NYC Vegan
Recently we spent the day in NYC to join our family in the evening to celebrate our matriarch’s 80th birthday. During the summer months—when there is a constant overflow of traffic into and out of the Hamptons—we prefer to take the Ambassador bus so we can relax, read, and chat without the stress of driving. So, we boarded the Ambassador for our 2 hour journey and when we arrived in the city this is how we spent the day…
Brunch at Le Botaniste, Bryant Park
Our first order of business was to recharge and Le Botaniste is one of our absolute favorite vegan cafes in NYC. We’ve done full write-ups on this vegan NYC cafe before, but we just adore the chic French vibes, the 100% vegan menu making it easy to order any food, beverage, and even dessert without worry, and the elevated casual experience. You can order wine, or matchas and coffees, making it a versatile spot for different times of day. On this visit we ordered the Burrito Bowl (Brown rice, spiced black beans, avocado mash, tomato corn salsa, Bbq Jack, blue corn cracker, above)
The weather was overcast (and predicted 7 inches of rain which thankfully never came!) so we decided to start with a refreshing caffeine kick and ordered two cold brews with oat milk. We also enjoyed the Longevity Bowl (Salad mix, orzo salad, plant-based feta, savory granola, pickeled onions, zaatar dressing, below)
2.
Shopping at Kinokuniya Bookstore
Since we were in the Bryant Park area we decided to duck into Kinokuniya Bookstore. Popular for its expansive selection of English and Japanese books (we always touch base at the cookbook and cocktail book sections), at Kinokuniya you can find unique anime and manga merchandise, and—one of our favorite things to do—shop/browse the gorgeous authentic Japanese stationery and of course elegant pens, notebooks, and other unique gifts imported straight from Japan.
3.
Culinary Adventuring at Eataly, Flatiron
Since the predicted rain hadn’t hit, we decided to take advantage of the clear skies and walked down to the Flatiron district to browse Eataly. With hundreds of olive oils, aged balsamic vinegars, sauces, and dried pasta varieties, it’s always a good outing in NYC for foodies to find what’s new and special. While shopping we selected some artisanal birthday chocolates to accompany the gifts we’d brought.
4.
Relax at wine bar, Vin Sur Vignt
After spending some time in the park, we decided to spend some time at French wine bar, Vin Sur Vignt and get some remote work done before our dinner party. When we entered we learned that the air conditioning was not working, but feeling European, we decided to give it a shot. We enjoyed a beautfully tasty dry rosé and then on account of the weather and lack of air circulation, changed location…
5.
Happy Hour at Sarabeth’s, NoMad
We chose to head to Sarabeth's for their happy hour because rain was starting to fall and our dinner reservation was next door at Audace. Sarabeth’s was bright, spacious and cool. The large welcoming bar was well lit with natural light flowing in from large windows. The happy hour drink menu is good, $10 cocktails and wine. The kir royal was a nice and refreshing beverage as was another glass of y rosé . There were no vegan small bite options on the happy hour menu—or on the main menu—which was a bit of a let down. We did share an order of truffle fries without the cheese and they were tasty. After a relaxed time spent laughing and reminiscing it was time to for the dinner…
6.
Birthday dinner at Audace, NoMad
The birthday honoree wanted a nice Italian meal so we celebrated at Audace. This elegant Italian restaurant and pizzeria had a chic, warm energy and it was a nice locale for an intimate birthday dinner for our party of 5. While the menu for vegan items was slim, we were satisfied with the vegan modified spinach salad (Organic Spinach, Roasted Beets, Orange, Hazelnuts, Balsamic Dressing, Balsamic Glaze) and we had to try their acclaimed Neapolitan-style marinara pie (Agro-Sarnese-Nocerino San Marzano Tomato Sauce, Garlic, Basil, Wild Oregano).
After a wonderful celebration it was time to grab an iced coffee and take the late night Ambassador home to Sag Harbor…
