Bella Bru Cafe in Natomas

Even restaurants that have a vegan item or two on their lunch or dinner menus don't always have anything that a vegan can eat for breakfast. So I was happy to discover last month that Bella Bru Cafe in Natomas offers a tofu scramble on their breakfast menu. It's described as tofu and spices, and the spices turned out to be curry. It was served with country style potatoes and toast (be sure to ask them to not butter the toast). There are a couple of other breakfast items that could probably be made vegan: the oatmeal, which is mixed with cranberries and served with brown sugar, but ask them to skip the milk; and the veggie tofu scramble, which consists of tofu, spices, zucchini, tomatoes, mushrooms, green onions, and the two things you'll want to ask them to omit -- provolone cheese and pesto.

Bella Bru in Natomas also has at least one vegan item on their lunch and dinner menu: the Oriental Veggie Stir Fry, which consists of sauteed shiitake mushrooms, ginger, seasonal vegetables, smoked tofu, and toasted sesame-soy sauce over udon noodles. I'll definitely give that a try the next time I'm there! The Mezza Plate looks like it could easily be made vegan by including the tabouleh, hummus, house-marinated olives, mango chutney, grape tomatoes, and house-made grilled flatbread but leaving out the tzatziki and the feta cheese.

Bella Bru has multiple locations, but the menu varies by location, so these items may not be offered at Bella Bru in Carmichael or El Dorado Hills. Bella Bru Cafe in Natomas is located at 4680 Natomas Boulevard. Their phone number is 916-928-1770 and their website address is http://bellabrucafe.com/natomas.php. They are open Sunday through Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and on Friday and Saturday from 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.