Event: Vegan Mini-Mall Gorditas and S’mores Social

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The Vegan Mini-Mall is hosting a post-Vida Vegan Con hangout (open to the public) tomorrow evening so people can socialize and eat seitan tacos made by Upton’s Naturals and Food For Lovers Vegan Queso (at Food Fight!), S’mores served up by Chicago Vegan Foods and Vegan Cuts (at Herbivore), and Ice Cream Chocolate Chip Cookie Sandwiches (at Sweetpea; there will be a gluten-free option).

Profits from S’mores sales will be going to Out to Pasture Sanctuary.

Vegan Mini-Mall Gorditas and S’mores Social/Post VVC Hangout
SE 12th & SE Stark St, Portland, OR 97214
Friday, May 24th, 2013, 6pm-until food runs out

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photos from Facebook event page

I love Indian and Thai food, but I know they usually have animal products in their sauces. What are some Indian and Thai places (specifically in Southeast, if possible) with vegan options. 'Cuz curry's kiiiinda my thing. Thanks!!

Asked by
Anonymous

Your best bet is going to an all-veg establishment, but there are only a few: Roshambo (NE—food cart under new ownership and re-opened a few days ago at Rose City Food Park on Sandy),  Bombay Chaat House (SW), Curry Leaf (NW), and India Sweets & Spices (Beaverton) for Indian, and Vege Thai (SE) for Thai.

So focusing on SE, Tao of Tea’s tearoom on Belmont has a vegetarian menu of varied pan-Asian items including a daily dal and this Chana Chaval dish:

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As for mixed places with vegan options, India Oven on Belmont has a vegan section on their menu and Dwaraka on Hawthorne doesn’t list the options on their menu, but the staff is helpful and will inform you of appropriate dishes when asked. They have Northern and Southern Indian dishes including dosas. Here’s their Mixed Pakora:

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For Thai, vegans have long gone to Pad Thai Kitchen on Belmont. For curry, you may want to try My Thai Bistro on Hawthorne as they make their curries from scratch rather than packaged paste (which is where you usually run into problems) so can be more knowledgeable and accommodating. Chiang Mai on Hawthorne states on their menu that most of their dishes can be made vegan. Sellwood’s Jade Bistro Teahouse offers a pan-SE Asian menu with clearly marked vegan options, including this Fresh Wide Rice Noodles dish:

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Hope that helps and do let us know if you come across more options we can share!

photos by Food Mountain

Event: Cinco de Mayo

- Vegan fast casual restaurant Native Foods is serving a Cinco de Mayo special called The Tres Taquitos Plato: three taquitos filled with homemade seitan asada, spiced bean and potato hash; served with refried black beans, Mexican rice, salsa fresca, guacamole, and house-pickled jalapenos. $9.95.

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photo from Native Foods’ Facebook page

Native Foods
7237 SW Bridgeport Rd, Tigard, OR 97224
503.968.9999
May 3rd-5th, 2013, 11am-10pm

- Vegetarian cafe Proper Eats has a Soy Curl Tostada special: three crispy corn tortillas topped with black beans, soy curls, romaine, cilantro, cabbage mix, salsa, guacamole and corn relish. (thanks to vegankitten for the tip!)

Proper Eats
8638 N Lombard Ave, Portland, OR 97203
503.445.2007
May 5th, 2013, 9am-10pm

- Downtown gluten-free bakery Petunia’s is making some Cinco de Mayo-inspired fare: Churro Doughnuts and Mexican Chocolate Dulce de Leche cupcakes.

Petunia’s Pies & Pastries
610 SW 12th, Portland, OR 97205
503.841.5961
May 5th, 2013, 8am-9pm

- Celebrate Cinco de Mayo at the Los Gorditos food truck at 50th & SE Division from noon-4pm. There will be free food (vegan options) and music.

Taqueria Los Gorditos
Food Cart: NW corner of SE 50th & SE Division, Portland, OR 97206
503.875.2615
May 5th, 2013, 12pm-4pm

- Vegan-friendly bar White Owl Social Club is hosting chefs Han Hwang and Col Robinson (the same folks who made their Valentine’s dinner) for a “Vegan Mexican Cantina” to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. There will be vegan versions of authentic mexican cuisine and drink pairings. Starts at 7:30pm and goes until the food runs out.

White Owl Social Club
1305 SE 8th Ave, Portland, OR 97214
503.236.9672
May 5th, 2013, 7:30pm

Looking For: Biscuits and Gravy

In the mood for some biscuits & gravy and not in the mood to make it yourself? Here are some places to find some. If you have more details or other tips, please add it in the comments!

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Dovetail’s Biscuits & Gravy (split plate) with optional side of kale

Dovetail Bakery (vegan bakery/cafe; only on weekends, served with smoky tempeh, they’ll split an order on two plates for sharing, usually sells out)
3039 NE Alberta St, Portland, OR 97211
503.288.8839
Every day 8am-6pm

Blossoming Lotus (vegan restaurant; only for Sunday brunch; spelt biscuits, mushroom gravy served with seitan breakfast sausage, steamed kale, home fries, soy-free)
1713 NE 15th Ave, Portland, OR 97212
503.228.0048
Lunch: Mon-Sat 11am-4pm; Brunch: Sun 10am-2:30pm
Dinner: Sun-Thu 5pm-9pm, Fri-Sat 5pm-10pm

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Blossoming Lotus Sunday brunch Biscuits & Gravy

Sweetpea Baking Company (vegan bakery/cafe; available 8am-11am, also biscuit sandwiches)
1205 SE Stark St, Portland, OR 97214
503.477.5916 
Mon-Sat 8am-6pm, Sun 9am-5pm
Breakfast Menu 8am-11am, Sandwich Menu 11am-close

Back to Eden Bakery Boutique (vegan gluten-free bakery; mushroom gravy)
2217 NE Alberta St, Portland, OR 97211
503.477.5022
Every day 9am-9pm (9am-10pm summer)

A.N.D Cafe (vegetarian cafe; gluten-free option)
5420 E Burnside St, Portland, OR 97215
503.989.3908
Mon 9am-3pm, Thu-Fri 9am-3pm, Sat-Sun 8am-3pm

Proper Eats (vegetarian cafe; served with roasted potatoes and greens)
8638 N Lombard Ave, Portland, OR 97203
503.445.2007
Every day 9am-10pm

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Proper Eats Biscuits & Gravy

Vita Cafe (restaurant with extensive vegan options; almond gravy, small/large)
3023 NE  Alberta St, Portland, OR 97211
503.335.8233
Breakfast Mon-Fri 9am-3pm, Sat-Sun 8am-3pm
Lunch Everyday 11am-5pm
Dinner Everyday 5pm-10pm

Paradox Cafe (restaurant with extensive vegan options; gluten-free option, half/full)
3439 SE Belmont St, Portland, OR 97214
503.232.7508
Mon-Sat 8am-7pm, Sun 8am-6pm

Hungry Tiger Too (bar/restaurant with separate vegan menu; fennel & mushroom gravy, small/large)
207 SE 12th Ave, Portland, OR 97214
503.238.4321
Mon-Fri 11am-10pm, Sat-Sun 9am-10pm

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small order of Hungry Tiger Too’s Biscuits and Gravy

The Roadrunner Cafe (restaurant with some vegan options; mushroom gravy, entree or side)
3570 SE Division St, Portland, OR 97202
503.232.3004
Wed-Sun 8am-2pm

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side of Roadrunner Biscuits and Gravy

photos by Food Mountain

Special: St. Patrick’s Day Weekend

Looking for some food to get you in the green holiday mood? Here are a few St. Patty’s Day weekend specials. Let us know if you’ve got more!

Petunia’s Pies & Pastries: specials in the bakery this weekend include Sticky Toffee Pudding, Irish Soda Bread, Chocolate Caramel Stout Babycakes, Irish Coffee & Mint Chip Babycakes, and Shamrock Sugar Cookies.

A.N.D Cafe: Lucky Waffle special filled with homemade corned beef seitan, topped with roasted beets, kale, and green peppercorn cream sauce. They’re also offering a Green Eggs & Ham Plate with herbed tofu on a bed of kale with two slices of faux ham with a biscuit covered in Chz gravy.

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photo from A.N.D Cafe’s Facebook page

Native Foods: St. Patty Day’s melt with blackened Native Tempeh layered with melted cheddar, grilled onions, fresh steamed greens, and a creamy homemade horseradish sauce on toasted rye. Served with your choice of a side for $9.95. Available through tomorrow only.

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photo from Native Foods’ Facebook page

Open: Vegetalista

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We drove by this cart on Hawthorne at 32nd a week or so ago and wondered if it was veg because of the name. Well, we finally got a chance to stop by today and they were already closed, but their menu says they’re 100% vegan. Looks like their current offerings are pizza and juices. They don’t seem to have any online presence yet so we don’t have any info besides what was posted at the cart. Let us know if you have more details.

Vegetalista
3207 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR 97214
Every day 11am-3pm

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photos by Food Mountain

Do you know if Jade Teahouse is vegan friendly?

Asked by
Anonymous

Hi there, we’ve never been (assuming you mean the one in Sellwood), but according to Yelp reviewers, they seem accommodating.

Update 4/18/13: we got a chance to check it out, and to add to Susan’s comment, their way of veganizing options seems to involve leaving stuff off (aioli off the Lemongrass Tofu sandwich, eggs and oyster sauce off the Fresh Wide Rice Noodles) so that was disappointing for a menu that goes out of the way to mark things that are/can be made vegan, but not that different from how a regular Thai restaurant would deal with it. That said, the food was still decently flavorful (with the caveat that as in any mixed restaurant, the food is probably being cooked right after meat dishes so who knows how much residual flavor is coming from stuff you don’t want to be eating). It did help that the tofu they use is fried/marinated, rather than just plain. It is the first place we’ve been to in Portland with vegan fried sesame balls (as Susan mentioned) which are an old dim sum favorite of ours so that is something they offer that is special. And just a note that it is counter service.

Jade Bistro Teahouse & Patisserie
7912 SE 13th Ave, Portland, OR 97202
503.477.8985
Mon-Sat 11am-9pm

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Vietnamese Rice Vermicelli Salad

photo by Food Mountain

Event: Valentine’s Day

Here’s a quick rundown of Valentine’s Day happenings. We’ll update this post as more options get announced and feel free to add anything we missed to the comments.

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A Night for the Animals: The (vegan) Caterer is hosting a dinner buffet with raffle prizes and cash bar at Union Pine with the proceeds going to Green Acres Farm Sanctuary. Tickets are $35, doors are at 7pm, dinner at 7:30pm.

Portobello: prix-fixe meal ($55/person+18% gratuity) includes four courses and chocolate truffles with gluten-free options available. Choose from Warm Asparagus Salad or Avocado Bruschetta, Mushroom Fry or Caramelized Fennel Tart, Lentil & Sausage Ravioli or Gnudi, and Almond-Fig Cake or Banana Split. Beverages are not included.

Blossoming Lotus: prix-fixe meal ($55/person) of five courses with gluten-free options. The menu consists of Shiitake & Kombu Dashi, Winter Vegetable “Charcuterie”, Saffron Risotto or Black Trumpet Mushrooms or Watermelon Radish “Ravioli”, Pistachio Baklava or Strawberry Vanilla Cake, and Chocolates (details are subject to change). Seatings at 5:30pm and 8:30pm.

White Owl Social Club: prix-fixe meal ($60 for 2 people, $100 for 4 people) for 4 courses, a bottle of champagne, and music by The Bridges String Ensemble cello quartet. No details about the menu, but it is prepared by Chefs Han Ly Hwang and Col Robinson. 5pm-7pm (they have added more seatings at 8:30pm, 9pm, 9:30pm, and 10pm). Call 503-236-9672 for reservations.

Sweetpea Baking Company: heart-shaped sugar cookies with basic/your own messages, chocolate box with truffles, peanut butter cups, and marshmallow fudge, and a cake shaped like a box of chocolates. Deadline for pre-ordering is 2/12.

Cinnamon: order gluten-free, allergen-free treats by January 31st for pick-up the week of February 10th. In addition to their regular menu, they’re offering Chocolate Silk Pie, Chocolate Peppermint Donuts, Chocolate + Chocolate Chip Brownies, and Chocolate Orange or Chocolate Peppermint Truffles.

Missionary Chocolates: Valentine’s chocolates

Hours: New Year’s Day

Happy 2013 to you all! If you’re looking for somewhere to eat out today, here are some options we know are open and feel free to add any others in the comments.

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Dovetail Bakery’s Biscuits & Gravy

- Loving Hut: open regular hours

- Red and Black Cafe: open today at 2pm with all-day Happy Hours

- Dovetail Bakery: open and serving biscuits & gravy

- Veggie Grill: open regular hours

- Bay Leaf: open until 9pm today

- Hungry Tiger Too: restaurant is open all day, bar until 4pm

- Vita Cafe: open regular hours

- Sizzle Pie: open (assuming regular hours)

- Luc Lac Vietnamese Kitchen: closed for lunch, open for dinner service as usual

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Bay Leaf’s Mushroom Crisps

photos by Food Mountain