Fried Food Festival: Highline Seattle

FYI: I'm giving away a case of Larabars over at Vegan Coloradical today! Come on down!

One of my favorite reality stars is best selling author Snooki of Jersey Shore. From the pouf to the slippers to the deep love for pickles, Snooki is a girl I could hang with. When I saw Snooki try fried pickles for the first time, I felt both joy and longing: joy for the enhancement Snooki's life had just received and longing, for where would I find a vegan fried pickle?





In an answer to my prayers, Highline in Seattle has an amazing,
100% vegan menu featuring all your favorite bar foods, including fried pickles. To celebrate this glorious occasion, Kelly and I ordered the fried pickles, seitan wings (buffalo wings with a cooler name) and a sandwich each, with my choice being a Reuben. I would like to note that neither of us was actually hungry when this order was placed.

The food arrived and, honestly, everything was wonderful. You can't really go wrong with fried vegan food, right? However, the fried pickles were the crowning glory of our meal. Round disks of crispy heaven with the delicate balance of salty and savory and juicy perfectly matched. Oh, little fried pickle disks, I shall dream of you until my return to your glorious home.

Best tofu scramble ever and I didn't take a picture

Before my recent trip to Seattle, I can't say I had ever heard of Cafe Flora. Sure, maybe a blip mention here or there but nothing that engaged my attention enough to give it a second thought or drool over the menu online. Lucky for me, my dear friend Chelsea had heard of it and wanted to give it a try. Since I had had my Mighty-O Donuts at this point, I was game for anything. Thank goodness.

Cafe Flora blessed me with some of the greatest food I've ever had. The
tofu scramble was crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, noochy crumbles of perfection that I didn't take a picture of and a bowl of fresh fruit accompanied it perfectly. There was also a cinnamon roll. An amazing cinnamon roll. A cinnamon roll with a delicate glaze and caramelized pecans on top. Easily split between two (with a possibility of more), this trio of dishes constituted an amazing brunch.

To make it even better, the actual restaurant is stunning. We ate in the atrium and enjoyed both fresh air and our napkins staying put, along with the sounds of a gentle fountain. Highly recommended for any occasion, except perhaps the Juggalo Gathering. That might not go so well.

Seattle's Finest Non-Coffee/Grunge Offerings: Mighty-O Donuts and Wayward Cafe

If there is one thing that I learned on my recent trip to Seattle, it is that my life is substantially better when there are donuts present. This theory was proven to be true by none other than the revered Mighty-O. When all was said and done, I had eaten five donuts in a 72 hour period, which is definitely above average. What sets Mighty-O apart is the fact that all of their donuts are vegan, organic and they carry both cake and yeasted donuts. Not willing to stop there, they include apple fritters, creme filled donuts, jelly donuts and awesome flavors like French toast and Grasshopper donuts. The donuts pictured are a chocolate creme filled yeast donut (think Nutella in a donut) and the cocoloco donut, which is a chocolate cake donut covered with cinnamon and sugar. The cocoloco was fantastic but my dreams will be haunted (in a good way) by that delightfully gooey chocolate creme filled masterpiece.

Another staple on the Seattle vegan scene is Wayward Vegan Cafe, an all vegan breakfast, brunch and lunch joint, located by Pizza Pi and Sidecar Pigs for Peace. I was lured in by the promise of a chiggen wrap, and won over by the nutritional yeast shakers and incredibly friendly service. I ordered the chiggen wrap made with seitan, while my friend ordered the Pull No Pork sandwich. Portions were, to put it mildly, generous and delicious. The chiggen wrap was taken to an even higher level of taste bud satisfaction by a hearty slathering of house made hot sauce and my friend raved about her pork-free sandwich through the whole meal. I would absolutely love to go back to Wayward for their breakfast offerings and to give their lemon meringue pie a whirl.

Believe it or not, donuts and wraps were just the beginning...to be continued.

What are your favorite Seattle stops?

Pike Place Chowder/Chowdah/Chowdere

Do you remember that episode of "The Simpsons" where Quimby's relative (nephew, I think?) tries to make the waiter says 'chowder' with a different accent? That's what I always think of when I see chowder. Anyway, I loved clam chowder growing up, burning my arm more than once by carrying a too full bowl of too hot Campbell's clam chowder down the stairs to watch Beauty and the Beast. However, I rarely get chowder these days because one girl with a giant pot of soup tends to lead to wasteful food in my world. Plus, soup is a lot of work to eat. I prefer sandwiches or wraps or burritos.

This is why I was delighted to hear about vegan soup located at Pike Place Chowder, located near (surprise!) the Pike Place Market in Seattle, Washington. It's pretty easy to be a vegan at Pike Place, seeing as how it's basically a giant farmer's market, but it's nice to know that I can get a vegan chowder here too.

The chowder definitely isn't clam chowder, but that's okay, because it still tastes hearty and lovely. Based in coconut milk, it's full of veggies (corn and carrots come to mind) and is absolutely satisfying. If you don't like coconut milk, I would skip this one, but if you do, boy howdy, you are in luck. Seattle is full of amazing vegan dining options (Hillside Quickies, I'm looking at you) but this mighty little chowder sticks out in my mind as one of my favorite foods I've had while in Seattle.

Ten things that make me happy: Portland/Seattle Edition

Continuing the list- here's 21-30, all in the Pacific Northwest.

1) Sweetpea Bakery: Again, if you're vegan, I shouldn't really need to explain this. I love Sweetpea and their delicious baked goods and their kick-patootie sandwiches and their amazing brunch. I spent six hours in a row there on a single day during my last trip.
2) Powell's Books: This is a bibliophile's mecca. The main store covers a city block and is four stories. I can easily spend hours in there and only hit a few rooms. One of my favorite rooms is the rare book room, which is located on the top floor and houses first editions and signed copies of rare books, classics and modern classics. If all of this is a little too overwhelming, Powell's has several other locations within the city, some smaller versions of Powell's, others specializing in a certain type of book. If you like books, go there, but proceed with caution.
3) House of Vintage: Ever since Fairmont Antiques closed (Omaha people, you know what I mean), I have missed the hodgepodge that you could find there. Portland (of course) has my antidote. A giant, giant building full of different vendors selling their wares. Note: the vendors are not actually present, even though I made it sound like they are. I scored a sweet Garfield tote bag, a lovely belt and two fab pairs of shoes, all for completely reasonable prices.
4) Slugs! Slugs slugs slugs! I love giant Portland slugs!
5) Copious amounts of bubble tea: Thank you, Fat Straw, for indulging me. I will always appreciate it.
6) Blush Beauty Bar: Located on swanky NW 23rd, this is basically a local version of Sephora. I credit this place for my discovery of Zoya nail polish.
7) Pogs! Pogs pogs pogs! Pogs for sale in Portland! Unfortunately, there were no slammers for sale, or I would have quite a collection right now.
8) Seattle Art Museum: I love the modern art collection here, and I always find something new here that I love. This time, my favorites were the Warhol portrait collection and the discovery of James Ensor.
9) Sci-Fi Museum and Hall of Fame: For someone who insisted on being called Leia (as in Princess Leia), this place is the motherload. Props and costumes from a plethora of sci-fi movies and tv shows, first edition books, the first science fiction fanzines and amazing displays, any fan of science fiction, even the casual one, needs to make a stop by this museum. Additionally, admission covers entrance into the Experience Music Project, which is like a smaller version of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
10) The scenery: I am not normally a fan of scenery, perhaps because a good chunk of the scenery I see is in Nebraska, the Pacific Northwest has some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever witnessed. One of my favorite stops along the way is Snoqualmie Falls. Higher than Niagara Falls, you can hike all the way to the bottom for a gorgeous view.

Coming up: Pike Place Chowder (or chowdah, depending)