Out in the Philly 'burbs there just aren't many vegan options. I thought the best I would ever find would be the Whole Foods (where I could mix and match at the salad bar all day!), but, a few months into my new job, wasn't I happy to learn that right off of Rt. 30 near Paoli a vegan restuarant existed?!
Su Tao is an Asian vegan restaurant. In true suburban style, it has a full menu but also offers a buffet at both lunch and dinner. I went last week with a friend and was a bit disappointed. Perhaps all the great veg dining options in Philly have spoiled me! Don't get me wrong, I was happy to find any vegan eats out in the middle-of-nowhere Main Line suburbs, but Su Tao was greasier, heavier and just not as tasty as I had hoped.
I decided to live it up and try the buffet, and the salad bar portion of it was unexpectedly good. Fresh greens, cold noodles and various pickles (including kimchee) were all on display and tasty. The miso soup at the end of the bar was also very good. The hot bar, however, left much to be desired and didn't quite convert my non-vegan dining companion! The spicy eggplant was coated in a thick sauce, the veg fried rice was overly greasy, the mock meat dishes were coated in a brown sauce, the tofu was fried. I did enjoy the steamed vegetable dumplings (can't mess them up!) as well as some steamed bok choy, but other than that, I could have skipped the hot food and stuck with the salad bar.
The biggest disappointment, though, was dessert. When I asked where the dessert bar was--having gotten excited after reading about the vegan ice cream on the menu--the waitress pointed to a bowl full of Whole Foods private label Oreo cookies. Really?
Props to Su Tao for even existing, but please try to give vegan food a good name.
No comments:
Post a Comment