Where To Eat Vegan: Kaya - Pittsburgh, PA

According to their website the cuisine at Kaya is inspired by the sea and the sun. On a hot sticky day in July with no shortage of sun but woefully short on sea we snagged a collaged, tropical table for lunch. Our gracious waiter, likely cursing our desire to sit outside on such a dripping, humid day, confidently pointed out the options that could be made vegan and we chose two to share. 

As we waited for lunch I toured the flowers growing on their patio and ventured into the dark, temple-like bar decorated in gold and blazing red paint. 

Jamaican Green Curry Vegetables and a Peanut Plantain Sandwich with Sweet Potato Fries!

The flavorful curry of mushrooms, swiss chard, potatoes and pineapple is ladled over saffron rice. Unlike the fiery green curry of Thai cuisine, Jamaican curry is sweet rather than spicy. 

Fried plantains, chunky peanut butter, spinach and pickled red onions were deliciously stacked into our sandwich.

Next time you're in the Strip District looking for a meal check out Kaya.

2000 Smallman Street

Pittsburgh, PA 15222

412- 261- 6565

Monday - Wednesday  11:30am to 10pm

Thursday - Saturday 11:30am to 11pm

Sunday 11am to 9pm

Where to (Tr)Eat Vegan: Oh Yeah! Ice Cream & Coffee - Pittsburgh, PA

Call Oh Yeah! Ice Cream and Coffee and the phone will be answered with a sprinkle encrusted Koolaid impersonation of  "Oh yeah!" 

Ok, kinda cheeseball. Kinda reminds me of the corporate nonsensical naming of scoops at Coldstone but go to Oh Yeah! and you'll be far from corporate but you WILL find a healthy dose of the nonsensical. 

Part waffle and ice cream joint, part mini library and community computer space part bank. 

Wait - bank?

 Whalebone Intergalactic Cafe Banco to be exact. They also sell stamps and envelops.

To be honest I was just here to eat some ice cream on top of a waffle. Let us press on. 

Enter cinnamon waffle topped with soy chocolate ice cream. 

Two modest waffle irons pump out waffles and for a family of 500 like mine this requires some patience. Spend your time waiting by perusing the list of flavors and toppings. Vegans, you've got it easy with only a few of these to choose from but having options at all is a blessing!

They also sell organic coffee roasted at 19 Coffee Company so if you are into that fancy bean water check that out. 

Not everyone loved the idea of soggy ice cream waffles.

I will say that these waffles, as can be the case with many vegan waffles, felt a bit empty. Lots of cinnamon flavor but not much else to give it a full flavor to stand up to the richness of the ice cream. Perhaps because they were gluten free? I don't know. 

Overall satisfying but not a waffle that changed my life. Kudos for carrying Earth Balance and real maple syrup though!

In short this is a homey little spot for a treat, a book and maybe some off the beaten path banking.

232 S. Highland Ave

412-200-5574

Where to Eat Vegan: Franktuary - Pittsburgh, PA

I went through a very long phase of my childhood where all I wanted to eat was hot dogs. Visiting my  grandmother was even more of a treat because she never failed to make my breakfast hot dog, much to my mother's fear that I would only eat hot dogs for the rest of my life. 

I grew up. My diet diversified and veganized and after a while hot dogs were no longer a part of my life. But the nostalgic, childish desire for hot dogs has kinda stuck around. Enter the grown up hot dogs served at Franktuary.

Veggie dogs and sausgages, piled high with potato sticks, kraut, veggie chili, gravy, mango salsa and all the darn mustards you can think of. Finish it off with a lemon mousse and you've still spent less than 10 bucks. 

These are no microwaved hot dogs on a potato roll from my childhood. The Negishi hot dog is piled with seaweed, pickled ginger, wasabi mayo and sesame. Or get a side of the pickle platter and pile your dog with kimchi and picked veggies. Or go Memphis style with BBQ and potato sticks. 

Hot dogs not your thing? Try the Beetballs made with tempeh, lentils and veggies on a bun.

In their most recent blog post Franktuary answered all the most pressing of veggie questions and even provided us with a list of all their vegetarian and vegan options. A surprise on the list: poutine gravy! 

Chipotle Vegan Sausage with Mango Salsa on the Whole Wheat Bun. 

What I loved most about Franktuary is that I could go out to dinner with my family and feel normal. I don't expect my family to all go to a vegetarian or vegan restaurant with me (though it would be nice!) so it's amazing to find a place that accommodates us all and our love of hot dogs. 

There are two locations for Franktuary plus a food truck. True to Pittsburgh style the two locations use repurposed spaces. One an old garage and one an old church. The Lawrenceville location is the one I have visited and found it open and airy with cool touches like the pressed tin bar and the food counter along the expansive garage door windows. 

Lawrenceville:

3810 Butler Street

Pitt, Pa 15201

Downtown:

325 Oliver Avenue

Pitt, PA 15222

Where to Eat Vegan: Quiet Storm - Pittsburgh PA

Quiet Stormis a cute little vegetarian and vegan diner in the East End of Pittsburgh. Tess and Jesse brought me here my last day in Pittsburgh and we all enjoyed a quick meat free meal. While the burger was calling my name and the home-fries piled with tofu scramble and seitan were tempting, I opted for the Cheesy Snake. A hoagie topped with seitan, queso sauce, red onions, lettuce, and tomato. If you are looking at the picture above you may be saying to yourself...."ugh...where is the cheese and seitan?" A valid question but rest assured under all that fluffy lettuce was indeed the gooey seitan I had hoped for. This dish was actually pretty good. It was served with a side of black bean and corn salad which was simple but tasty. My main regret - not getting a milkshake!

On my next trip to Pittsburgh I will definately want to swing through here again because so much on the menu looked good. Be aware, they have three different menus: weekday, Saturday and then the Sunday brunch. They all look varied and delicious but you may want to see what your options are before you choose a day to go.

Some of the things I had the option of eating and would certainly have done so were I able to eat as much food as an elephant:
Vegan queso and chips, the VHF home-fries (smashed red potatoes, seisage, tofu, veggies and red pepper mayo or queso on top), Ginger Sunflower (peanut ginger sauce over brown rice, scrambled tofu, broccoli, sweet potatoes and sunflowers) Boystown Combo (brown rice, kale, scrambled tofu and roasted veggies with sesame or tahini sauce) the Banh Mi sandwich.

But lemme talk about brunch. UGH why did I not go on a weekend to experience brunch. Nyam (Jamaican inspired cornmeal and coconut pudding with roasted sweet potatoes, bananas and cinnamon maple syrup, served with seitan sausage patties and fruit) Biscuits and Gravy, the Black and Gold burrito (scrambled tofu, black beans, roasted veggies, taters and onion gravy) and the Pancho burrito (kale, brown rice, chickpeas, mushrooms and tahini sauce). These all sound delicious. Guess I'll have to go back!

This cafe has ample space and was inviting and comfortable with its eclectic mix of tables, chairs and hanging lamps. I would had love to have tried their desserts as well but such is life.

PS If you go to Quite Storm say hi to the cute bearded guy behind the counter for me. I was too shy to do so myself.

Somewhere New: Pittsburgh, PA

For the month of February, I decided to visit my cousin Tess and her family up in Pittsburgh (thanks again!). I was greeted with these smiling faces.




All silliness aside, I had a lovely couple of days wandering around the city, checking out vegan restaurants and lounging around with my family and their adorably obnoxious pups. While the sky in Pittsburgh is not always clear and sunny, all the healthy pops of yellow that Tess designed into her patterns, paint and accent pieces were a nice reminder of how uplifting color can be since I tend towards the brown, black and grays so often found in cityscapes.




I also really loved the architecture of the houses in Mt. Lebanon. This house was a great example of how unique they were.

Of course there is a grittier side to Pittsburgh and of course this happened to be my favorite part. I went to E Carson street on two different occasions during my stay. I was drawn to the vintage shops, the food and the city feel it gives off. Check out places like Yo Rita and Double Wide Grill for food and then work off those seitan wings with a Jiva class at Breathe. Breathe has such an amazing space. The ceilings are pressed tin and must be at least 15 feet high but I'd wager more. The room is so big it feels like a ballroom rather than a yoga studio but the well placed lighting and the wide open windows make it feel just as relaxing as a more intimate space.






One place I highly recommend for vintage shopping is Highway Robbery. Kate, the owner of this cute little vintage boutique is super personable and I loved the style of her shop as well as the well chosen (and just as importantly - well priced) pieces she has. She also has an etsy store, so if you can't get into town check that out. She helped me gracefully move into the long skirt world by bolstering my courage enough to buy a really cute high waisted and deep pocketed (yes!) long fall skirt.



On my last night in town we rode the Duquesne Incline and got a beautiful view of the city below. It's $2.50 to ride it one way and you had best bring exact change or the grumpy man will roll his eyes at you and say "Yup..exact change," and then go back to reading his book.






On my list to see next time. The Heinz History Center because I love ketchup, the Warhol Museum and a whole slew of great food options like:Brillobox for a vegan gyro, Oh Yeah! Ice Cream & Coffee for a vegan waffle and ice cream (we did TRY but they were closed for some unexplained reason) Franktuary (more because its a church that sells hotdogs and I love its name, not so much because I like vegan hot dogs) and Spak Brothers for a vegan version of that strange Pittsburgh sammy.

Where to Eat Vegan: Yo Rita - Pittsburgh, PA

After getting lost on the way to yoga on Penn Avenue I found myself on E Carson street. Funny thing is, I already knew the name and thus didn't feel the least bit lost. South Side, and in particular E Carson street, is a bit of a vegan and vegetarian gem. Jammed with tattoo shops, yoga studios, vintage shops and restaurants, E Carson is a little on the grungy side - but that's just the way I like it.

After stretching out my stomach in the (painfully) slow Yin class at Breath Yoga Studio I shuffled down the street for some tacos and salad at Yo Rita. I had read online that they were willing to accommodate vegans and while their menu asked for "no substitutions" to be made, my server assured me that my requests to leave off the dairy would be happily fulfilled.

Their menu is limited but well varied with several options for both meat eaters and veggies. Chips and two salsas - a chunky mild and a smooth medium - are brought to the table within minutes of sitting down. I started with a small but interesting salad of greens, jicama, radish, carrot and salted pumpkin seeds with an agave vinaigrette. The saltiness of the pumpkin seeds and the sweetness of the dressing provided a really nice contrast and all the crunchy greens and veggies made me feel all healthy and stuff after my yoga class.

Then came the taco! Served on soft white tortillas and a bed of cabbage, there are all kinds of fillings offered. Portobello mushrooms, crispy fried tofu, potatoes? Yum! I opted for the Velvet Underground that was running as a special that night. Their online menu doesn't seem to be up to date as the Velvet Underground is ON that menu but was only a verbal special when I went. Also - where was that brussel sprout taco last night!

I digress. Roasted beets, sweet potatoes and scallions made up the simple but flavorful taco I scarfed last night. Of course, to be made vegan they had to hold the aji amarillo crema and the aged cheddar. Would it have been better with some sort of cashew crema and or vegan sour cream and cheese? Well duh. And Yo Rita..if you're reading this... get on it!

But seriously, the food was all well prepared, fast and cheap. The tattoo style logo sets the tone without the rest of the inside decor going over the top. Service was super friendly and I look forward to sweating it out at yoga and eating a veggie taco again next time. Oh but...could I get some guac with dem tacos please?