Lauren "hotforfood" T.'s Profile

First of all, there is NO place like this in the city, and its about freakin time! The menu is the perfect size and not overwhelming, the location is hot, and the food is fresh and all handmade (including the seitan).

I want to try everything - and I will - but tonight I tried the TVP "Beef" Burrito as well as a Yuba "Chicken" Taco and Jackfruit "Pulled Pork" Taco with the most delicious homemade coleslaw I've ever had on the side. This was all shared, BTW. I had been dreaming of cashew sour cream for days leading up to this too, because I knew it would be like the one they serve at Live (where the chef's worked prior), and my dreams were fulfilled tonight! Excellent. The strips of bean curd used in the "chicken" taco and the jackfruit "pulled pork" tasted amazing and both something I've never seen done before. The "Beef" Burrito was the best vegan "beef" I've ever had and I'm not the biggest fan of "mock meat" or TVP (textured vegetable protein) for that matter. But Hot Beans preps and cooks it right. The burrito is massive, stuffed with garlic-annatto rice, refried black beans, pico de gallo, cashew sour cream, and a fresh cilantro-jalapeno salsa. YUMMO!

If you can believe I had more room, I also had a chocolate cinnamon donut. I know... vegan donuts!! YES. The selection may vary from day to day, but also look for a cafe con leche and coconut-lime variety. You will die! Hmm the only thing I didn't eat and should've were the hot beans! Next time.

I actually ate here for the first time on a "soft" opening 2 days prior to the restaurants official opening, so I can't really comment on regular service etc. BUT the place was rammed and they made full portion meals for every customer and it wasn't a long wait. There's NOT a lot of seating but luckily burritos are walk and go!

A friend recommended trying E.L. Ruddy for brunch this past weekend. It's new so I hadn't heard about it! I was excited because I am so sick of vegan friendly places like Sadie's for brunch - so disappointing, but that's another review. E.L. Ruddy is cute, quaint, and vegan and vegetarian. Oh ya, and delicious. I get WAY too excited when I can eat nearly everything on a restaurants menu. I want to order it all or take it to go so I can try it later in the day when I'm hungry again. Alas, I didn't do that here, but I will be going back soon.

I had the huevos yelapa, which apparently is the most popular brunch dish. In fact, I and my 3 other friends ordered it! You can still get eggs at this place, but I had the vegan version with 2 very flavorful marinated tofu steaks. The corn bread is to die for. I want more. Now. They have 4 selections of soup on the menu that sound incredible... cashew cream tomato... all of which are vegan and g/f. And there are 4 main lunch/dinner dishes that I cannot wait to try. A vegan shepards pie and a risotto dish, just to get you drooling.

Service was great and my favorite part was the establishment itself. It's so cozy and eclectic I felt like I was in a house. Being that this is the first review I ENCOURAGE you to try this place and then let us know what you think. You won't be disappointed.

By far, the best vegan restaurant I've been to in the city. This will now be a regular joint for me. It's called Vegetarian Haven, but it's 100% vegan with GF and WF options as well. There is an extensive menu of choices, which makes it a painfully hard decision to decide what to eat. But I guess I just have to keep coming back to try them all!

Everyday there is an AMAZING daily entree special as well as one or two non-alcoholic drink features. They have homemade pies, and many other desserts from Sweets of the Earth, as well as french pressed coffee! Mostly everything on the menu has a bit of an Asian inspired flare to it which is fine by me. The curry phad thai is incredible.

Servers are a bit spacey and don't do much to dismantle the "all vegans are hippies" stereotype, but that's ok. They're nice and there's nothing wrong with the service.

Whether your Vegan, Vegetarian, or open minded Omnivore or Carnivore, you'll love this place!

I'm giving this place a good review. It's not necessarily the nicest looking resto from the outside, which is why I have never thought of going here, and the presentation of food is poor, but it's good and there are lot's of menu options. May be too many.

What I am most happy with is the amount of vegan options. They have chicken and steak substitute which can be put in almost every burrito, enchilada etc. and Daiya cheese! They also have soy sour cream, which I didn't try because the waitress forgot it. That's ok. I'm sure I didn't need the extra calories.

The drinks are not so good as they use pre made mix, which makes margaritas and things too sweet. So they're not exactly authentic or fancy round here. They were also out of margarita mix when I went. I had some special summer raspberry drink that was like a red freezie. No good.

But its reasonably priced and worth it. And definitely if you are vegan here is where you will get satisfying mexican food, that doesn't skimp on ingredients and flavour.

This place is spacious and lovely. The huge patio is great for hanging. I was lucky to get prime seating on the bean bag chairs with my friend this afternoon.  I could have fallen asleep there, were we not having a business meeting!

A bonus for me, they sell Sweets of the Earth cookies which are vegan. I also like that the soy milk is right up on the bar with the other condiments, as it should be! I hate asking for soy and being charged at other coffee shops! We stayed in, so we were served our coffees in perfect form. My friend had a beautiful looking latte in a big mug and my iced americano was served in a old fashioned jar with a handle. So cute!

This was first trip to Leslieville (lame, I know). I've been wanting to check out lots of places along the Queen East strip and Te Aro has made me want to return immediately. I'm confident there are other gems like this place just around the corner!

I finally checked out Rawlicious! It's such a cute location with a homey vibe inside. Actually, it feels like you're in someone's house... and I sat out on their patio. I'm a vegan but not a raw vegan. I do enjoy experiencing raw food especially at specialty raw-restos. I can't make the dehydrated crackers and "breads" at home so I enjoy eating them at places like this.

The highlight of my four course meal was the special. It was curry crackers with cashew cheese and a mango current chutney! It was so good and I think they should just add this to the regular menu. I even over heard another table tell the waiter this.

The disappointment of my meal was the sushi rolls we had next. They didn't come with any of the ingredients it said were in it on the menu... no mushrooms, no avocado, and the worst part is there was like a teaspoon of WASABI in each piece! UGH. Wasabi was not mentioned anywhere in the description.We returned them and the waiter gave us the cold rolls instead. SO I guess that means I really had a five course meal! The cold rolls were pretty standard but the tangy peanut sauce they came with was delish. I could have eaten it all on it's own.

I also tried the zucchini bolognese with neatballs. It's a pretty large main course and I only ate about a 1/4 of it and took the rest home... to heat up in the microwave :/ I know! I am not a strict raw foodie so I didn't technically break MY rules. But I'm sure the staff at Rawlicious would be disappointed with me. There's just something wrong with eating really COLD "pasta". It's not palatable at all. The neatballs, however, are very good, warm or cold. I think they're made of almonds mostly but they have a meaty texture and great seasoning.

I also HAD to try dessert and so I took home a chocolate brownie with vanilla icing. It was $8 so I was pleased to see how big it was. Kind of like a piece of cake. But MUCH too rich and sweet. It was almost like fudge. Of course I ate it over the course of 2 days, but I wouldn't eat it again. I have to say, having tried some other raw desserts in the past, they're just not the same as baked desserts. I find they often have too much coconut or agave in them to make up for the lack of decadence.

Rawlicious is an experience and for anyone who is vegan or enjoys eating this kind of food every so often, this would be the place to go for sure. But I find the raw food really takes a toll on my tummy. It's hard to digest. I won't go into details but I had my share of problems that night! I also had a shit ton of energy and was like hyper sensitive to sounds... rather weird. That's the power of LIVE FOOD, I suppose. But maybe I just ate too much of it... perhaps I should scale back next time!

What a fantastic idea! A volunteer run, mostly organic and seasonal, three course vegan lunch for $4. WTF! I know, $4. Seems to good to be true. But it is not. I made a point of coming here when I knew I had the afternoon off on a Thursday. I've been finding it hard to get back though. If you live or work anywhere near this place and have the palette to handle healthy vegan salads and soups (meaning, you don't eat McDonald's or other fast food everyday for lunch) you must try Hot Yam!

When I went I got there after 1 pm and they ran out of the dessert course. A rhubarb tart. Disappointed I was. And while they changed the price to $3 because of this, I felt guilty being offered even more of a discount on an already ridiculous meal price. I paid the $4 anyway.  

Next time I go I'm bringing tupperware in hand. I almost don't believe they will fill a container of  any size?! Wait, is that glutunous?

I love Utopia. There's not a long list of reasons why either. I was easily impressed and all it takes is the best homemade veggie burger in town, the crispiest hot french fries, and that they were open late when everything else in Toronto wasn't!

I'm usually not this easy to please, but that damn veggie burger did it!
I can't eat most of the stuff on the menu being vegan, but I still make sure I check out what everyone eats around me... and it ALL looked incredible. This place is reliable. Just forget about the fact that you might have to wait forever on the street depending on what time you go and that you might get snobby looks from the servers. It'll be worth the wait and scowls.

I am a changed vegan now that I've found Hibiscus. If only it were open on Monday's too... that's my day off! The people (or family) who run this place are the NICEST ever. I was in heaven eating the salad bowl. I love all the variety and taste it contains. The raw cracker is amazing! I have only been once, but I plan to go back again and again. I want to try all those gf, vegan baked treats. I've tried 4 so far... a pumpkin chocolate brownie, a peanut butter chocolate bar, a dark chocolate cookie, and a rice crispie square. OMG!

Hibiscus also serves up a few gf, vegan crepes that look intriguing. Those will be on order for next time. Definitely check this place out if you want an inexpensive, healthy, guilt free lunch or early dinner. That's the only other disappointment other than the Monday closing... that they close by 6:30 pm. That's too early for dinner!

oh Akram's is open for business people! You need to go... although I wouldn't drive an hour for it like previous reviewer kavitha k did. I think it has recently reopened. I don't understand how they can sell their food for so little. A huge falafel stuffed pita with all the fixings you could ask for plus a bottle of water was only $5 and change. WTF! All the ingredients are fresh, nearly everything is vegetarian or vegan, which is great for me. But they do sell shwarma and broasters chicken as well. Those items will run you $5.99. Still, a hot deal! I want to eat here everyday. I definitely would if I lived in the area. I love middle eastern food and ingredients so this a gem of a place to know about. You can buy all kinds of hummus' and other dips to go as well as other authentic items. Akram's is a must see!! Apparently it even stays open until 11:30 pm after everything else on the strip has closed (not yet determined).