October already and a magical month for vegans in the Sacramento area with the Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge and Sacramento’s Vegan Food Festival! It’s a month of vegan food overload if there is such a thing and we’ve already hit 4 of the restaurants for the vegan chef challenge. Meanwhile, the pups are perfectly happy to chill in the cooling temps, Leela is especially fond of sleeping for hours lately while Miko is ready to help and beg for attention when we’re working on projects.
Well first, let’s get to the simple eats at home – roasted potatoes with a kale salad, oil free tempeh stir fries, and more kale salad. So not too creative at home and sticking to simpler dishes while so busy at work.
The exciting eats were for the Vegan Chef Challenge starting with this delicious steamed vermicelli and fried tofu wrap dish from Pho Vegan Asian Cuisine.
Then we stepped out to Revolution Wines Thursday night to experience their creations for SVCC and they did not disappoint!
We started sharing the Pumpkin Polenta Fries which were delicious with just enough pumpkin flavor, but not over powering. And the two dipping sauces, marinara and garlic aioli, were perfect. Hubby got the Impossible Vegan Nachos for his main and I got the Mediterranean Salad where the falafel had surprisingly strong herb flavors.
For dessert, we shared the vegan Churros with a chocolate espresso whipped cream dip that was insanely delicious!
Friday night we stepped out to Nixtaco to try their vegan options and the taco selection was impressive and it was packed!
We each had the Avocado Explosion and Spicy Tofu Taco, both great. And shared the Grilled Mushroom, Crispy Potatoes, and Elote Taco. They were all delicious, but the avocado and spicy tofu were my favorites.
And last night my mom, sisters, and I stepped out to Tower Bride Bistro to try their Vegan Chef Challenge menu and tried everything between the 4 of us and there was a lot of creative options. The Green Tea Artichoke was great with chickpeas.
So was the White Bean and Charred Brussel Sprout Bruschetta, but the Spinach Soup was really good with vegan sour cream and whipped, creamy texture.
I got the Vegan Linguine, delicious with chard and spinach and vegan parm.
And the Acorn Squash and Eggplant dishes were also delicious. Dessert were an interesting Kiwi Banana Cake, Port Wine Poached Pear, and Coconut Tapioca Martini which were good, but the pear stood out as the most decadent.
The menu was not as crazy or outrageous as soon in the challenge, but it’s a great celebration of seasonal ingredients with traditional favorites. And the view of the Tower Bridge from the patio is gorgeous!
Phew, I will be eating healthy this week to prepare for another weekend of decadent eating which I’m already looking forward to! But first the list to head into another week with.
We are sticking to simpler meals here too Christine as we gear up for fall, so many chores to do! But I’m all in on those pumpkin fries.
We are sticking with easier meals here to as we gear up for fall! And I’m in on those pumpkin fries though!
Yes, busy times means simpler meals and healthier with so much eating out this month! :-)