Holding A Candle To Vegan Dining In New York

I am in Austin, Texas, right now, attempting to catch up on posts that have been stacking up as I flit from country to country, State to State.  Right now, I am happily ticking off another New York dining experience I wanted to share with you.  I'd heard a lot about Candle Cafe, from friends and fellow bloggers, so I was eager to give it a try.   I went with a friend to celebrate his birthday.  He is an NYC native so he had visited many times.  This was great as we managed to get a table without pre-booking, and also he had overtime eaten his way around the menu so was a competent advisor.  

The menu is entirely vegan, mostly local, seasonal, organic and the cafe is proudly environmentally aware.  All elements usually precursors to a splendid dining experience.  I was well catered for as the menu had a good selection of gluten free dishes to choose from.  

The restaurant is kind of upscale but not grand.  The lighting and seating make for a relaxing, intimate atmosphere.  The staff were super attentive.  The Candle story began in the summer of 1984, when Bart Potenza purchased Sunny’s, a landmark health food store and juice bar located on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. In honour of the previous owners’ nightly ritual of lighting candles to bless their establishment, Bart renamed it the Healthy Candle and made it his own.  Candle Cafe's story is an interesting one. You can read more here.

This is what we ate.

AVOCADO-QUINOA SALAD 
Black beans, jicama, cucumber, radish, pumpkin seeds, field greens, chipotle dressing 

LIVE LASAGNA 
Tomatoes, zucchini, wild mushrooms, cashew cheese, pumpkin seed pesto, balsamic-black pepper reduction 

INDIAN CURRY VEGETABLE CAKE 
Sautéed greens, caramelized onions, red pepper-coconut curry sauce, lemon-date chutney, almonds.

MEXICAN CHOCOLATE CAKE 
Chocolate sauce, chipotle candied walnuts, vanilla coconut ice cream (sadly..this was my friend's dessert and I couldn't even reach over with my fork to sample as it was not gluten free).  I could tell by the look on his face just how good it was! I nearly choked on my saliva!

All I tasted was very good and lovingly plated.  The Indian dish and the artichoke appetiser were my personal favourites. My friend spent much time raving about the raw lasagne.

Candle Cafe West is one of three Candle eateries in NYC.  Candle 79 is located on 79th Street in between Lexington & 3rd.   I had visited Candle 79 the week before and I think, to be honest, my expectations were a little high.  The little place had a really nice welcoming atmosphere and was packed with diners at lunch time when I visited.  I arrived after my first walk through Central Park. I had to pinch myself that I was there..in New York (at last!) visiting the most famous and visited urban park in the USA. I headed to the park for a bit of a respite from the craziness of the city.  I had to laugh at the irony.  The sky had a helicopter zig zagging across the park and about 2 million people and 34,000 runners where in and around the park for the New York Marathon (failed to research that little fact of the day!)  It was good fun though, so I couldn't mind!

With such a wonderful variety of dishes on offer, I went with the proffered tempeh entree as suggested by my waitress.  It was nice but not outstanding.  The menu listed their 'famous' split pea soup.  I sampled it and honestly, I was not wowed.  It was because of this experience that I was so pleased to eat at Candle again and come away with fonder memories.  Of course, unless your debut dining experience at a restaurant is majorly whacked it is always good to go back another time and try something different from the menu.  Sometimes you can be pleasantly surprised.

such fun!

a finisher strolling back through the park.