Blossom Cafe (West Village, NYC)

I cannot express just how excited I am that Blossom - yes, that Blossom, the vegan goddess of 9th  Ave. in Chelsea, is opening up in my neighborhood!  The West Village comes up short with vegan restaurants, unlike the nearby East Village but we now have one more!  Actually, technically, they will be open as of 6 p.m. tonight for dinner...Finally, a gourmet vegan restaurant practically next door!  Can't wait to try it... I just walked by and it looks very nice when I peaked in, with those doors that open onto the street so it's almost like you are dining outdoors enjoying this lovely Spring day (but you are not actually dining on the sidewalk)...

Guess where I will be for my birthday next Monday night (and possibly before then if I can't wait)...

Cinnamon Snail Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Cinnamon Snail vegan organic food truck is hitting the streets of

the Big Apple!


The Cinnamon Snail is the country's first organic vegan food truck,

started by Chef Adam Sobel on Valentine's Day 2010. Since the truck's

opening, it has been serving Hoboken, Jersey City, Newark and Red Bank, NJ.

It has taken about two years, but now the truck is licensed to

operate in NYC. Chef Sobel plans to serve Manhattan and Brooklyn four- to five

days a week, as well as remaining loyal to his fans in New

Jersey a couple days a week, too. Service to NY will start in the 2nd or 3rd week

of November 2011.  Updates, specials, featured pastry items, and schedule can 

be found by follow the truck on Twitter

@veganlunchtruck or on www.facebook.com/theCinnamonSnail.


In 2010 the Cinnamon Snail was:

-voted as one of the 10 best food trucks in America by yahoo.com

-a finalist in the 2010 Vendy awards (the Oscars of street food)

-featured on the cooking Channel

-featured in the New York Times, & Time Out New York;



In 2011 the Cinnamon Snail was:

-the winner of the 2011 Vendy Makers Mark award for their vanilla

bourbon crem brûlée donuts

-named #1 vegetarian street food in America by PETA

-featured in Vegnews, &Vegetarian Times magazines


The Cinnamon Snail is planning to experiment with serving different

NYC neighborhoods throughout the week. The initial places you will

find the truck are: Flat Iron district, Lower East Side, Williamsburg,

& Green Point. Some locations will be for brunch and lunch, and

other locations will be dinner and late night locations.

If you want to suggest a neighborhood or location, please contact the snail team

at thecinnamonsnail@gmail.com.

The Cinnamon Snail features a menu of breakfast items, gourmet

sandwiches, raw food, and fresh vegan donuts and pastries. The award-

winning donuts are made daily, and like the rest of the menu

are made with 100% organic ingredients. Even the oil used for frying

the donuts is certified organic. The breakfast and sandwich menu

change seasonally and rely on locally-

sourced ingredients on flaky, perfect French baguettes and organic

spelt bread.

A couple of the most popular breakfast items on the truck are:

-fresh fig pancakes with chamomile blood orange syrup and pine nut butter-chipotle seitan breakfast burritos (smoked chili grilled seitan with fresh jalapeños, marinated kale, scrambled tofu, and chipotle aioli)

A couple of the most popular luck items are:

-Lemongrass five-spice seitan with curried cashews, wasabi mayonnaise,
arugula, and Szechuan chili sauce on a grilled baguette.

-Provencal white wine grilled tofu, with white truffles cashew cheese,
kalamata olive tapenade, arugula onion and fried sage leaves on a
grilled baguette.

-0-

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Gillian's note:  I am so thrilled by this news; I've been wishing the Snail served NYC for as long as I've lived here.  Now, my dream will soon be a reality!  

If you have not checked out the Snail, you must do so ASAP.   Dishes are vegan, organic, creative and inspiring.  It's a foodie's dream and hard to believe that it all comes out of a truck.

Vegan Divas cupcakes

So scrumptious!  Can you see the flecks of gold?  It was a beautiful cupcake and received rave reviews from everyone who tasted and devoured them.

Shining beauties!  A pure delight for my taste buds!

I had one of those deal coupons from Living Social for eight vegan cupcakes (I think three big cookies were another option) and I could not wait to use it.  It works a bit differently than most deals, meaning you have to send them an email and the Vegan Divas let you know when to pick up the loot so don't expect them right away, as it does take a few days - four in my case.  The pickup location was at The Plaza Hotel.  I wish the exact pickup location within the food hall was specified because I was wandering for a bit until I asked at the FC Chocolate Bar counter (other dessert businesses had no idea what I was talking about when asking for vegan cupcakes).  Fernanda (one of the "divas") tells me I have found the pickup location for Vegan Divas delicious treats.   It happens to be a traditional French patisserie.  I do have a weakness for French pastries and everything looked delectable and so artful there.  As it so happens, there are a few vegan options there such as coconut macarons and certain donuts.  She soon hand-delivers the bag of eight cupcakes to me and to my surprise, they are all chocolate.  I expected more variety but certainly was not disappointed with chocolate.

As you can see in the photos, they are beautiful so I could hardly wait until I was home to taste them (but I did)!   They are incredibly moist throughout, which is amazing for vegan cupcakes, which tend to be on the dry side.   There is no way you could tell these were vegan creations.  The cupcakes were outrageously scrumptious, both the frosting and the cake, and so pretty with flecks of gold laced into the frosting.  My favorite part aside from the eating aspect is their products are sweetened with maple syrup, evaporated cane juice and sucanat - yah for natural sweeteners!  

Check out the nearest locations to you that carry Vegan Divas products on the website:

http://www.vegandivasnyc.com/

I know which store I will be headed to to get my fix. 

YUM.

Sacred Chow (Greenwich Village, NYC)

I wasn't even planning to blog about my lunch at Sacred Chow, even though it was fantastic, as always.  I was just thrilled they were open til 4 on this "hurricane Irene" weekend.  This food here never disappoints - vegan, organic and kosher.  Just plain clean food prepared with love - my favorite!  Now I am sorry that I didn't even take photos of my three tapas (3 for $18) but for the record I had root vegetable latkes (delish, nice and crisp on the outside - it maybe my fave tapas item), spicy soba noodles and sesame collards (mmm, I needed a green infusion)....but when this dessert arrived, I knew I had to capture its decadence.  Chocolate truffle cake with strawberry ganache and pralines was simply divine!  The strawberry jam perfectly cut the dense chocolate and the pralines gave it that satisfying crunch.  It cost $8.50, which is a bit steep for dessert but it is huge so it's really two portions, if you need to justify it.  Trust me, it is pure chocolate heaven...

The NY Vegan Dosa Cart (Washington Sq. Park South)

The vegan dosa guy serves up fresh and delicious South Indian food, all vegan and very reasonably priced (and cash only).  Dosas are made out of rice and lentils.   If memory serves me, $6 was the priciest item on the menu and it's great value for generous portions of high quality food for lunch.  The service was warm and friendly, too, which I always appreciate in New York or anywhere for that matter.

Thiru Kumar, the talented and friendly chef was all smiles as he posed for me.

This is my perfect veggie uthappam on the grill.  YUM!

Absolutely scrumptious uthappam, crispy outside and fluffy inside, with lots of veggies.  Good sambhar (see above photo, cup top left) for dipping and the coconut chutney side (see above photo, chutney on the top right) is just plain amazing.  I could eat a cup of it alone, easily.

Samosa filled with potatoes and peas, served with the mint chutney, which was a delight!  The mint flavor really complemented the samosa nicely.

Cowgirl vegan cupcakes (East Village, NYC)

Vanilla with chocolate frosting (full-size and mini)- sorry about the blurry photo

Clockwise from upper left (blue cupcake): cotton candy, chocolate cake with peanut butter, mini vanilla, second cotton candy, chocolate with chocolate (or was it mocha) frosting, mini vanilla with chocolate frosting.

The flavors rotate daily; other stand-outs include french toast flavored cupcakes (chocolate or vanilla cupcake and cinnamon maple frosting.  Cupcakes do contain soy.  I made an exception in my soy-free diet for this place.  They also offer gluten-free flavors.  For soy-free and gluten-free vegan cupcakes, go to Babycakes on the Lower East Side.

Maybe I went too late in the evening, but I found the minis a bit stale around the wrapper.  I ate them anyway, of course.  My favorite flavor is the cotton candy, despite the blue food coloring and pearl-like adornments, both of which made me a bit nervous.  I surprised myself and liked the vanilla-bottom cupcakes better than the chocolate ones, which is the reverse of my usual taste preference for everything chocolate.  The peanut butter frosting is also quite yummy.  I tasted the mint-frosted cupcakes on a prior visit and found them almost too minty, and learned that you cannot eat a peanut butter cupcake in the same sitting as a mint one.  The flavors just do not mesh well together.  That's what I got for eating three cupcakes in a row.   No big surprise there.

Cowgirl also offers an assortment of other sugary treats, like donuts, cookies, cakes, pies, brownies and more.  It varies from day to day.  You can call ahead or check their blog or Twitter. In addition, they have a savory menu -- burritos, sandwiches and more.  All vegan.  I have not tried anything other than the cupcakes at this point.

Cowgirls Baking

V-Note (Upper East Side) for dinner

We had the best table in the house...

The photos are out of the order they were eaten; it's hard to control the picture order using Blogger. Really, I did not have dessert first, although with me, it's not totally out of the realm of possibility.
Fondue! The fruit was a little too cold for my taste and the fruit, especially the strawberries, weren't the ripest (I shouldn't be too picky, I realize it's not strawberry or pineapple season). It is worth noting that our table would have been perfectly content with all bananas for dipping (they were perfect), and maybe one or two of the yummy cookies. Technically the fondue was for two but it was a fine serving for the three of us.
Soy chicken cutlets (special) with mushroom sauce and brussels sprouts. The whole dish was tasty, especially the sauce.
The small-sized Caesar salad was a good portion with nice flavors.
Mushroom risotto entree with mushrooms galore, seaweed and basil. Creamy, warming goodness on a cold night. Yum yum!

Seitan schnitzel appetizer with blueberry sauce and potato salad. The potato salad had lots of mushrooms, which is a plus if you are a mushroom fan like I am (though the person who ordered this was not, unfortunately). The seitan was good though heavy because it was fried and a sizable portion for one person.

The pumpkin and sweet potato gnocchi appetizer with sage cashew cream and kale was heavenly; it was my favorite course. Yes, even better than dessert, which doesn't happen often. Last photo but definitely not least!

V-Note is owned by the same people as Blossom, which is consistently great and one of my top picks in NYC. The quality was excellent, both food and drinks. The atmosphere is chic and modern, with spacious tables and lots of space between tables, which I like and is so rare in Manhattan.

55th Annual Fancy Food Show (Javit's Center, NY) June 27th-29th

This three day gourmet food extravaganza inspired me! Granted I only attended one day (today), but what an amazing event. Wow, the Javit's Center was full of incredible vendors, split into an international floor and a domestic floor, with a dizzying and overwhelming array of foods to sample. Everything from artisan chocolates, to cheeses, wines, teas, olive oils, gelato, sauces, lots of organic products and more were on display. I even brought home two gourmet treats (vegetarian and sweet potato flavored) for Snoozy, which he gobbled up. It took all day for me to taste my way through both floors and I was plenty full, bursting actually. That didn't stop me from being a food judge though. By the end of the day, my back was nearly breaking from my bag of samples that got progressively heavier throughout my food journey.

Once I sort out my goody bag, I will post select individual reviews in this space.

Candle 79 (Upper East Side, NYC) VGN

Candle 79 is considered to be one of the best vegan restaurants in NYC and so it's been on my "must visit" list for some time now.   I finally dined here last Saturday with my friend Jessica and it did not disappoint my high expectations.   The ambience is elegant and formal where we dined upstairs, with red and plum accents and a velvet ceiling and a contemporary-look bar scene downstairs.   We had a nice window seat upstairs though on a lovely night, the prime tables in the house would be downstairs near the open double doors.   The restaurant was bustling at 6 p.m. on Saturday with a nice hum of comfortable energy, and not too loud. 

As I explored the menu, my mouth began to water.  It reminded my of when I dined at Candle 79's sister restaurant, Candle Cafe (see 9/25/08 post) because there were just so many interesting and tempting choices, making it difficult to decide.    The ingredients were healthful and unique with a creative flair.   This was a no-guilt dining experience, which even contained some raw food options.    

As I perused the menu, several of the salads piqued my interest, like the avocado salad for $16 and seaweed salad for $14, but we ultimately decided to skip that course to save room for dessert.  It's possible to add tofu or tempeh on to salads for $4.  Good to know for next time.  First, we were served complementary edamame with sea salt, which was a nice surprise.  Then, we shared an appetizer, the live avocado cucumber tartare for $15, which was impossibly creamy with delicious homemade flax chips for dipping.   For the entree, I had the Moroccan spiced chickpea cake for $19 and Jessica had Caribbean jerk grilled seitan with plantains and mango for $23.   We both absolutely loved our dishes to the very last bite.   For dessert, we each had our own Mexican chocolate cake with crystallized ginger ice cream for $12.   The ginger complemented the chocolate so perfectly; this dessert was positively dreamy.  We were still raving about it days later.  

As for the drink menu, the impressive wine list was mostly organic or biodynamic.  I had a glass of sangria made with both organic wine and fruit for $12.    Though I tried, I was unsuccessful in finishing my sangria because of the large size, which was fine.  I certainly had plenty and it was a bit strong for me, so better that I did not finish it all.

Really, the only unpleasant surprise, though it should not have been considering I knew the individual item's prices, was the bill.  As you can see from the prices above, it adds up quickly to a very large number and  my jaw did actually drop.   Quality ingredients and loving preparation come at a price, I suppose.  

Our waitress, also named Jessica, was wonderful and extremely pleasant and knowledgeable about the dishes.   Service was great, attentive from start to finish.  

Vegetarians, vegans and even carnivores alike can and will appreciate the inspired food and gourmet experience at Candle 79.  I recommend dining there on special occasions on and the occasional splurge.

Candle 79

154 E. 79th St. (between Lex and 3rd, near Lex)

212-537-7179

www.candlecafe.com

Cafe Blossom (Upper West Side, NYC) VEG

This will be more of a "mini review", as I have already fully reviewed this organic, vegan restaurant's other NYC location (see Sept. 25, 2008 post) plus I did not take copious notes as I usually do when reviewing.   I dined here for vegan Saturday bunch, a first among my Blossom experiences, with my friend, Jessica.  Prior to this, I've been to the Chelsea/9th Ave. location for lunch and dinner.   I do believe the prices are slightly cheaper in the uptown location, so that was a nice surprise.   

I was thrilled to have a vegan brunch experience because typically brunch fare is so filling and heavy on the butter.  I had the vegan french toast with fresh fruit (an add-on) and pure maple syrup, as opposed to the watered-down sugary syrup that I refuse to eat.   What a pleasure to eat this entire meal and not feel stuffed afterwards.   So delicious.  The ginseng iced tea with organic lemon was very refreshing, too on an unseasonably warm day.

Jessica had the soy philly sandwich, made with seitan, which was quite a hefty portion and came with fries, too.  

Check out the picture to see our meals before we devoured them!   Well, I devoured mine; to be fair, there were some leftovers on Jessica's sandwich platter.

The decor itself was not as chic as the 9th Ave. location but was rather cool in its own right, with interesting stone accents along the bar and under the glass counter on which your food would be placed, if seated at the bar.  

No matter which location, this is one of my favorite vegan spots in the city.

Cafe Blossom

466 Columbus Ave.

Between W. 82nd/W. 83rd)

New York, NY

(212) 875-2600

www.blossomnyc.com

Natural Gourmet Institute Friday Night Vegetarian Dinner (Chelsea, NYC)

This was absolute paradise...I know I am prone to superlatives but this is the real deal. It was like a culinary meditation.   

The Friday night dinners at the Natural Gourmet Institute for Health  & Culinary Arts are apparently quite popular, for good reasons; there was a waiting list of 30 people early in the week.  I was lucky to be squeezed in.  If you do plan to attend a future dinner, I was advised it is best to reserve a spot weeks ahead of time, not days ahead as I did.

Anyway, the dinner is prepared by aspiring chefs attending the culinary program, which stresses natural, organic, and healthful foods. The menu changes weekly so unlike a traditional restaurant, you do not order specific foods or dishes as there are no choices so make sure you peak at the menu before reserving because that's what you are getting.  You can check out upcoming menus on the website (see below for link).    

When I attended, the menu was as follows:

*Assorted tapas: stewed mushrooms, minted eggplant and patatas bravas with aioli

*Roasted fennel and orange salad with herb citrus dressing

*Mixed vegetable paella with black bean sauce and red pepper coulis garnished with sweet potatoes and leeks

*Tres leches cake with rasberry coulis and spiced chocolate truffle

You can bring your own wine or drink the homemade sangria, which is included in the cost of the meal, which is $40/person for all this food and sangria.  I do recommend the sangria.

Start to finish, the meal was as delicious as it was artful.  Truly a delight to the senses.   In particular, I loved the paella and sweet potato entree, taste and presentation-wise (the sweet potato was in a "bird's nest" form - so cool, check the picture). For dessert, the spiced chocolate truffle was delicious and the spice was intensely flavorful and not subtle, as is sometimes, disappointingly, the case with spicy chocolate.   I normally am not a fan of tres leches cake but in this case, I was pleasantly surprised and loved every bite of it.  

As a note, do not expect your own private table, seating is communal style spread across several rooms, with long tables so multiple parties are sitting together.  This worked out great; everyone was so friendly and had so much in common that it felt like a large family.

Since the students are also serving the food, be mindful that the service may not be perfectly attentive but that's certainly okay given all the efforts they put into making the meal itself so special.

After such a lovely experience, the only question on my mind is when can I attend dinner next?

Natural Gourmet Institute

48 W. 21st St. (bet 5th/6th), 2nd floor

New York, NY

http://www.naturalgourmetschool.com/html/friday-night-dinner-c.html

(212) 645-5170

Institute of Integrative Nutrition (NYC)

I was invited to attend all-day classes at the Institute of Integrative Nutrition (IIN for short) in NYC on Saturday.   The school prepares students to be certified Health Counselors, offering a wealth of holistic health, dietary theory, nutrition and wellness information and hands on support for building a new business.  

What an incredible and dynamic experience, with approximately 1,500 students plus 500 or so guests!   Classes are held at Lincoln Center, in the lovely and cavernous Avery Fisher hall.    Despite the huge class size, students were very willing to participate and share topical personal anecdotes in front of the entire crowd with the aid of a microphone, which was really impressive to me.

Topics of the day ranged from the elements of an Ayurvedic diet, a mock health consultation, small group discussions on oppression and sexism, and more.  Guest speakers play a vital role in the education process; many of whom are renowned in their field, such as Deepak Chopra.   There was fun on the schedule in the way of Bollywood style dance instruction.  Yes, despite the tight seating, everyone was literally dancing in the aisles or in front of their seats, clapping and swaying to the catchy Indian music as instructed by the high energy teacher leading on stage.  That was indeed a sight to see and so much fun to participate in.

Check out the website for more information on this program:

www.integrativenutrition.com

Babycakes NYC (Lower East Side, NYC) VGN

Stop #2 of my Lower East Side eating extravaganza

A vegan, gluten-free bakery (and also wheat-, soy-, casein- and refined sugar-free) –it was vegan heaven!   They sold frosting shots (yes, little mini cups of frosting – what a novel idea) for $1.50 , cupcake tops, regular sized cupcakes, some of which were made with spelt flour, sweet breads, brownie cupcakes, cookies and the list goes on…

The place is adorable, tiny with a little kitchen in the back of the store and a few stools for those of us who can’t wait to indulge, like myself. 

The chocolate cupcake was good with tasty chocolate frosting (they did not have a spelt chocolate-chocolate cupcake that day), the brownie cupcake made with agave was disappointing, just so-so and the chocolate chip cookie was just the right crispiness.   Those three items came to about $7.  Next time I will buy a frosting shot and hope to try a spelt cupcake, either a regular cupcake or maybe just a top.

248 Broome St

New York, NY 10002

www.babycakesnyc.com

212-677-5047

il Laboratorio del Gelato (Lower East Side, NYC) VF

Stop #1 of my Lower East Side eating extravaganza (all three places are in close proximity, especially the first two which are only one or two short blocks apart, and it’s about a ten-fifteen minute walk to the third stop). 

Holy flavors of gelato and sorbet!  Flavors change every day as they make the flavors fresh daily inside and when I went, they offered olive oil, chocolate mint, which was white rather than green for purists with hunks of chocolate, chocolate kahlua, espresso, toasted almond, toasted coconut, egg nog (it was Christmas Eve, after all), and dark chocolate to name a few.   I didn’t really notice the sorbet flavors, I was fixated on the gelato I must admit.  I tasted the toasted almond, which was excellent and unlike any other flavor I’ve had before.  I was unable to purchase a scoop of it, however, because it was almost all gone. So, I ended up buying a small cup with two scoops, one scoop of chocolate kahlua and the other scoop of espresso, both great choices.  The chocolate kahlua was rich and creamy and the espresso popped with intense coffee flavor.  

The shop is really just a window displaying all the flavors ready to be scooped, customers are not allowed inside the store so be ready to eat outside in the cold, like I did.  But, I did not mind, even though it was a chilly 30-something degrees outside – that’s how good this place is.   Oh, and there was a line when I arrived there – yes, in the middle of winter, there was a line at the gelato place.  That says it all.  People are passionate about good gelato and sorbet and this shop does not disappoint. 

The gelato is not vegan unfortunately, but vegetarians will most definitely enjoy.

il Laboratorio del Gelato

95 Orchard St.

(between Broome & Delancey Sts)

New York, New York

www.laboratoriodelgelato.com/

212-343-9922

Le Grainne Cafe - 183 9th Ave (corner of 21st St.), NYC (Chelsea neighborhood)

I dined here for lunch today as a backup choice. The restaurant I intended on dining at was closed, which provided the perfect opportunity for me to check out this adorable French café, which is next door and that I had wanted to try anyway.  I normally do not associate French food with vegetarian options, but I made it work, as you'll read in a moment. It is definitely not the best place for vegans, though.

I felt like I stepped into a café in Paris once inside; the décor was of a country rustic motif and charming with wooden tables and floors. It was vibrant and lively, busy with lots of customers in the cozy space (the picture was taken on the way out, after the rush slowed down). I liked the orange tiled walls and the maps of France and other artwork and photos depicting scenes of France on the walls. You may end up at a table with others, as I did, depending on how busy they are. The kitchen is open alongside the side of the restaurant. The only thing that seemed out of character was the eighties pop music in the stereo at the beginning of my meal.

I ordered the ratatouille side dish ($5.50) as an appetizer and the valhrona chocolate and banana crepe ($7) as my meal. (Yes, dessert was my entrée. Anyone who knows me will understand.) The ratatouille starter was a flavor burst of tomatoes, zucchinis, mushrooms, onions and peppers. Just perfect, and quite filling, too. The crepe was divine, and not too sweet due to the dark (homemade) chocolate and was stuffed with bananas. I should have taken a picture of it, but I thought of it too late as I had eaten most of it by that time. As a side note, they keep water in a wine bottle on the table, so don't ask for water like I did. They also served delicious bread, a panini (I think).

www.legrainnecafe.com
(646) 486-3000 
Hours: Mon-Sat 8am-12am

Lunch at Candle Cafe - 1307 3rd Ave (at 75th St.), NYC (www.candlecafe.com)

The cafe itself is long, narrow corridor - not cramped though - with pretty simple, spartan decor, definitely not fancy.  It is smaller than I imagined it would be. Ironically, it is next door to a restaurant called Bistro Le Steak, which I thought was amusing (no, I am not reviewing that one).    

Candle Cafe is vegan- lots of seitan, tempeh, and tofu dishes in the $15 - $20 range, pricey for lunch.  So many interesting, creative combinations from zucchini with tomato ragu to the more inspired. Menu options are overwhelming here and the specials were tempting -- I almost got the corn on the cob with aioli sauce, for the record.  Lots of dishes are Southwest-, Indian- and Mediterranean-inspired.  I opted for the Aztec salad after much deliberation.   Aside from greens, it was served with quinoa, pumpkin seeds, with BBQ grilled tofu (a substitute for tempeh), black beans, corn, and avocado (for extra cost of $3) with amazing toasted cumin dressing. To drink, I choose a lemon ginseng iced tea. 

For dessert, I asked the waitress to break my internal tie and got the mousse chocolate pie with chocolate chip crust- an enormous piece, I might add, which I almost finished (of course).  

When I first walked in, it was empty in here but after a half hour, it was packed, almost every table was full.  It's a lively and interesting crowd of all sorts of people.

The most curious thing happened at the end of my meal.  I went to the rest room and when I came back I found my table was given away, even though I still had bags on the chair.  So, I ended up paying the bill at the counter (the staff seemed really embarassed but not as much as I was).  Anyway, I got a free chocolate chip oatmeal cookie for my troubles, which was delish!   

As a side note, there is a sister restaurant around the corner (Candle 79), which is more upscale in look, but undoubtedly, the food is of the same excellent quality.

Candle Cafe:

1308 3rd Ave, NYC

www.candlecafe.com

212-472-0970

Blossom (187 9th Ave. between 21st & 22nd, NYC)

Ahh, this place is relaxing.  It's all vegan by the way.  I've dined here before today several times for both lunch and dinner and each time, I have been delighted with the exception that most desserts are not available during lunch.  Note to self: must try brunch one day...the menu looks really interesting (see link below).

Back to the dinner review at hand, the decor is contemporary and atmosphere is lovely and dim, with candlelight.  The music could use some improvement, as it is rather depressing, but somehow does not detract from my overall experience.    If I focused on it more, it would have though!  There is also a room upstairs that can be rented out for occasions.

I start off with an excellent glass of organic syrah from California for $9 -- all the wines on the menu are organic, as well as the beers,  a nice treat.    The selection of wines was nicely varied; I always like to see Malbec on the list, as I did.  

The waitress reads off the list of specials (one appetizer and one entree) and the appetizer sounded delightful; a phyllo purse of vegetables with a cashew cream pesto sauce for $10.  I wanted that for my entree but sadly, they could not accommodate that request.  After it was too late, I thought I could have ordered two in order to make a larger size.  Oh well.   I also found out later that my waitress neglected to mention a soup special that came with homemade tortilla chips.  I felt cheated, but only for a few seconds, then I got over it.

I ordered the vegetable mezze plate for $21, which was an assortment of neatly displayed veggies, including haricot verts (never had them before), delectable mashed sweet potatoes, quinoa, garlic sauteed sliced carrots and zucchini, spinach, string beans and I'm sure something else I am forgetting.  I was counting on this being on the website so I did not have to write it all down in my dining journal.  You'll see from my note at the end, this was not so.  I immediately felt healthier after eating this plate of vitamins!   The presentation of the food was impressive on an oversized round plate that reminded me of an artist's palette.

And the dessert selections, well, there were two that I was debating between.  One was chocolate ganache with vanilla soy ice cream with peanut butter drizzle for $8 and the other contender was a lavender maple tart with maple soy ice cream in a pastry shell with fresh berries for $9.  The waitress broke the tie for me and I got the chocolate.   The ganache was rich and dense.  The vanilla ice cream was a nice complement to cut some of the richness though the ice cream was a tad too icy.  A single spearmint leave was a refreshing touch on the plate.  The peanut butter drizzle was good but I could have used more of it, like a peanut butter gusher.  Okay, that would've been too much.   

There is also a nice selection of loose teas and dessert wines, though I did not have any.

Here is the website, where you can see the menu though it's not complete (my entree above is missing for some reason).  

http://www.blossomnyc.com/home.html