Roti Video from Taste of India, Charleston
Posted by Danielle Bussone on Jan 6, 2014 in Charleston, Ethiopian, I-26, I-526, Indian, Vegan | 0 comments
by Danielle Bussone
In this video Taste of India Restaurant in Charleston, SC demonstrates how to make Roti in a Tandoori style oven.
Taste of Tandoor Marries Indian Spices With Old World Elegance in Woodbridge, VA
Posted by Danielle Bussone on Dec 31, 2013 in I-95, Indian, Vegetarian/Vegan Friendly, Woodbridge | 0 comments
by Lisa Harris
The Taste of Tandoor located at 13836 Smoketown Road, in Woodbridge, Virginia is a wonderfully pleasant and relaxing place to dine for lunch or dinner. Although not a completely vegan restaurant the owner Dave has worked very hard to meet the needs of his vegan patrons by having nine main vegan dishes permanently on the menu such as Chana Masala, Aloo Masala, and Aloo Ghobi Masala.
Chana Masala
Vegan Flatbread
Bismatti Rice
They also have two appetizers and several vegan breads. The appetizer vegetable samosa is a delicious vegetable turnover stuffed with potatoes, green peas, cumin seeds and spices. It come with two types of dipping sauces but a word of advice, the green dip is not vegan so be sure to avoid it. Besides your everyday salads Taste of Tandoor serves kachumbar which is a delicious cucumber and onion salad with lemon herbs. (more…)
Udipi Café Indian Vegetarian Restaurant of Sunrise, FL Offers Certified Kosher Fare!
Posted by Danielle Bussone on Dec 29, 2013 in I-95, Indian, Sunrise, FL, Vegetarian/Vegan Friendly | 0 comments
If you are lucky enough to find yourself in South Florida this time of year then you must not miss out on Udipi Café where, upon first bite, you are transported to the Southern region of India known for exotic vegetarian cuisine. Udipi Café is located 11 minutes northwest of Fort Lauderdale via I-95 and Hwy 518 or just 8 minutes south of Coral Springs via University Drive. It is the only certified Kosher Indian restaurant in Florida and just about everything can be made vegan!
Udipi Café Mission Statement
For my running partner and I, we often delight in such spicy Indian fare as a reward for enduring our scheduled long runs in the grueling heat. More heat, you ask? Why of course, it’s what we crave!!! The hotter the better! We sweat when we train and likewise there’s nothing like breaking out in a cold sweat and grabbing your jacket during a meal! For those spices contain anti-inflammatory properties not to mention they taste so darn good!!! If you don’t fancy your meals burning hot, chef/owner Santhosh Shetty is more than happy to accommodate your preferences without compromising flavor.
Udipi Kosher Menu
Mr. Shetty was happy to start our dinner off with his famous Chinese style Manchurian Cauliflower ($10.95)! While it isn’t exactly low calorie, if you work out like we do, we would rather indulge in this rich starter than any ordinary fried finger food. Or dessert, for that matter! An absolute must for us for every Indian meal is Dosai. At Udipi, the delicate rice crepe the size of a cornucopia, filled with potatoes, onions and an array of spices known as Madhuri Masala Dosai ($7.50) never disappoints. It is very light, airy and savory, like an elevated version of the classic deli-style potato knish! We always say we will never finish it but not even a crumb can ever be found.
Madhuri Masala Dosai
Manchurian Cauliflower
Our meals included Yellow Dal ($9.95), made up of protein-rich lentils (to heal those tired muscles) with a savory stew-like consistency, along with Diwani Handi (Tawa Ghotala) ($11.95) made up of fresh, juicy (and healthy) mushroom shreds combined with mixed veggies and Indian spices…so creamy without the cream! How do they do that?
Udipi Café Tawa Ghotala with Yellow Dal
Each entrée is accompanied by fragrant white basmati rice for a hearty meal but should you feel guilty about white carbs after the cauliflower and the dosai, the dishes hold up on their own. Of course, if your plan is to run or work out even harder the next day, then by all means, load up on those carbs! It might just be what you need as a binder to offset the potential for a little delayed gastro action!
Mango Lassi
Dessert is not really our style with our overabundance of saltier taste buds (lost from sweat) so as a rule, we avoid the sweets. However, Mr. Shetty delighted us with his mango puree smoothies (Mango Lassi $3.50) to accompany our meal. I believe they contain yogurt. My running partner isn’t vegan and was happy to drink both as he knows I prefer to eat, rather than drink my calories anyway!
Offering authentic Indian cuisine in the same location for 11 years, Udipi Café is here to stay!
Well, I gotta run! Until next time…
Andrea “VeGAL” Medalie
Spicing It Up At Bombay Bazar and Restaurant, Charleston, SC
Posted by Danielle Bussone on Dec 9, 2013 in Charleston, I-26, Indian | 0 comments
You can feel fairly confident that a restaurant is worth visiting when it keeps popping up on vegan meet-up group websites. We first learned of Bombay Bazar from the consistent posts of the Charleston Veggie Meetup group. They seem to like it so well we had to make it part of our tour of restaurants when we visited Charleston, SC.
We love eating at Indian restaurants. Because of the long tradition of vegetarianism in the Indian culture, the food is a natural fit for vegan diners. There are many dishes to choose from, some vegan, some vegetarian, so you do have to pay attention if you are strictly vegan. Bombay Bazar and Restaurant was our first stop on this tour of Charleston’s eclectic cuisines.
Bombay Bazar Exterior
We are happy to report Bombay Bazar did not disappoint. Rich and I arrived in the late afternoon when we practically had the place to ourselves. As you walk in you’ll see the entrance to the restaurant on the left and the entrance to the Bazar, or market, on the right. (We’ll address the market in a separate post.)
The restaurant is divided into three rooms. The first section has booths hugging the wall with a divider and more booths on the opposite wall. The second room is where you’ll find tables bedecked with white tablecloths, napkins and place settings.
Bombay Bazar Vegetable Jalfrezi
Rich ordered the Vegetable Jalfrezi, a mix of vegetables and herbs in a delightful curry sauce. The vegetables consisted of tomatoes, green beans, potatoes, onions, green peppers and cilantro.($9.95).
Bombay Bazar Baingan Ka Bharta
Natural Imports of Asheville, NC is the Go To Market for Authentic Japanese Culinary Fare
Posted by Danielle Bussone on Nov 19, 2013 in Asheville, NC, Features, Grocers, I-240, I-26, I-40, Living Plant-Strong! Profiles & Articles, Organic and/or Non-GMO | 0 comments
Once in a blue moon I’ll discover a truly unique gem of a resource that I simply feel duty bound to share with the world. Natural Imports of Asheville, NC, is one such discovery. Natural Imports is a purveyor of traditional Japanese culinary products of the highest caliber. Great care is taken to assure excellence, offering foods of a medicinal quality, prepared in time honored traditions by skilled Japanese craftsmen. Mass production and quicker, low-quality methods are threatening the livelihoods of these Japanese artisans, who prepare foods using the principal of Ishoku Dogen, “medicine and food have the same source.” You’ll find no mass market food and no arsenic laden Chinese seaweed here, only traditionally crafted products and sea vegetables grown in deep waters of Japan, protected for centuries with organic, sustainable practices.
Natural Imports Interior
Bruce MacDonald, now semi-retired, is the founder of Natural Imports. His daughter, Crystal, has been his partner and business manager since its inception in 1993, since she was 19 years old. Crystal speaks fluent Japanese and is a wealth of information about all aspects of how the seaweed is harvested, the medicinal and nutritional ingredients of every product, the sustainability practices of her suppliers and any glitch that effects the ecosystem and thereby affecting the quality of their products. She is a dynamic powerhouse who stays on top of all issues pertaining to Natural Imports.
Crystal MacDonald
Crystal essentially grew up in the business. Her parents divorced when she was young and she spent summers working at Commodities, a Japanese import store Bruce owned in New York City, where she learned about Japanese food. Bruce had previously worked for Erehwon in Boston, which was the original importer of natural foods in the US and subsequently for Erehwon West in California and later for Bread and Circus, which was sold to become the original Whole Foods Market.
CO, A Vietnamese Gem in the Middle of Charleston, SC, Offers a Vegan Menu!
Posted by Danielle Bussone on Nov 17, 2013 in Asian, Charleston, I-26, Vietnamese | 0 comments
It is the second Sunday of the month, meaning King Street has been cordoned off for the day. Restaurants spill onto the curbs with tables and bright umbrellas in an air of camaraderie and joie de vivre. Waiters carry fragrant platters of myriad foodstuffs and drink to cheerful tourists. Dog walkers and young mothers pushing baby strollers maneuver around them and the city becomes alive with students, street musicians, Citadel cadets and sundry on-lookers, the young and wizened alike.
The first leg of our vegan trek through the historic city of Charleston, SC, takes us to CO, a charming Vietnamese restaurant located on King Street. It is nestled amid the lovely sunbathed pastel architecture indicative of Charleston, right in the heart of its busy shopping district near the intersection of George Street.
CO Exterior
Upstairs
We order our usual water with no ice and I ask Sam, our waitress, to point out the vegan items on the menu. She exchanges the menu in my hand with a vegan and gluten-free menu and the issue is immediately resolved. The name “CO” means “Feast” in Vietnamese, which certainly is appropriate for this restaurant which offers a wide range of choices. We spoke at length with Josh, the general manager. He explains the produce used in preparing CO’s food is locally sourced, though no great attention has been paid to the presence of GMO’s. After suffering, with patience and grace, through my lecture on the subject perhaps in the future that will change. One restaurant at a time is my policy! (He’ll be quizzed on the subject on our next visit.) 🙂
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