I find it hard to write about bad food. Probably because it doesn't stick with me (unless it is incredibly bad then I cannot forget it). Amazing food on the other hand...I can think back on some amazing dishes we have had in the past, years ago even, and still call to mind what they tasted like and how delicious they were. A few days ago I posted about Lehka Hlava which was incredible. I can still recall what everything tasted like even though it has been a few weeks since we had dinner there. They have another restaurant in the city that has a slightly different menu, Maitrea, and we were very excited to try it out. Unfortunately it was not good. I still find it hard to believe that the one restaurant is so incredible and the other so not. We started with a sushi plate - one roasted vegetable (though not really the vegetables were raw) and one with smoked tofu and spring onion. The tofu was tasty, but the onion overpowered everything. Besides that it was just okay. Something was missing. The veggies were fine as well even though it said roasted veggies and they were raw, but something was still not right. I mean it was fine, but I would never order it again as it was just okay, but definitely not worth the money. It wasn't until a few days later when we had an avocado roll somewhere else that we realized what it was. They didn't season the rice at all. It was just plane rice with no flavorings at all, so not sushi rice. I would take the avocado roll over these "fancy" fillings any day as it was so much better all because they seasoned the rice. Such a simple thing, but hugely important.
We also tried the goulash as we had seen signs for it all over town. It was seitan in a gravy served with rice. This was disgusting. I seriously could not eat it. The seitan was the most disgusting texture ever. It was so chewy and slimy and just like...even thinking about it now is making me feel a little sick. The sauce was not good. I am not sure what the flavoring is but I did not like it. Really if the seitan would have been good I could have said oh it is just not my thing, but the seitan made me gag and almost made me sick to my stomach with the texture. Not good. Not good at all. Unfortunately this is one of those bad dishes that is so bad I cannot forget what it tasted like.
Overall - I would not go back to Maitrea. I'm still not sure how their other restaurant is so incredible and this one is so bad. The people working here were also not very pleasant and overall it was just a very bad experience. I would not recommend Maitrea.
When researching places to eat in Prague I found Radost FX had brunch options for vegans on the weekends so we decided to check it out. We tried the mixed tofu - tofu with thai sesame sauce, salad, served with potatoes & toast. The tofu was tasty by itself and the sauce was tasty - nutty and a little spicy. The salad had a sweet vinaigrette which was unbelievably good. What is with Prague having all the good salad dressings? Seriously they are some of the best I have ever had. The potatoes were cooked and seasoned well. Maybe heavy on the paprika (they looked like they would have a tomato flavor but they didn't) and other spices I couldn't place. They had an odd flavor, but in a good way. I'm just not sure what spices were used as the flavors were not ones I am familiar with.
We also tried the huevos-less rancheros - Corn tortilla with beans, scrambled tofu, topped with salsa & guacamole served with potatoes and toast. This was incredibly tasty. It is hard to find Mexican good in Berlin - not much salad and beans and guacamole to be had so I was excited for this. The guacamole and salsa were spicy and delicious and it was just really really good. I keep thinking back on this dish and wishing I could get it here (or even find the ingredients to make it easily).
Overall - I would highly recommend Radost FX. The brunch options were amazing and I wish we would have had time to go back again and try their other food choices. Next time. Definitely stop in if you are in Prague.
We spent two of our holiday days in Prague checking out their Christmas markets and food. We were supposed to arrive early in the day, but due to some train mix-ups we arrived in the evening. First up we were going to go to Vegan City, but unfortunately it closed early that day so we headed off to our second choice - Lehka Hlava. We had been here on our last trip and I remembered the food being quite good, however I wasn't getting my hopes up since some other places we have gone back to have been not as good. Fortunately Lehka Hlava did not disappoint! We were so hungry by the time we got here we ordered a ton of food, and it was all amazing. First up was the Pâté from smoked tofu and cashew nuts, cranberries served with toasted bread. I was a little skeptical of ordering this as a) I have never had pate and b) we tried some vegan Pate while we were in Paris once and it was disgusting however the cranberries intrigued me enough to order it. I am so glad we did as it was incredible! Seriously I need to know how they made it as...yum! The smoked tofu gave it a nice full flavor, but the cranberries really pulled everything together and gave it a nice sweet tangy flavor burst that just pushed it over to incredible. Without the cranberries I would not have liked it as much. I never would have guessed it, but it worked wonderfully.
Next up was the borschov - their version of borsch. This was tasty, though not at all what I expected flavor wise. I was expecting a sweeter soup from the beets and an earthy flavor, but this had a really meaty flavor. Like a beef soup with carrots and cabbage. Good, just not what I was expecting. We still ate it all.
I don't normally order salads as well I figure I can usually make them at home pretty easily. The rustic salad however sounded delicious and I was feeling like lots of veggies so we gave it a try. The salad consisted of green leafy salad with roasted potatoes, roasted vegetable sausage and beetroot dressing, bread on the side. The potatoes were delicious. I could have just eaten a plate full of them. The sausage was like large bacon bits in flavor which I for one love so it was great. The beet dressing again was not sweet like I expected. It had almost a nutty cheese flavor, which was good but had to get some with ever bite. Overall a delicious salad.
The last main we tried was the bulgur risotto - bulgur with stir-fried tempeh, spring vegetables and sun-dried tomato and peanut pesto. I was excited to try the sun-dried tomato and peanut pesto as it was an starter option but we went with the pate instead. Unfortunately I did not like it at all and did not eat it with the rest of the plate (Raymond however loved it and thought I was crazy). The flavor just was not good to me. The rest though was delicious. It tasted almost like teriyaki which I love but hardly ever get to eat. It was very savory and the salad served on the side was very sweet. Raymond loved the combination and thought they went well together. The salad itself was amazing. It had a nice fruity dressing on it which I wish I knew what it was as I would eat it all the time. So so good.
Overall - We loved Lehka Hlava. If we would have been in town longer we definitely would have gone back. Highly recommended. The waitstaff was very nice and friendly, they spoke English which was nice since I didn't really know any Czech, and the atmosphere is great. I love the decor and the food is incredible. It is not all vegan, but there are plenty of vegan options. Definitely give it a try if you are in Prague.
We were down in Kreuzberg one evening and needed some place to eat. While searching we found Yellow Sunshine and decided to check it out. It is a vegetarian restaurant with about half vegan options that are clearly labeled. We tried the Mac Wheaty Mexico burger (patty, lettuce, cheese, avacado, peanut sauce) with fries. The fries were delicious and crisp. The burger was really tasty. I liked the cheese the used a lot. One of my favorite things before I was vegan was to have melted crispy cheese, and that is what I had on this burger! I was set. It was really tasty and a good combination of flavors. The burger patty reminded me of these little meatloaf rounds you can get at the supermarket that are vegan. Delicious!
We also tried the double chicken cheese. This is two chicken pieces with cheese and lettuce. This was also really tasty. The chicken was delicious and the same cheese as the other burger. Really I was hard pressed to decide which I liked better. I also think these are the best burgers in Berlin...well maybe. I would have to eat one from Vego and here at the same time to compare and contrast. Either way they are tasty.
Overall - If you are in the area definitely check out Yellow Sunshine. The burgers are really tasty and we will definitely be back for more.
Green Pizz was listed as having one vegan pizza option, which normally I wouldn't put that on my list of places to eat at, but it sounded really tasty. We were close by Green Pizz our last day in Paris so we stopped by for a bite to eat. The pizza that is vegan is the Tutti Legumi - green sauce, onions, peppers, eggplant, zucchini, peppers, tarragon, roquet and olive oil on a thin crust. You can see them making the pizzas right there. We had asked if we should each order one and they showed us the dishes they came on so we decided to get two. Really one would have been plenty because they pile on the toppings. The toppings were super delicious - roasted nicely and had a really great flavor. The dough was really really good. Light and super tasty.
Overall - When I am in Paris again I would definitely come back for another pizza. Even though they only have one option, that option is really good.
