I don't really believe in new years resolutions. If I really wanted to do something why would I wait until the new year to start doing it? It makes no sense to me! I do like to look back over photos and flick through my journals and reminisce about the year that's just gone by though so instead of a list of resolutions I write an Awesome Achievements & Wonderful Memories list at the end of each year. I think that I do this to remind myself of the little successes that could get forgotten otherwise and to make myself focus on doing more of the stuff I love in the year to come. I haven't written 2014's list yet because who knows what could happen tonight and tomorrow! One fun new thing that literally just happened is that I've given the blog a new look that helps illustrate the journey I'll be going on as I leave Brighton to travel full time early next year. My adorable new header was designed by fellow vegan and lovely human Amanda Chronister, you can check out her other work here.
Despite refusing to take part in creating a list of resolutions I do love a good list so I thought I'd put together a Top 10 Eats of 2014 list and wow, this was one of the hardest things I've ever tried to put together. I've eaten so much amazing food this year and I had to make serious cuts to the list as I travelled to some of my favourite places and ate some of my favourite things this year. The Pad See Ew from Pukk in NYC and the Formosa Pancake from Formosa in Vienna, to pick a couple of examples, have been on my favourites list for years so I had to discount them. So ruthless!
So, in the order that I ate them because rating them 1 - 10 would have been far, far too difficult, and all in one post because this isn't driven by an inherent need to flood your timelines with click bait, here we go...
1- The Mac Attack from Vinnie's Pizzeria in Brooklyn
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This amalgamation of my two favourite foods pizza and mac & cheese was always going to be a winner and I can't believe it took me until my third NYC trip as a vegan to try it. It was a thing of much beauty and wonder! Vinnie's also serve up BBQ Chicken pizza, amazing (and amazingly cheap) garlic knots and because they sell by the slice you can try all of the vegan options in one evening if you so wish.
Vinnie's Pizzeria 148 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn
2 - Crunch 'n Munch Roll from Beyond Sushi in Manhattan
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The kiwi topped Crunch 'n Munch which comes stuffed with baked tofu, english cucumber and sprouts only just pips January's roll of the month, the Grilled Aubergine and Kalamata Olive roll, to the post by a hairs breadth because, as that one was limited edition you can't go and eat it yourself right now. The Crunch 'n Munch also comes with my favourite of Beyond Sushi's mayos, the miso mayo, which I would happily put on everything everyday forever.
Beyond Sushi at Chelsea Market, 75 9th Ave
3 - Croque Monsieur from Champs Diner in Brooklyn
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Back in January I described this sandwich as The Best Breakfast I've Ever Had and I stand by that to this day. I mean it's melty cheese and mock meat sandwiched between two slices of French toast, I'm not sure it could ever be beaten especially if you order a pancake on the side like I did!
Champs Diner, 197 Meserole Street, Brooklyn
4 - T's Shoyu Ramen from T's Tan Tan in Tokyo
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This simple but flavourful ramen is spot on perfect. Nick and I ate it for both our first and last meals in Tokyo and a few more in-between of course. T's in located in Tokyo station so it's easy to get to and it opens at 7 so it's perfect for early birds or jet lagged travellers!
T's Tan Tan Tokyo Station, 1F Keiyo Street
5 - Margherita Pizza from Vegans Cafe and Restaurant in Kyoto
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9 - The Classic Cheese from Via 313 in Austin
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If I was rating these from 1 - 10 this would probably have to be numero uno. This is, in my opinion, the greatest taco of all time. As a chilli allergic vegan tacos can be a minefield fraught with hurdles and disappointment but this is spot on delicious and needed no modifications. Crunchy cabbage, breaded faux fish, avocado, a perfect lime crema and plenty of black pepper meant that this taco rocked my world. I ate it more times that I can count on one hand on my last trip to Austin and I'm hoping to be counting my Del Ray encounters on both hands and feet during my next visit.
The Vegan Nom 120 E Northloop, Austin
And the honorable mention goes to... 7/11 onigiri
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Without the help of Shawn and Chiaki from Vegan Japan my travels in their country would have been tougher for sure. They helped me suss out which convenience store foods were suitable for vegans and both Nick and I ate our weight in delicious 7/11, Family Mart and Lawson onigiris. You can check out my pictorial guide to Japanese convenience store food in my post Planning Your Trip to Japan.
Despite refusing to take part in creating a list of resolutions I do love a good list so I thought I'd put together a Top 10 Eats of 2014 list and wow, this was one of the hardest things I've ever tried to put together. I've eaten so much amazing food this year and I had to make serious cuts to the list as I travelled to some of my favourite places and ate some of my favourite things this year. The Pad See Ew from Pukk in NYC and the Formosa Pancake from Formosa in Vienna, to pick a couple of examples, have been on my favourites list for years so I had to discount them. So ruthless!
So, in the order that I ate them because rating them 1 - 10 would have been far, far too difficult, and all in one post because this isn't driven by an inherent need to flood your timelines with click bait, here we go...
1- The Mac Attack from Vinnie's Pizzeria in Brooklyn
This amalgamation of my two favourite foods pizza and mac & cheese was always going to be a winner and I can't believe it took me until my third NYC trip as a vegan to try it. It was a thing of much beauty and wonder! Vinnie's also serve up BBQ Chicken pizza, amazing (and amazingly cheap) garlic knots and because they sell by the slice you can try all of the vegan options in one evening if you so wish.
Vinnie's Pizzeria 148 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn
2 - Crunch 'n Munch Roll from Beyond Sushi in Manhattan
The kiwi topped Crunch 'n Munch which comes stuffed with baked tofu, english cucumber and sprouts only just pips January's roll of the month, the Grilled Aubergine and Kalamata Olive roll, to the post by a hairs breadth because, as that one was limited edition you can't go and eat it yourself right now. The Crunch 'n Munch also comes with my favourite of Beyond Sushi's mayos, the miso mayo, which I would happily put on everything everyday forever.
Beyond Sushi at Chelsea Market, 75 9th Ave
3 - Croque Monsieur from Champs Diner in Brooklyn
Back in January I described this sandwich as The Best Breakfast I've Ever Had and I stand by that to this day. I mean it's melty cheese and mock meat sandwiched between two slices of French toast, I'm not sure it could ever be beaten especially if you order a pancake on the side like I did!
Champs Diner, 197 Meserole Street, Brooklyn
4 - T's Shoyu Ramen from T's Tan Tan in Tokyo
This simple but flavourful ramen is spot on perfect. Nick and I ate it for both our first and last meals in Tokyo and a few more in-between of course. T's in located in Tokyo station so it's easy to get to and it opens at 7 so it's perfect for early birds or jet lagged travellers!
T's Tan Tan Tokyo Station, 1F Keiyo Street
5 - Margherita Pizza from Vegans Cafe and Restaurant in Kyoto
As you can see this pizza is so much more than a margherita, it has potatoes on it for gods sake! It also has spinach and a creamy homemade soy cheese and I am to this day kinda amazed that one of the best pizza's I've ever eaten was from a vegan cafe in Kyoto. I loved it.
Vegans Cafe and Restaurant 612 - 0029 Kyoto-shi Fushimi-ku Fukakusa Nishi Uramachi 4 chome 88
6 - Three Bites Platter from VBites in Brighton
As soon as VBites put this on the menu I was right there ordering it. No joke. I live 10 minutes away. This platter includes their Hickory Chick Burger (my very favourite if I'm being pushed to choose only one), a fish burger with tartare sauce and capers, and a classic VBeefy burger with ketchup and mustard. There are also fries. So. Freaking. Great.
VBites 14 East Street, Brighton
7 - Vegan Terre à Tier Tea from Terre à Terre in Brighton
As you can see by my list it's not usually the upscale stuff that wins me over but Terre á Terre's afternoon tea was one of the fanciest things I ate all year and I adored it. It was also a birthday celebration with three of my favourite people which made the experience extra special. The tier's are made up of a savoury tier, a sweet tier and a scone tier. I was particularly enamoured by the sweet tier which included churros, filled mini polenta cakes and a divine chocolate raspberry cake.
Terre à Terre 71 East Street, Brighton
8 - Brownie Ice Cream from Veganista in Vienna
An all vegan ice cream store just hours away by plane, I'm there! I'm lucky to have wonderful friends in Vienna and I couldn't resist a visit after hearing all about Veganista. They have about 20 rotating flavours and brownie was my favourite. Other standouts included Matcha and Hazelnut. I will definitely be trying out some more flavours next summer so stay tuned for updates.
Veganista Neustiftgasse 23/3, 1070 Wien
"How did a third pizza make it onto the list?" I hear you ask, well one, I'm obsessed with pizza! And two, this pizza's amazing. It's Detroit Style which means that it's deep dish style and it's baked in a super well oiled rectangular pan which means there's a crisp almost fried thing going on with the crust which, when you add marinara and Follow Your Heart cheese, makes for pizza perfection.
Via 313 @ Violet Crown Social Club, 1111 East 6th, Austin
10 - The Del Ray from The Vegan Nom in Austin
The Vegan Nom 120 E Northloop, Austin
And the honorable mention goes to... 7/11 onigiri
Without the help of Shawn and Chiaki from Vegan Japan my travels in their country would have been tougher for sure. They helped me suss out which convenience store foods were suitable for vegans and both Nick and I ate our weight in delicious 7/11, Family Mart and Lawson onigiris. You can check out my pictorial guide to Japanese convenience store food in my post Planning Your Trip to Japan.