A Veggie Foodie’s Guide to New York

In her spare time, JVS member Shana Boltin runs vegetarian pop-up Med Veg… she fills us in on NYC’s best veggie haunts: Some people go to New York for the museums, some people go for the theatre, others go for the sights. Me? I go for the food. Well, maybe not just the food, but the thing is, I know I’m not alone. Food tourism is on the rise, and we are as willing to travel for a good meal, a cronut or a bowl of fantastic hummus as we are to see Iguazu Falls, the Sydney Opera House or the Statue of Liberty. Whilst New York City may be famous for its pastrami on rye sandwiches in the deli or a hot dog at the baseball, there are many vegetarian gems to be found all over the city. Here are some of my favourites: Dirt Candy used to be a tiny 16-seat restaurant in the East Village, with a 2-3 hour wait. Now it has moved to larger premises and you don’t always have to book in advance (although I suggest you do). Dirt Candy is a vegan restaurant with the ethos of celebrating vegetables, the candy of the earth. Chef Amanda Cohen, the visionary for the entire menu, can be found behind the counter and in the kitchen. When I visited we started with jalepeno hush puppies, and I ordered the Spinach as an appetizer and the Broccoli for main. For each dish the vegetable is presented prepared in different ways, including smoking, brining, and pickling. Amanda’s graphic novel cookbook is great fun and tells her story. On my most recent trip to NYC I went on a Foodie Walking Tour of the Lower East Side. The walking tour, facilitated by ‘Free Tours by Foot’ weaves the historical stories of the Lower East Side together with the food that each wave of immigration brought with it. Five of the six eateries visited on the tour were vegetarian, and the sixth had vegetarian/vegan options. We visited Yonah Shmimmel’s knishery (open since 1910) where I tasted my first knish. On return from NYC I tried to make knishes at home, but they were not nearly as good. For those who have never seen or tasted a knish, a sort of potato enchilada… carbs wrapped in carbs. The walking tour is fantastic for those who have been to NYC a number of times and want to see a different side of the city, or for those visiting for the first time who would prefer to stray off the usual tourist route. We learned about the history of the area, including the oldest synagogues in Manhattan. My personal highlights included the hot bialy and the full sour pickle at the Pickle Guys. I also tracked down a couple of different vegetarian and vegan food trucks on my recent trip in January 2015. Despite the cold, Cinnamon Snail drew the biggest crowd of the 5 food trucks parked at 55th and Broadway. It’s all vegan – sandwiches, baked goods and drinks. It was possibly the best sandwich I have ever had: Chinese five-spice and lemongrass sietan sandwich with cashew nuts and wasabi mayonnaise. Whereas I thought my challenge would be to try to replicate it myself, in fact, with over 30 ingredients, the challenge turns out to be to find the ingredients in order to get started. Shukatruck is another great vegetarian food truck, selling Shakshuka, a middle-eastern egg and tomato dish, in rolls. Since January 2015 Cinnamon Snail has unfortunately closed, but they do pop up every so often at foodie events around NYC and so it’s worth checking out if they are likely to be open when you are there. On other forays to New York I have come across vegetarian and vegan Chinese (Mott Street in Little China), Korean, Indian and American food. So whether you’re off to see the Empire State Building, watch a show on Broadway or wander around the Met, don’t forget to think about where you are going to eat… in NYC there’s plenty!