Let's take a break from beauty products and I'll tell you about the best foods/restaurants I've tried this year. As far as restaurants go, I've done a bit of travelling this year and discovered several really great restaurants. One restaurant that isn't new to 2012 for me, but I always enjoy, is Remedy Diner in Raleigh, NC. I had the famous Tempeh Tantrum earlier this year and, man, did it blow me away! Really, really good vegan food (not all of it is vegan, but there are lots of options and everything is well labeled.) This year my husband and I got to visit Charlotte and discovered The Common Market. I had an excellent breakfast tofu wrap (sort of a faux scrambled egg thing.) It was sooo good. The restaurant is inside a small grocery store that also serves coffee. I think the specials change each day but they usually have at least one vegan option. Here in the Triad we have a restaurant called Sticks and Stones. I went twice in 2012 and can't wait to go again. They specialize in gourmet pizzas made with local ingredients. When we went last, the specialty pizza was vegan (a sweet potato and garlic concoction) and was outstanding. They are vegan friendly and have a full bar with several beers on tap. I took a trip to Seattle this year and discovered two excellent restaurants in the Queen Anne area. Plum Bistro actually has several locations and recently acquired a food truck. We went there twice it was so good. Really fresh and filling ingredients (all vegan!) Two best things I had were a roasted potato salad and mac 'n cheese. Oh yeah, and the vegan doughnut!!! Chocolate with frosting and sprinkles. Can I just say I have not had a doughnut in 10 years!?!? It seriously made my day. The other great restaurant was called McMenamins which also has several locations. Not as many vegan options but I had the hemp burger ( I know how much more hippie and weird can you get? ) but it was really delicious. Also had a really good locally distilled liquor called Herbal No. 7. I highly recommend all of these restaurants if you are ever in the area.
I don't have quite as many amazing store bought foods to tell you about. I guess there just haven't been a lot of new products that are widely available. Our local Harris Teeter has increased it's Gardein section and they now carry Chipotle Lime Crispy Fingers. It's basically a faux chicken finger that has a little kick to it. This company does a great job with faux meat products in my opinion. Definitely recommend giving their products a shot. This Christmas I discovered that Oreo cookies (your basic Oreo and some of the ones with colored frosting) are vegan. Whoa, what??? Pretty excited about this one. Newman O's are really good too but a little pricey and harder to get a hold of. Last but not least I want to tell you about my favorite food discovery of the year. While in Seattle I stopped at a local chocolate shop and decided to try out something new. I bought a bar of Chuao dark chocolate nut nirvana. Wow. Was I even really eating chocolate before this? Really, really good. It's got an assortment of nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, and pistachios) in 60% dark chocolate. In fact it was so good when I went back to the store to buy one for my mom, they were sold out. I think the company is working to get their product in more stores nationwide. I heard that they were available at EarthFare but by the time I got there, they were once again sold out! So if you happen to see this brand while you're out, I recommend grabbing one. They are not all vegan so if you are, you'll need to check the ingredient list before you buy. I may break down soon and try and get ahold of more online.
Coming soon - reviews of my favorite cruelty free drug store products and the brand I was most excited about this year!
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