Check out New World Vegetarian before it closes!

[Guest guest]

I have been inviting my coworkers to eat at New World Vegetarian for the past

couple weeks. I am writing to tell you about all the wonderful food I've been

eating! And to get you inspired to invite your friends if you are in Oakland,

too! Check it out before it is gone.

 

One strange thing I noticed, it seems that nobody in my building knew about this

place. How sad! I had no idea they didn't know. I am getting comments like

" Gee, for years I've had to struggle with finding food for my vegetarian friend

to eat when he comes to visit me in Oakland, I had no idea we could have all

just come here to eat! " It's so sad. I guess they just didn't have enough

publicity. Several months ago I suggested to a friend who owns a condo by the

Grand Lake Theater that we should meet up at New World Vegetarian for dinner,

she had no idea about the place, and she was vegetarian up until a few years

ago. And the place has been there for 13 years!!! HOW SAD. She just had no

idea the place was there. She loved it and was planning to become a frequent

visitor. Too bad she found out about it too late.

 

(I do sometimes wonder, however ... how do people NOT know? How can they NOT

know about bayareaveg and the Ultimate Guide and all of that? Do they never

think of doing a google search when looking for veg restaurants? I just googled

" oakland vegetarian restaurant " and HappyCow and BayAreaVeg were the top 2

things that came up. Gee, that was easy. So yeah. I'm shocked that people

like my co-workers, who spend 10 hours a day in front of a computer, don't know

about something simple like " where is there a vegetarian restaurant in oakland. "

If I had known that people didn't know, I would have been promoting this

restaurant years ago at my work. *sigh* Oh well.)

 

***

 

OK here's all about the FOOD! Since I have tried so many things in the past

couple weeks, I want to give you the lowdown so you can better plan your visit

to New World.

 

First visit (Monday last week):

 

We ordered the New World rolls as an appetizer. It was okay, but it was the one

roll on the menu that DOES NOT come with a sauce, and I'd say it really needed a

dipping sauce.

 

We were served a lentil soup that I found kind of bland, but Coworker #1 thought

it was great.

 

Co-worker #1 got one of the lunch specials ... broccoli rice etc.

I ordered the Brazilian Fejoiada (or however you spell it) because I am

determined to be adventurous and try as many things on the menu as I can while I

still have the chance. It was basically a black bean soup with faux meats in

it, nothing too special to me. I was disappointed since I had seen rave reviews

online.

 

Coworker #1 was really put off by the cost of the food, so he ordered what he

did because it was one of the cheapest things on the menu, and in general, I

feel he didn't like the experience that much because he was stressing over it

costing more than a $6 sandwich. Coworker #1 went vegetarian last year and went

vegan about 2 months ago. I thought he would love the place, but he was visibly

put off by the prices.

 

Second visit (Thursday last week):

 

I told Coworker #2 we could order anything we wanted, IT WAS MY TREAT. Well, I

think that certainly improved things! He totally LOVED the place! And also,

the food we ordered was way better. We got one of the rolls as an appetizer,

one with the plum sauce. Delicious.

 

The soup this time was more of a savory vegetable soup, which I liked a lot

better than the lentil soup.

 

I had always wanted to try the Kombucha (fermented tea), but I never did due to

the $4.50 cost. This time I decided to go for it (last chance!!), and it was

amazing! Tastes like champagne, only better, much more healthful and full of

antioxidants according to the menu. If you go to New World before it closes,

you've got to try it! I'm thinking of buying some jugs of it and having it on

hand for parties. It'a a festive drink! Perfect for the designated driver or

anyone who doesn't want alcohol.

 

Coworker #2 ordered the Lemonade with Acai, and he was definitely raving about

that.

 

We shared two main dishes ... the NEW WORLD CLAY POT, which was truly Out of

this World good! Something about the flavors, so subtle and delicate and

comforting. I couldn't believe my taste buds and the happy feeling in my

stomach with that magical Clay Pot. Fantastic. We also go the Lousiana Gumbo,

which I found to be much tastier than the Brazilian Fejoiada. Came with bright

green mustard greens (at least I think that's what they were) and rice.

 

Was that all we ordered? We were so stuffed, we definitely had to get doggie

bags.

 

Third visit (Today):

 

Coworker #2 (who is not anywhere close to being vegetarian) was so jazzed about

the delicious clay pot, he organized two other coworkers to join us for another

lunch (neither are vegetarian, although Coworker #3 is trying to become more

vegetarian). So the FOUR of us made the trek (about a 20-minute walk) to New

World. This time we got the Sampler Appetizer platter (chicken nuggets that

were so-so, delicious fried mushrooms, and some rolls that were not so great),

followed by the New World salad with faux chicken strips that we shared among

the 4 of us. Coworker #3 is from Vietnam and she ADORED the salad, she said it

was just like what she makes at home except she uses fish sauce. It was a

lovely appetizer when split up four ways.

 

Coworkers #2 and #3 ordered the Lemonade with Acai, and I ordered the Kombucha

again. Except this time I wanted everyone to try it, so the waitress brought us

four little sake cups, so that we could all have a taste. Everyone enjoyed it

and commented on how special and festive the Kombucha is. I can't wait to get

my own supply for parties at home!

 

As a prelude to our entrees, we were all served a greasy but delicious sweet and

sour soup.

 

For our entrees, Coworkers #2 and #3 went with the New World Clay Pot, which

according to their reports, was fantastic once again. I ordered the ENCHILADAS

with MOLE, which was WONDERFUL. The enchiladas are stuffed with mashed potatoes

and served with bright green green beans and corn, tomato salsa relish, black

beans, and rice. Coworker #4 ordered the faux chicken fajitas, which he seemed

to enjoy.

 

And finally ... we ordered dessert! We ordered 2 servings of the vegan flan as

well as the chocolate raspberry cake (4 desserts total .... I thought it would

be too much, but I was wrong!) The raspberry cake was so moist and delicious!

It had none of the tofu aftertaste that I so often find in chocolate vegan

cakes. Coworker #4 said he much preferred this vegan flan to regular flan,

which he never liked because it seemed too " eggy. " I generally don't like flan

either, but this actually tasted pretty good. TWO THUMBS UP! We scraped up

every last bite on those dessert plates.

 

At the beginning of today's lunch, when we sat down to look at the menu, I could

see the horrified look on Coworker #3's face, and I told them, " DON'T WORRY

about what it costs. If everybody just chips in $10, I'll cover the rest. I

want us to enjoy this place before it's gone, so let's have a feast! " The bill

for the four of us came out to $116 including tip, so that's $29 each. You

know, for most meat eaters $29 would be totally cheap for a lunch that includes

appetizer, salad, soup, a full entree, a full dessert, and a gourmet drink. I

don't think New World Vegetarian is expensive when you consider the quality of

the food.

 

But I do understand how New World must seem very expensive for the frugal lunch

crowd. People like me who are very frugal and rarely eat out, well, we just

can't be relied upon to keep places like New World in business. I just wish the

all the Big Spenders who regularly plunk down $25-$30 per person for lunches at

other restaurants would give places like New World Vegetarian more of a chance.

Of course, this month, I'm deviating from my frugal ways in honor of the last

few weeks of New World Vegetarian's existence in Oakland. Since we only have

one month left to experience this treasure, it's worth it to me to subsidize my

co-workers' lunches. It feels so good to show them how abundant and delicious a

100% vegan meal can be. I can't think of any other place that is walking

distance from our office, where I could have taken them to show them that. In

fact, I'm pretty sure that Coworkers #2 and #4 had never before gone out to eat

with friends at a restaurant where all vegan food was served. No animal

products, no cheese? How can that be? But they saw first-hand how wonderful

and real it can be.

 

Also, there is A GLIMMER OF HOPE for the idea of keeping the restaurant going in

Oakland. Today I think it might have been the owner who showed us to our table.

She said that if anybody knows of restaurant space for rent in Oakland, to

please let her know. She said she would love to keep the restaurant going in

Oakland, she just can't find any place to move to.

 

So I hope some pieces of this report will get you inspired to check out New

World Vegetarian. All three times I went at lunch time during these past 2

weeks, the place was ALMOST EMPTY. Let's try to change that during their

farewell month!

 

Take care everybody,

Rachel D.

San Francisco, CA