Contra Costa Vegan

  MIXED GRAIN KOREAN CUISINE I am a complete neophyte when it comes to Korean food, but in the interest of showcasing vegan dishes in Contra Costa County restaurants, I decided to take myself to lunch today at Mixed Grain in downtown Walnut Creek. They make it very easy for vegans by clearly identifying their vegan dishes with a (vg) on the menu. I ordered the Veggie Jhap Chae, a dish consisting of stir-fried glass noodles, mushrooms, carrots, onions, spinach, cabbage, and bell peppers. For an extra cost, I had fried tofu added to the dish. Not knowing what sort of heat to expect from the spices in this dish, I requested mild spice. It was just the right level of heat for me, but I wouldn't consider it mild. If you don't like spicy food, this may not be the dish for you. I thought it was delicious, and I plowed through the whole thing. But then came the food that I wasn't expecting. In tiny type in the "Noodles" section of the menu, it says "Served with side...

  BLOSSOM & ROOT Oh, my goodness, today's lunch at Blossom & Root in Danville was such a treat! For starters, there was the luxury of knowing I could order anything I wanted from the menu because the restaurant is 100 percent vegan. Then, even though I'm not much of a day drinker, I decided to try this fabulous lavender champagne cocktail, because how could I resist? That set the tone for the rest of the meal. Since I couldn't possibly order everything I wanted to try, I just picked an appetizer, a soup, and a dessert. The soup was a wonderful butternut squash pear bisque, served with grilled sourdough. The soup was seasoned with curry, which really brought the butternut squash and pear flavors alive. I love almost any version of butternut squash soup, but this one was really special. Next came the fritters, described on the menu as seasonal vegetables with a chipotle glaze and sesame seeds, served with a creamy herb dressing. The seasonal vegetables were carrots, ...

  SOCIAL BIRD After moving to Contra Costa County four years ago, I joined a few local vegan Facebook groups to find out which restaurants were vegan-friendly. The group I follow most closely is Vegans of Contra Costa County, which is how I came to discover that Social Bird , a restaurant in Lafayette that describes its cuisine as "Sustainable American" has a whole vegan menu. (Thanks for the tip, Colleen!) My husband Phil and I had dinner there tonight and I was not disappointed. Our server told us that their food is "farm to table," meaning that the staff buys their produce at the farmers' market and serves it at the restaurant the same day. I'm not a big eater, but wanted to try at least two things, so I started with the Avocado Bruschetta. The bread wasn't the traditional sourdough that's used for most bruschettas -- it was a heartier bread, possibly a whole grain bread. The avocado spread was delicious, and the pickled sweet peppers were the per...