Let City Hall Know You Want a Vegan Restaurant in Cesar Chavez Plaza

This week, we celebrate the life of the late Cesar Chavez, founder of United Farm Workers, whose birthday is March 31st. While everyone knows about his tireless and passionate leadership of the farm worker movement, not everyone knows that Chavez was a vegetarian for the last twenty-five years of his life, and vegan for a large part of that time. He once said, "I became a vegetarian after realizing that animals feel afraid, cold, hungry and unhappy like we do. I feel very deeply about vegetarianism and the animal kingdom. It was my dog Boycott who led me to question the right of humans to eat other sentient beings.”

I saw in this week's Sacramento Business Journal that the City of Sacramento and the Downtown Sacramento Partnership are conducting a survey to find out what type of restaurant people would like to see at the Cesar Chavez Plaza across from City Hall. The restaurant that was there previously, Cafe Soleil, closed late last year.

Several of my vegan Facebook friends have been promoting the idea of putting a vegan restaurant into that space to honor Cesar Chavez's position on animal rights and his commitment to vegetarianism. While I think it highly unlikely that the city will choose to put a vegan restaurant in that space, I do think a restaurant offering vegan options should be encouraged. I know some of you have already completed the city's survey, but if you haven't done so yet, please take a moment to let the city know that you would like to see a vegan restaurant in the space formerly occupied by Cafe Soleil, or, at a minimum, a restaurant with an ownership group that's committed to offering several vegan menu options.

After all, it would be the worst kind of irony to have a restaurant serving food Cesar Chavez would not have eaten in the very park that bears his name.

Federalist Public House & Beer Garden

This weekend, I finally found the Federalist Public House & Beer Garden. I'd heard it was near 20th and N streets in Midtown, but driving down N, I never saw it. When I checked the restaurant's address, however, I discovered that it was on Matsui Alley, which is located between N Street and Capitol Avenue. So my husband Phil and I headed over for lunch.


The restaurant is a converted shipping container, with long tables and benches for drinkers and diners, and a bocce ball court for those who want a little fun with their food. The Sac Brew Bike was parked outside, waiting to pick up a party of pub hoppers.


We ordered at the counter. There is only one vegan item on the menu, but I always appreciate restaurants that actually create dishes for their vegan diners and identify them as such on their menus. The pizza I ordered was the Midtown, described as "for our neighborhood vegans, crushed san marzano tomatoes, peppers, onions, chili, lacinato kale, extra-virgin olive oil." Pretty healthy looking pizza, if you ask me, and tasty too!

Federalist Public House & Beer Garden is located at 2009 Matsui Alley, between N Street and Capitol Avenue, and between 20th and 21st, and their phone number is 916-661-6134. Their website address is http://federalistpublichouse.com/, and their Facebook page can be found at https://www.facebook.com/federalistpublichouse. The restaurant is open Sunday through Wednesday from 11:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., and Thursday through Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to midnight.

Ruffhaus Hot Dog Co.

Each of the last three Fridays, I've managed to combine two of my favorite activities -- browsing in bookstores and finding vegan food to blog about. This past Friday, these activities took me to El Dorado Hills, where I spent some quality time in Face in a Book, then walked a few doors down to Ruffhaus Hot Dog Co.


Most menu items at Ruffhaus aren't vegan, of course, but the fact that they had one item specifically identified as vegan got my attention. The item, which I ordered, is called the Tofudabeast (cute name!), and it consists of a tasty veggie dog, avocado, cucumber, tomato, arugula, and balsamic vinaigrette in a Romaine lettuce wrap. Basically, it's a fun way to add a little protein to your salad.

It's possible to build your own hot dog sandwich, starting with the veggie dog, but I haven't had any luck finding out whether the hot dog buns at Ruffhaus are vegan or not. I've sent the restaurant a message using the contact form on their website, but haven't received any response. I asked the person at the counter if any of the buns were vegan, and she asked someone in the kitchen, who said they were, but the woman at the counter was pretty convinced that the buns contained eggs or other non-vegan ingredients. If I ever get a definitive answer, I'll post an update here, but in the meantime, you should probably assume that the only vegan option at Ruffhaus is the Tofudabeast.


Ruffhaus Hot Dog Co. is located at 4355 Town Center Boulevard, Suite 114, in El Dorado Hills, and their phone number is 916-941-3647. Their website address is http://www.ruffhaushotdogco.com/, and their Facebook page can be found at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ruffhaus-Hot-Dog-Co/156698134355029. The restaurant is open Monday through Thursday from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Road Trip! Veggie Grill in Corte Madera

On Friday, I drove to Corte Madera to visit Book Passage, an independent bookstore that's been on my bucket list for awhile. After spending a wonderful hour-plus browsing and picking out books, I drove to another place I've been wanting to visit -- Veggie Grill, an all-vegan restaurant chain that, unfortunately, does not have a Sacramento location.


There were so many delicious-sounding options on the menu that I had a hard time deciding what to eat. I wanted to be able to include pictures of at least two dishes on this blog so readers could get an idea about what was available. I love cauliflower, so the first dish I ordered was the Crispy Cauliflower appetizer, panko-breaded cauliflower florets served with a sweet and spicy orange dipping sauce. So good!

For my entree, I asked for guidance from the cashier, who said that the Sonoran Winter Bowl, the Bombay Bowl, and the Crispy Chickin' Plate were all customer favorites. All three looked good, but it was the cauli-mashed potatoes that came with the crispy chickin' that was the deciding factor for me. Porcini mushroom gravy topped the potatoes, and coleslaw and fire-roasted carrots were also on the plate. It was an excellent but extremely filling lunch, especially after the Crispy Cauliflower appetizer.

If I hadn't been completely stuffed, I would have topped off my lunch with a piece of carrot cake. By that time, though, I couldn't even think about dessert.

Veggie Grill has restaurants in California, Washington, and Oregon. The nearest one to Sacramento is the new Veggie Grill that recently opened in Walnut Creek. More information about the menu, locations, and hours of service are available on Veggie Grill's website at http://veggiegrill.com/ or on their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/veggiegrill.

Kitchen428 in Woodland

I took a drive up I-5 last week and had lunch in historic downtown Woodland at Kitchen428, which I had read was a farm-to-fork restaurant serving meals with seasonal, locally-sourced produce.


I was happy to see they had clearly marked the lunch menu to identify the dishes that were vegan or could be made vegan, which made ordering very easy. I decided on the hummus and pita plate, without the feta cheese, and the beet salad without the chevre. I could have added marinated tofu to the salad for an extra charge, but decided this was going to be enough food as it was.


The tasty hummus was spicy, and it was served with lightly toasted pita triangles, carrot and celery sticks, roasted red peppers, and Kalamata olives. The serving size was generous and could easily have been shared with another person.

The salad consisted of red and gold beets, mixed greens, micro greens, Mariani walnuts, and a citrus vinaigrette. It was very fresh and the flavors blended together beautifully.

I went back the next day with my husband. The Kitchen428 dining room was closed, but lunch was being served in the adjoining Mojo's Lounge & Bar. I ordered the Portobello Grill without cheese, which consisted of portobello mushroom, grilled zucchini, spinach, and basil oil on delicious focaccia, served with a side salad.

Kitchen428 is located at 428 First Street, and their phone number is 530-661-0428. The website address is http://www.mojoskitchen428.com and their Facebook page can be found at https://www.facebook.com/Kitchen428?rf=398844460175643. The restaurant is open Sunday through Thursday from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.