and savory… After 9 days and adding over 3,000 miles on the Ford Focus, I am officially “in the zone”, a minor detail on our great country’s interstate system. But with only about 4 days left, the itinerary is beginning to wind down. I welcome back real life, static life. I want to peer out my 2nd story window in Brooklyn… and to stop eating so much. But let us return briefly to the food I am eating:
We headed to Denver’s Capitol Hill area for a late dinner after settling in at our swanky Holiday Inn. Resisting the easy convenience of the Panera Bread in the cluster of chains across from the hotel, we decided on City O’ City, Watercourse Foods‘ sister cafe in the bustling hipster area. This place really reels ‘em in and we experienced our first wait to be seated. After exploring the block and peering through the window of Watercourse’s bakery space next door, we were called for our table. I knew what I wanted because I had studied the menu at the hotel room… The Sherman, “Carolina dry rub bbq tofu”, coleslaw and pickles on focaccia. Let me tell you about this tofu as the City O’ City and Watercourse family deserve high praises for their handling of seitan and tofu. It was so scrumptious: texture and flavor spot-on. They know how to work with it and infuse as much flavor as possible. Tofu on this delicious sandwich had enough heat to make my nose run, the texture… pseudostratified.
Let me say a bit more about Watercourse Bakery, which supplies City O’ City and Watercourse with all their vegan baked goods. They are, literally, the icing on the cake. With fun and decadent creations, like the Ho-Ho below, Watercourse’s family of vegan deliciousness ranks Denver’s veg-friendliness sky-high. Their food, both the sweet and the savory, are top-notch in the comfort food category far better than many eateries who attempt this back in New York. Go Watercourse!
Since morning had brought another opportunity to eat and Watercourse has amazing breakfast dishes, why the heck not go one last time? After all, I had a long ways to Kansas City and it looked as if America’s heartland hadn’t much in its center. So Watercourse it was. I ordered the Peasant Sandwich, a yummy tofu scramble with basil pesto on soy-buttered toast, served with homefries and a fruit cup. There, there… all ready to drive into state number 7!
Onward into Kansas. It would be a day of driving, easy driving. It was odd how quickly Denver’s highways slimmed down to 2 lanes and its peaks turned into flatlands. The bright blue sky seemed larger than ever along I-70 east, complementing the green plains nicely. For the first time in several days the horizon was a straight line, the land and sky a striped cross-section of vivid color. There wasn’t much to see as we headed through Kansas hoping to put a big dent in our route to Kansas City… which is in Missouri. We stopped to browse antiques and a depressing “Prairie Dog Town” which lured travelers with promises of 5-legged steer and the largest prairie dog in the country. I took some shots of the grounds, which was more a glorified petting zoo with x-rated gag gifts at the exit. I don’t know why we bothered going. It was thoroughly depressing and disturbing. 
Dinner in central Kansas was going to be a challenge. We knew that. But I am happy to report that we found a fabulous Italian restaurant who was able to accommodate us by happily altering their dishes! Yes, not only did Martinelli’s Little Italy‘s Marissa confirm the Orzo Tuscany, Orzo with artichoke, mushrooms, green onion, carrot, red cabbage and very few capers, free of butter and cheese, but she let me know that the cook was preparing it without the usual chicken stock. I was so thankful both my server and the cook knew their stuff! Go Salina, Kansas.
Tomorrow we are off to Kansas City, home to several vegan options and just a hop/skip/jump from Oklahoma City, which would close our huge road loop and set us back down to Texas to finally light my fireworks. Godspeed!
Vegan Reporting By Location
