It’s a Friday or Saturday night in Las Vegas. It’s just past two in the morning and the group is hungry…this is a more likely scenario than one might believe. Pizza…yes, pizza would be great. But where are we going to find a pizza…let alone a vegan pizza…at this time of the morning. Well…at this point you might need to head Downtown…if you aren’t already there…and get to Radio City Pizza on E. Fremont St. If there is a hotspot now in Las Vegas, it might be the E. Fremont District Downtown.
I had visited Radio City Pizza when they were located in Tivoli Village. They have since closed that location and are focusing their attention on their new Downtown location. Radio City Pizza makes it really easy for you to order a vegan pizza. You have your choice of a regular or gluten-free crust and then you can pick your toppings and add their dairy-free mozzarella cheese. I decided to try the gluten-free crust which is thinner and made in a gluten-free facility. At 14” it is also a little smaller than the regular 18” pie. I added mushrooms, artichoke hearts, and roasted garlic along with the vegan mozzarella.
The gluten free crust is thin and has a good crunch to it. RCP uses a good, rich sauce on their pizzas and I really enjoyed the mushroom, artichoke, and garlic combo. The vegan mozzarella was scattered in little chunks that melted smoothly and nicely around the pizza. It was not two in the morning when I enjoyed it…more like two in the afternoon…but it is good to know that a vegan pizza would be available till midnight at Radio City Pizza five nights a week and up till 4:00 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Late night/early morning hunger cravings…solved.
Radio City Pizza
508 E. Fremont St.
Las Vegas, NV. 89101
(702)982-5055
www.radiocitypizza.com
Hours: Sun-Thurs 11:30 a.m.-12:00 a.m.
Fri-Sat 11:30 a.m.- 4:00 a.m.
This was a week to visit some of the my favorite places that I have visited during my vegan eating adventure here in Las Vegas. First, it was Pura Vida earlier in the week, and now, Panevino for lunch on a beautiful spring day. It is always good to see my friend, Vincenzo Granata, a vegan who also happens to be the general manager of Panevino. I can easily say that Vincenzo is one of the best people that I have ever met…not just in my travels about here in Las Vegas…just one of the best ever. He is easily one of the best and most dynamic restaurant personalities here in a town that is full of them.
I was very eager to come in and try something off of the newly-expanded vegan menu at Panevino. For those of you that are uninitiated with all that Panevino is, it is a breathtakingly beautiful restaurant just a couple of blocks east of The Strip on Sunset. It has an amazing view of sunsets over the western mountains, the airport, and The Strip. It is a very classy place to eat without all of the pretense. They take very good care of you, whether you are at the bar, in the lounge, or in the dining room. I was able to get a great seat by the window and I opened the menu to find the first page entirely covered with vegan menu options. They have had a couple of terrific vegan options in The Homemade Vegetable Burger and the Spinach Tortelloni. Now they have a full vegan appetizer section with things like Eggplant & Artichoke Bruschettone, Artichokes & Zucchini, Hummus Rolls, and a Caesar Salad.
New vegan entrees include Ricotta & Spinach Gnocchi, Whole Wheat Linguine “Bolognese,” and Brown Rice Mushroom & Pesto Risotto. After enjoying some fresh vegan bread, I decided to try the Ricotta & Spinach Gnocchi. Vegan ricotta and spinach formed into little two to three bites sections and covered with sage. The gnocchi itself does not have any oil in it but they do drizzle some over the top of them. These were so fun to eat and absolutely delicious. There are a couple of vegan desserts offered, The Chocolate Pudding and a Chocolate Gelato & Almond Milk. The pudding sounded really good and it truly exceeded my already high expectations. This is a Dr. McDougall recipe and is 90% organic and so much lower in fat and calories but it sure didn’t taste any less of anything. Made up of cocoa, coconut sugar, corn starch, and soy milk it was rich and creamy, but still amazingly light and surrounded by pieces of fresh and juicy strawberries. The pudding was a perfect compliment to the gnocchi.
Panevino has certainly taken it to another level with their newly-expanded vegan menu section. You open the menu and it is right there. As one of the best restaurants in Las Vegas, they are certainly making a statement. Plant-based eating is not a trend and is only going to grow in its scope, so let’s embrace it and do this the best that we possibly can. Well Panevino, you have done just that and I hope that other restaurants here in Las Vegas take notice. I will be back very soon to try some more of the wonderful that Panevino has to offer. I would not be surprised to see some of you there…
Panevino
246 Via Antionio Ave.
Las Vegas, NV. 89119
(702)222-2400
www.panevinolasvegas.com
Hours: Lunch Mon-Fri 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Dinner Mon-Sat 5:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
There is no other restaurant that I have eaten at and blogged about than Pura Vida, the love creation of the very talented Chef Mayra. When I was in the midst of my 365 day blog project it seems like I was in there at least once a week trying something new. It has been a while since I have been in because my schedule and the work that I have been doing to try and include as many other restaurants that I could into my e-book before it launched last week. Believe me, though, I have kept track of the many friends that have visited there regularly and I have lived vicariously through so many of the out of town visitors who have visited there and shared their experiences with me. Enough of that…it was time for me to get some of that pure life up close and personal.
For those of you who may be reading this for the first time, Pura Vida is 100% vegan restaurant that has a palate full of flavors, textures, and beautiful presentations that will be sure to give a new and lasting impression to anyone who was wanting to know what could be done in a plant-based cuisine. In all my visits there, I still don’t think I have had the same thing twice, though there have been times I wanted to. Once again, I went for something new, The Frank. This is another cruelty-free club sandwich that is eggless, delicious, and soy-based. The tofu crumbles are mixed with pickles, vegan mayo, celery, green onions, chef’s special spices, great flavor, served on thick sourdough bread. There is also spinach on the inside with tomatoes and cucumbers and all kinds of other greens available to add on if you like.
Now, back in the day when I was eating animal products I never really indulged in too many egg sandwiches. But I had enough to know of the texture and what could be done with them and I know I never tasted anything this good. This was a club sandwich on the lighter side but it was still very filling. It came with a wonderful little fruit salad and refreshing apple/tangerine-infused water. What a delightful little meal. It was very satisfying to enjoy and to see some of my old friends and watch others enjoy the cruelty-free art of food that was on their plates in front of them. Smiles all around and smiles to go…it was good to be home.
Pura Vida Bakery & Bystro
1236 Western Ave.
Las Vegas, NV. 89102
(702)722-0108
www.puravidavegas.com
Hours: Mon-Wed, Fri 7:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
Sat-Sun 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
It was the night before my e-book launch, Eating Vegan in Vegas: If It Can Happen Here, It Can Happen Anywhere. It was a beautiful spring night and it looked as though I had completed my work for the night. I had to run an errand downtown for a friend so I decided that I would grab a bite to eat while I was down there and I determined that I would have a little pre-launch party by myself. Yes, I have the ability to have a party by myself…but I never let things get too crazy. Smiles.
I walked through the Fremont Street Experience because I like the energy and music that it provides. People watching? Oh my yes. I had posted a little something about the vegan pizza at Pop-up Pizza and the vegan soft-serve ice cream and got so many comments from people about it that it had planted a seed in me that the next time I was Downtown I would stop in and try that combo. So I headed to The Plaza Hotel and Pop-up Pizza. A superb vegan pizza option, The Soho, and I love that I can get it by the slice. A great crust and sauce with Daiya cheese, spinach, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers and eggplant all melted together to form the right combo of crunch and chewiness.
What I had not tried yet was the vegan soft serve that you can get in either vanilla, chocolate, or a combo swirl. I am an equal-opportunity eater so I decided to try the combo of both. Let me tell you, the combo of the pizza followed up with this delicious soft-serve is fabulous. Some of the best I have ever tried. It is a great combo meal for seven and a half dollars. While I was eating I happened to grab a City Life weekly paper from the rack and was just browsing through it. I turned a page and the party became a little surreal for a moment. There was a picture of the cover of the e-book and City Life had been gracious enough to give it a little shout out and talk about the Launch Party that was to happen the next night. I had no idea that this was going to be there. I just looked at that and knew that this little moment in time was supposed to happen just as it had unfolded. Just for me to enjoy…and I must say that I enjoyed the moment magnificently.
Pop Up Pizza (inside The Plaza Hotel)
1 S. Main St.
Las Vegas, NV. 89101
(702)366-0049
www.popuppizzalv.com
Hours: 11:00 a.m.-2:00 a.m. Daily
Dear Mr. Wynn…I was scheduled to meet some people for an early morning business meeting and they wanted to meet at The Wynn. It is no wonder why. So I immediately thought of The Terrace Pointe Cafe or Tableau. You know that I have given Terrace Pointe plenty of love, but I thought that it might be nice to go back to Tableau, though I had just been there a couple of weeks back. I must have had Blueberry Pancakes on my mind. As I was waiting for them enjoying some delicious coffee I discovered that due to their schedule coming in from out of town we were going to have to move our meeting until later in the day. What was I going to do…I was certainly in the breakfast mood by that point. And breakfast is definitely what I had. It was lovely. Also, I want to thank you for the part that The Wynn and The Encore played in my upcoming e-book that is going to be released this coming Thursday. It is called Eating Vegan in Vegas: If It Can Happen Here, It Can Happen Anywhere. I hope that someone will get a copy to you…I think you will enjoy it. Thanks again for breakfast…smiles.>
I definitely had Blueberry Pancakes on my mind. I had recently been into Tableau and had the vegan Benedict but I also really wanted the Blueberry Pancakes off of the vegan menu as well. So I had my breakfast. Picture this: A stack of warm and fluffy blueberry pancakes bursting with fresh blueberries, covered with vegan butter and powdered sugar, a side of Gardein sausage, all covered with a delicious, warm maple syrup. Every bite was remarkable and I was just so thankful for any reason that had brought me down there that morning. Comfort food…
We were able to have a very productive meeting later in the day and all was good. I was reflecting throughout the day on how wonderful the breakfast was and how good it is to know that no animal products were needed or used in the process. This conscious lifestyle of eating and living as a vegan is not a matter of what we deny ourselves, because at this point the thought of eating any kind of animal product would bring no pleasure, only disgust. This is really a celebration of all that we can and are able to eat. And it is so much more than anyone probably could have first imagined. Tableau just served another reminder that life is good…life is very good indeed.
Tableau (Inside The Wynn)
3131 Las Vegas Blvd. South
Las Vegas, NV. 89109
(702)770-7000
www.wynnlasvegas.com
Hours: Breakfast 7:00 a.m.-11:30 a.m. Daily
Lunch 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Daily
