Almond And Oats and Jerk, Oh My!
I started this column to help feature some of the great vegan options in the Las Vegas Valley, as well as a meetup group (VeganInVegasDotCom) and the website of the same name. At the time, restaurants were thriving. Now, in this new economy, restaurant food prices (what restaurants pay for food) are up 17.5% and wholesale goods 21%. People aren’t going out as much, and Las Vegas is down travelers thanks to a multitude of reasons including Trump’s Tariffs, Canadian, Mexican and California travelers not coming because of immigration issues and a host of other reasons.
We recently lost NoButcher at Rainbow and Spring Mountain, with no idea if it will return; and VeggyStreet closed the Ft. Apache location right after Aubergine opened next door, a new eatery specializing in bowls, including the vegan Donny Osmond bowl (he’s vegan) but not an exclusive vegan restaurant. I actually like Aubergine, with it’s white interior and staff buzzing about, and they do have many great vegan options including desserts. But it’s sad it cost us VeggyStreet.
On the other end of the spectrum, Almond and Oats just opened, a coffee, tea and pastry shop located near Henderson at 10445 Spencer St #110, Las Vegas, NV 89183 (at St. Rose). They have a vast array of specialty coffee drinks, teas and vegan pastries along with some savory items like avocado feta toast (vegan), Beyond Sausage Herb Toast, Chocolate Almond Croissant and Raspberry Croissant as well. There’s snickerdoodle cookies, muffins and Tiramisu overnight oats. It’s a great place to have a breakfast snack, light lunch or just sit and enjoy a gourmet beverage. Prices are $4 to $9 for drinks and $3 to $9 for pastries. You can find out more at almondandoat.com
I’ve driven by House of Dutch Pot at 4255 Durango near Flamingo countless times, never thinking to stop because what kind of vegan offering would a Jamaican restaurant possibly have? Well, am I glad I finally went in because they have an entire vegan page of their menu. I have been longing for jerk, so I had the new jerk tofu and hold me down and call me daddy it was delicious. Ja man! It came with two sides, I had the peas and rice and the slaw, as the slaw isn’t made with mayo. I also had a side of their Ital stew, a veggie stew steeped in flavors of Bob Marley’s home. The fruit punch made with fresh juices including mango and even some ginger was also a delight. They feature vegetable roti, Sweet Plantain and Cornbread wrap, Vegetable Rasta Pasta, sautéed okra and chick peas, sautéed callaloo and even curried curried coconut chick peas with steamed Bammy. Each dish has authentic Jamaican flavor and is a great addition to the vegan options in Las Vegas. I ordered the Jerk Tofu, a side of the Ital stew and the fruit drink and with tip spend $55. Next time I’ll forego the drink and side order, times are tough, I don’t get my meals comped for this column and that’s a lot for lunch. But in fairness I had leftovers for dinner.
Not to be left out is Gianna’s Pizza on Sahara and Valley View. Now, Tarantino’s is the defacto vegan Italian in Las Vegas, and Down2Earth has possibly the best pizza on the planet, but Gianna’s is committed to giving vegan diners options. I had a fabulous salad, vegan fingers with fries and took home the Gianna’s special vegan pizza with lots of vegan cheese, pepperoni and veggies. My meal was $37 with tax/tip and I had most the pizza to take home.
We now have to choose carefully where to spend our money as prices are soaring and money is tight. But we still need to support restaurants and not let these cultural and culinary spots disappear. Any of these three would be a great choice.
To read more about these and other restaurants go to veganinvegas.com and listen for reviews on The Karel Cast wherever you get your podcasts. Why not join the meetup group VeganInVegasdotCom? Reviews are often featured at youtube.com/reallykarel so subscribe as well as realvegasmagazine.com Send comments to comments@veganinvegas.com
