Arbor Walk Shopping Center, 10515 N. Mopac Expy, Suite A165, Austin, 78759
Open Daily, 11AM-9PM
Maki's Website
Maki's Page on Yelp
Photo by sashimikid on flickr under a Creative Commons license
Going on a tip from commenter Chrise, last weekend we headed up to the Arbor Walk shopping center recently to try out Maki. We were not disappointed.
As a vegetarian and a picky eater, I often end up asking wait staff to remove and add various elements to whatever I order, including rolling me something specific at sushi places. At Maki, that's the whole point. You pick exactly what you want in your roll off the menu step by step. So I was a happy camper. We ordered four rolls: two with cream cheese and double avocado, one with "tofu skin" (which is a fairly gross description) plus green onion and cucumber, and one with cucumber, strawberries, and mango. The green onions were not on the menu, and they had a couple of other things out that weren't listed either, so it pays to look at what they have before finalizing your plan.
True, it's a bit strange to see sushi mats shrink wrapped in clear plastic that come out of a machine with a layer of rice on them. Then again, if I was going to make a ton of sushi, I would want a nifty labor saving device like that myself! And the guy who fixed our sushi did know how to roll. If there was a sushi-making contest, my husband would definitely pick that guy over me for his team.
The ingredients all seemed extremely fresh and the rolls were delicious. I can't believe I'd never thought of green onions in sushi before, but now I'm sold on it. I definitely never would have thought of fruit in sushi by myself, especially after my husband tried to eat some kind of sushi that included bananas a couple of years ago. If something is too freaky for him to eat, the chance that I'm going to eat it are slim to none. But cream cheese and strawberry sushi is one of my new favorite desserts, and I can even make it at home with faux cream cheese for a vegan alternative.
My only disappointment was that the tofu was sweetened, which is not my preference, but if my alternative is to skip that next time and have more avocado then my life is not too bad.
We were there fairly early for dinner on a Saturday and the place was basically empty. I'm hoping they do some good business at other times, because it would be a shame if they don't stay in business. The staff was incredibly friendly (bored?) and they even gave us coupons for our next visit. And as Chrise had pointed out, they have a frequent roller card where every 9 rolls gets you the 10th one for free.
I don't recommend getting four rolls for two people, though, if one of them had a slice of cheesecake an hour earlier. It's a bit much.
Thank you Chrise for finding me another good sushi place!
Owners Patrick and Kathy Terry sent out an announcement yesterday about the new location:
You are the first to know that the second P. Terry’s at 32nd and Lamar will open today. Our store hours are the same as the first location, 11 am to 11 pm. We’re training a lot of new employees and I hope that you’ll be a little patient through this process. As always we value your feedback.
I can only conclude that it would be irresponsible of me to NOT go try it out, seeing as how they have all these new people to train. Right?
Photo by chaychayolei on flickr under a Creative Commons license
Every year after SXSW, I see posts by vegetarians and vegans who came to our fair city but seem to have spent the whole time hungry. This confuses me, because Austin is one of the most veggie-friendly places I've ever lived. (And yes, I have lived in quite a few places outside of Texas!) Many restaurants are friendly towards and familiar with the veg*n thang.
During the bustle of a conference, though, I'm sure it's tough to make sense of an unfamiliar area in a limited amount of time. If you're with a group and you're the only veg*n, it's even tougher. So here is a list of a ton of places you can go, in downtown and further away, that offer vegetarian and vegan options - revised and expanded from our 2006 edition.
AUSTIN PEEPS, if you want to weigh in, please leave a comment - but if you're going to leave a suggestion for our veg*n friends from out of town, please be specific about where the eatery in question is located! Downtown suggestions are most helpful since that's where the SXSW events are clustered, but if there's anything else they shouldn't miss, tell us about it!
Downtown
If you're on foot or sticking around the downtown area for events, especially since all the music venues are downtown, here are some good options, starting with Asian cuisine:
Koriente on 7th Street between Red River and IH-35 is Korean inspired, with plenty of vegetarian options on their menu and a rep for being very vegan-friendly. They have a gluten-free guide as well.
The Mongolian Grille at 2nd and San Jacinto lets you get a bowl and fill it with all sorts of vegetables and noodles, add some tofu to your liking, then season it with sauces you make yourself based on recipes posted on the wall. The soup that comes with the meal isn't vegetarian. They do not have a separate cooking area for meat and non-meat dishes, though, so if that's a concern for you, head elsewhere.
Thai Passion is at 620 Congress but the door is on 7th Street: Their Thai Fried Rice is good and so is their Pad Thai. Their Thai iced tea is strong and sweet and goes well with their spicier curries. The menu has plenty of vegetarian choices, since most things can be made with tofu instead of meat, and they state that all tofu dishes are vegan.
P.F. Chang's at 2nd and San Jacinto is a chain, yes, but it's right next to the convention center and their tofu lettuce wraps are really good. We also like the MaPo tofu which is served with lots of broccoli. Vegetarian items are marked on their menu (PDF), and the vegetarian items should be safe for vegans except that P.F. Chang's cannot guarantee the sugar. (I've found varying reports on the experiences people have had across the country in different locations, but expect Austin staff to be very familiar with vegetarian and vegan requirements.) They also have a gluten-free menu (PDF) which contains one vegetarian entree and three sides which appear to be vegetarian.
For other Asian restaurants with several vegetarian options, check out Mekong River (Vietnamese) on 6th St, a couple of blocks east of Congress and Kyoto (for several kinds of vegetarian sushi) on Congress between 3rd & 4th.
What else does downtown offer?
The Hideout is a combination coffeehouse and theater on Congress between 6th and 7th. They usually have veggie chili and vegetable sandwiches. They also have pretty good drinks, although they are served very hot, something Ben has forgotten about before (much to his dismay). If you're looking for vegan baked goods, this is known as a good place to go.
Little City is a coffeeshop just up Congress, between 9th and 10th. Their menu (PDF) has sandwiches, salads, and other options. The wheat bread they use for sandwiches (such as the Mediterranean) is vegan, so if you're ordering anything else that comes with bread make sure you specify you're a vegan. If you're eating gluten-free, check out the avocado on the half shell (should be vegan as well) or the cheese plate. Meals are served from 11am to 7pm, at other hours you can get coffee and coffee and more coffee. Seriously, these people are pushers.
Both The Hideout and Little City have free WiFi and PLUGS. Oh yes.
Austin Java has a location right behind City Hall on 2nd Street. Their menu (PDF) marks all the vegetarian options with a carrot, and many are vegan or can be made vegan - just make sure you communicate with the folks taking your order. Coffee drinks can be made with soymilk on request. Check it out for breakfast or lunch weekdays, or dinner also on weekends, though I wouldn't be surprised if they stay open after 5pm on weekdays during SXSW.
Latin Cafe Austin, formerly Dona Emilia's, is at Cesar Chavez (1st Street) and San Jacinto across the street from the Four Seasons. They have four entrees in the vegetarian section of their menu, and two of them look vegan or vegan-izable. Vegetarians could probably also hit this place for breakfast, but vegans not so much.
Leaf is an upscale salad place at 2nd and San Antonio that should please vegetarians, vegans, and the gluten-free crowd alike. Their menu (PDF) has their "Big 12" Salads plus a list of all the ingredients you can use to design your own salad if you don't like their creations. They know what vegan means and often have vegetarian and vegan soups as one of their two soups of the day - they invite you to call ahead to check on what soups are available. They have a selection of nuts and seeds, as well as tofu and avocado, that can be included in your salad.
On 3rd Street west of Congress is Which Which?, another sandwich place with several vegetarian and two vegan selections. Their white bread is vegan, the wheat bread contains honey. The black bean patty is NOT vegan, by the way, it contains some egg. (Please note that the bread at Jimmy John's, another sandwich place downtown, is NOT vegan.)
Chipotle is another chain restaurant but one that's veg*n friendly. It's on Congress near 8th, but it's only open 11-5.
Near 6th and Lamar
If you want to walk about a mile from Congress or take a cab, here are some good options.
Hut's is on 6th between Lamar and Congress. All of their 20+ burger combos can be made with a veggie burger, and also have a veggie sandwich and veggie chili. Behind Hut's is Frank and Angie's pizzeria, owned by the same folks and sharing the same (extremely annoying) website. They offer one cheeseless pizza, the Mona Lisa, but my guess is they'd probably change around the toppings if you see something on the menu you like better.
The mothership of the Whole Foods grocery chain takes up the entire block between 5th and 6th on Lamar. Enough said.
Waterloo Ice House is catty-corner across that same intersection. For breakfast (menu - PDF), vegans could get breakfast tacos with a selection of veggies, and vegetarians have a good selection of options. For lunch and dinner (menu - PDF), vegans can modify the veggie taco or veggie sandwich. Vegetarians have a few more options, including a decent burger, but I don't recommend the fries or the tater tots as a side. Spend those calories on something better.
Right behind Waterloo on 6th is Amy's Ice Cream, which always has two different vegan ices in addition to a variety of ice cream flavors.
Austin All-Vegetarian All Stars
Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name... err, dietary preference. There are quite a few other all-vegetarian restaurants in Austin.
Mother's Cafe is an Austin institution. 4215 Duval, north of campus, about 4.5 miles north of downtown. Vegan options are noted on the menu.
Bouldin Creek Coffeehouse has a full menu. 1501 South First, about 1.5 miles south of downtown.
If you're heading up into the University of Texas campus area, you must go to Veggie Heaven at 1914 Guadalupe. Their menu (one version here, I'm not sure it's complete) has about 5.2 billion dishes, all vegetarian, most vegan. They also have vegan bubble tea.
Mr. Natural has two locations in Austin - one at 1908 E. Cesar Chavez (about 1.5 miles east of downtown) and one at 2414 South Lamar (about 3 miles south of downtown). Their menu says "We offer a variety of vegetarian, vegan, ovo-lacto, non-dairy or wheat-free specialties that are all made with love and tender care." If you're looking for Tex-Mex without worry, this is the place to go.
Casa de Luz at 1701 Toomey Road off of Barton Springs, east of Lamar, south of Lady Bird Lake, a little under 2 miles from downtown. It's vegan and macrobiotic.
And the bane of all veg*ns, the BBQ joint...
If you're with people who WANT BBQ because THEY CAME TO TEXAS, DAMMIT, take them to Ruby's on 29th just west of Guadalupe. They have a vegetarian menu on their website, though I'm not sure it's available on paper this way in the restaurant.
404 S. Lamar, Austin, 78704 (Barton Springs and Lamar, southwest corner)
Open Daily, 11AM-11PM
P. Terry's Website
P. Terry's Page on Yelp
Ben had mentioned P.Terry's back in 2006, and I know he ate there several times before moving to NYC, but he never wrote a full review! Where's the love? And with the impending arrival of two more P. Terry's locations, I thought it was time to remedy that.
I first drove through P. Terry's late one afternoon when I had a toddler in the back seat, a hungry husband to pick up at work, and absolutely zero energy to think about dinner. If you're looking for a variety of menu options, this is not the place to go, but I just needed a couple of veggie burgers and fries - so this worked out just fine. On subsequent trips, we discovered that we usually get a bit of a combo discount even if we order milkshakes instead of sodas, and now we are hooked. Burgers, fries, and shakes for two of us is well under $20. The fries we got the first time held up on the way home better than any batch so far, unfortunately, but it's still a good cheap meal.
"Homemade" (i.e. made on premises in a restaurant) veggie burgers can be a really good idea or a really bad one. There's one in town that tastes like beets, carrots, and chunks of broccoli held together by sawdust paste. So if I had realized P. Terry's made its own veggie burgers, I might have been a little leery. They're fine, though, and I even like the sauce despite my historic dislike of most condiments. For those of you who are into that sort of thing, you can request onions, jalapenos, or pickles on your burger.
I emailed P. Terry's to find out if the veggie burgers are still cooked separately from the others as they were three years ago, and they confirmed this is still the case. But unfortunately for vegans, the burgers are made with cheese.
The P. Terry's website says they were inspired by Fast Food Nation, which explains their dedication to making food out of actual ingredients. In fact, there's an ongoing debate in my house as to whether P. Terry's should really be thought of as junk food, since it's made from actual FOOD. I don't think I should be penalized for supporting such an upstanding local business by having my dinner labeled as junk. My husband thinks that no matter where I get it, I have to admit that having fries and a milkshake with my dinner does not qualify as good nurtition.
But who really cares when it tastes so good?
I'll keep you posted on the opening of the additional locations.
Image courtesy of hamron on flickr under a Creative Commons license.
Responding to my last post about Austin vegetarian sushi, Veg Out! Austin founder Ben made this comment:
Japanese food tends to use a lot of bonito flakes (made from tuna), so it's best to always check, especially with agedashi tofu and miso soup. Some dashi stocks are made with just kelp or mushrooms, but it's common for it to be fish-based.
I have to admit, I am not the most scrupulous vegetarian when dining out. I've also gotten kind of lazy living in Austin, because so many restaurants are highly informed about vegetarianism. I've even had wait staff stop me from ordering things cooked with chicken broth when they suspected I was vegetarian. (Thanks Matt's El Rancho!)
As a result, I'm sure I'm eating plenty of ingredients that I would never purchase and bring home to cook with. The thought of interrogating wait staff, though, especially if I suspect I'm going to spend half an hour just defining my terms... well, it seems exhausting.
So, VegOut! Austin readers, how far do you go when assessing if a dish is safe to eat? What questions do you want to see answered in a vegetarian restaurant guide/blog, to make your life easier when deciding where to eat and what to order? I'm all ears...
Non-vegetarians sometimes give me funny looks when I say I like sushi. Such closed minds they have, poor dears. Sure, sushi is generally made with fish, but be a little creative! There are plenty of other things you can roll up in rice and seaweed. So when I dropped by Haiku down at Southpark Meadows the other night, hoping for a sushi fix before a movie, I was disappointed to see almost nothing on the menu suitable for vegetarians. I wasn't in the mood to coax custom rolls out of the wait staff, so we ended up having burgers at Waterloo instead. Sad.
I'd like to try a few more sushi places around town in the next couple of months, but I thought I'd share my favorites so far. You'll notice they're all north of Lady Bird lake, and I live south, which is why I was hoping Haiku would pan out. So if you have any southern sushi suggestions, please drop them in the comments, and I'll keep y'all updated on my investigations.
First, Sushi Sake in the Gateway shopping center. I had my first sushi here, so I may be a prisoner of nostalgia, but oh my heavens their vegetable tempura sushi is so lovely. Everything is better with tempura, including sushi. They don't have a wide variety of veg options to choose from aside from that, but get a couple of these and a cucumber roll and you should be all set. If you're bothered by the strong smell of fish, though, this may not be the spot for you.
Second, Ichiban on Burnet. They have a pickled vegetable sushi that my husband loves, and their vegetable tempura sushi is also quite good. They're quite happy to make custom rolls, so I can enjoy my favorite avocado and cream cheese combination. Do be careful of the agedashi tofu appetizer, though. I had ordered it several times, thinking it safe, and then it showed up on my table with something fishy on the top that was moving. Seriously. And sometimes the music can practically kill you.
Third and most awesome, Sushi Niichi on 24th street in West Campus. Thankfully they have removed the banana sushi from the menu - even my famously adventurous husband could not deal with it. What's left, though, puts a vegetarian in the wonderful position of having to CHOOSE what to order. And when our order showed up with a mysterious (to me) sauce drizzled across, the chef assured us that he had noticed our entire order was vegetarian and would not have put anything non-veg on it without asking us. Nice!
Now I'm off to make a list of potential new favorites...
In case any Austin vegetarians aren't on the Wheatsville member e-mail list, I wanted to share this survey invitation. A UT PhD student is "studying how vegetarians/ vegans/ pescatarians talk about being a vegetarian. Little research exists on this topic... I am trying to capture the experiences of as many vegetarians across the country as possible by February 1, 2009. At least 250 vegetarians are needed for this study."
Here's the link to the survey. I just finished taking it and found it quite interesting. If you don't mind sharing it with other vegetarians you know, that would be great - but note the February 1st deadline!
I'm Skye, and I'm taking over Veg Out! Austin from estimable founder Ben Combee since he's run off to New York City. (New York City?! Git a rope!) I became a vegetarian when I was 15, and 19 years later I'm glad I could step in to keep this blog going. I've previously contributed to restaurant reviews here as Ms. Particular since I am a self-professed picky eater. Rest assured, though, that there are tons of Austin restaurants that I love and I look forward to reviewing them here.
Our recent upgrade of our blogging software also allows me to do some upgrades to the archived reviews, and I hope to add some useful info there, such as special notes for vegans. If anyone is interesting in contributing to this effort, please let me know. I'd love to have the help. I'll post more specifics later, but I just wanted to mention it.
So hello everyone, and I look forward to seeing you around the blog!
As my last entry here in my role as lead writer, I wanted to point out some of my favorite lunch spots. I lived in north Austin for the last eight years, so these are mostly centered around the 183 and Mopac intersection area.
Food Shui
This place was the first place I'd visit with each new week. The staff is very friendly, and the rice bowls never failed to please. I'd usually get either the ginger bowl or the Thai basil bowl; it would always come with a crispy veggie egg roll and brown rice, and I'd usually eat it from the seat by the window. I hope I'll find something that approaches the tastiness of this somewhere in Park Slope, but so far, no luck.
Texadelphia
I'd often get a craving for their curly fries, especially with ample salsa and mustard-blend sauce. Their veggie sandwich with guacamole was nice, but I really liked the veggie cheesesteak that they introduced this summer. I hope they'll keep it on the menu.
TacoDeli
I've written about their veggie torta before, but it still makes my mouth water, a delicious combination of black beans, grilled vegetables, and jalapeno spread. I'd spice mine up with some of their very hot salsa dona for a real treat.
Mangia Pizza
I love the deep-dish spinach pizza with wheat crust and mushrooms. Fortunately for me, it was available every day as a lunch special, served with a nice salad. It's not exactly good for you, but it really feels good as it's being eaten.
Hao Hao
Back in the mid-90s when I worked in Oak Hill, I'd make the drive once a week down William Cannon to go to this Vietnamese restaurant, usually getting the tofu vermicelli or the tofu soup. Even after moving north, I kept my dentist appointments at their south office so I'd have an excuse to go back here. In the last few years, they added more veggie items, including a wonderful tofu and asparagus dish that's enough for two people. When I come back to visit Austin, I'll definitely be stopping by.
Note: I've got my new veggie blog up and going now at Veg Out! Brooklyn. If you want to hear about great places to eat in the biggest borough of New York City, feel free to start reading that one too.
I've made it up to Brooklyn now, so I'm writing these last couple of entries from a place that's definitely not Austin, although, one could mistake Park Slope (my new neighborhood) for the west end of Austin's Sixth Street. There are lots of little restaurants along side shops, grocery stores, and all sorts of services that urban people need. I'm really enjoying it.
However, the purpose of this entry is to provide praise on a southwestern breakfast staple, the plate of migas. For the uninitiated, migas are a kind of scrambled egg usually cooked with stale tortillas, onions, tomatoes, peppers, and cheese. Some versions also include mushrooms, pico de gallo, and other Tex-Mex condiments. Here's a list of my favorites:
Trudy's
I like the Trudy's version for two reasons. First, their cheese has a bit of velveeta-like consistency that blends in really well with the eggs and makes every bite tasty. Second, they've got great sides, with their spicy refried black beans and their thin and crispy hash browns. The salsa is also quite tasty. The full-size version will keep you full for hours, but on weekdays, the location by UT offers a smaller portion that's more reasonable.
Austin Diner
Back in the mid-90's, my fiancee worked here when it was called Laura's Bluebonnet Kitchen. That's where she learned to make migas, and I find their take on them to be very satisfying. Liberally apply their table salsa to spice it up, and get it with their whole black beans and home fries.
Curra's
Worth noting for their veggie chorizo and mushroom options. You'll get a lot of food, and if you're really lucky, you'll be able to enjoy this with their wonderful red corn tortillas that have a nice, stone-ground corn taste. It's too bad that the only Curra's left is the one down on Oltorf. The far north location closed recently and the Burnet road location is now the new Frisco Shop.
Kerbey Lane
I mention this Austin staple for the benefit of our vegan readers, as they offer a vegan version made with tofu scramble. You get corn tortillas and lose the cheese in this version, but it's still very satisfying, especially with Kerbey's great sides.
Note: I had planned on also including the veggie chorizo migas from Las Manitas, but while writing the article, I learned that they've now closed for good as of the end of August. I ended up going there on one of my last weekends in Austin, so I'm glad I got to say goodbye.
