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, jalapeño 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.

Bhakti Chai

As I never ever buy bottled iced teas or the like, I would have never known that Bhakti Chai existed (or that it was vegan), until my friend, Flo, picked one up at a Whole Foods in New Orleans. Bhakti Chai is deeeelicious! It's made with soy milk and just the right amount of ginger-y spice. They also make a less sweet version, which I love, and a decaf version, which I really really love. Bhakti Chai also is also socially-conscious company, donating 10% of their profits to "nonprofits that invest in women, girls, and the environment" - all awesome things to invest in! I love that the company mission is also based on actual Bhakti (not just co-opting the word for faux authenticity), or devotion through action, as practiced for thousands of years in India. The chai comes in a glass bottle, not plastic, which is something I've become more conscious of lately. This photo of delicious Decaf Bhakti Chai was taken in a rental car outside of Santa Monica's Co-Opportunity Natural Foods.

Ginger Candy

Ginger candy is another one of my must-have travel items. If you find yourself getting queasy on a plane, then a ginger chew will fix you right up! They also help keep all of those buggies that your fellow travelers bring with them from settling into your system so that you stay healthy on your trip. During takeoffs and landings, you can almost always find me with a ginger chew in my mouth. Much better than gross gum or sugary candies, too!

I picked up this box of Gin-Gins (made by the Ginger People) on clearance at Food Fight several trips ago and it has served me well. The final Gins were consumed on the most-recent flight and I will have to restock before next month's trip for certain!

Genesis Organic Ginger Lemonade

On a recent trip to Portland, I picked up a Genesis Organic Apple Ginger Juice. I was highly amused that the label referred to the drink as a "good source of ginger." It was super tasty and so the next day, I tried out the Ginger Lemonade which is probably also a good source of ginger, despite the label not saying so. Consisting of just water, lemons, ginger, and agave, you can't go wrong with this stuff. It's just sweet enough, just gingery enough, and just plain delicious. Lemonade is probably in my top 5 favorite drinks of all time and this one is a major winner. I can't wait to get back to the Pacific Northwest and try out a few more flavors.