Eating Out's Getting More Pho-n!

I haven't had the best luck eating out since I went vegan. Most restaurants don't have a single vegan option. Sometimes there is one thing that I can order with substitutions.

Even things you think would be safe are suspect. Veggie burgers with cheese in the patty and salad dressings with egg whipped in "to hold it together." Really? Whisk faster... :)

It's been okay because I have so many veggies to use from the CSA and I've been cooking so much that I can't really justify going out to eat much anyway.

But sometimes it's nice to let someone else do the cooking and cleaning for a change! So I'm especially grateful when I find a restaurant with a delicious vegan meal.


Loving Hut's German chocolate cupcake - heaven!



That's why I'm so excited about the breakfast I had today. Kate, Ciela and I went for a run in Balboa Park and then they introduced me to Ranchos Mexican Restaurant. They have like 10 or 15 vegan options! Kate and I shared the soy chorizo burrito with black beans and potatoes, and the banana pancakes. The burrito was amazing! The pancakes were pretty good (a teeny bit undercooked), but it was just exciting to be able to eat pancakes at all! Oh - and the coffee was delish! It has a cinnamon-y flavor that really compliments the burn of the spicy salsa. (Laura - it was a fiesta in my mouth!) Arriba!

Here are a few more exciting vegan finds from the last few weeks:

 Spicy Cha Cha - Loving Hut
This is a new all-vegan restaurant in east Mira Mesa, just five minutes from my house! I've been wanting to try it since it opened a few months ago. I finally had the chance last week after Kate and I went running at Lake Miramar. It was overwhelming to have so many choices, but I settled on the shrimp dish because I was really curious about the soy shrimp. It was uncanny how much it tasted like and had the consistency of real shrimp! The best part though, was the desert case. We shared a German chocolate cupcake that was to-die-for!

Pho Ca Dao's vegetarian pho - hot and delicious!

Vegetarian Pho - Pho Ca Dao
It was super cold last weekend so hot soup sounded perfect! The little mom and pop pho restaurant we went to first only had beef broth. So we had to leave... sorry Pat! But Pho Ca Dao has one with vegetable broth, tofu, lots of veggies and vermicelli noodles. And they had beef for the meat-eating sweetie!

Pappas Loco - The Mission
We went to the one in Mission Beach a few weekends ago after our Saturday run. The coffee was amazing, and it's organic and free trade! And there were at least two vegan options! The Pappas Loco has rosemary potatoes, grilled jalapeños, black beans, avocado and comes with tortillas. Requesting it without cheese and sour cream makes it vegan.

Portabella Wrap - World Famous
This wrap with marinated, grilled portabella mushroom slices, red bell pepper, jasmine rice and a tangy miso ginger vinaigrette was made even better by the company of my sis and cousins! I was a teeny bit jealous of their nut-crusted brie appetizer, but this made it all better! (And the mimosas!)

1-Lb Vegetarian Burrito - MXN (Santana's)
We have a Santana's right down the street from our house. This is a great too-tired-to-cook meal. You get to build your own burrito from a list of vegetarian ingredients. I like beans, rice, guacamole and lettuce. And I love their green salsa!

Yin and Yang - The Naked Cafe
This was one of the first vegan restaurant meals I tried and I loved it! It's the same exact thing as the Pappas Loco... They have great coffee too, and mimosas!

So, if you like to eat out and are thinking about eating a little less meat and dairy, give some of these places a try. And, let me know if you see any other yummy-looking vegan options while you're out and about in SD.

P.S. Thanks to Kate for the clever blog title! Pho-n! Brilliant! :)