Veganization: Tempeh Reuben at Rosetta's Kitchen, Asheville

As I stated earlier, when B. and I visited Asheville last month, I had my sights set on the Laughing Seed reuben. My online poking-around led me to learn about Rosetta's Kitchen, and though they certainly looked like a candidate for tempeh reuben offerings, I was unable to find a menu online (or even confirmation they were still open), so I assumed we wouldn't be paying them a visit. However, in our wanderings around town we actually passed them (the back of the restaurant, in fact) and I caught sight of the menu above.

It sounded too good to pass up and I was in a quandary. I was already planning to try Laughing Seed for dinner, and we weren't planning to return to Asheville the next day. Then B. had the brilliant notion that we could split the sandwich at Rosetta's Kitchen and then head to Laughing Seed afterwards. So we walked around the block, found Rosetta's entrance and clambered up the stairs full of anticipation. We noted on our way up that they are open quite late, so seems like a great spot post show. They also have some good beers on tap, for a pretty reasonable price ($3.75 a pint).

Rosetta's has a very nice atmosphere, so much so that for the first time on this blog, I felt compelled to take a picture of the interior of the eating establishment. It seems like it would be great in the summer, as the main eating area is a sort of balcony, open to the elements.

The place reminded me sort of the Red and Black in Portland, but I hate to say it, kinda better. Now that I think about it, it also reminded me of the Naam in Vancouver, BC. But cheaper and better. I'm not sure what it is, but Portland doesn't seem to have nailed the comfy hippie eatery quite yet--places like Eugene seem to do it better, and Asheville reminded us of Eugene a great deal.



When I told the cashier we wanted to veganize the reuben, he suggested avocado or 'queso,' a house vegan nacho cheese. Since I like to sub vegan cheese when available, I went for the queso, though I had fears it might overwhelm the walnut sauce that was probably fairly rich already. Avocado would also be good on this sandwich, but no regrets. This sandwich was damn good, probably one of the best we've had. The queso was plentiful, and made a nice dip for the corn chips on the side. B. wanted me to note that the corn chips were so good, there's no need to pay more for fries, though I would guess their fries are good, too -- I saw many patrons snacking on what appeared to be the sweet potato variety.



This reuben is not only extremely tasty, but wins points for originality also. That's rye foccacia there, which gave the sandwich a great, almost crispy texture, and the nature of the bread was that it could absorb juiciness without passing it along to your hands. The texture also benefited from the tempeh, which had a nice, chewy exterior also. I'm not sure how they prepared it, whether they grilled or baked it (the menu says marinated, I would guess maybe they baked it), but the outside was quite dark and the overall effect was meatiness. Biting into it was very nice, especially offset by the unctuous queso and good, consistent warm temperature.

As for the flavors, Rosetta's is another one of those joints that, like the Red and Black in Portland, boasts 'raw kraut.' What I've taken this to mean is that raw cabbage is allowed to pickle in its own juices, maybe for not very long, as opposed to employing vinegar or other fermentation aids. I think this results sometimes in a milder kraut. One of the few drawbacks of this sandwich is one we've experienced with others as well, that the kraut is sort of hidden away and doesn't contribute too much to the sandwich experience. Usually this would just be solved by more kraut. Rosetta's Kitchen was also selling house chow chow, a regional specialty that seems like a spicy version of sauerkraut. Not a traditional reuben condiment, but could make a nice, more flavorful substitution. Speaking of non-traditional flavors, the queso was impressive -- 'noochy' but not overpowering, with a nice consistency, and nicely spicy.

Over all, if you can't tell, we were extremely satisfied with our meal. The only drawback really, if there could be said to be any, was we were too full after splitting the sandwich to hit Laughing Seed (so we returned the next day, instead) and I didn't have room for any of Rosetta's fabulous looking vegan desserts.

Even though we weren't in Portland for this one, we think Rosetta's Kitchen deserves a 4 for a tasty, affordable, filling sandwich, and hands down the best service we had in Asheville during our stay.

Rosetta's Kitchen
111 Broadway, Asheville, NC



The natural light made for some better than normal pictures, also!

Asheville Vegan Reubens?

B. and I just got back from an excursion to Western North Carolina, more specifically Asheville and Black Mountain. The excuse I told everyone (aside from the fact I was on fall break) was that we were 'leafing' -- which is apparently what people do around here when the foliage starts changing, head to the mountains, because that's where it is most beautiful. But secretly, I was pumped to visit this hippie-hipster mountain town because I knew I'd find some vegan reuben action.

I didn't quite account for how much vegan reuben action I would find. Seriously, this place rivals Portland for restaurants with vegan options. Tempeh in particular reigns supreme -- it seemed like every restaurant or pub had some kind of tempeh (or sometimes less frequently, tofu) sandwich. This, in the land of pulled pork bbq, where just a few miles out of town, the waitstaff at a side of the road restaurant can't comprehend the concept of someone not eating both meat and dairy.

I had my sights set on the Laughing Seed Cafe from the get-go, as it seems to be the place in town to go for good vegetarian eats. But we got sidetracked by Rosetta's Kitchen. And I really could spend two weeks there solely writing reviews for this blog. For example, I walked by this restaurant on Broadway.



Who would have guessed, but they advertised a Smoked Tempeh Reuben. Then, at Jack of the Woods, the Irish pub below The Laughing Seed, B. pointed out that they, too, served a tempeh reuben. Then, upon returning to Chapel Hill, a friend who had lived in Asheville admitted that her favorite tempeh reuben in town was served at the Dripelator, a cafe that we had actually had coffee at our first morning in town, and hadn't even thought to look at the menu. I don't know what's going on here, but this place has tempeh fever. You'd almost think you were in Eugene, not the American South.

I have to catch up with school work, but expect a couple Asheville Vegan Reuben reviews in the near future.

More on vegan dining - Candle 79

I couldn't resist posting a link to this audio/video 'interactive' from the New York Times which is essentially a review of Candle 79, another famous vegan foodie destination, this one in NYC. Candle 79 is an off-shoot of Candle Cafe--B. and I made the Candle Cafe reuben at home and it is hands-down our favorite recipe so far. The interactive is annoyingly snarky at times -- "Will I have to drink brown-rice tea?"-- but over all presents the revelation, that yes, vegan food can be gourmet and tasty! I'll forgive them for mispronouncing seitan.

There's also a review to accompany the interactive, which actually mentions a vegan Reuben at another joint in NYC, Angelica Kitchen.

The Chicago Diner's Radical Reuben

Recently the lovely Melisser of The Urban Housewife paid a trip to Chicago, another great city for vegans. I'm a bit jealous, because she got to try out the Radical Reuben at the Chicago Diner, an establishment that is practically historical in the fame of its vegan menu. Of course she loved the sandwich (it sounds like her entire trip was pretty awesome). When she posted, she mentioned trying to recreate it. I don't want to spoil any of her attempts, and I guess I've been holding this close to my chest because I had thought maybe one day B. and I would test the recipe and post about it, but the Vegetarian Times actually published The Chicago Diner's reuben recipe as part of a feature on the best vegetarian dishes in America. (Note Portland's own Vita Cafe was recognized for their vegan mac and cheese).

The reuben recipe is very unique, and I think brilliant, in that it uses some very intuitive ingredients to simulate the meaty, brininess of a traditional reuben. I haven't had the sandwich, but I imagine it's success stems from these innovations which include marinating the seitan overnight in pickling spices (duh, right?) and including beet juice for some color.

You can find the recipe here; scroll down to the very bottom for the reuben recipe. If anyone actually tries it out, be sure to let me know!

More on Veganopolis

The Portland Mercury website has an interesting article on the restaurant's final hours, full of interesting tidbits like this -- in their 3+ years of operation, they served 7,790 reubens! I'm sorry I never sampled their blue Sheese salad or had more chances to partake of the brunch bar. I will say that though Portland has so far lost a vegan pirate-themed restaurant, a vegan strip club (well, a later incarnation of the same place actually), and now a vegan cafeteria, I trust our restaurant scene will continue to see new permutations of the 100% vegan dining establishment. I'm holding out for vegan Korean (seriously, aside from maybe a vegan Southern food restaurant, what else are we lacking?).

Veganopolis closes!?!

Sorry to report, Portland is slightly less of a vegan mecca than it once was. The owners of Veganopolis have closed up shop and are moving back to Chicago. They seem to cite issues with crime at their downtown location and weird politics as their reasons for leaving. I don't really know enough about the owners themselves or the situation to comment on it (other than yeah, that part of downtown does seem to have more than its share of methheads), but I will say their food will certainly be missed. On the upside, they seem to have a plan to post recipes on their website, and to eventually release a cookbook, so maybe someday you'll be able to make their trueben at home.

Vegan Reubens are not dead!

In fact, they are still taking the nation by storm!

Though I have yet to encounter a vegan reuben here in the Triangle region of North Carolina, handy Google alerts have been keeping me appraised of vegan reuben-related activity in other parts of the country.

So far, I've learned of a vegetarian, mushroom and spinach reuben that could be easily veganized. The recipe comes from the Penny Cluse Cafe in Vermont, via the Food Network (which I've been watching way too much of lately, by the way --- my new roommate insisted on cable, and I seem to alternate between news, Comedy Central, and the Food Network, when I have a free moment from studying, that is).

In the blog world, Nikki of My New Vegetarian life posted last month about "Fauxstrami Reubens," made with Smart Bacon and certainly worthy of Paula Deen. Literally. She actually sautes the fake bacon in olive oil and Smart Balance (margarine) and seasons it with a spice mix invented by the lady herself. It sounds delectable and decadent.

I've been seeing a lot of seitan reuben recipes lately (Did I ever tell you about Vegan Dad's?), which seems like a natural progression from tempeh, especially with all the super-easy steamed seitan variations rocking the blogs. While I wait for someone to come up with a jack-fruit corned beef recipe, check out this seitan reuben from Uabashedly Vegan. That's certainly a mouthwatering photo, I'll say.

Moving on to the restaurant scene, there's been a bit of buzz surrounding a new joint in Los Angeles, that serves many a delicious-sounding vegan dish, and seems to specialize in diner-style, vegan comfort food -- with a reuben on the menu, of course. Keeping with the theme of Los Angeles and restaurant reviews, an L.A. vegan gives her perspective on the vegan Reuben at Portland's Veganopolis (which we reviewed on this blog as well). Check it out. Her photos are definitely better than mine.