Now is a good time to add more plant-based foods to your diet. These restaurants make it easy — and delicious.
By Cinda Chavich
Not fully vegetarian or vegan, “vegetable-forward” cuisine is a new way of cooking — a plant-based focus that puts vegetables at the centre of the plate, with animal protein reduced to a garnish or replaced by legumes and other protein alternatives.
Whether it’s your doctor advocating for a plant-based diet for better control of heart disease and diabetes, or a top chef riffing on all of the fresh, local produce and vegan ingredients around the Island, vegetables are having their moment.
And that means both vegetarians and omnivores have a lot more options when they choose meatless meals.
Veg-forward restaurants
With so many local growers, farm stands and markets offering Island ingredients, there’s always something fresh from the plant world to inspire city chefs, so it’s not surprising that Victoria has a long history of vegetarian and vegan dining.
Rebar is the grand mammy of Victoria’s vegetarian scene, opened in 1988 and still going strong with its fresh juice bar and veg-forward favourites. Original owners Audrey Alsterberg and chef Wanda Urbanowicz even published The Rebar Modern Food Cookbook in 2001, detailing their journey as vegetarian pioneers. Today, 35 years after opening, Anil and Neha Dangra continue their legacy.
Be Love is another long-time local haunt for vegetarian fare. Co-owned by siblings Heather and Joe Cunliffe, Be Love grew out of their original raw food and juice bar and still champions the idea that plants and health go hand in hand, with organic plant-based ingredients at the heart of the menu. Recently, Joe branched out again, partnering with his long-time chef Mat Clarke to open end dive, a locally driven eatery that features mostly seafood and vegetable-forward dishes, and celebrates local community connections in the farm and beverage world.
Nourish Kitchen & Cafe offers creative vegetarian cuisine, too, with meat options for omnivores. New chef-owner Maxime Durand emphasizes seasonal ingredients in his brunch and dinner fare, whether it’s the wild nettle and asparagus frittata, meal-sized kale salad with creamy house Engevita yeast dressing, or roasted cauliflower and cashew hollandaise.
By contrast, popular Fern Cafe and Bakery is fully vegan, featuring mostly breakfast and lunch dishes, home-style baking and lattes that eschew all animal products. Think: giant vegan cinnamon buns or crispy fried “chickun” burgers.
Vancouver-based vegan restaurants, including Virtuous Pie and Meet, have expanded into the Victoria market, too, while Green Cuisine, a long-time vegan restaurant in Market Square, makes its own organic tofu, tempeh, mochi, vegan gelato and brown rice milk Mochirella “cheese” shreds — all products sold direct and through city retailers.
On the sweet side, Softys is bringing its locally made vegan soft-serve cones and sundaes to customers in Victoria and Mill Bay and Frickin’ Delights Donuts sells a wide variety of freshly baked vegan doughnuts from its downtown coffee shop, with 12 different flavours featured each week.
Plant-based at home
Whether your interest in a plant-based diet is ethical, environmental, economic or health focused, January is a good time to think about getting more vegetables onto your plate.
A veg-forward stir fry or hearty vegetable soup is a fine way to clear out the refrigerator at the end of the week. Even if you remain a committed omnivore, eating more vegetables and whole foods can be healthy on many levels. It’s a way to walk softly on the planet and give your body — and your bank account — a break, too!
Still, it’s great to have new resources and inspiration.
In his new book, Farmhouse Vegetables, Chef Michael Smith celebrates the many vegetables growing on his farm at the Inn at Bay Fortune in P.E.I. Smith is a farm-to-table pioneer, but this book puts plants first. He describes the “vegetable-meat spectrum” and suggests a paradigm shift from serving “meat and vegetables” to “vegetables and meats” — dishes centred on plants, “with meat as a secondary component or flavourful condiment.”
In The Vegan Bridge, a new book from Toronto-based Romain Avril and Richelle Tablang, the French-trained chefs remind readers that vegan food can shine in fine dining as well as home cooking. As omnivores, they offer a “bridge” for others to “delve into the world of veganism, without having to commit completely to a meat-free life.”
“A great vegan meal can dazzle with complex flavours and can be as refined as any meat-based dish,” they write. “The world is changing, cuisine is evolving and we feel there is an important need to build a bridge between the vegan and omnivore realms.”
Yam and Pepita Quesadillas
The Rebar Modern Food Cookbook by Audrey Alsterberg and Wanda Urbanowicz is a Canadian classic, filled with the recipes that have made this pioneering local vegetarian restaurant a fan favourite for more than three decades. Here’s one of their most popular quesadilla combinations — feel free to add other roasted vegetables or black beans to boost the protein. If you like, serve with sour cream (or a vegan substitute made with coconut milk) on the side.
Honey Chipotle Sauce
• 4 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 Tbsp chipotle purée (canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce)
• 1 tsp lime juice
• 1 Tbsp honey (see note)
• 2 Tbsp water
Combine all ingredients and mix well.
Can be stored in a refrigerator for about two weeks. Makes about ½ cup.
Note: Many vegans will not eat honey because it is made by bees, making it an animal product. If you are avoiding honey, you can use agave or maple syrup instead.
• 2 large yams
• 1 tsp vegetable oil
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 bunch scallions (green onions), chopped
• ¼ cup toasted pumpkin seeds
• 2 cups grated Monterey Jack or vegan cheese
• 4 whole wheat tortillas
• cup honey-chipotle sauce (see recipe on this page)
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Peel the yams and quarter them lengthwise. Slice each quarter into ¼- to ½-inch-thick pieces. In a small bowl, toss the yams with the oil and salt.
Spread them out on a parchment-lined or lightly oiled baking sheet and roast until tender and golden, about 20 minutes. Remove yams from the oven and reduce temperature to 200°F.
For the quesadillas: Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Brush one side of each tortilla lightly with oil and place, oiled side down, on your work surface.
Spread a thin layer of honey chipotle sauce over the tortilla, to the edges, then sprinkle with a quarter of the grated cheese, chopped scallions and the toasted pumpkin seeds.
Spoon a quarter of the roasted yams over the bottom half of the tortilla, then fold it over to form a half moon and set in the hot pan.
Heat through until the cheese melts and the tortilla crisps, then flip to brown the second side. Slide onto a baking sheet and place in the oven to keep warm. Prepare the remaining quesadillas.
Slice each quesadilla into 3 or 4 wedges and serve hot. Serves 4.