V Rating: Super V
Where: 405 East 6th Street, East Village, New York.
When: Mon: 5pm - 11pm. Tues - Thurs & Sun: 11am - 11pm. Fri - Sat: 11am - midnight.
Tel: 212.254.1613
Price: Starters: US$3 - $13. Mains: US$13-$17. NB: All dishes are cheaper before 7pm.

With our time in New York drawing to a close, we made a beeline to the East Village. Home to NYU, the area is filled with everything the young, urbane student needs, like (relatively) cheap restaurants, dingily lit bars, and small shops spruiking everything from socks to records.

In amongst this carnival of learning and poseurs, is a quiet oasis called Caravan of Dreams. It’s a small kosher, vegan restaurant, tucked slightly off the main drag, which also dabbles in organic and raw (or “live”) food.

Caravan of Dreams is the kind of place where I want to write my first novel. It’s offbeat, quiet, and warm-hearted, filled with the comfortable silence you fall into when your among close friends. The decorations have a gypsy touch, and because the restaurant is just below street level, it has a homey cave-live feel.

Not only does Caravan of Dreams have atmosphere in spades, it also has great food. Choosing from the brunch special, Andy had the macrobiotic plate, but I had the good sense to know that the breakfast burrito was the real business.

Brunch started with a surprise green salad with a lime, tamari and ginger dressing. I’m not usually one for lettuce, but with the delicious, non-oily house dressing I lapped it up.

The burrito was magnificent. It was filled with scrambled tofu, grilled vegetables, and black beans in a whole wheat tortilla, and topped with guacamole, salsa and vegan sour cream. Every other time I’ve had scrambled tofu I’ve been disappointed - there’s too much tamari and it overpowers the rest of the dish. Here, the scrambled tofu was only lightly flavoured so it had the consistency and (in a good way) blandness of egg. Kudos also for the authentic guacamole and sour cream.

Andy’s plate came with grilled tofu, tahini, pinto beans, brown rice, and blanched vegetables. It was light and healthy, but I think my burrito won hands down.

Out of curiosity, we ordered a serve of live bread. Because raw foodists believe that you shouldn’t heat food above about 110 degrees Fahrenheit, “live bread” is dehydrated rather than baked. It emerged in quite thin slices, and because of the dehydration tasted like toast. It was best with hummus because this countered the dryness.

Caravan of Dreams is an eclectic restaurant, from its design down to its menu, but somehow everything comes together to create a lovely, comfortable experience. If I were a New Yorker, this is the place I’d come to while away time and give thanks for living in such a great city.

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