Food Options: 5/5

Restaurants Visited: Cafe Flora, Flying Apron, Wayward Vegan Café, Plum Vegan Bistro, Next Level Burger, Broadfork Cafe, No Bones Beach Club

The West Coast is a haven for vegans because there are a plethora of vegan options everywhere. I was so excited for my first trip to the Pacific Northwest since Seattle and Portland are filled with restaurants catering to vegan diets.

Our first meal at Cafe Flora was a nice welcome to the city. Everyone on Yelp suggested order the cinnamon roll, and we were not disappointed. The only mistake was ordering it before our food because it was hard to stop eating it when our sandwiches arrived.

When exploring a new area, what’s the best thing you can find? In Fremont, it was Flying Apron – a gluten-free, vegan bakery!! My eyes lit up when I saw the banner on their sign, and I had to stop inside. The sweets ranged from cookies to pies to dessert bars, and the full menu featured pizza and lasagna. They were clearly passionate about creating food that met the dietary needs of so many people.

I’m not sure if I was enamored with the endless options or the cute plates on the wall at Wayward Vegan Cafe. It was in my list of places to try, but I didn’t have enough room to really enjoy all the menu had to offer. We ordered for the mozzarella wedges appetizer … because yes, I still indulge in fried cheese from time to time.

I am pretty I am on a mission to try all the cauliflower since I can’t seem to resist ordering a dish with it. At Plum Vegan Bistro, I had the hot cauliflower with forbidden rice and broccoli. It had just the right amount of spice. We also had the rosemary fries with a roasted garlic oil that were incredible.

When I asked an Instagram friend for Seattle recommendations, she included Next Level Burger on her list. I have to say I am so happy that she did. The burgers, the fries, the shakes … it was all so delicious. I had not realized how much I missed milkshakes until I had this cookies and cream one with a coconut soft serve base.

Sweet or savory breakfast … well you can have both at Broadfork Café when you share. This waffle covered in strawberries and coconut whip definitely satisfied my sweet tooth. But the veggie sauté plate smothered in white bean gravy was exactly what I craved. I enjoyed the gravy so much that I knew I would have to recreate this in my own kitchen.

Farewell meals are often bittersweet because I’m sad to leave a city but excited I’m on the way to the next food adventure. This was absolutely true about No Bones Beach Club. The food was so good that I was not ready to go. The portions were huge, and we had leftovers for our 3-hour road trip to Portland. You won’t go wrong ordering anything, but make you sure getting some with the jackfruit carnitas.