One Month Down

It’s been about a month since I committed myself to veganism, and it’s been fairly uneventful – thank goodness!  I never once had to go hungry for lack of options, I roasted beets without a hitch, and Sam hasn’t run away screaming with frustration, so all in all, I think we’re off to a good start.

Seriously, though, it amazes me how much better I eat now that I’m veggie.  And I’m not even talking about how healthy everything is!  The quality and variety of food I eat now is freakin’ amazing.  I made Ethiopian food the other night, from scratch.  I had raw tacos with the most delicious red pepper cashew spread, and never once wished it had cheese.  I stuff my face with food inspired from all over the world, with local produce, and sometimes top it off with a chocolate milkshake.  My diet has never been more interesting and delicious.

This evening, Sam and I went to our favorite sushi joint, Izaka-Ya by Katsu-Ya, on 3rd St. in Mid-City West.  Last year, when I was transferring over to veggie pretty successfully and happily ordering avocado rolls elsewhere, I could never resist the salmon and blue fin tuna at this place.  Today’s visit was a test, no question!  But I was ready for it.

Vegetable Sushi

I didn’t want to bombard the waitress with the same question a million times, so I decided to go for miso soup (which was questionable) and a vegetable sushi roll (which would totally be fine).  The miso soup failed the Q&A – sadly, they make it with fish broth and there’s no way around that.  Well poop.  I scanned the menu again really quickly and asked if the Agedashi Tofu was safe, and though she first made a weird, unreadable face, she went with, “Yes, that’s fine.”  Even though her pause concerned me, you can only do so much when you’re at a restaurant, at the mercy of the person making your food.  Go in with the best intentions, because that matters, but don’t let your suspicion make you go hungry.

The vegetable sushi was some of the best I’ve had yet, with an interesting mix of unidentifiable Japanese veggies to go along with the standard carrot/cucumber, and a nice hunk of avocado to smooth it all out.  The Agedashi Tofu was so delicious, I really hope it’s actually vegan because I am definitely going back for that again.  Silky smooth tofu in a savory soy broth, all nicely fried without being overly heavy.  Perfect.

So next time I go, I’ll ask them about the tofu again, and maybe even check if their tempura has egg in it or not.  I also asked her if the chili edamame was fish sauce-free, since Sam was grabbing a plate and I wanted in on the fun, and she seemed to think so, but it’s worth double checking that too.

Mantra: do the best you can!