Ok, vegan warriors, we have a challenge ahead of us! My little department holiday lunch is going to be at The Cheesecake Factory this Friday afternoon. I thoroughly reviewed the menu and it looks, to my eye, like there are really only 2 candidates: Evelyn's Favorite Pasta sans fromage, bien sur, or the Fresh Mozzarella Pizza also sans fromage. I'm not sure if it's safe to assume that the pasta is egg-free, though. What really bugs me about this menu is that it's enormous and doesn't have one single vegan dish on it. Even worse, every single salad has either cheese or some kind of meat on it. When did we become a society where salads are rarely just veggies? The Luau Salad minus chicken and onion actually sounds wonderful, but who knows if there's egg in the crisp wantons and what the heck is in the dressing? I'm sure that the server won't know and I really try to make as few substitutions as possible when I go out, just to make things easier. Pardon the venting; I've just become increasingly frustrated with this restaurant over the years and generally avoid it altogether.
In other news, I cracked myself up a little today. I brought both lunch and dinner to work with me today because I was staying late at work for a screening of the movie Juno. So, my dinner was a hemp seed nut butter and organic raspberry spread sandwich on sprouted whole grain Ezekiel bread. Does that sounds like hippie food or what? And I'm so not a hippie. It just made me laugh because imagine an omni's face if I had told him/her what I was eating. We all think it's normal, but others haven't quite caught on yet. :)
Juno is a wonderful film that's excellently written. I laughed so many times. It's an indie film, so many of you won't have an opportunity to see it if you live in a small city, but I recommend you do if you have a chance. Plus, the main character mentions vegan shoes in one scene and I'm pretty sure she's wearing a veg message t-shirt in another (it's a green t-shirt w/ carrots on it, but the majority of the shirt was obscured by the flannel she was wearing on top). Hooray for promoting veganism on screen!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
16 comments:
Hooray for hippie food ;o)
Honestly, there are so many stereotypes floating around about vegans and their food, and it's so funny because we are such a diverse group of people!
Good luck at the Cheesecake Factory! I've only been once, and I brought my own food, so I'll be interested to see what you come up with.
Good luck at the Cheesecake Factory. I've heard nothing but vegan horror stories about that place.
If I remember right, we got a pasta that was basically tomatoes, basil and pasta. Not great, but edible.
Let us know how it goes!
haha, hippie food. it's weird to look down and realize you're eating something that 'regular' people would view askance, when really it's just food! okay, mac n yeast is a little weird, but hey, it's ours. :)
I hope your dinner goes okay. I don't suppose you could call the chef and ask for some sort of primavera dish? it might work.
I definitely know what you mean -- it's so hard to find a normal salad without some kind of cheese or meat on top of it. Eww. I just want some vegetables in a dish.
Good luck in eating at the Cheesecake Factory. Hopefully you won't have to ask for too man substitutions, and they'll be accommodating! :)
I"ve only eaten at CF a time or two since being vegan. I was simply astounded that with such a huge menu, there weren't more vegan options!! I think I got a salad there and had them just put olive oil and vinegar for dressing. They were reasonable enough about it...
How funny, I'm going on a plane trip tomorrow and am planning on bringing a hemp see nut butter sandwich too! Let's just embrace our hippie traits.... :-)
Thanks for that comment... It really made my night. :)
I share your frustrations at restaurants that aren't so vegan friendly. I myself just had to go out with work people and ended up getting plain spaghetti noodles- so not a meal! And I agree about making minimal substitutions and not being seen as a pain. The thing is that Cheesecake Factory's food really isn't even that good. I don't get why people are so into it. Try calling ahead of time-maybe that can help. Good Luck!
Haha, I love the hippie food! I'm so used to people thinking my food is weird, but it starts to get old. If I was with you I would have been sharing in the hippieness!
WARNING!!! WARNING!!! NOTHING AT THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY IS VEGAN!!! I talked on the phone to their headquarters recently, and they informed me that ALL of their breads, pastas, doughs, etc. contain eggs and/or dairy!! and the dressings are mixed!!! I highly suggest that you find another dining alternative!!
SO glad that you caught my comment in time - just be sure to search through your salad for stray bacon bits, cheese shreds, etc.
oh and they DO have a huge menu; and their slogan is even, "Something for everyone!" (which makes me laugh) - which is true, since vegans are from another planet, remember? ;0) **obviously I'm being sarcastic**
I realize that it is too late now but just wanted to share this link that I found about possible vegan items at Cheesecake. http://www.vegsource.com/talk/veganism/
messages/16307.html
I hope it went ok!
I'm curious about what you ordered. When we eat at Cheesecake Factory (rarely - maye once a year), we get the Santa Fe Salad minus the chicken and cheese. We ask for extra avocado. I have an email from the Cheesecake Factory that their Peanut Cilantro dressing (the one used on this salad) is vegan. Seeing VeggieGirl's comments, I'm so bothered by the discrepancy. Why do restaurants make it so difficult?
I hear you about the whole eating-out thing....I've come to the conslusion that where I live anyway, I'm never going to get a decent meal at a restaurant. So if I want a really yummy dinner, I have to go home and cook it myself!
Crap, I just found out I have to go to a shower at The Cheesecake Factory in May. Ugh... that's like the last place I want to go.
The Cheesecake Factory does have vegan options. My site lists them as well as popular restaurant and fast food chain vegan choices.
Vegan or not, corpcake factory could hardly be considered related to the ideals of 'hippie-hood'...
Post a Comment