The Cutting Board Bakery & Cafe, Mesa, AZ

The Cutting Board Bakery & Café Sign

Southeast Mesa welcomes new vegetarian/vegan joint, The Cutting Board Bakery & Café!

The veg café is tucked into a new strip mall in Kiowa Village, just south of Baseline on Power Rd. The Cutting Board Café is open now, but the grand opening is on October 12th. They currently have just a banner sign up, and there's an old sign from the former tenant above their doors, so don't let that confuse you.

This past weekend, I made a last minute stop to check them out and found a very promising place to eat. I can't wait to see them grow into their potential.

I visited right between breakfast and lunch, and so I ordered breakfast, which is very hard for me to resist.

The Cutting Board Service Counter

Right from the start, the Tamari Tofu English Muffin called to me, which is a toasted English muffin with macademia pesto spread, baked tofu, avocado, and tomato slices. It came with a side of fresh melon, I'm not sure what kind. Simple, healthy, and yet still quite tasty. I'd definitely order it again.

Tamari Tofu English Muffin, side of Fresh Melon, Mr. Marley Smoothie

I'm not a coffee person, but I did note they had fancy gourmet coffees, plus things like soy, almond, hemp, and coconut milks, agave nectar and raw cane sugar; and perhaps most importantly, chai lattes, which is what I order when I am not ordering smoothies. This trip I picked a smoothie, and they had tons to choose from, so I tried the Mr. Marley, with pineapple, banana, coconut water, and hemp seed. Very refreshing, and a nice breakfasty choice.

I do wish they had some kind of almond/peanut/nut butter smoothie, but maybe in the future. ::hint, hint!::

Some of the things I'd like to try on return trips: the Santa Monica (kinda like a bread pudding French toast?), Lentil Cabbage Wrap, Olive Tapas, Tacos Duo (with "nutty meat"), Cheesy Mac, and the Seasonal Veggie appetizer with the walnut dill dip (I'm a sucker for dill!). That'll keep me busy.

The Cutting Board Dining Area

Follow them on Facebook for daily lunch specials and regular events, and check out their website, it's got everything you need including the full menu.


The Cutting Board Bakery & Cafe
Ranking: ****

***** awesome! Highly recommended.
**** hey, this is pretty dang good.
*** not bad at all.
** eh.
* bad. Keep looking for alternatives.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Cutting Board Bakery & Café
2235 S Power Road, Suite 116
Mesa, AZ 85209
(480) 654-8081
http://cuttingboardcafe.com

Hours
Tuesday - Sunday 7am to 3pm
Closed Mondays




The Cutting Board Front Façade (main doors to the left)



The Cutting Board Bakery & Café (behind the palm tree)

On the Road: Chipotle Mexican Grill, Fountain Valley, CA

Chipotle Mexican Grill

California's Chipotles have been testing out the vegan Sofritas filling option for their burritos, bowls, salads, and tacos. Lucky them. However, I did hear that the Phoenix metro area should also be featuring this option starting in September. So, here's a sneak peek about what we can look forward to!

The sofritas: shredded organic tofu braised with chipotle chilis, roasted poblanos, and a blend of aromatic spices.

Sofritas Burrito, Chips & Medium Salsa

Chipotle is very vegan-friendly and has a Build-Your-Own system for their food. Here's what you should avoid: pinto beans (cooked with bacon) and chipotle-honey vinaigrette, in addition to the obvious meats, cheeses, and sour cream. Also the location I went to today told me they had cheese in their guacamole, but I don't think that is standard, so check the location you visit.


Sofritas Burrito Innards

I ordered a burrito with the sofritas, cilantro-lime white rice, black beans, and pico de gallo. The burrito was humongous, filling, and delicious. I would have liked the guac on it too, but I didn't really miss it. I also got a side of chips and medium salsa. The salsa was nearly too hot for me to eat, but that could easily have been me.
All in all, the sofritas is a great addition to the Chipotle menu. It's fantastic when chains add solid and reliable vegan items like this. The lunch hour and travel-eating have just gotten much easier.


Chipotle Mexican Grill
Ranking: ****

***** awesome! Highly recommended.
**** hey, this is pretty dang good.
*** not bad at all.
** eh.
* bad. Keep looking for alternatives.
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chipotle Mexican Grill
18951 Brookhurst
Fountain Valley, CA 92708
(714) 968- 4003
http://www.chipotle.com

Hours
Monday - Sunday 11am to 10pm

Featured Item: SOFRITAS!

On the Road: Bo De Tinh Tam Chay Vietnamese Vegetarian Restaurant, Westminster, CA

Bo De Ting Tam Chay Vietnamese Vegetarian Restaurant

Bo De Tinh Tam Chay Vegetarian Restaurant has two locations, the original small restaurant off Moran Street and their bigger second location on Beach Boulevard. Both are located within Orange County's Little Saigon, specifically within the city of Westminster. I happened to visit the location on Beach Blvd, which was tucked into an unassuming shopping center.

 

The dining room was elegant and peaceful full of dark woods, restful browns, little burbling fountains, and just an all around pleasant atmosphere. This would be a fantastic place for a date night or just a nice dinner out. I was told that usually the place is very busy, especially on the weekends. I was there on a Monday evening, and I got my food to go, so I didn't take advantage of the environment beyond the 15 or so minutes I waited for my order.

 

Beautiful Dining Room

The all vegetarian menu has approximately 200 items, and I was told only a few of them are not vegan... which unfortunately included the banh mi ca ri (French bread with veggie curry) which I initially had my eye on. But I moved on to choosing some vermicelli and rolls. The menu listed the Vietnamese name of the dish and the description in English, and many of the items had photos next to them. I didn't copy down the names of what I ordered, but I know they were #7, some kind of 'eggrolls', and #80 the vermicelli with sour ham.

Both were delicious. The 'eggrolls' were nice and crispy with a light, almost sweet dipping sauce. The vermicelli had a base of greens, topped with noodles, peanuts, pickled carrots and radish, and the sour ham which resembled small slices of Spam. I was a little nervous about eating anything labeled sour, since that is not my favorite taste, but the sour was understated and a nice contrast to the other ingredients.



#7 Eggrolls, #80 Vermicelli with Sour Ham

I'd really like to go back and explore the menu more thoroughly, but in the meantime, I highly recommend you pay this place a visit if you're in Orange County.


Bo De Tinh Tam Chay Vietnamese Vegetarian Restaurant
Ranking: ****1/2

***** awesome! Highly recommended.
**** hey, this is pretty dang good.
*** not bad at all.
** eh.
* bad. Keep looking for alternatives.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bo De Tinh Tam Chay Vietnamese Vegetarian Restaurant
15352 Beach Blvd.
Westminster, CA 92683
(714) 891-4455

No website, but here's their HappyCow Listing.

Hours
Monday - Thursday 9am to 9pm
Friday - Sunday 9am to 10pm

On the Road: The Donuttery, Huntingon Beach, CA

The Donuttery's Vegan Donuts

The Donuttery is tucked in a busy strip mall in Huntington Beach. I was there just before 8am on a Monday morning and the place was hopping. They had a nice big sign on the counter indicating they served vegan donuts and quite a few racks were dedicated to the vegan donuts, which were all clearly labeled.

The vegan donuts were all cake style, but the toppings differed in combinations of thick vanilla, chocolate, lemon, strawberry, and maple glazes with some plain, nut-covered, and coconut-covered.

I sampled the strawberry, maple coconut, and chocolate peanut and they were all delicious.  I was a little nervous when I found out they were cake donuts and not yeasted or raised donuts, but these were lightly fried and not dense at all. My omnivore family that shared the dozen donuts I picked up also enjoyed them, and were happy to inform me they couldn't tell they were vegan. This place is a definite win for vegan donuts!

The Donuttery

The Donuttery
Ranking: ****

***** awesome! Highly recommended.
**** hey, this is pretty dang good.
*** not bad at all.
** eh.
* bad. Keep looking for alternatives.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Donuttery
17420 Beach Blvd
Huntington Beach, CA 92647
(714) 847-7000

Facebook

Hours
 Monday 12am - Sunday 3pm (almost 24/7)

On the Road: Mai Thai Restaurant, Fountain Valley, CA

I was recently in Orange County, California visiting family, and as a result frequented quite a few vegan and vegan-friendly restaurants. So, I have a bunch of reviews to share over the next few weeks, starting today. Some are old faves and some are brand new. Yay!

Spicy Basil Tofu with Rice

This little Thai and Chinese place is vegan friendly, and their website even talks about their vegetarian options. They offer tofu as an option for most of their dishes, and they will easily remove egg or other non-vegan ingredients. I've eaten here a couple of times because it's a nice place to go when you need to accommodate omnivores and vegans.

I've previously enjoyed the Sweet and Sour Tofu, but this time the only thing I got was the Spicy Basil Tofu. It was really nice. The tofu had nice texture, but could have been a little more flavorful. The spicy sauce was tasty and just spicy enough for me. A very respectable place to visit.


Mai Thai Restaurant
Ranking: ***1/2

***** awesome! Highly recommended.
**** hey, this is pretty dang good.
*** not bad at all.
** eh.
* bad. Keep looking for alternatives.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Mai Thai Restaurant
17938 Magnolia St
Fountain Valley, CA 92708
(714) 963-4929

http://maithaifv.com

Hours
Sunday to Thursday 11am to 9pm
Friday to Saturday 11am to 10pm

Hula's Modern Tiki, Phoenix, AZ



Hula's Modern Tiki

Hula's Modern Tiki is a cute little bar and restaurant in uptown Phoenix, conveniently located off the lightrail. They're vegan friendly, and when I ordered, the super-friendly waitress was very well informed on what items could be easily veganized. I considered ordering some kind of encrusted tofu, the Spicy Tofu Tacos, the Jungle Tofu Bowl, or the Big Sur Black Bean Burger; the tacos, bowl, and the veggie burger I've heard are amazing (without modifications). Those were pretty much the veganizable options. I settled for the Jungle Tofu Bowl since it required the least modifications to make it vegan.

  

Jerk Tofu Bowl Served

The Jungle Tofu Bowl in all its glory; fried tofu, jungle curry sauce, fried sweet plantains on top of beans, rice, and a cabbage mix. This dish was delicious. The jungle curry sauce was not too spicy and the combination of flavors and textures really worked; the whole thing was quite filling and satisfying.

 



Jungle Tofu Bowl Mixed & Half-Eaten

We didn't get drinks during this visit and I don't know what liquor on their menu is vegan, but I'm sure they have some lovely fruity concoctions. They didn't have any vegan desserts on the menu, but the waitress did tell me that that the little place next door, Twirl Frozen Yogurt, served vegan sorbet. Good to know!

Ultimately, this is a great place to go a night downtown, when cruising the lightrail, and especially when you have a mixed party of omnivores and vegans.


Hula's Modern Tiki Bar & Restaurant
Ranking: ****

***** awesome! Highly recommended.
**** hey, this is pretty dang good.
*** not bad at all.
** eh.
* bad. Keep looking for alternatives.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hula's Modern Tiki Bar & Restaurant
4700 N. Central Ave.
Phoenix, AZ 85012
(602) 265- 8454
http://hulasmoderntiki.com

Hours
Monday 11am to 10pm
Tuesday - Thursday 11am to 11pm
Friday 11am to 2am

Saturday 10:30am to 1am
Sunday 10:30am to 10pm

 







Tiki Decor



On the Road: Chocola Tree Organic Vegetarian Eatery, Sedona, AZ

Chocola Tree Restaurant

Chocola Tree is a charming organic gluten-free vegetarian eatery located in Sedona. It's practically vegan, is free of processed sugar and hosts plenty of raw and healthy-focused items. Chocola Tree has lots of beverages to choose from plenty of teas, plus coffee, smoothies, kombucha, and even a Chocolate n Maca drink which I ordered an enjoyed. I do like maca!

left to right: Tea, Ginger Lemonade, Chocolate n' Maca; flanked by waters

Patio Hammocks: There are quite a few available for a light snooze.

Hummingbird Mural

Chocola Tree does have a small interior dining area but when I was there for lunch, no one was using it. Everyone was enjoying the beautiful day in the backyard patio area, which is nice and lush with fountains and plenty of birds, butterflies, and lizards.

Menu



from front to back: Sedona 2012, Banana Bread n' Butter, Spring Rolls, Morrocan Magic, Kefir Parfait 

For an appetizer, I had planned on sharing the Banana Bread n Butter, but it really was a one person serving. And it was incredible! So delicious, and then I didn't even want to share it. I also ordered the Sedona 2012 which is a tasty cooked tomato wrap filled with quinoa, potatoes, carrots, cilantro, hot sauce, vegan cheese, pico de gallo, mustard and guacamole. The Sedona was so filling, I couldn't finish it.

Sun Mural

My dining companions had the Spring Rolls, Morrocan Magic, Kefir Parfait, and another Sedona 2012 and everyone was very happy with the meal. We were definitely too full for any type of dessert, though there were plenty of options including a large case of fancy chocolates, and at least some of the chocolates were vegan.

I enjoyed my visit to Chocola Tree, but this is definitely a place with food geared more towards the health conscious, organic, raw foodies who will find their bliss there. A place perfect for the good energy of Sedona.


Chocola Tree Organic Vegetarian Eatery
Ranking: ***1/2

***** awesome! Highly recommended.
**** hey, this is pretty dang good.
*** not bad at all.
** eh.
* bad. Keep looking for alternatives.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chocola Tree Organic Vegetarian Eatery
1595 W. Highway 89A
Sedona, AZ 86336
(928) 282-2997
http://www.chocolatreecafe.com

Hours
Monday - Sunday  9am to 9pm



Chocolates display

Sedona 2012

Chocola Tree Benches and Greenery

Side view of the front entrance