Vegan Reporting in the Ohio Territory -

Flying in and out of Pittsburgh to embark upon a vegan eats road trip, CandyPenny and I had a list of potential hot spots to check out in Pittsburgh, Akron and Columbus. Hoping to make the most of 3 days on the road, we had to push our caloric intake to the max! Luckily for me, nursing a summer cold and sore throat, excess energy intake helped me with a quick recuperation. Here is what we ate in between long stretches in the Chevy Cobalt:

Quiet Storm in Pittsburgh is a large yet cozy living room serving hearty grub with many vegan options. I had the Nothin’ Fancy: tofu scramble, potatoes and toast with a side of veggie sausage and a dollop of soy margarine. The scramble had a unique flavor but was a bit dry. In fact, the entire dish, though tasty, was all a bit dry and would have benefited from some vegetable or sauce incorporation. But it is called Nothin’ Fancy after all! I’d happily return to Quiet Storm to check out another option.

After my savory brunch, it was time for some sweet. We hit Oh Yeah! Ice Cream & Coffee for some sugar. Oh Yeah! is an ice cream parlor that offers Temptation soy ice cream from my favorite Chicago Soydairy. Once you pick your flavor, you can choose from the huge selection of interesting swirl-ins posted on their chalk board, many nostalgic, like Corn Pops and Nilla Wafers; many healthy, like Super Green Super Food, flax seed and hemp protein and many simply disgusting, like bacon and turkey jerky. And best yet, your ice cream concoction can be atop a huge vegan Belgium waffle if you so desire. And we desired… we chose the vanilla swirled with real pineapple on top of their cinnamon massive waffle.

Moving onward to Akron, Ohio with great speed, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, we were sure that Vegiterranean, The Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde’s vegan restaurant, was going to be a sure highlight of our trip! We arrived at the desolate downtown Akron when the blazing August day was meeting dusk. A beautiful pink-grey surrounded our table outside. The restaurant was on the bottom floor of a building of luxury apartments, one of which Chrissie apparently lived in. There was a lively crowd of patrons sipping cocktails and having dates around us. The menu, being all vegan, was overwhelming with many delicious-sounding options. I ordered the Italian Fritto Gardein Scallopini, herbed, battered and fried Gardein cutlets served with “Chrissie Fries” and mustard greens. I had never had Gardein cutlets and, considering the price of the dish, I was figuring them to be more mind-blowing then the processed soy protein patties they were. Deep fry them and glaze them with a sweet Asian-style stir fry sauce and you lose the Italian flair. The greens were fresh and tasty but the fries, which the menu promised would be the best fries I’d ever tried, were simple garlic fries with a bit of rosemary. The fresh complimentary bread was very good, as was CandyPenny’s Vichyssoise. So I was a bit disappointed in my meal, yes, but more so at the indifferent server’s attitude once he realized we wouldn’t be ordering the four course meals plus drinks. Though I am happy such a place exists, especially in Akron, Ohio, I had hoped for more.

Akron’s saving grace was Mustard Seed Market, which we serendipitously stumbled upon after our G.P.S. unit wackily configured the closest health food store as like a million miles away. Mustard Seed Market had it all: samples (i.e. breakfast), vegan cakes and cupcakes, a restaurant upstairs, organic produce, etc. Their aisle signage even dropped the v-bomb (below)! They also had a bunch of products that haven’t even hit New York City yet. After some fantasies of courting the store’s buyer, we filled up our water bottles and headed to Columbus, ready for some more food.

Super-duper vegan Ohio highlight was Columbus’s Pattycake Bakery in the Clintonville section of Columbus. This all-vegan bakery was just as adorable and delicious as their website, bookmarked for months and drooled over often, would indicate. The counter and blackboard displayed way too many scrumptious items for our short visit to the area. I chose the beautifully-decorated strawberry mousse cake and a whoopie pie to go.

Moist delicious cake plumed with real strawberry infused frosting. So pritty and so good.

Oh my whoopie pie! This tasted and felt exactly like a devil dog.

Having our dessert first, we next hit Whole World Natural Restaurant for simple and yummy veg fare. The place has been around since 1978 and surely continues to thrive thanks to its healthy and natural hippie fare. I ordered the housemade broccoli burger on the housemade bun. Notice the theme? So fresh and delicious was my brown rice and broccoli patty on warm, soft whole wheat bread that I kind of regretted asking for the vegan cheese on top, which was Follow Your Heart, as its flavour and texture dominated. The chips and a pickle “deluxe” options wasn’t a bargain at an extra $2.

Our final meal back in Pittsburgh, the one that had us dropping off the Cobalt without a drop of gas left, barely making our flight back to J.F.K., was at Kaya. Taking a bit of a detour and the 25-mph back roads between Columbus and Pittsburgh we had worked up a huge appetite. We hit Kaya with only meager expectations but were blown away. This Caribbean fusion spot in downtown Pittsburgh’s Strip District had a menu of wonderful ingredients and flavors we wished we’d have free range of, given their limited vegan selections, however our dishes knocked our socks off. I began with corn and lentil beignets with a green curry sauce. This could have been a stand-alone meal; it was that satisfying. But my entree, Jamaican green curry vegetables with saffron rice was thee best curry I ever had. Add this delicious food with great service and a waitress who drops the v-bomb first, and you got a great end to a vegan journey in the Ohio Territory.

Vegan Reporting in the Ohio Territory

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