Stumptown Vegans

Little Red Bike Cafe is located in the North Portland’s University Park Neighborhood  and has a small-town feel to it, similar to The Blue Moose on Freemont, or The Laurelthirston Glisan. This is a place I just want to pick up and give it a good squeeze, bury my face into it, and make funny noises because it’s just too cute. I’ve enjoyed reading their blog and viewing the pictures over the many months of my infatuation. If my vegan foodie friends were omnis, this is the type of cafe they would run - small, local, organic, unique and creative, with love in every dish. The cafe is brightly painted with lots of windows that light the space even on a gloomy day. There is a small inside seating area, a small eating bar, and outside seating for those gorgeous Portland summer afternoons.

With that said, my first visit left me very disappointed. They do not serve tofu scramble, ever, and this happened to be the one day I actually wanted it! Living in a town riddled with tofu scrambles, this was surprising. Little Red Bike Cafe is very vegetarian friendly, but seems to only have two vegan items on the menu because they must (like The Tin Shed) - but they do it fantastically (like The Tin Shed) - Vegan BLT and Curried Tempeh. No tofu scrambles, ever.

I opted for the Vegan BLT as my first real meal at the Little Red Bike Cafe and it was the best food decision I made all week. The sandwich was smaller than I expected for the $6.50 price tag, but after tasting it, itwas perfection and I didn’t care what I paid. The ciabatta bread wasn’t so crusty it hurt my mouth, like some other sandwiches. The bread was covered in Vegenaise and book ended perfectly plump, thick-cut tomatoes, smooth and creamy avocado, lettuce, and thin cut, smoky marinaded tempeh. The sandwich was a little smooshy, but in the best way possible. The thick avocado really made this sandwich stand out from other TLT’s around town that often skimp on this delicious fruit. I will be dreaming about this sandwich for weeks to come. 

Even the flavor of the side salad was delicious. The mixed greens were flavored with a light vinaigrette and seemed to have been tossed with raw garlic because the flavor was strong, I just couldn’t find the garlic. Topped with green apple, it added to the sweet, but tart taste of the salad.

Next time you’re in North Portland with an omni, in the afternoon, visit The Little Red Bike Cafe for a damn good sandwich, or keep moving west along Lombard until you arrive at Proper Eats. Just don’t stop across the street for pizza at Nicholas’ Pizza, because the food wasn’t good enough to go back to write a proper review. Support cute, local, businesses like Little Red Bike Cafe!

Tempeh Lettuce Tomato and Avocado Sandwich:

Tempeh Lettuce Tomato and Avocado Sandwich, Inside:

The Stumptown Vegans Travel!

Gorilla Food, in Vancouver, BC, reminds me of a more hippie Blossoming Lotus since it is all raw, organic, and vegan! The restaurant recently moved to an underground location. Some may think moving underground is a step backward from their previous street front location with sidewalk ordering window, but this place is awesome. It feels like you’re entering a welcoming, but still raw, cave. The stone basement walls, wood furniture, and vine details show how a hole in the wall can be recreated into a destination.

Gorilla Food is a restaurant where the food is simple in theory, but complex in the details. Even the water comes in a special containers sitting on a shelf. I wasn’t sure of the reason, but it did taste good. One of my favorite elements of the restaurant is the pipe and wiring detailing across the walls. Normally these would try to be hidden but at Gorilla Food they keep them exposed and used them in the design curving the wires along the wall to look like a vine, then with leaves and smaller vines painted along-side to complete the image. This is similar to McMenamins painting the joints of their pipes with little faces.

They seem to put a lot into their food and love what they do. Gorilla Food has created a variety of unique dishes displayed on their menu using all raw cooking techniques to make their food the best. First I tried the Water Wisdom Salad because the term “tenderized kale” intrigued me. I imagined someone in the back beating the kale with a mallet then mixing it with some chopped seaweed. This may have been the case. The dressing for the salad was a sesame apple dressing which really brought the somewhat salty of the seaweed together with the light sweetness of the apple. The texture was very chewy and with the inclusion of some raw, soaked nuts it made the dish feel full and well grounded in my mouth. As much as I enjoyed this dish I would only like a portion half the full size. The price seemed a little high at about $7 or $8 dishes, including the pizza. With that said, it’s worth the price for good raw.

The Pesto Pizza is your traditional raw pizza with a dehydrated nut and seed crust with marinara, a sweet pesto and a pine nut cheese sauce with a tomato on top. Raw pizzas are best eaten with a fork in case the crust cracks. This pizza is flavorful with tomato, basil, and nut cheese. A very enjoyable slice of raw pizza.

The Falafel contains many nuts and seeds soaked and formed into a balls and sit on top of a lettuce leaf topped with parsley, tomatoes, and a wonderful tahini sauce. The only issue I found with this dish was how to eat it! If it’s picked up the lettuce leaf breaks and if you eat it with a fork it doesn’t seem like a falafel anymore. Really though, who cares when food tastes great and makes you feel even better! There’s a lot more chewing that occurred when eating this falafel compared to a traditional fried falafel because of the nutty texture of the of the falafel balls. Chewing definitively makes you slow down to enjoy your food a bit more.

Next time you’re in Vancouver, don’t be shy to eat underground. Stay and enjoy a rawcarroon - raw macaroon after your meal! Be warned that the seating area is small and parties larger than three may have a difficult time finding enough table space.

Water Wisdom Salad:

Pesto Pizza:

Falafel:

Oh my goodness, get your milkshake on.
One could say that with the opening of a vegan milkshake cart, Portland is officially the coolest place to be a vegan in the United States of America. Portland’s food carts are already some of Stumptown Vegans‘ favorite places to eat, and the newest one is immediately on my top cart list. Sip opened this past week, and is literally parked in front of People’s Coop on SE 21st Ave. It’s open for business Tuesday-Sunday from 10am-7pm and has some serious style. It’s very 1950s retro with its shiny chrome trailer, old fashioned wall paper adorning the inner walls and the actual juicer and mixer. Even before trying anything I liked it.

With $5 in your pocket you can walk away with a vegan milkshake, sipper with sorbet, smoothie, wheatgrass shot or freshly squeezed juice, not to mention a huge smile on your face. Prices range from $3.50 - $4.75, with the most expensive item being the milkshakes themselves and large smoothies. This is the first week for the cart, so don’t be surprised if there are price or menu adaptations, it happens. Small cups are 12 ounce and large are 16 ounce. A 16 ounce peanut butter chocolate milkshake may not be as big as you’d dream from a sodashop, but once it’s in front of you all topped with Soyatoo whipped cream and a drizzle of chocolate syrup, your eyes are hooked. And those eyes are in your stomach.

This flavor combination let the peanut butter dominate, just as I like it. I was assured that if I wanted it more chocolatey or peanut buttery that could be easily arranged, and to let them know. The shake itself was successfully thick and fun to mix with the classy black straw. My eyes were definitely bigger than my stomach, and I walked home full and content with a couple inches of shake to put in the fridge for a sweet treat. Milkshakes are available in chocolate, strawberry, orange creamsicle, Newman O (oh my goodness again!) and the peanut butter chocolate. All drinks can be poured into a paper cup to go or a glass cup to sit down or wander the vegetarian coop with.

On a tired morning I ordered a small PBG smoothie ($3.95). As the initials hint, this was made with freshly cut peaches, banana and grapefruit. The trio of sweet, tangy and creamy banana made my day better, especially the large piece of grapefruit garnishing the to go cup. Everything is aimed to be organic at Sip- from the Soy Delicious ice cream, soy milk and the produce. There’s something refreshing about seeing the fruit you’re going to drink chopped in front of you. It’s as comfortable as being at home, but with the novelty at visiting this cool cart.

You can tell that the friendly young proprietor is living his dream, and us Portland vegans can easily do our part to support him, for the love of milkshakes and juice! Having recently been to Penny Lick’s mostly vegan old-fashioned ice cream and dessert shop in Brooklyn, NY, finding out about Sip’s opening was enchanting. With carts selling Belgian style french fries, vegan sausage and waffle mating, rice balls, huge portions of Indian food, vegan elephant ears, tacos and now milkshakes, it’s an amazing and freaking delicious time to be vegan in Portland, OR.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Milkshake

PBG Smoothie

The cart

Rating: To be Determined!
Address: 3029 SE 21st Ave Portland, OR, in front of People’s Coop
Mon: 12-8 Tue: Closed Wed: 12-8 Thur: 12-8 Fri: 12-9 Sat: 10-9 Sun: 10-8

Time Visited: 2

Su Casa fills the gap of taquerias peppering Lombard by providing a welcoming sit-down restaurant you’d go to with your family to enjoy the warm chips and fresh salsa before the hot plates of food arrive. Lucky for us vegans, Su Casa offers a full vegetarian menu, most of which can be easily made vegan.

The restaurant itself is nothing to get excited about; it can feel empty because of the design. There are little to few decorations or room dividers. Nothing interesting to note about the table layout, but maybe to note they were clean. All of this reminds this reviewer that this place could have been a dressed down Denny’s, but it still has a family owned and operated feel. There are booths and tables lining the walls with a few central tables in the open space. There’s also bar, which I have yet to visit.
The vegetarian menu features the usual: burritos, enchiladas, fajitas, tostadas, and all of the rest. The black beans set the vegetarian menu apart from the “regular” menu, which is a shame because refried bean are so nice in a burrito. Su Casa’s menu is all incredibly fresh. The salsa must have been made the same day I visited. The warm crunch of the newly baked chips with the cool, somewhat spicy salsa is why I love Mexican restaurants and Su Casa has become my place to eat baskets full of warm, salted chips.

The tostadas are just as fresh as the chips and salsa, but a bit plain without avocado or cheese. The beans were cooked perfectly and for $4 I’ll order this again.

The fajitas made for an uncomfortable dining situation. First, a HUGE pile of seasoned vegetables arrived. A long wait followed before receiving the beans, rice, and tortillas. Twice those eating this meal thought that maybe vegan fajitas consisted only of seasoned vegetables and started digging in because of the wait between the plates. After everyone else was served, out came the sides of beans, guacamole, and rice. This plate seemed like they were skimping on the beans and rice, but really, it was the pile of vegetables causing items to appear smaller than they were. Later, we were given our choice of corn or flour tortillas - some of the freshest tasting tortillas I’ve had since leaving Texas. The vegetables appeared to be of the frozen, then steamed variety - they were lightly seasoned to keep the flavor of the vegetables and just a peak of the mildly spiced seasoning.

Overall, I enjoy Su Casa as a neighborhood joint. If it was across town, I don’t think I’d visit. If you’re in North Portland and you’re searching for some good Mexican food where you know there won’t be lard in the beans - check out Su Casa. Close your eyes, enjoy the freshness of the food, and pretend you’re not sitting in North Portland.

Tostada:

Fajitas:

Fajitas:

Rating: 2.5/5
Hours:
Sunday-Thursday 11:00 am-9:00pm
Fr-Sat 11am-10 pm
Address:
3107 N Lombard St.
(503)285-5611