grasslands [toronto]

I know it’s a big call, but breakfast at Grasslands was the best meal I had during my time in Canada, despite the amazing pie at The Wallflower. 

At first we were really only going because it was one of the few places that could cater for vegans and coeliacs and also took bookings. But it was so good. SO. GOOD. 

Having had a big night before (we got back to our accommodation at well after midnight, having consumed many alcohols, spent the day in the sun, and hung out in an indoor hotel pool for many hours), it was with a gentle stride that we navigated our way on public transport to Grasslands, located on Queen Street West. 

We arrived to find a beautiful puppy lying across the doorstep, and I fell upon a lovely coffee. 

I wanted to eat everything on the menu, but in the end went for the Hangover Helper, on the grounds that I was a bit delicate. The Hangover Helper is comprised of scrambled tofu (with mushrooms and daiya cheese), salsa, guacamole, spinach (which I asked to be withheld), toast, chips, salad and watermelon. The tofu was a lovely texture with the daiya adding a slightly cheesy creamyness. The salsa and guacamole added a nice little flavour, and then I added a big of sriracha sauce for a little spice and it was perrrrfect. The salad was bland but a nice addition to the friedness of the rest of it, and finishing it off with three slices of watermelon was just right. 

ALSO AMAZING: the bite of french toast I had; the bite of gluten-free waffle I had, so light and fluffy and, as Dr F said, you couldn't tell it was gf + vegan at all (unlike the pancakes at Fresh, so sad). 

I am disappointed that I didn't get a chance to return to Grasslands. If you get a chance, HIGHLY RECOMMEND. 

Grasslands

478 Queen St W

Toronto

Stairs to enter and down to the toilets. Payment at the table. CC accepted. Lighting okay but it was daytime.  Get there on the streetcar. Service really helpful and lovely. 

fresh on bloor [toronto]

Being located close to my Toronto accommodation, and being a vegetarian restaurant with a weekend brunch option, we ended up at Fresh on Bloor. Fresh has four locations and makes some really interesting dishes and juices, with a menu I was super in to.

So, after a morning wandering the queer area of downtown Toronto and getting interviewed on Toronto TV re: Pride (during which I admired a unicorn costume as "like being bi, because we don't exist, we're either one or the other" and said "Canadia"), Tris and I wandered down to Fresh and met up with some of the other members of our girl gang. 

Several Australians insisted I order a “bowl” at Fresh, and despite Fi demanding I order the beach bowl, instead I was drawn to the green goddess bowl, with broccoli, tempeh, sunflower seeds and kale and bok choy in tahini and ginger tamari sauce. I ordered the baby size, with udon noodles. It was SO GOOD and the perfect size and I must make it as soon as I get home, I loved the sauce and the beautiful fresh raw broccoli and the sunflower seeds. With warm udon but raw veggies, it was perfect for a humid Toronto afternoon, before we adventured on to the Bata Shoe Museum (also an excellent use of my Toronto time). I also went with the gingersnap power shake, matcha, ginger, strawberry, blueberry, banana, maple syrup and almond milk. It was very unexpected and strong but I loved it.

We noticed a breakfast menu and returned when Fresh opened at 10:30 on Sunday in order to sample it. After the amazing lunch on Friday, followed by a stunning brunch at the vegan Grasslands on Saturday (more on that in another post), I had high hopes. Sadly, it was not able to reach the heights of the previous meals, with my banana nut pancake platter (2 pancakes, tofu scramble, tempeh bacon) a bit average. The pancakes were vegan and gluten free and, as much as it pains me to say it, you could tell; and my coffee was sickly sweet. 

So, Fresh. I would go back for lunch, to eat many of the things on the menu, and also for dinner; but I’d rethink the breakfast. 

Fresh on Bloor

326 Bloor Street West

Toronto

(also other locations)

Toilets down a flight of stairs. Step to enter; tightly packed tables. Ordering and CC/payments at the table. Good lighting. 

magic oven [toronto]

Retrieved from the plane and escorted via PT to my home for my stay in Toronto, I gathered with my international girl gang at Magic Oven on Danforth Avenue in Toronto. Magic Oven is a delightful pizza restaurant that caters to a variety of diets (including vegan and gluten free), lets you modify anything as much as you wish, and allowed us to ask a million questions and stay for a long time as we drank wine and ate pizza.

Despite the presence of several good looking vegan pizzas on the menu, I decided to build my own. I went for a wholemeal base, with tomato + garlic sauce, daiya, sweet potato, thyme roasted mushrooms, and something infused spinach (I can’t remember, it was three days ago). It was so gooooooood. It was a really happy introduction to Toronto’s vegan food. 

There was also vegan cake and vegan mousse available but regrettably I was too full to even consider it. 

No pictures because you know what pizza looks like. 

Magic Oven 

798 Danforth Ave (and other locations)

Toronto 

Stairs everywhere. CC payment at table. Okay lighting. Super accommodating. We have started calling it Magic Coven and I like it. Would eat there again. 

the wallflower [vancouver]

I found out about The Wallflower by accident, trying to find somewhere to eat in downtown Vancouver. Immediately I knew it was something I wanted to try: their vegan shepherd’s pie, the internet said, was EXCELLENT. (And it was)

Overwhelmed by choice, E helped me out by suggesting we share a small poutine, which we did: as first poutines go, it was pretty excellent. I spent some time asking questions about how it compared to actual poutine and what an actual poutine contains (the closest I ever come is the Lord’s French Canadian), and A, an unrepentant meat eater and on-off resident of Canada for some time, says that it was pretty close. 

I also ordered a small mac and cheese, and, of course, the vegan shepherd’s pie. I couldn’t finish either, and I was worried I had made a mistake, but oh, my quokkas, I had not. The leftovers went into the fridge but they didn't remain there for very long, and it was with great delight that I ate them (and am thinking about that mac and cheese even now).

The shepherd’s pie was heavy and meaty and filled with mushrooms and something ground, and gravy, and topped with a crispy, cheesy potato. The filling was peppery and spicy, and I usually hate pepper but it worked perfectly with the filling so I couldn’t help but want more. The mac and cheese was cheesy and creamy and I wanted to eat more but I also wanted to save it for my lunch the next day! 

The side salad was fine but covered in a grossly sweet vinegarette. Ugh. The salad did not come home with me.

SO GOOD. RECOMMEND. Don’t look too closely at the wallpaper: it’s covered in wall flowers. The decor is oddddd but the toilets are nice and non-gendered. Service is pleasant. 

The Wallflower

2420 Main Street

Vancouver

No bookings same day. Make sure you specify when you’re ordering vegan and they’re so good for it. Non-gendered toilet. Payment at the table, not sure about entry. Wide passage; booth seats available. 

bandidas taqueria [vancouver]

Arriving at 11:00 on a Sunday morning we were in for a 15 minute wait for our party of 3, but after a little wander down the street (and an opportunity for me to look inside a Dollar Tree store) we were seated and served and out of there by 12:00 and I was pretty impressed. 

I couldn’t find this on the website but I was super excited to get to Bandidas Taqueria to discover it can all be veganised! At which point I struggled and struggled, and it was with some difficulty that I picked the muffins (two corn bread muffin tops, topped with guac, cheese, and fried tofu), to which I added roasted sweet potato + potato and veggie sausage. Please note: where the menu says ‘yams’ it lies; it means sweet potato.

THIS WAS SO GOOD. I have been thinking about these corn bread muffins all day, thinking about making them when I get home, thinking about going there again, thinking about how much I love salsa and corn and guacamole and everything that this dish chooses to be.

Also they don’t do takeaway unless you bring your own; they emphasise their bike parking; their toilets have notes about bikes on them. And their cocktails sound delicious. If I had been with drinkers, I would have had something, never mind it being 11:20 when we ordered. 

Outside, we saw this ghost; maybe zie was hungover from haunting in the shortest night of the year. 

Bandidas Taqueria

2781 Commercial Drive

Vancouver

Website says lots of bike parking out front but there could be more. Step to enter, noisy, hard to navigate. Visited in daylight so not sure about lighting. Can get there on PT as it’s close to Commercial-Broadway Station. 

3G Restaurant [vancouver]

MY GLOB I LOVE YUM CHA

We went to 3G in Vancouver and when we arrived at 11:30 on a Saturday morning it was EMPTY so I was unsure but Alex and Liz assured me it would be good and it was. 3G is a vego Chinese restaurant with clearly labeled vegan options (good work). 

3G is fill in the boxes rather than come around with trolleys; we picked a selection of yum cha and lunch items, though a few (GLUTINOUS RICE WITH CHICKEN) were unavailable. From the yum cha menu we went: prawn dumplings (steamed), fried bok choy dumplings, fried tofu skin, sesame balls, char siu bao, fried meat puff and spring rolls. From the lunch menu we got chicken drumsticks and a fried noodles dish. 

This was a lovely start to my first full day in Vancouver. The chicken was very crispy, and surprisingly made of gluten rather than tofu skin (as I’m used to). The tofu skin fried was a highlight, it was like a murtabak in many ways, so light and crispy and filled with something delicious.

Baozi was light and fluffy and not too doughy, a nice ratio of dough to char siu. 

The sesame balls and the meat puff were not my thing, made of that really chewy flour that I haaaate enduring at yum cha. 

Only one photo because you know what yum cha looks like: it looks like fried and/or steamed things. YES. 

3G Restaurant

3424 Cambie Street

Vancouver

Ordering at the table, toilet hard to get to, no step to enter (I think? Maybe). Menu in English + Chinese characters. Not really much GF. 

vegan about the world: the naam [vancouver]

First meal on the Great North American Adventure (more a medium-sized adventure, I guess, three cities in three weeks) was at The Naam, a 24 hour vegetarian restaurant in Kitsilano, Vancouver.

SO MANY OPTIONS. Also my mind is blown by it being 24/7 vego food. I went for the Asian Noodle Bowl, because a) noodles and b) you could get it with tempeh. I was awfully confused by the addition of grated beetroot to the raw toppings upon it (the grated carrot made more sense) (WHY RUIN THINGS WITH BEETROOT), but the broth was beautiful and I loved it. 

I also got a blueberry soy shake (with tofulati ice cream) and we got two pieces of pie to take home with us. The pies we selected were the Noh Pie (no sweet, no eggs, no dairy, no wheat, banana-date-nut cream pie) and an apple blueberry pie. These were super tasty! The Noh Pie was more like a cheesecake kind of thing (best cold), and the apple blueberry had a lovely crust and was not too tart. 

The atmosphere is very laid back and casual, and it's exactly the sort of place I'd expect to be down the road from a weed shop.

The Naam

2724 West Fourth Ave

Vancouver

open 24-7

Accepts cards

One step to enter; didn’t check the toilets. (Alex says “accessible is not a word I would use to describe it”)