Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Beyond Sushi


I arrived home yesterday from spending the last 11 days in New York, most of which was engaged attending the first-ever 800 hour training with my teacher, Yogi Sri Dharma Mittra. It was an indescribably amazing experience that I will forever be impacted by. At the end of the final day, I found myself on the streets in Manhattan looking for a simple, enjoyable dinner to treat myself to! The Happy Cow app informed me of the existence of Beyond Sushi, an all-vegan sushi restaurant right on my route (though all of the main food ingredients are vegan, it appeared that maybe two or three of their sauces are not vegan from the menu, I'm not totally sure).

I was greeted as soon as I walked in. The space is small, as are most NYC restaurants, with 3 4-person tables, a small food prep area behind the counter, and a take-out case. I made my choices: a Sweet Tree roll (6-grain rice with avocado, sweet potato, and sprouts, topped with a White Miso sauce - I subbed the white miso for the standard Toasted Cayenne, as I don't like much spice - and the standard ginger and wasabi on the plate) and a Nutty Buddy rice wrap (with buckwheat noodles, crushed peanuts, cilantro, jalapeƱo peanut butter, avocado, sesame oil, carrots, baked tofu and romaine and a Sweet Soy Mirin sauce - this was a little spicy, but not much). I also took one of the pre-made blueberry lemonades from the ready-case as the man working told me they were made with no sugar, just lemon and blueberries and made fresh that day. The wraps were made quickly as I finished paying and were ready to consume pretty much right away. I have to say, this food was DELICIOUS. Super fresh and not too heavy, though plenty filling (the wrap and roll ended up being slightly too much food for me). Every ingredient was perfectly chosen. I loved the White Miso sauce dabbed onto the top of each of the pieces of the roll. The buckwheat noodles in the wrap were the perfect hearty addition. The lemonade was not too sweet or too sour. And the service was really really excellent (as much as counter service can be). An overall great meal.

When looking Beyond Sushi up online, I also see from their website that the restaurant was created by a finalist from the tv show Hell's Kitchen, so if you're into that kind of stuff, an added bonus. It always makes me glad that high-profile people are diving into the world of great-tasting vegan food. This one is a winner. Definitely visit if you are in the area.

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