Ahhh the european tour, such an interesting endeavour for a vegan. We’ve had meals made every night to various levels of culinary success. Don’t get me wrong, i am very thankful to have anything to eat but day in and day out of lukewarm veggie stew loses its charm. That’s why awesome vegan joints in europe are a special find, and this is one of them.

We had the buffet, the staff was kind enough to go over what was vegan and what wasn’t with me. A great 3 bean salad, really good falafels, great bread, herbed potatoes, grilled veggies, a solid pasta salad, and great chilli sauce made for a seemingly gluttonous meal.

I was charging my phone so i wasn’t able to take pictures, but check this joint out!

Today’s post is an Athens institution. We had the brunch menu which is the only menu i’ve ever had here. 8-11am on weekdays and 10am-3pm on weekdays. There aren’t a whole lot of vegan options here so don’t let anyone hype it up to you as the be all end all of vegan southern cooking. There is a lot of cheese and milk happening here.

I opted for the vegan biscuits and yeast gravy. After the food came out i ordered a bowl of granola to add to the otherwise smaller side order of biscuits and gravy.

All in all i must admit, if there were a veggie equivillant to a bob evans or denny’s it would be Grit. I know one of the cooks and everything he has ever made in his home for me has been exceptional, but with Grit i feel the focus is on vegeterians rather than vegans so ill take what i can get but i don’t really look forward to going back, especially when there is a pair of Soul Vegeterians in somewhat nearby Atlanta.

The Grit is the place non-vegeterians tell vegeterians about. I’ll leave it at that.

So a house show with a fireplace, place to crash with a dog and a slushy, snowy day in downtown asheville brought us to the Firestorm Cafe (apparently no Earth Crisis connection, thankfully).

I ordered the “Philly” which in my opinion is usually the best way to test a vegan establishment’s mettle, sort of like fries at a diner. I also ordered the potato salad which i was confided in by the friendly, if not a little “bro-y” bedreaded counterperson that these were his two favorite items.

The potato salad was quite good with slightly more crisp potatoes than other places and a nice addition of red onions. The sandwich was tasty, seitan based, with avocado, red onions, and a subtle roasted garlic aoli with a side of baby spinach. The flavors worked well together. A pretty solid sandwich. My travelling companions had the bbq sandwich and the tempeh gyro giving their meals 8.5 and 8 out of 10 respectively, mine was 8ish, pretty good, plus a pair of dollar day old cookies made for an enjoyable meal without a hint of “vegan joint in a progressive college town pretense”.

So, when in chapel hill i usually eat at the co-op or the mediterranean deli so i was very pleased to find a new place.

Butternut Squash is a quiet, slightly fancy, upper moderately priced vegetarian restaurant. My travelling partners weren’t in a sit down dinner mood so i got a vegan club sandwich and side of potato salad to go.

the simple verdict, delicious! The club was marinated tempeh and tofu, quite tasty. Fresh veggies and a nice stone ground mustard with a subtle vegan aoli. The bread was sort of a hearty herbed cibatta, it tasted homemade and complimented the sandwich ingredients rather well. The potato salad was well above average adorned with chives, i added pepper as i usually do to potato salad and it made for a great meal.

The service was fast and friendly, the price tag not terribly steep ($9.50 for my sandwich with side) and the food was very very good. I can’t wait to go back.

So we passed through Knoxville on our way to chapel hill and were too close to closing time at Veg-O-Rama so we went to the ‘ol standby Tomatohead.

Pizzas and quesedillias were ordered by the rest of the band and i opted for a veganized version of one of their sandwiches with baked tofu, walnuts, soy cheese, veggies and vegan pesto. A good sandwich, a pretty good side salad with sprouts mushrooms and peppers. You can make soy cheese pizzas with vegan pesto and baked tofu as well. not too bad, not incredible, much better than everything off the highway.

After a rather bizarre afternoon spent at the “Creation Museum” in nearby Petersburg, Ky we made our way to louisville on a day off. I found this joint using the “Vegan Steven” app and we got there about 45 min before close. I had the BBQ tofu sandwich with a pair of sides (basil potato salad, honey mustard cashew coleslaw). The tomato fococcia was the best part of the sandwich, as the tofu was somewhat bland and the BBQ sauce was too ketchuppy for my tastes. The sides, however, were fantastic. Very tasty without being overwhelming. Ryan had the “vegan meatloaf” which i think is somewhat mislabeled as it is more of a “lentil casserole”. I grabbed a bite and it was pretty hearty and flavorful. Kammy and Doug both had the non-veggie jerk pork sandwich and said very posiive things, so it’s good for omnivores too.

Although i wasn’t sold on my sandwich i loved the sides and would return to try other things on the menu if not just for the sides alone.

I could go into great detail about the two things i’ve ever eaten here, or about how everyone i’ve taken there says how good it is (the avocado seitan salad is a big hit) or about how the Tempeh Tuno Melt is one of my favorite sandwiches this side of Aux Vivre’s BLT, but i will say, quite simply this little place in silverlake is my favorite veggie haunt in LA and one of my favorite places in the U.S. to eat.

This place used to be called Kung Food and suffered from inexplicably slow service (even for a “cafeteria style” joint). Through a series of changes that i don’t know the specifics regarding, they have a new name and also another location in Yuma, Arizona. I’ve never been to the Yuma location, but a vegetarian option in the middle of the desert is pretty wonderful, i look forward to giving it a shot.

Back to the SD branch of Nature’s Express. Veggie Burgers are pretty dime a dozen and sort of a last resort for me while on tour, but theirs are pretty exceptional. The sweet potato “fries” are more like cooked potato chips and are pretty enjoyable. I only did the drive up window and liked the options, a pretty enjoyable endeavour, not absolute high class, but healthier than most options and pretty tasty.

So, Austin Texas, for many of us it’s that place where douchey record execs from LA and new york go to eat barbeque and purchase overpriced cowboy hats at that bizarre bucket of advertising they call South By Southwest, but for some, it’s a town that has some pretty great vegan eats.

Most everyone who frequents this town is familiar with the normal joints, Mr. Natural, Veggie Heaven, Mother’s, Etc. This south austin joint is a bit more community oriented and has been around for a handful of years. A vegetarian restaurant with a spattering of vegan treats. They have a wonderful selection of vegan baked goods, and they will substitute their very special tofu for eggs in their breakfasts and tacos. I’ve been eating at this place for years, and just about every time i always get the “predictable” breakfast. their hash browns used to be more on the rosemary side of life, but are still delicious. They’ve added an augmentation called “fire” which appears to be pureed jalapenos and other peppers, it’s quite tasty and a really nice addition to their tofu which on it’s own is a gigantic treat of deliciousness. The baked goods are wonderful and their smoothies are pretty solid as well. For what it’s worth, they serve beer too, i don’t remember their selection, but i’m sure it includes some local and organic options. This place is very DIY and very cozy. Enjoy!