When I announced to my boyfriend, whom I've coined NinjaManFriend (to go with my pseudonym of VentiSkimNinja), that I was going Vegan for Lent - there were several reactions. He'd just watched the documentary "Forks over Knives," and was cutting back on animal proteins, himself, so he said it was well-timed. He also joked that I've now eliminated us going out until Easter (idea being: save money by not eating out because what's there to eat). Well! Who am I to let my challenge stand in the way of friends and socializing? So I decided to share what I can from my restaurant experiences during this challenge.
Note/Disclaimer: I am, in no way, affiliated to any restaurants mentioned in this blog, other than as a loving patron.
Vegan-at-Restaurant Challenge #1:
BRUNCH at Matchbox on Capitol Hill:
This past weekend, some friends I decided to meet up in Eastern Market/Barracks Row for one meal that I think is a key piece of DC foodie culture (both classic and trendy, and done so many different ways, and generally delicious): Sunday Brunch.
We ended up at Matchbox (521 8th St, SE).
I had scoped many of the restaurant's menus, and didn't have super high hopes for vegan options. But it wasn't a "buy" meal, so I wanted/needed to just make it work.
Our server was super nice to me about it, especially considering I pretty much introduced myself as "I'm sorry I'm going to be a pain in your ass, but I just went vegan for 40 days, and have to ask you a lot of questions."
By this point, I'd narrowed down the few options that seemed to have vegan potential.
On the actual brunch menu, there are no vegan courses. It's brunch - so there are a lot of eggs involved, and meats, and butter, and cream. As a result, I looked straight to the sides, where it seemed my vegan-potential was in the seasonal fruit, the ciabatta with butter (if hold the butter), and maybe the breakfast potatoes. I also looked at the regular menu and saw two salads: a three-beet salad (hold the goat cheese fritters), and a warm mushroom and lentil salad.
So our server took this list of potential (thank you, and I'm sorry I didn't remember your name, because you were so good to me) - and brought back the following report:
- Breakfast potatoes - cooked in butter = No go.
- Ciabatta bread is from a distributor, unsure what's in it = No go, to be safe.
- Beet salad is fine if hold the goat cheese fritters = Safe, without goat cheese.
- Warm mushroom salad is fine but comes with fried something (I think carrots) that are fried in the same oil that fries meat = Safe, but hold the fried garnish to be legitimate.
So I asked him which of the salads he preferred, and he said definitely the mushroom. Ordered.
He did not steer me wrong.
The "warm mushroom salad" of "chanterelle, oyster & cremini mushrooms / swiss chard / red lentils / fingerling potatoes / sherry vinaigrette," for $12, was delicious. It was subtle and earthy, and provided good brunch warmth, with this really hearty seasoning. The lentils and swiss chard were both really great complements to the mushrooms.
It was small though. When ServerDude, maybe jokingly/maybe no, asked if I wanted to order another, I almost jumped at the chance with a resounding "yes!" but refrained because we were planning to walk through the market and I thought there would be other vendor food I could buy (this proved to be a mistake when everything had eggs or butter in it... other than pickles).
Overall Vegan Report: Matchbox:
(out of 5 veggie-stars)- Though the vegan-able options were delicious, the selection was incredibly limited.
- Left happy but still hungry.
- Server was incredibly helpful.
Funniest exchange during meal:
After I finally place my order, ServerDude turns to NinjaManFriend, who orders the steak and eggs. ServerDude asks "how would you like that [steak] cooked?" and NinjaManFriend answers, "Vegan." Zing! Point.
ADDENDUM added March 13, 2012:
I returned to Matchbox for another brunch after a trip to Austin (a vegan friendly city where I had two of my pre-planned Vegan BYE meals, to be featured in my next post).
I had the same server (Chris), who remembered me and told me the Chef also remembered my vegan questions.
Matchbox officially gets another veggie-star, totaling it at 3:
Here's why:
It turns out there is no dairy (no eggs, which was the big surprise to me) in the Matchbox pizza dough.
There is a vegetable pizza, that generally is made with pesto and cheese and EVOO (with vegetables on top) - I got it without the cheese, and with red sauce instead of pesto (since there is cheese in the pesto).
It was fantastic. And I wasn't still hungry upon exiting the restaurant.
So now the list of vegan-friendly brunchable items at Matchbox:
- Fruit
- Beet salad, without the goat cheese fritters
- Mushroom salad, warm, without the fried carrots
- Vegetable pizza, no cheese, and replace pesto with red sauce
ADDENDUM added March 13, 2012:
I returned to Matchbox for another brunch after a trip to Austin (a vegan friendly city where I had two of my pre-planned Vegan BYE meals, to be featured in my next post).
I had the same server (Chris), who remembered me and told me the Chef also remembered my vegan questions.
Matchbox officially gets another veggie-star, totaling it at 3:
Here's why:
It turns out there is no dairy (no eggs, which was the big surprise to me) in the Matchbox pizza dough.
There is a vegetable pizza, that generally is made with pesto and cheese and EVOO (with vegetables on top) - I got it without the cheese, and with red sauce instead of pesto (since there is cheese in the pesto).
It was fantastic. And I wasn't still hungry upon exiting the restaurant.
So now the list of vegan-friendly brunchable items at Matchbox:
- Fruit
- Beet salad, without the goat cheese fritters
- Mushroom salad, warm, without the fried carrots
- Vegetable pizza, no cheese, and replace pesto with red sauce
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