Archive for the ‘Veggie Friendly tip-offs’ CategoryA couple of readers have sent me a tip and a mystery for everyone at home in Sydney. First, a reader recommends the Bella Vista Fountain restaurant in Baulkham Hills, which offers an a la carte menu as well as yum cha (great news after the spate of Veg yum cha closures early this year)! If I was in Sydney I’d be down there this weekend to try it out. As for the mystery, an inner west reader has asked if anyone knows what happened to the Metro Vegetarian restaurant on Liverpool Street in Darlinghurst (or any of its operators). Apparently it was big in the 80s, and so popular that people often had to wait for 40 - 60 minutes to get a table. Any information on the restaurant, its menu or owners would be appreciated. Cheers Kate A Melbourne reader has contacted me to ask why there are no reviews of the Vegie Bar . A vegan since birth, she swears it’s a great vegetarian restaurant and has never served her a bad meal. I’m a bit geographically challenged when it comes to Melbourne places, but would love to hear what locals think of it. It’s on Brunswick St. in Fitzroy. My previously mentioned friend (J, the) who was recently lured from Melbourne to Sydney, is already teaching me a thing or two about my home turf. For example, she’s put me on to an excellent organic delivery service called Lettuce Deliver.
Each week, Lettuce Deliver posts a list of available produce on their website. You select the fruit and vegetables that you’d like by 4pm on Friday, and it’s delivered to your doorstep on Tuesday morning. Lettuce Deliver gives you the option of choosing everything individually, but they also put together weekly standard boxes which you can buy for a fixed rate.
For the last two weeks I’ve trialed the $50 mixed fruit and vegetable box, and so far I’ve been thrilled with the quality of produce and the ease of the service. Most of the fruit and vegetables that I would order are included in the box, but there are always a few that I wouldn’t normally buy which is encouraging me to experiment. In the past, I’ve found that buying organic produce can be very expensive. While choosing vegetables individually from their website is reasonably pricey, the Lettuce Deliver box is not much more expensive than my standard grocery bill (bearing in mind that neither Andy or I eat meat or seafood, so vegetables and fruit make up a big part of our weekly diet and budget). I was also concerned that the organic produce would last for just a few days (I’ve sometimes had this problem with organic veggies in the past, and assumed this was because they don’t contain preservatives). It’s true that the vegetables are always better eaten fresh. However, the Lettuce Deliver vegetables do last the full week and I haven’t had a problem with wasted food. I have a busy lifestyle, and can’t rate highly enough the convenience of having a beautiful box of fresh, organic vegetables delivered to my door each week. Thanks J. Rebecca from Cucina Rebeca and Ed from Tomato just tagged me with the ‘Five Things to Eat Before You Die’ meme from Melissa at the Traveler’s Lunchbox. This is, like, the biggest thing to hit the food blogosphere. Almost ever. The idea is that food bloggers around the world choose five foods that they think everyone should try befre they die. I gave this a lot of thought (which may not be reflected in the list). There are some things on my list of five foods I’m glad I’ve eaten before I die (creamy mashed potatoes I’m looking at you) but I recognise that they’re not an essential eating experience for everybody else. Also, I debated if the list was meant to reflect platonic ideal (or idyll) foods. Five perfect things that everyone, no matter their background or economic status, should try before they die. I decided that list is just too hard. How do you go past fresh drinking water or allow for different dietary needs or predilections? Next I tried to come up with a list that included my five most unique or hard to come-by food experiences (i.e. the 17 course meal in a small restaurant buried in a French forest, or the amazing curry with string hoppers in Sri Lanka which was served out of a communal bucket). But as much as these meals were fun, I don’t think that their uniqueness alone is enough for me to recommend that they should be one of the few things that everyone in the whole world should try once. Further complicating matters, some of my favourite things like fresh figs and cheese were already taken and like Rebecca I didn’t want to be a copy cat. At this point I realised this list was causing me blogger’s block so I decided to go with my five favourite vegetarian foods / experiences. 1) Fresh mangosteen - a perfect food deserving of its mythology. Pull away the skin to reveal pristeen white flesh, a sweet smell, and an exquisite creamy taste. 2) Salt and pepper tofu - what’s not to love about silken tofu cooked in a light salt and pepper batter that literally melts in your mouth. 3) Camp fire stew and damper - head to the Australian outback, make a fire under the stars, and let your vegetable stew bubble away in a hot iron pot nestled in the coals. For dessert, cook some damper on a stick or in tin foil, then fill the centre with some jam and butter, and wash it down with billy tea. 4) Palak paneer - Everyone should eat Indian curry before they die. I love palak paneer: creamy spinach curry cooked in spices with white cubes of soft paneer cheese that soak up the flavour. 5) Nasi Liwet and fried tempeh at Bu Wir’s night stall, Solo, Indonesia - At sundown a city of tarpaulin tents appear on the streets, each one has a few low tables and pots of delicious, fresh home-cooked food. Nasi Liwet is the local speciality, but my heart was stolen by the delicious, thin slices of fried tempeh. I tag: Chocolate Suze, Vegetable Adventures, Vegan Sydney, Beets and Potatoes and Vegan Friendly NY. In the last couple of weeks I’ve had emails from people recommending vegetarian / veggie friendly restaurants around Sydney (Maya Masala and Maya Da Dhaba on Cleveland St., Peace Harmony on King Steet and the Nepalese Kitchen in Surry Hills). Bring it on! Promise I’ll make a special effort to review Maya Masala and Peace Harmony in the next month or so. If you want to send a tip email me at veggiefriendly[at]gmail[.]com.
One of the nice things that’s been happening recently is that other bloggers have started sending me tips about veggie friendly (and unfriendly) discoveries. I’ve decided to make this a new category on the blog. To get the ball rolling, Kate from the Wax Lyrical blog in WA has sent through a warning about a local Perth restaurant called Han’s Cafe. Apparently she and her family ordered vegetarian spring rolls, only to be slipped a meat version. Arrrgh. You can read about the experience on her blog. On the flipside, Rebecca from Cucina Rebecca tipped me off about the impressive vegetarian selection at North Bondi Italian food. She has a full review on her blog, or you can check out the menu for yourself. I love to hear about good quality restaurants that cater for vegetarians. I’ve never tried North Bondi, but sounds like I’ve been missing out. |
Bad Behavior has blocked 1359 access attempts in the last 7 days.