Anyone in Maine ( apart from Stephen King )?

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Vegan delights await at Little Lad's [GO Entertainment Weekly 2/15/06] I'm not very smart when it comes to vegan fare. So when I saw a sign at Little Lad's Bakery and Cafe saying they use no animal products, then saw one of the soups of the day listed as "Fisherman's Chowder," I thought nothing of it. Nothing until I bit into the white chunks of "fish" and could tell they weren't fish. They were tofu. But they weren't bad either. In fact, the soup itself was quite good. A warm broth with onions and potatoes and kale, it tasted almost like curry to me, but not quite. And, I didn't have to settle for just soup. I also had whole-grain bread, some salad, some shells and cheese, some kale and some brown rice, all for $2.99. Oh, and there was popcorn, which Little Lad's is quite well-known for, I've since heard. The popcorn was spiced with a "secret" recipe the place

won't reveal. Tasted sort of buttery, sort of garlicky, but it's a secret so we don't know for sure. Little Lad's Bakery and Cafe, a vegan restaurant on Congress Street, is owned by Larry and Maria Fleming, who also run a bakery in Corinth, a restaurant in Bangor, and are opening a cafe in Manhattan soon. Little Lad's also sells its breads, granola, almond butter, popcorn and other products at the cafe and stores around Maine. But at the Congress Street location, the best deal, in my opinion, is the $2.99 buffet. It's $1 extra for each additional trip, but there are plenty of choices to fill your plate with the first time. I guess I didn't realize how much cost you can cut by eliminating meat from the menu. The place probably also saves money by using all paper plates and plastic cutlery. The day I went, the other soup offering was an Italian lentil with giant carrots and other vegetables. Of the four entrées I noted above, the seasoned organic brown rice was my

favorite. Didn't taste like any brown rice I had had; it was much more tender and flavorful. The salad bar had regular green-salad fixings, plus a sweet beet salad and a few other choices. I also had a pineapple and coconut macaroon that was not part of the buffet. It was small but filling for 75 cents. There were four entrées when I went on a Monday, but the restaurant has as many six entrées in the buffet in the middle days of the week. The soups and entrées are made at the bakery in Corinth and brought to Portland, said Brandon Mascarenas, manager of the Congress Street location. But all the sandwiches are made there. The sandwiches, $3.99 a piece, were also a bargain. The day I went, the choices included hummus; almond-butter spread and vegetables; veggie and oat burger; a grilled "cheese" made with a soybean oil that has a cheddar flavor; and a "chicken" salad sandwich made with wheat gluten as a protein-filled chicken substitute. The breads are all

made by Little Lad's, and the bread I sampled – I think it had oats and molasses in it – with my soup was wonderful. The place is very casual, with little warming trays set up for the buffet. The tables are scattered around, and a couple are right in the window for good people-watching on Congress Street. The popcorn, by the way, is also free with the buffet but in bags to go as well, 99 cents for a small and $3.99 for a large. Peter H

 

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[Guest guest]

maine certainly has changed a lot peter hurd Feb 16, 2006 11:24 AM Re: Anyone in Maine ( apart from Stephen King )?

 

Vegan delights await at Little Lad's

[GO Entertainment Weekly 2/15/06] I'm not very smart when it comes to vegan fare. So when I saw a sign at Little Lad's Bakery and Cafe saying they use no animal products, then saw one of the soups of the day listed as "Fisherman's Chowder," I thought nothing of it. Nothing until I bit into the white chunks of "fish" and could tell they weren't fish. They were tofu. But they weren't bad either. In fact, the soup itself was quite good. A warm broth with onions and potatoes and kale, it tasted almost like curry to me, but not quite. And, I didn't have to settle for just soup. I also had whole-grain bread, some salad, some shells and cheese, some kale and some brown rice, all for $2.99. Oh, and there was popcorn, which Little Lad's is quite well-known for, I've since heard. The popcorn was spiced with a "secret" recipe the place won't reveal. Tasted sort of buttery, sort of garlicky, but it's a secret so we don't know for sure. Little Lad's Bakery and Cafe, a vegan restaurant on Congress Street, is owned by Larry and Maria Fleming, who also run a bakery in Corinth, a restaurant in Bangor, and are opening a cafe in Manhattan soon. Little Lad's also sells its breads, granola, almond butter, popcorn and other products at the cafe and stores around Maine. But at the Congress Street location, the best deal, in my opinion, is the $2.99 buffet. It's $1 extra for each additional trip, but there are plenty of choices to fill your plate with the first time. I guess I didn't realize how much cost you can cut by eliminating meat from the menu. The place probably also saves money by using all paper plates and plastic cutlery. The day I went, the other soup offering was an Italian lentil with giant carrots and other vegetables. Of the four entrées I noted above, the seasoned organic brown rice was my favorite. Didn't taste like any brown rice I had had; it was much more tender and flavorful. The salad bar had regular green-salad fixings, plus a sweet beet salad and a few other choices. I also had a pineapple and coconut macaroon that was not part of the buffet. It was small but filling for 75 cents. There were four entrées when I went on a Monday, but the restaurant has as many six entrées in the buffet in the middle days of the week. The soups and entrées are made at the bakery in Corinth and brought to Portland, said Brandon Mascarenas, manager of the Congress Street location. But all the sandwiches are made there. The sandwiches, $3.99 a piece, were also a bargain. The day I went, the choices included hummus; almond-butter spread and vegetables; veggie and oat burger; a grilled "cheese" made with a soybean oil that has a cheddar flavor; and a "chicken" salad sandwich made with wheat gluten as a protein-filled chicken substitute. The breads are all made by Little Lad's, and the bread I sampled I think it had oats and molasses in it with my soup was wonderful. The place is very casual, with little warming trays set up for the buffet. The tables are scattered around, and a couple are right in the window for good people-watching on Congress Street. The popcorn, by the way, is also free with the buffet but in bags to go as well, 99 cents for a small and $3.99 for a large.

Peter H

 

 

 

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