Another Great Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge Week

Trying to visit as many restaurants as possible during the Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge is a tough job, but someone's got to do it! This past week, I checked out the fabulous vegan offerings at four more restaurants.


After my Spanish class on Monday at Casa de Español, I headed over to Nido at 14th and R. This is Nido's first year participating in the challenge, and they pulled out all the stops, offering dragon mushroom & heirloom bean soup, a seitan bao, and a chocolate cupcake with coconut cream whip. 

It was clear that I was going to have to try one of everything on this creative menu, so that's what I did.

Tuesday, I had lunch at VEG, upstairs from Thai Basil at 25th and J. I love the ambiance there, sitting at a sunny table overlooking J Street while soothing music plays in the background. I also really love the food!

Cauliflower is one of my favorite vegetables, so I was delighted to try the hearty spiced cauliflower steak, served over pearl barley. The curry fries with house-made ketchup were tasty too. My favorite part of the meal, though, was the delicious nectarine cobbler with whipped coconut cream.

Wednesday night, my husband Phil and I had dinner at Tower Bridge Bistro at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Old Sacramento. Chef Clay Purcell always offers several different options on the three-course fixed-price Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge menu, which makes deciding what to eat very difficult!

I finally chose the rich, creamy butternut squash bisque, the tasty spaghetti with cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and yellow wax beans, and the outstanding chocolate panna cotta with amarena cherries.  What a fabulous meal!

Over the weekend, Phil and I stopped in for a late lunch at Highwater on Q Street. They had a few interesting options on their Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge menu.

The street tacos, with "chicken" lettuce, avocado crema, and salsa were very good and were just the right amount of food, since I wanted to make sure to save room for the fabulous Christina's Butter Cup Sampler, which had come highly recommended!

I can't wait to see what amazing vegan creations are in store for me this coming week!