Side Trip: O2 Vegan Cafe in Cambridge

Another short detour off the beaten path that is Shrewsbury Street again today.

Yesterday I went to a little get-together at 02 Vegan Cafe in Cambridge hosted by Jasmin Singer of Our Hen House.  The fabulous Hen House ladies were in town because Mariann Sullivan was judging at the National Animal Law Competitions  at Harvard University Law School, and the plan was for some local supporters to join together for lunch then to go over to the campus and watch a round or two of the competition.  

I'm not normally the kind of person to go to a thing like this, but I figured there probably won't be many other opportunities for me to go to either a Moot Court event at Harvard OR for me to hang with some bona-fide vegan/animal rights royalty.  So what the heck, right?

Excellent decision.

Not only did I get to have that weirdly sinking sensation that I get whenever I find myself on the campus of a spectacular name-brand college (namely, "if I'd known how unbelievably great these top-tier schools were when I was younger, I may have applied myself a little more in high school*), but I also got to see a room full of 25-year-olds who could kick my ass in a thinking and speaking contest without breaking a sweat.  Luckily all that self-loathing was nicely balanced by lunch at O2.

Invitees got to bring a "plus-one" to this little excursion so I brought my daughter Katie with me. Since she's in the process of getting a vegan cafe of her own off the ground (Chickpea), I figured a little recon of a like-minded business might be just the thing.  Plus, I wasn't going to know a soul at this event and it's always nice to have a buddy just in case the other people weren't very sociable.  It turns out, though, that they WERE all sociable and as friendly as can be.  

Back to the lunch.  We all introduced ourselves and there were people from all over MA who were at all different levels of involvement in animal rights or vegan/plant-based awareness-raising...health practitioners, fund-raisers, educators, and of course people like me who just dabble here and there around the fringes.  I listen to the Our Hen House podcast every Saturday morning like it's some kind of holy ritual and I can tell you that Jasmine Singer is exactly as lively and fun in person as she is on my earbuds.  She kept the conversation going with all the diners there (mostly ladies, BTW... only two men-folk in the hen house that day) and she seems like a person who is at home wherever she is.  

Anyway - the menu at the cafe is pretty short so Katie and I decided to each get a different sandwich and share half-for-half so we'd get two items for the price of one lunch each.  The Banh Mimi (the owner's name is Mimi) was a nice slab of seasoned seitan on a crusty roll (maybe a ciabatta) with a bit of salad and dressing on top.  The Seitan Slam was a pressed sandwich done up Ruben-style with rye bread, slaw, seitan, and a most worthy dressing.  Sandwiches came with a little eeny meeny fraction of a pickle spear and no chips at all.  That's right...no chips.  I suppose with the whole yoga lifestyle thing going on at the 02 cafe, chips aren't exactly in keeping with healthful eating.  But still.  A sandwich without chips at home is acceptable, but at a restaurant, a sandwich plate with no chips on it seems practically unlawful.  Even without chips, the lunch was satisfying and I have no complaints at all.  Especially since Mimi kicked in free desserts for us because we were so cool and hanging with vegan royalty.  

I really liked 02 Vegan Cafe.  The people were super-nice, the food was good, and I always feel good about patronizing businesses that have their heart in the right place.  I'd definitely go back again and sample some other sandwiches and maybe get a smoothie.... and maybe take a yoga class in the back room if they take drop-ins.  

The moot court was fascinating, but we had to leave before the second round because I had to get home to make some Mac&Cheese for the Veg Worcester Mac Daddy contest in Worcester that night.  That event was also a good time, but leaving early meant that I never did get to meet Mariann Sullivan or her famous pitbull rescue, Rose.  Some other time, maybe.  And maybe more about the MacDaddy competition later too.  

*nah.  I probably wouldn't have tried any harder.  I would have just felt more guilt over my lack of achievement.

Side Trip: New House of India

On Wednesday my lovely daughter Katie put together a perfectly delightful birthday surprise party for the charming Marissa at the New House of India in Worcester.  And how often does a surprise party come around?  If you're living my life, not very often, so of course I took a detour from the Shrewsbury Street Shuffle and had a lovely, delightful, and charming meal in Coes Square.  

I didn't even know that Coes Square was an actual place - I've always thought of this plaza as the point at the intersection of Lovell and Park, but the address isn't Lovell or Park...it's 2 Coes Square.  Coes Square?  To a lot of us though, this location will forever be "the place where Tin Tin Buffet used to be" or the place where Cow Farm is.  And that's another thing - Cow Farm?  Has there ever been a stranger name for a store in the middle of what is arguably one of the least farm-like stretches of road in the city of Worcester?  Is there even a tree on that part of Park Ave?  Is there a blade of grass?  Is there a cow?  No to all three, I think, but there is an Indian restaurant.

Now that I think back to the evening, I don't remember ever seeing the word vegan on the menu anywhere and at the time of ordering I assumed that all vegetarian dishes without paneer (a cow milk cheese) would be vegan since all the listed elements of the dishes I ordered were vegetables of some kind.  But in the days that have  followed I've wondered if the dishes were prepared with ghee (clarified butter).  All I know about ghee is that it's not that hard to make and that lots Indian recipes I look up call for it, but is it a feature of Northern Indian food or of Southern Indian food, or is a feature of both?  I just don't know,  and I never thought to ask at the time.  So it's entirely possible that the following dishes weren't necessarily vegan...I'll check the next time I'm there and update.

I can't remember all we had since we shared and shared alike, but here's what stands out from the evening:

Vegetable Samosas - I love these things...or maybe I just love the relishes that you dip them in...I'm a sucker especially for whatever that green sauce is...sweet/spicy heaven

Garlic Naan - totally delectable with visible pieces of chopped garlic on top.  I would have happily eaten a second piece, but I was with people I hardly knew and didn't want to look like a bread hog, so I just spent the bulk of the evening eyeing the last remaining piece that sat in the basket until we packed our to-go boxes.  I think the birthday girl took the last piece.  I can live with that.

Chana Masala - Is there anything more sublime than chickpeas, potatoes, and spicy sauce? No.

Alu Gobi - Cauliflower and potatoes in spicy sauce - soft potatoes and crunchy-soft cauliflower.  Yum.  We ordered both the Chana Masala and the Alu Gobi spicy, but neither seemed particularly spicy to me.

Something involving okra came by and I took some even though I cannot stand okra, but this was pretty tasty.  The okra was sliced into little rings about a half-inch in diameter and fried so they were not exactly crispy, but they were definitely toothsome and not the simultaneously gelatinous and stringy blobs I usually see.  Also, they did not taste like okra at all which made them perfect.

We skipped dessert because we had a stupendous vegan ice-cream cake waiting for us at home.   I'd go back again and try a few more dishes, and maybe get take-out because I've got to say, the atmosphere isn't really all that appealing...unless you need a Bolllywood fix while you dine.

Red Lantern with Rush!

2/22/15

This afternoon I went to The Red Lantern for lunch with my old friend Rushelle and had an absolutely wonderful meal.  I had some trepidation when I pulled into the parking lot and saw that no one (and I mean no one) else was there.  Not one car.  But it was a Sunday afternoon - actually a beautifully sunny Sunday afternoon - so maybe the good people of Worcester had better things to do than sit in a restaurant on the first decent Sunday in I don't know how long.  But the Red Lantern is Rushelle's favorite Chinese place in Worcester and she's a woman whose opinion I trust implicitly, so empty lot or no empty lot, I was psyched.

The host led us to a classic red booth next to the windows, so we had a good view of the street and the restaurant.  Aside from a couple of tired Christmas wreaths on the wall, the decor was classic Chinese restaurant...some art, some shelves, lots of red.  I had a good feeling right from the start.

What did we order?

I ordered Scallion Pancake, Green Beans with Garlic Sauce, and General Tso's Tofu.

Rush had soup, spicy shrimp, and steamed dumplings.  I wish I'd taken note of exactly what dishes she ordered, but at the time it seemed so easy to remember, and now that I'm home the details are gone.  Whatever the soup, shrimp, and dumplings were, they looked pretty good to me

I'm a sucker for classic heavy-duty white dinner ware and when I saw our carefully arranged food coming out in all those gleaming white bowls and platters, I could not have been happier.  

How was it?

The service was fast - super fast - and the food was fantastic!  The scallion pancakes were piping hot and just the perfect mix of crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside.  The tofu was spot-on - nice big cubes of perfectly crispy-on-the-outside-creamy-on-the-inside tofu covered in a tangy orange sauce.  My buddy ordered her shrimp extra spicy and I'll definitely order my General Tso's extra spicy next time I'm at the Red Lantern.  Even though the dish was marked as spicy with a little pepper icon, I'd say it was sweet and tangy, but not really spicy, and I like my spice.  The green beans were nice and crisp, bright green (as was the broccoli with the tofu dish) and seasoned to perfection.

A big bowl of white rice rounded out the meal.

Overall

I've got to say I was pleasantly surprised by my visit to Red Lantern.  I'd done my due diligence and checked out their website to scope out the vegetarian offerings, and I was super happy to see such extensive vegetarian menu, but when I went on Yelp! I was a little put off by all the negative reviews. My Yelp-fueled expectations were pretty low going in,  but from first to last, this was a great veg dining experience.  Everything looked beautiful and tasted wonderful.  I'll definitely be back, but first I've got a lot of Shrewsbury Street to cover!

The Bill

$48 and change for a veritable feast (soup, two appetizers, two entrees, side of veg, rice, and tea) and we each had plenty to take home for another meal.