On the Town: Romi's Soft Serve Heaven (VeganMoFo)

Until very recently, creamy vegan soft serve was just something I dreamt about.  Although frozen yogurt joints abound around these parts, the best they offer to us wee vegans (if anything at all) is usually some sort of fruit sorbet.  Boring!  Imagine my delight when I discovered the little gem known as Romi’s Soft Serve Heaven just a few blocks from my apartment. 

Romi’s offers 7 varying flavors of soft serve each day and one of those seven is always vegan.  They even have vegan mix ins that are clearly labeled as such (it’s a self serve place).  I have been quite a few times and the vegan flavor is always different and interesting.  Prior to last night’s trip, flavors I’d had were peanut butter, heath bar, maple and cake batter.  Rumor has it they have a snicker flavor and I’m dying to try it! 

With 90 degree weather plaguing me and a Facebook post announcing Pumpkin Pie Vegan fro yo at Romi’s, I made it a point to get there yesterday.  It was probably the best decision I made that day. 

This was by far the best flavor I have had there.  Too often, the delicate flavor of pumpkin is hidden under a barrage of spices.  Not so at Romi’s!  It tasted like simple, sweetened pumpkin goodness. 

I spent my first year of college at Boston University and walking distance from my dorm was a wonderful hole in the wall frozen yogurt place that offered amazing, fresh flavors.  Their pumpkin was my absolute favorite.  They would blend actual puréed pumpkin into each serving.  Until last night I thought that I would never experience that again.  Enjoying this on my walk home transported me straight back to my freshmen year in Boston.

With a wink and a smile,

VVG

On the Town: Lunch at Jyoti Bihanga (VeganMoFo)

Jyoti Bihanga is a wonderful vegetarian restaurant in Normal Heights (my eclectic lil neighborhood in SD) that holds a special place in my heart.  It’s the first veg eatery I ever went to and I still love eating here.  Their menu is consistent, offering a nice array of traditional dishes done with vegan/vegetarian flare. 

Though their base menu has been the same for as long as I’ve been frequenting the joint (no complaints!), they always offer a different daily special and have soups that change on a daily basis.  I have never had a soup here that I haven’t loved.  It’s stuff that would make even the Soup Nazi (let me hear all the Seinfeld fans!) proud.

My sister and I walked to Jyoti’s for lunch before heading out for some treasure hunting (i.e. thrift store shopping) and just wanting something light, I opted for soup and salad.  The soups of the day were an Indian lentil, creamy potato (vegetarian, not vegan) and “chicken” noodle.  I ordered the chicken noodle and their green salad.  Jyoti’s has a great selection of house-made vegan dressings, but my favorite is their lemon tahini.  

Many moons ago it was a Jyoti Bihanga's salad that made me realize I love raw beets.  Thank you Jyoti Bihanga! 

 

The soup came out next and looked just like traditional Campbell's, though loaded with more goodness and absent from the gross animal stuff.  It really hit the spot.  I can’t wait for my next trip back to this little gem so close to my apartment.  I’m lucky though in that I have a few vegan dining options walking distance from my place and even more that are just a short drive.  Hopefully I can get out more and report on some of those places as well. 

With a wink and a smile,

VVG

On the Town - At the Farmers' Market (VeganMoFo)

Aren’t farmers’ markets just the greatest?!  Even if I don’t end up buying anything at one, the experience of meandering through the aisles of fresh produce, greeting the jolly farmers and inhaling the aromas of freshly prepared global cuisine is enough to lift my spirits.  

I'm seeing red!

I headed to my farmers’ market this afternoon to get some strawberries before their season ends here in San Diego.  Since I started buying strawberries at the farmers market I have been ruined for all grocery store strawberries (much the way I have been ruined by home-grown and CSA tomatoes).  These precious babies are most often picked the very day they are sold and their dark red hue proves it.  

This trough of strawberries only set me back $6.  While in season, I usually buy this amount every 2-3 weeks, eat 2/3 of them during the remainder of the week and then freeze that last third for times when strawberries are no longer in abundance. 

Another buy from today’s market was a bag of juicy Valencia oranges.  Only $3 for these babies.  I’m set for oranges now for a couple weeks.  Again, the quality of the oranges I get at the farmers market is exponentially better than at Sprouts (my favorite health food store chain). 

 

I do very little with fresh seasonal fruit other than eat it straight so no fancy plans for this haul.  Fruit is arguably my favorite food on earth so when it’s great like this I enjoy it pure and simple.  

With a wink and a smile,

VVG