Garlic Tofu @ Angel's Cafe - Ferndale, Mich.

Saturday afternoon, a friend and I lunched at a quaint cafe in a local trendy suburb--Angel's Cafe in Ferndale, Mich. I attempted to eat at this cafe once before; a vegetarian friend and I stopped by this cafe in the fall, only to find they were closed to the public due to a baby shower event. That day, we ended up walking two doors down to a music cafe which served vegan food, so all was good. Still, my interest in the Angel's Cafe was piqued and I mentioned it to my maid-of-honor as a possible bridal shower location (since I knew they did showers now) where my guests could dine on animal-friendly food! We haven't settled on a shower location yet, but when my friend, an omnivore, mentioned lunch and a movie for Saturday, it was SHE who recommended that we try the cafe. :)

At first I thought I was a jinx because I walked up to the cafe, smiled at their "open" sign hanging from the glass door and gave it a tug... nothing. The door was locked! Ugh, could I really miss two dining experiences at this little cafe?!? My friend peered into the restaurant's windows, noticed a woman in the back and gave a wave. A very nice woman greeted us, apologized for the locked door and informed us that the chef wasn't there yet. She said we were welcome to come in and wait, and said she could serve us salad or something in the meantime. We obliged. I was just happy to finally set foot in this cute, veg*n-friendly cafe! LOL

As the woman returned to our table with glasses of water, she informed us that the chef had just called in and he'd be there shortly. Looked to be our lucky day after all! And it was. The food at Angels Cafe was superb; my friend and I couldn't stop talking about it.

Though the cafe's online menu didn't match the one presented to us, it still had a nice selection of animal-free options, including a "Tofu the Way You Want It" choice in which you could order any of the chicken entrees with tofu as a substitute and sans cheese... essentially doubling the selection of vegan food at the cafe. Awesome. :)

My friend and I both decided to try the "Garlic Chicken" entree, which came with artichokes and sun-dried tomatoes served over a bed of couscous... she actually ordered it with chicken while I chose to exercise the vegan tofu option. I thought it'd be interesting to compare the two dishes side-by-side. We also ordered side salads topped with the cafe's homemade vegetable dressing, which turned out to be more like a pureed veggie mix instead of runny and fattening dressing... it was extremely tasty and it's inspired me to try something similar at home with my own salads.

When our entrees arrived, my friend and I both looked from our plates to each other and smiled... our food smelled divine and looked amazing. Would it taste just as good? Ooooooh, yeah! Our food was delicious. Simple as that. We both sat there for a moment in silence, neither talking because we were too busy stuffing our face with the awesome food! My friend said it was some of the best chicken she's ever tasted, and I second that with the tofu. I love when I eat out somewhere and tofu is actually on the menu... but I love it even more when the chef actually KNOWS how to cook it! I didn't want my plate to end... I could've sat there all day eating my entree. It was that good.

Our lunch at Angel's Cafe was one of the best dining experiences I've had in awhile... the decor of the cafe was bright and welcoming. The staff was uber friendly. The food was absolutely awesome... and a steal at only $5.95 for lunch (additional $2 for a side salad). Still, $7.95 for veg*n food that good is hard to find these days. If any of my readers are ever in the Ferndale, Mich. area, Angel's Cafe on Nine Mile Road is a definite MUST-DINE location.

My fiance lives in a neighboring city of Ferndale... I'll be moving in with him come wedding time later this year, and it's comforting to know that I may have more veg*n dining options available in that area of town compared to where I am now. I know for sure I'll be dragging my omni fiance to Angel's Cafe for dinner! :)

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On another note, I know it's been awhile since I've blogged... I took an unannounced hiatus as the holidays approached and I found myself with less and less time to blog. I had every intention of coming back in early January, but life happens.

It's safe to say that with all the wedding planning this coming year, I likely won't be blogging as often, but I promise to blog when I have time. My goal is going to be at least a weekly post, but I'll squeeze in more as time allows. Right now, I'm trying to lose a few pounds before I shop for a wedding dress. Subsequent posts likely will reflect that as I search for low-fat veggie recipes to try. I've been a fan of Susan's Fat Free Vegan Kitchen for awhile now, so my weight-loss effort will be a GREAT excuse to finally make all her recipes I've been drooling over for months, LOL

Vegetarian Combo Plate @ LaPita Restaurant

I had the night off from cooking yesterday because last night was kind of special; my fiance and I picked up my engagement ring from the jeweler! We had it custom designed and it turned out beautifully! To celebrate, we went out to eat at one of our favorite restaurants, LaPita Mediterranean Cuisine in Dearborn, Mich. This restaurant is where R and I had our second date, and it's been a favorite ever since. He usually orders the lamb chops. I, of course, go veg. The menu has plenty to offer vegetarians, going so far as to mark each veg entree on the menu to make choices easier. Last night, I ordered the vegetarian combo plate #2, which is my favorite. Lots of food for $9.99. Sides of salad and rice, as well as grape leaves, spinach pie, falafel, hummus and baba. The food is always excellent. However, last night the service left a lot to be desired. We've never had such bad service there and it was unfortunate since we were trying to celebrate a happy occasion. :( I told my fiance the restaurant should be glad we've eaten there before, because if last night's dinner had been our first there, we would not be returning.

Vegetarian dining at Andiamo Italia

This week I was fortunate enough to have dinner with a friend visiting from out-of-state. We chose to dine at the more upscale Andiamo Italia restaurant.

I had not visited this restaurant since going vegetarian, so the online dinner menu was a big help in determining ahead of time what I might or might not be able to eat. As lacto-ovo vegetarians know, Italian restaurants usually are not a problem for dining. However, lately I've been trying to eat as vegan as possible for several reasons, which I won't get into at the moment so I don't detract from this review. ;)

The service at more upscale restaurants is often top notch, and this location was no exception. Our waitress was very attentive and helpful, with one flaw -- she thought vegetarians ate seafood. :( After I informed her that I did not, she quickly indicated that the chef often will prepare a non-menu pasta primavera, which sounded absolutely delicious by her description. However, the downside was that I ate pasta for lunch, so I really didn't want to have pasta again. I'm getting married in 378 days so I've decided I need to start watching my portions more carefully in an effort to get in better shape. Since the restaurant seemed so eager to accommodate me by whipping up a non-menu item, I felt it was safe to ask for the Insalata d' Autonno (mixed greens tossed with balsamic vinaigrette, topped with apples, walnuts, dried cherries, turkey and fried chevre cheese) without the turkey and cheese, and maybe some extra walnuts and dried cherries. :) Our server was happy to oblige, but when my salad came out, it did have the fried cheese. Thankfully, it was in the shape of a ball so I just left it there and ate around it.

The salad was good, but I usually prefer my dressing on the side and I totally forgot to ask them if I could order it that way. So, the mixed greens were drenched in the balsamic vinaigrette, which was just a bit too much for me. I'm not sure if I would order this salad again. In terms of more upscale salads, I'd rather have something like the gorgeous salad I had at the Henry Ford Estate this summer. It was cheaper too! Andiamo's Insalata d' Autonno will put you back $11. In the future, I'll make sure to plan better so I can order the spaghetti with marinara sauce.

Overall, it was a great dining experience. The service is outstanding and efforts were made to accommodate my veg*n eating preference.

In a situation like this, though, it's not really about the food. The night was about catching up with a friend, and boy did we do that! Our reservation was for 6:15 p.m. and we didn't leave until after 11 p.m. What can I say, we like to talk! :) And, my friend was gracious enough to pick up the tab. Thanks, Sue, for a wonderful dinner. It was so great to see you again. Let's hope our next talk fest will be sooner than later!