TRUEBEN: Homegrown Smoker Food Cart

The Third Annual Try Vegan Week PDX is coming up in two weeks! What better way to observe it than engaging with the varied, vegan-friendly and much-lauded Portland food cart scene? Consider it a challenge--can you not only try vegan for a week, but try a week's worth of novel food cart creations?

Homegrown Smoker would be the ideal place to start. This cart is a dream come true for the vega-loca-cartavore; most everything seems to be from scratch, including the home-smoked fake meats, the servings are ample and well-priced, and not to mention bursting with flavor and deliciousness. I had almost given up on hounding out another vegan reuben in Portland to review, but on a brief visit early this summer, a post about a reuben special at HGS caught my eye. (Twitter is good for something). HGS serves quite a variety of Southern BBQ and comfort-food type dishes, and I'd been interested in visiting for awhile. Needless to say, this announcement trumped any reluctance I had to journey over to the PSU-region of Southwest Portland.



I could hardly wait to dig in to this unique take on my favorite sandwich, served to me by the owner's own sons. It hits all the right notes---messy, juicy, good temperature and ingredient balance (especially impressive considering it was constructed in a cart), and at 7 dollars, a good deal. 7 bucks is especially a good deal when you take into account the big side (and there's a lot of choices here, no 'salad or fries' but a variety of Southern-styled goodies). By comparison, it's more food than Vita Cafe, at a few dollars less. The bread was good, and we definitely enjoyed the fact that pickles and seared, grilled mixed peppers were snuggled up to the seitan pastrami. My only complaint would be that the meat flavor was a little hidden. The Daiya cheese was creamy and welcome, but I think the HGS-meister uses a Cheddar-like flavor as opposed to the Mozzarella-like flavor--maybe if the milder light cheese was used the smoky meat flavor would come through more.

We give this a 4.5, hats off again to the price, cart-ness, and the home-made smoked gluten pastrami. And let us not forget that this is an all-vegan establishment! I hesitate to rate this the best in PDX, but taking into account the price, novelty and DIY awesomeness, it's definitely tough. I'm a little on the fence--if the flavor was kicked up a bit, the meat made a little bolder, I think I could easily tip over into rating this the best vegan reuben in Portland.



Homegrown Smoker
SW 4th and College

Vita Cafe, Round 2

A few things seem to have changed at Vita Cafe since our first visit, right at the start of this blog. The restaurant relocated, just across the street, to a slightly more intimate but relatively similar building. The Reuben (available with vegan cheese or regular Swiss, but always with vegan protein and vegan dressing) is now available with house faux turkey, as well as with tempeh. I didn't recall the faux turkey being an option before, and was surprised to note it when perusing the Vita Cafe's menu recently. I felt compelled to return to Vita and review this iteration, especially because we found the tempeh version to be somewhat underwhelming, especially in contrast to the sandwiches we would go on to try for the blog.

The Vita reuben still comes on grilled marble rye, with kraut, vegan Thousand Islands and a vegan cheese that it neither bad nor particularly memorable. It doesn't melt much---clearly Vita has abstained from making the Daiya switch so many Portland restaurants have latched on to. I feel the Vita automatically loses points for having a fairly expensive sandwich (7.50 before veganization, a dollar extra for vegan cheese), that comes with no sides. With the Reuben, they do include some pickle slices nestled next to the sandwich, which other sandwiches there, such as the BLT, do not enjoy.

Though my memory of the tempeh reuben sampled at the Vita Cafe years ago was hazy, the version with faux turkey (basically a mild seitan that doesn't particularly resemble turkey but I guess resembles it just as well as any other sliced meat), was better. Instead of a bland hunk of tempeh you had a somewhat greasy, salty, chewy seitan layer pressed between the kraut, cheese and dressing. Again, the bread fell apart a little, which isn't entirely bad (but again caused B. to comment that he doesn't recommend a marble rye for a reuben). Though I enjoyed the sauce and cheese flavor combo, I would have recommended that this sandwich be a bit meatier (that is, add more seitan!)---both to balance the sandwich and make the price a little more worthwhile.

This version of the Vita Cafe reuben gets a 3.5, compared to the 3 we awarded the tempeh version.

Adventures in Milwaukee

To celebrate finishing graduate school, I prolonged my journey back to the West Coast with some stops in Illinois and Wisconsin, to visit friends and family. Milwaukee was a pleasant town with a surprising number of intriguing vegan options, including at least three vegan reubens. However, we found that--perhaps in order to deal with the brunch crush familiar to many Stumptowners--various places modified or limited their menus on Saturday afternoon, making the delicious sandwich seem at first unattainable. With my good friend and native A. as back-up, we made a few rounds before finally achieving success in the evening.

With a vegan reuben not really described on the menu (denoted only by a * next to their traditional reuben advertising it could be made vegan for a $1 extra), but lauded by many on Yelp, Comet Cafe seemed to me to be the first choice. Though the menu wasn't very specific, it gave me good reason to believe that the reuben was made with Field Roast, which, while I'd tried this combination before in Seattle, made it more interesting to me than the typical tempeh reuben common about town. Unfortunately, at brunch-o-clock, Comet was our first fail. After waiting half an hour for a table, we were told that they don't serve the Reuben before 3 pm on weekends.

We had just been wandering around Riverwest, a sort of up-and-coming hipster neighborhood, and had stopped in at the Riverwest Co-op to investigate and drool over the number of tasty sounding vegan options on their small cafe and deli menu. After deciding to move on from Comet, we returned there, since we recalled a tempeh TRUEBEN listed under lunch. However, what we didn't recall with such clarity was that this place, too, only served breakfast until much later in the afternoon. With an extremely small kitchen, the cooks were firm on this. Foiled again, we settled for vegan biscuits and gravy and a take on bi-bim-bop, incorporating tofu, that was actually quite satisfying.

Somewhat disappointed but not entirely deterred, we resolved that we could get a tempeh vegan reuben at Beans and Barley, a frequently recommended, veg-friendly spot also part of a market, which was already under consideration for dinner that evening. After a local brewery tour (hey, this is a Portland-based blog after all) and various shenanigans, we showed up at Beans and Barley that evening, a little toasted. Again, there was a lengthy wait---which gave me time to scrutinize the menu. One reason Comet had been first on my list for a reuben despite the numerous folks who pointed me towards Beans and Barley was that the menu at Comet made clear that veganization was straightforward and easy. Clearly vegan-friendly, I anticipated no hurdles with this place, but asked the hostess anyway, since the tempeh reuben listed on the menu clearly included real Swiss cheese. Without batting an eye, and extremely cordial, she assured me that veganizing it would be easy -- just substitute the rye bread for white.

What?!

That stopped me in my tracks. Dear readers, you probably know that rye bread is typically vegan. You probably also share my feeling that a reuben is not a reuben if it is not on rye bread. In fact to reprise the definition of a vegan reuben, my standards only include: a vegan protein, sauerkraut, rye bread and a vegan sauce of some sort. I've even been known to accept mustard when vegan Russian or Thousand Islands is not available. But white bread? This could not stand.

Fortunately, A. is very patient and flexible (in case you are wondering, my usual dining companion, B., was busy driving all of our stuff back across the country), and we high-tailed it back to Comet again, full of anticipation.

The place was still crowded, but we avoided a wait and snagged seats at the perfectly comfortable but admittedly dim bar, where we continued to get inebriated and ordered the vegan reuben as well as the vegan gyro.

Man, that is a lot of Field Roast and I have to respect it. The bread was a light caraway rye and probably grilled coated in margarine, as it was quite crunchy and salty. Though B. was not present, he would have appreciated the presence of a pickle spear. The heap of fries was very generous. I found the sauerkraut to be a little sparse, but perhaps that was in contrast to the huge slabs of Field Roast. Despite the excessive grease and salt (or perhaps because?), it was pretty tasty. Admittedly, given the lack of light and the speed at which I wolfed it down, I didn’t notice too much about the sauce (or whether or not there was vegan cheese, which I doubt). A. however, recalls the sauce being “really good” (he also agreed there was possibly too much Field Roast, though it paired well with the rye). All in all, I was quite satisfied, and not to mention pleased that our Milwaukee vegan reuben quest had ultimately been successful. The gyro wasn't bad either, also generously proportioned, though with not quite as high a ratio of the chewy seitan to other ingredients.



Thanks to A. for the phone shot, as my camera was not coming through.

Comet Cafe
1947 N. Farwell, Milwaukee
Veganized reuben (Field Roast with kraut and Reuben sauce on a light caraway rye, fries included). $9.50.

Corned Seitan Reuben

I modified this recipe:

1/2 cup pinto beans, mashed well
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp rice vinegar (didn't have any apple cider vinegar)
1 cup water combined with 2 teaspoons miso to create broth
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp liquid smoke
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp caraway seeds
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp molasses (optional)
1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1 1/4 cups vital wheat gluten

Mix the wet ingredients and dry ingredients in separate bowls, then add the wet to the dry, mixing well with your hands.

I used my pressure cooker to cook the seitan. The cooker I purchased in India has a metal insert, essentially two small stacking pans that fit inside the cooker, used to cook dal and rice at the same time. I thought the steel cylinder would be a good stand-in for the foil wrapping called for in the original recipe.



I kneaded the seitan dough then shaped it into a rough ball and plopped it into the cooking container (the lower of the two sections). I added a bay leaf to the steaming water. Instead of steaming for 50 minutes as the original recipe calls for, I pressure cooked it for about 45 minutes.



The unusual, um, texture you see there is the fact that my home-cooked, fork-mashed beans were not quite as well mashed as they could have been.

After cooking the seitan had expanded some, but not a ton, but was nice and firm so I pulled it out and let it sit.

We made the standard dressing of 2 parts vegan mayo, 1 part ketchup (or if like us, you don't use ketchup often enough to have it in the house, use tomato sauce), 1 part mustard, 1 part capers or minced pickle and 1 part minced onion.

B. baked this rye bread from a recipe I found online -- we just happened to have all the ingredients. Pretty good for a first attempt at baking bread (though he's become an expert bagel-baker).



After letting the seitan sit for about 20 minutes, we toasted the bread (the loaves were small, per the recipe, so a sandwich was about the size of a half sandwich), warmed up the kraut on the stove, and assembled!



Over all, I thought the recipe was pretty solid, though not too much different from other steamed seitan recipes I've tried. I like that I now have a method of cooking seitan that doesn't involve using tin foil, and look forward to experimenting to see if I can get a denser, firmer 'meat' by cooking longer. B. thought the cloves were a bit strong, so I might leave those out in the future. I've made steamed seitan before, and can't believe this is the first time I've offered a recipe. It's no Chicago Diner, but not bad, and incredibly easy. We recommend the bread, too!

TRUEBEN: Tempeh Reuben on Rye at The Green Sage (Asheville, NC)

Sorry for the bad photo--the Green Sage had a nice atmosphere but was admittedly a bit dimly lit.

Here, however, is a beautiful photo that I found on Flickr.

Though ultimately the tempeh reuben at Green Sage was nothing revelatory, after various veganization fails, I was grateful to finally sit down to this hearty and comforting, though familiar, vegan reuben.

Though the Green Sage is clearly very vegan friendly (as well as environmentally friendly, like most places in Asheville, with composting and bike delivery), you do need to request the reuben vegan. (I'm labeling it a trueben nonetheless because the vegan option is clearly indicated on the menu and easy to order). There are four side options, all vegan: regular fries, sweet potato fries, soup (they have a vegan vegetable lentil) and salad. We went for the salad, which you can tell from the picture, was pretty generous.

Though the website claims they are open late, and that the kitchen is open til close, I would call if coming for dinner. Our first attempt to go failed because I called ahead and the staff informed me the kitchen was closing shortly, well before 9 pm.

As for the sandwich, it includes tempeh, sauerkraut, russian dressing and a modest amount of avocado on a light caraway rye. B. thought the tempeh had a slightly mushroomy flavor. I definitely detected a lot of soy sauce in the marinade. Over all the sandwich was pretty well-balanced. The tempeh didn't overwhelm, but I might have liked a little more kraut.

Over all this is a solid sandwich, and if in Portland, we'd probably give it a 3.5. There are more exciting options in Asheville, to be sure, but I appreciated the easy veganization (including a clearly marked menu) and hearty portions at Green Sage. At the price (8 bucks) it seemed like a good deal, and avocado was subbed for cheese without any fuss. Also a nice local beer, Pisgah Pale, is to be had on tap. The Green Sage seems like a good spot for various dietary inclinations--the vegan breakfast menu looks great and they also offer omni as well as gluten free options. In the heart of downtown Asheville, it's a convenient spot for visitors, especially those of us who like to eat healthy, local and organic, to grab a bite.

The Green Sage
5 Broadway Street
Asheville, NC

A Reuben Round-Up for the New Year

Yes, it's hard to believe, but the reuben news just keeps coming. I hope to bring you more reviews and recipes soon, but I'll take advantage of this holiday break from school to let you know what's been going on in the world (wide web) of vegan reubens. As always, in no particular order.

I've had the vegan philly cheesesteak at the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia, but apparently this lively open-air gastro-paradise is also a good source for vegan reuben ingredients. This blog post from My Life in Sandwiches focuses on bbq, but holds some good ideas for reuben-loving yinzers.

Maybe not as exciting as the reuben wars in L.A., but diner rivalry is alive and well in New Haven, and healthy vegan food -- including a tempeh reuben -- plays a role. "Georgie’s is old school and new school at the same time, offering vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free menu options alongside traditional takes on omelets, hamburgers and fries." Here's a little more on Georgie's from a local vegan chef.

From CT to Hawaii, and this review of a new macrobiotic restaurant called Hale, tempeh reubens are garnering praise. Even in Minneapolis. And Ohio. And if you find yourself in Tampa, here's a good bet. Whereas, as well as know by now, seitan is the protein of choice in Chicago.

This should come as no surprise, but did you know there's a recipe for Tempeh Reubens in The Complete Idiot's Guide to Vegan Cooking? But if you aren't feeling like a complete idiot, luckily Julie Hasson, that vegan internet cooking show maven, has some ideas for you as well. And for gluten-free vegans in Portland, this new bakery might be a good source for your sandwich bread.

And one last bit from the Pacific Northwest, Hillside Quickie, which B. and I visited long ago and which I noted at the time didn't have a reuben, but did have a tofustrami sandwich that sounded much like one, has reopened under the name Sage Cafe. And lo and behold, a reuben is now on the menu. Something to note if we make it up North again.



Just to make this post a little more interesting, here's a cashew cheese I invented a couple months ago -- my first real attempt! I imagine it will find its way into a reuben sooner or later and I'll share the recipe if and when that happens, but here's a hint: it's mostly raw cashew pieces and nooch.

TRUEBEN: Tempeh Reuben at Viva! Vegetarian Grill, Eugene, OR

It's fun to learn about a new vegan-friendly joint and be able to hop to reviewing it in a timely manner. I first learned about the Viva! Vegetarian Grill food cart just a few days ago, thanks to the warm reviews on Yelp, and with Corvallis as home-base, it was easy to convince B. that we should take the 45 minute drive into Eugene for a lunch-time review. I'd never really been to Eugene, and with 30-degree weather we didn't hang out long, but it was nice to get a glimpse of this college town which I really only heretofore knew of as the Asheville of the West Coast.

With no listed address, the cart was a little challenging to locate, but once we found the right intersection, the green sign emblazoned with a hot dog at the entrance to the parking lot led the way.



Despite the cold temperatures, the owner Dave seemed relatively busy, but took our order quickly and efficiently with just the right amount of conversation. The menu had a number of options, all vegan. The sandwiches were served up with a minimal amount of paper; we couldn't help polishing off the first order while waiting for the star of show.



Back at the car, with the juicy vegan cheese-steak as an appetizer, we dug into this trueben with gusto. B.'s first comments were compliments to the bread and the kraut, the latter of which he swore had an especially good flavor. He also appreciated the temperature and moisture of the kraut--cool, without too much liquid, but not too dry either. He also said it was the right amount, which might be a first. Most reubens seem too low on kraut in comparison to other aspects. He also enjoyed the flavor of the tempeh. We were both impressed at how well put-together the sandwich was, especially considering it came from a cart with limited amenities. The tempeh was marinated and grilled, which gave it a slightly crunchy exterior; the bread was warm and perfectly toasted. The dressing was great, too. It reminded me of the cashew cheese that had been wonderfully slathered on our cheese-steak and I suspect it was a similar base, with some tomatoey-ness added to make it into a Thousand Islands dressing. It was creamy and savory without the heavy unctuousness of veganaise.



B. loved the sandwich--well worth the drive, I gathered--and his only recommendation for additions would be more dressing and a pickle on the side. I agreed that more dressing wouldn't hurt. For me, this sandwich was quite good and presented a worthy rival to various reubens in Portland (for example, the Red and Black, which also uses tempeh and I think the same bread). The tempeh did seem a little dry, something which perhaps a bit more dressing would fix. Even with no side, $5.50 is a good deal in my book, and the service was friendly and lightning fast---definitely more than I can say for the Red and Black (or most vegan reuben-serving restaurants in Portland, for that matter).

We have to give Dave extra points not only for being a cart, but for being an all-vegan cart (definitely try the cheesesteak--the hot dogs seemed to be selling well also, and the tempeh satay presented a unique yet intuitive and tempting option). Ultimately, we give the Tempeh Reuben 4 points out of 5, and encourage you to check it out yourself. Though it has a long history serving veggie dogs at events, the cart itself has only been in place for about a month--let's keep it going! (Even better, get $1 off for biking, being a student, or showing up in the rain).



Viva! Vegetarian Grill
E 12th and Willamette Street
Eugene, OR
11 am - 4 pm, Monday-Friday
Tempeh reuben on Dave's Killer Bread with kraut and vegan Thousand Islands.
$5.50

Quick PDX Vegan Reuben News

I have a few more posts lined up, waiting for when I have time to fine-tune them, but I wanted to alert you all to that fact that, according to a photo text message from my former roommate, the Fuel Cafe in Portland recently served a Field Roast Reuben--only the second time I've heard of one being served in a restaurant, the first being that place in Seattle. However, it seems as though Grand Central has taken their tofuben (which I sadly never got to try my hand at veganizing) out of rotation as a winter seasonal special. All which makes me ask, what will be in store when I return to Portland for Christmas?

TRUEBEN: Vegan Reuben at the Remedy Diner (Raleigh, NC)

Veggie Reuben. Marinated tempeh grilled on buttered rye topped with avocado, sauerkraut, thousand island dressing, dill pickles, and melted swiss. 8.95 Make vegan for 2.50 extra.

They were out of vegan cheese, so I got it sans cheese, and paid 1.25 extra for vegan dressing. I didn't mind they were out of cheese---in fact, prior to ordering I was wondering why it cost so much to veganize, and was contemplating asking for no cheese if that was the only change. I found it surprising that they bother having a vegan and a non-vegan dressing, and that they charge so much for a vegan one. B. and I are not big fans of vegan cheese anyway, so if we were in charge of the menu, we'd eliminate non-vegan dressing (can you really tell the difference?) and the vegan cheese option.

Still, this is North Carolina, and it is very nice to have a restaurant with such extensive vegan options, and one which makes veganization so easy and worry-free, even if it comes with a high price tag. The Reuben was already one of the most expensive sandwiches on the menu; for example, the Vegan Chicken Salad was only 7.50 and about the same amount of food.

As for the sandwich itself, I was neither disappointed nor impressed. It was a familiar, flavorful sandwich. The dressing was mostly Veganaise, somewhat creamy, and the avocado, as always, was welcome. Though the Remedy Diner will add a pickle spear on the side upon request, no extra charge, the Reuben actually has sliced dill pickles on it, in addition to the kraut, which I liked. The tempeh was marinated. Though not overly flavorful, it was sliced into smaller pieces, which B. and I have come to prefer over the uniform slab. The bread was a light caraway rye, extremely thin and crispy, but still servicable. All in all, it reminded me of many sandwiches I've had in Portland, albeit with a heftier price tag.



The Remedy Diner is a restaurant I may return to, or would if I lived in Raleigh, if not for the sandwiches and make-your-own salads, then for the beer on tap and the vegan key lime and coconut cream pies. But I would be much more enticed if they revised their pricing structure. $1.25 for a single slice of vegan cheese, and another $1.25 for egg-free dressing, when sandwiches that appear to be mostly cheese (like the Cheese Foccacia sandwich) are only $1.25 extra to veganize, doesn't seem to make much sense.

All in all, B. and I give this a solid 3. For a vegan visiting Raleigh, it's worth a try, and I must promote any establishment where a vegan can order with peace of mind (though this restaurant also has extensive, traditional "omni" diner food for your pastrami-loving friends). The location right in downtown is convenient for museum-going, people-watching or a night out. Plus, the atmosphere was kind of hip and the service was nice, and they have $1.50 cans of PBR. Hell, it was almost as if we were dining in Portland (except for the nice service, of course).

The Remedy Diner
137 E. Hargett St.
Raleigh, NC
Marinated tempeh reuben, with corn chips and house Pico de Gallo on the side.
Rating: 3

TRUEBEN: Darth Reuben at the Georgetown Liquor Company, Seattle, WA

I first heard about the Georgetown Liquor Company, a bar in South Seattle with many vegan and vegetarian options, through a review in The Stranger, Seattle's alternative weekly. The sandwich sounded awesome -- the first time I'd heard of someone utilizing the "artisan" fake meat Field Roast in a reuben (but of course, not the first time the combo had occurred to me). The review praised the vegetarian version, and noted that it was available with vegan cheese. B. and I dropped in on the place on our way up to Canada -- it reminded me of a smaller, dive-ier Backspace. They had a few arcade games, a pin ball machine, and three or four game systems hooked up to TVs for patrons to use. It's essentially a dark, hip bar with a pretty large food menu. We split the Darth Reuben and the house vegan burger over a couple of Pabst.



The Darth Reuben (all the sandwiches reference sci-fi movies or TV shows) is Roasted Tomato Field Roast and kraut on marble rye with "remoulade" and cheese (sub vegan). It's 10 bucks, kinda pricey in my book, but probably normal for Seattle. You can choose a cup of soup, salad or chips and salsa as a side -- a cup of soup alone runs 4.50, chips 3, so maybe this justifies the price. And the sandwich is large. I certainly wasn't disappointed with the portions. (The veggie burger was smaller -- maybe this is why they felt compelled to add a pickle spear on the side. No pickle with the reuben, though.).

The sandwich looked fantastic, and with the extremely dark lighting in the bar, I'm surprised the pictures turned out as well as they did. Though it took the bartender a few moments to take our order and then bring us our beers, the sandwiches came out very quickly. In my mind, the bread was probably the best aspect of the sandwich. It was a square marble rye yet thick cut and crusty -- an artisan marble rye? It was thick and crispy with hints of caraway. I was as pleased with the Field Roast, as I expected I would be. Flavorful with a dense, meaty texture, it's a great stand in for corned beef -- maybe a little too dense and chewy. The only thing about the sandwich I wasn't so sure of was the dressing. It was plentiful and not bad, but much sweeter and tangier than I am used to. It reminded me of Kraft's California dressing. B. also was iffy on the dressing. He liked the bread, but he wanted more kraut to balance the Field Roast. I didn't expect to complain about too much Field Roast, as many places will skimp on stuff like this, but I found myself agreeing. More kraut would have balanced the sandwich a bit more. B. also thought this vegan cheese here was not as good as that at Liquid Earth -- so far we haven't been too excited about vegan cheese on reubens, as usually it is barely detectable and completely bland. Liquid Earth somehow managed to offer a melty vegan cheese that really added to the sandwich.



Though B. seemed less than impressed -- truthfully, I think the Liquid Earth tofu reuben is the only sandwich that trumps tempeh in his book -- I thought this was a hearty, flavorful and creative sandwich, and so I give it at least a 3. In any case, Georgetown Liquor Company is worth a stop for any vegan on their way north from Portland -- the enticing menu, with truly a wealth of vegan options, is excuse enough, if not the booze.

TRUEBEN: Tempeh Reuben at Chaos Cafe and Parlor

It's clear that I'm amped to be back in Portland, on a mini-summer vacation from graduate school, tying up loose ends so to speak -- that is, hitting those restaurants with vegan reubens I didn't have time to try. Or, in this case, reviewing the reubens that have popped up in my absence. What B. and I didn't expect, upon delving back into this task, is that some truly interesting and innovative reubens have emerged.

While the vegetarian reuben at Nearly Normal's in Corvallis was hearty but a little ho-hum, I was very impressed by Backspace -- it seemed to fill the gap left by Veganopolis' departure by providing an attractive, creative somewhat gourmet reuben but with a bit more substance. Few reubens have achieved the score of 4.5 -- none have achieved the highest possible score of 5, yet, so 4.5 is considered the pinnacle. Previously this was only occupied by the Red and Black Reuben, a sandwich which won us over with its simplicity and price (and of course, taste). After munching on Backspace's smoky, dilly, creamy tempeh reuben I felt we had met a challenger. I did not expect Chaos Cafe to raise the bar even further.

I will start off saying that in theory I love Chaos Cafe, a funky little restaurant on an otherwise fairly unattractive portion of SE Powell. They are similar to the Red and Black in that they are almost entirely vegan, and use mainly organic and local ingredients. Their menu also has a sort of hearty, healthy theme, heavy on the greens and whole grains -- as well as tempeh and tofu. Their menu strikes me as nearly perfect -- I don't think it has a single vegan entree that does not appeal to me. The only downsides are that it's a little more expensive than the Red and Black, and it could quite possible offer the slowest service in Portland (and the Red and Black has recently become a contender for that title as well).



The tempeh reuben is $8.75, and does not come with cheese -- cheese can be added for $1 and avocado can be added for $2. I don't know if they offer vegan cheese, but I wouldn't be surprised, as they have nachos on the menu that come with vegan sour cream in addition to cheese (wouldn't it be counter-intuitive to have vegan sour cream but real cheese?). The sandwich is described as grilled marinated tempeh with caramelized onions, house-made dressing, and sauerkraut on rye. Chaos immediately got points by offering a side salad or chips, like Backspace (Chaos' salad was fresher and more plentiful, I will say). Again, no pickle though.

My first thought upon biting into my half of the very pretty sandwich was, "Woah. No cheese necessary." My second was, "B. is going to love this." And my third was, "Do we have a new #1 sandwich?" The dressing was great, somehow both creamy and drippy-thin, with an oiliness that gave the sandwich an unctous moistness. The cook slathered the dressing on both pieces of bread, which worked well. The bread was a sandwich rye, not too light, and nice and crunchy, and it kept my hands clean. The onions were sweet, a great touch, and didn't overwhelm the kraut. I was also very impressed by the tempeh. Another commonality between this sandwich and the Backspace tempeh reuben was a similar treatment of the tempeh. Instead of keeping the tempeh in a slab, as we often do when we're cooking, and as other restaurants such as Vita Cafe and Nearly Normal's do as well, both Backspace and Chaos broke their tempeh into chunks. The Red and Black does something like this, too. Their tempeh filling is actually a mixture of mushrooms and tempeh. I think this might be a good way to go. Though probably slightly more work in preparation, I think the flavor gets distributed better, and it makes for a more interesting and pleasant mouth-feel when you bite in.



B. shared most of my feelings about this sandwich. He said it was a clear 4.5, tying it with our earlier #1 choice (though he also said he thought this sandwich was better than Backspace, calling into question the 4.5 rating I assigned that sandwich). Yes, it is one of the more expensive reubens we've reviewed, especially if you opted for avocado or cheese, but I'm starting to wonder if the extra price doesn't make it worth it, especially when the restaurant is committed to local and organic ingredients (and a good side salad ups the value as well). While I had virtually no criticisms of this sandwich, B. felt that perhaps the tempeh was unevenly marinated in places, as some chunks were larger and less flavorful than others. Aside from the lack of pickle on the side, this was all around a very satisfying meal. (Followed of course, by a delicious house-made vegan dessert).

Chaos Cafe and Parlor
Corner of SE Powell and 26th
4.5!

TRUEBEN: Tempeh Reuben at Backspace

FINALLY.

Don't ask me why, but I've been downright obsessed with the tempeh reuben at Backspace for awhile now. I guess because it's been out of reach for so long. But residing in North Carolina has not prevented me from obsessively reviewing the all vegetarian menu of this computer geek oriented cafe in PDF form. Finally, on a sunny Saturday morning, B. and I managed to sit down to what is now one of my favorite reubens in town. Truthfully, this reuben almost gained #1 status is my book. Probably the only real hinderance was the pricyness, though I'll admit, the sandwich isn't perfect.

Almost, though. First of all, Backspace happily veganizes this dish (and many others) without any extra charge. Second, though there is no complimentary pickle, I greatly appreciate that there are options for sides other than corn chips (in this case, green salad or pasta salad) again, with no additional charge. True, the fee is $9 for this wonderful sandwich, and with the price of vegan cheese, this seems reasonable to me (however, some of us, i.e. B. would argue that the vegan cheese added little to the sandwich and should probably be scrapped in favor of avocado anyway).

On to the sandwich. The bread: some of the best we've had, I think. A marble rye that manages to be crispy and flavorful and not taste like it came straight from a plastic bag. The kraut, I'm almost ecstatic. Fresh and crunchy and heavy with dill. The tempeh is nothing to be scoffed at either: extremely flavorful (though maybe a tad too salty), with an assertive, delicious presence despite the fact the portion was a bit more modest than we are used to. I was a fan of the dressing. It's on the creamier side, more like a spread. B. seems to have developed a taste for the runnier dressings, and he thought this sandwich was a little dry, but I had no such complaint. The sandwich was plenty grilled, the bread even slightly charred, which gave it a smoky flavor I enjoyed. Though the cheese was a little odd, unmelted as soy 'rella frequently is, I thought it contributed to the sandwich well, though I could probably be convinced that avocado would be better.

As it is, I wholeheartedly give this a 4.5. I would be tempted to rate it higher, maybe even higher than our erstwhile favorite, the Red and Black Reuben, because of the nice green salad side and the fact that service was fairly prompt and obviously thoughtful. Though the Red and Black is more affordable, I've grown less patient lately with their lackadasical service. The Backspace reuben (also found at the Someday Lounge next door) is as gourmet and carefully prepared as Veganopolis, but definitely feels like more bang for your buck.



Backspace
115 NW 5th, Old Town Portland
Tempeh reuben with house dill kraut, vegan russian dressing, on marble rye. Swiss cheese or vegan mozzarella.

P.S. Stay tuned for our next review, of a reuben which B. argues is even better, drawing into question the 4.5 point assignment! Portland vegan reuben establishments, you have officially raised the bar, giving our modest yet hearty 'lil Red and Black Reuben, the erstwhile champion, a run for its money.

Update: Papa G's Organic Vegan Deli

Last summer, B. and I reviewed the tempeh reuben at Papa G's, then a relatively new all vegan, all organic restaurant in Southeast. At 5.99, the modest sandwich didn't seem like a great deal, but I appreciate Papa G's dedication to fresh, organic and local ingredients, despite the fact that those often come at a price.

Whereas before the only sandwiches available at Papa G's were found in the deli case, wrapped in plastic, recently the establishment announced hot, made to order sandwiches. Check out their website for an updated menu (and a coupon for 10% off). The tempeh reuben is an option, now 2 bucks more (though the ala carte sandwich is still available for $5.99). The menu says the hot sandwiches come with "gigantic chips" but I can only assume this isn't the only change. Undoubtedly a freshly-made sandwich will taste better, but I hope they also add more kraut and maybe jazz it up in some way, though the description sounds just like the burger-like reuben we tried back then. I encourage folks to stop by and check it out, maybe drop us a comment to let us know what the deal is. Whether in search of a reuben or not, it seems like the expansion definitely merits a visit.

Baltimore Vegan Reubens: Liquid Earth

Get ready for the most realistic vegan reuben ever. And while I don't think I would give up other vegan reubens for this sandwich, that statement is closer to high praise than it is to condemnation.

Truthfully, there is something slightly pedestrian about this trueben. But that fact alone is what makes it so unique. Never have I tasted a vegan or vegetarian reuben that was so close to the real thing. The cheese, though mild and not overly applied (VeganRella, we were told), and the sauerkraut, in about the right proportion, the pale deli rye-- all were not memorable in their own right, but served as the appropriate backdrop for salty (but not too salty, thankfully), robustly-hued tofu "meat" that even B. thought tasted remarkably like the real thing.



This sandwich is a bit of a celebrity. It earned mention on Homicide, a cop show set in Baltimore. And with good reason. It seems exactly like the sort of thing a newly vegetarian cop would gravitate towards. We're more of the tempeh crowd, but still, this is a sandwich I would probably return for again and again, if I lived in Baltimore.

Located on Aliceanna near the Inner Harbor, Liquid Earth does feel a bit like the kind of coffee shop/juice bar/raw and vegan eatery you might find in Portland---reminiscent of places like Proper Eats and the Red and Black, but with a little East Coast edginess. The prices were sort of high, like Vita Cafe the sandwiches had no sides or even pickles, but were a buck or two higher than you'd expect in Portland. But man do they know their way around tofu-as-meat. The stuff was marinated, though appropriately dry, and thinly sliced to perfection, both in the Reuben and the Philly we had (the latter of which we ordered especially vegan, for a buck or so extra). Though there was a hummus sandwich and some nut meat raw tacos, I don't think I saw tempeh on the menu, tofu being the topping of choice. But if you do something right, by all means, keep doing it. In this case, simplicity was the ticket. As someone who obviously eats a lot of vegan reubens, I appreciate some innovation and play on the classic, with unique marinades, slaws instead of kraut, and stand-out sauces. But this sandwich reminds you of what it is all about: five relatively simple components that fit together just right.

Thanks to B. for catching the homicide reference (and having the friends in Maryland) that made this little spring break excursion to Liquid Earth possible.

A "Vegetable Love" Letter

The first birthday of this blog passed last month, and I almost didn't notice. Maybe it's hard to imagine that I have somehow succeeded at talking about vegan reubens at least twice a month for the last 12. For the few of you that have been following this blog from the beginning, you've probably caught on that though I recently lived in Portland, Oregon, I have since relocated to North Carolina for a couple years of schooling. B., my partner-in-crime so to speak (he has accompanied me on nearly every review), who actually came up with the idea for this blog, has remained in Portland, though he visits about once a month. Not only did he inspire this blog, but when I moved, he advocated for it to continue ("PVR must not die!" I believe were his words.) So we've plugged on, posting less frequently of course, but I somehow keep finding ways to to talk about reubens since August, when I began classes here.

So when I saw that Susan of one of the my all-time favorite vegan blogs, Fat Free Vegan, was holding her Vegetable Love competition again this year, it seemed like a fitting opportunity this time around. After trying so many reuben variations, and not a few reuben recipes in the home, B. and I have developed some distinct preferences and ideas about what should go into our ideal reuben. This recipe incorporates what we've learned so far, while probably being the healthiest (yes, it's fat-free!) reuben recipe out there. It's pretty entertaining, but true, that I can't see a better way to honor the man I love from afar on Valentine's Day, than with a vegan reuben recipe crafted with him in mind (pssst--by the way, he doesn't know, yet). I've tried to consider his personal tastes (for example, I believe B. would say that a vegan reuben needs to start with marinated baked tempeh, mushrooms and caramelized onions on a dense, dark rye) but I'm also excited to experiment a bit with ingredients I haven't before (for example, I'm enamored of grated beets lately, and always wanted to try a dressing with white beans and no mayo or oil).

Thus I bring you my entry! Because I'm sure not enough people will incorporate beets and heart shapes into their submissions!

Tempeh Reuben Sliders with Raw Beet Slaw and Red-Wine Braised Mushrooms



I don't usually do cutesy things like this, but since it's a slider (yes, another B. inspiration) and Valentine's themed, I thought it would be fun to make them heart-shaped. However, this recipe does not need to be modified at all to make a normal-size, normally-shaped sandwich--in fact, if you actually make sliders, you will have left-overs.

There are a lot of components and thus a lot of ingredients and steps, but really, it's pretty simple! I'll try to present the information in the least confusing way possible, and more or less chronologically.

Before I get to the recipe, we might as well talk about bread choice. There are a couple different ryes out there-- probably marble rye, with its distinctive swirl, and "deli rye" which is usually a lighter bread, sometimes with caraway, are the most common. B. and I really like a dense, dark rye bread, because of its flavor mostly. But I also like that it probably has more fiber and wholegrain, and B. likes bread that can keep saucy dressings and kraut juice off his hands. I think our favorites have been the vollkornbrot from last month and the somewhat-local-to-Portland Abiqua Farms Old World Rye we used when trying out a recipe from Bazu's blog. But really dense breads can sometimes be apt to crumble, and after watching B.'s attempt to slice the vollkornbrot recently, I wanted a bread that wouldn't pose such a challenge during the delicate cookie-cutter procedure. After reviewing the options at the co-op, I settled on this.



I usually try to avoid imported foods, for environmental reasons as well as the fact that especially a bread is going to be less fresh, but this bread seemed to fulfill my criteria of dark, dense and resilient--plus it came thinly sliced already. And I'm not going to lie, the extremely happy looking woman on the package probably had something to do with it. Ultimately I was satisfied with the choice, but I think you should just go with whatever bread you prefer when trying this out. Any sandwich bread should work fine. Who knows, maybe I could have used the cookie cutter on the vollkornbrot with no mishaps. This recipe marks my first time using a cookie cutter on anything other than cookie dough (Crazy, I know!).

On to the recipe! Note that this recipe makes enough for two (normal-sized) sandwiches.

First, you probably want to marinate the tempeh.

Marinade:

1/4 cup of applesauce
1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons stone-ground mustard
1 tablespoon soy sauce
4 pressed or chopped garlic gloves
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper or red pepper flakes

8 oz tempeh, sliced thin lengthwise

Mix the marinade together in a small bowl or large measuring cup. Slicing the tempeh to make a thinner slab can be tricky, a large sharp knife helps, but we find it greatly improves the sandwich. Place tempeh in a single layer in a Pyrex baking or casserole dish and pour marinade over it. The marinade is very thick; try to pour it so it distributes evenly over both pieces of tempeh. Marinate for a minimum of half an hour; we recommend overnight. Flip it halfway through if you can.

If you are going to take a cookie cutter to your tempeh, I recommend doing so before you put it in the marinade. I marinated the tempeh first because I had trouble finding an appropriately-sized heart-shaped cookie cutter and wanted to give the tempeh a day to soak while I tracked another one down. Then I realized that I probably didn't want to try to cut the tempeh when it was piping hot from the oven, so I cut it right in the pan before putting it into the oven. This worked fine, especially because you get bonus little marinated bits you can use in a salad or something else later, but doing it before marinating might just be simpler -- the tempeh tends to kinda stick in the cutter and you need to push the piece out. But the tempeh held together well and didn't crumble as you might expect. Man, now the possibilities are endless. Tempeh ducks, tempeh shamrocks, tempeh gingerbread men...



With the tempeh marinating in the fridge, I made the sandwich dressing next as these kinds of things are always better when they have a chance to "meld" in the fridge as well.

White Bean Reuben Spread

1/4 cup cooked white beans, cannelini, great northern or navy
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons minced white or yellow onion
2 tablespoons minced pickle

Blend all ingredients together in a blender or food processor. Alternately, you could probably mash the beans by hand, or use an immersion blender. If you have a powerful blender or food processor, you could save yourself a little work and toss the onion and pickles straight in there first. When blended, transfer to a jar and refrigerate.

If you're on a roll of making things in advance, you might as well throw together the slaw. This is my stand-in for sauerkraut. It definitely has more of a fresh beet flavor versus a pickled flavor, which I thought actually complemented the sandwich well.

Raw Beet Slaw:

1 medium beet, peeled
3 tablespoons red wine or sherry vinegar
pinch of salt
generous amount of fresh ground pepper
a couple pinches of dried dill

Grate or shred beet and toss with vinegar and seasonings. Refrigerate. Note that this slaw has a lot of juice. You might want to put some in a colander in the sink to drain while your tempeh is baking, before you construct the sandwich. The excess liquid didn't harm the slider, though, and if you don't mind a lot of red juice on your plate, don't worry about it.

Because the tempeh needs to bake for awhile, you can hold off on the braised mushrooms until you are just about to take the tempeh out of the oven.

Red-Wine Braised Mushrooms

Braising is basically cooking something over high heat for a few minutes to sear in some flavor, then reducing the heat and simmering for the remaining time. B. and I have also found we really like caramelized onions on our reubens-- caramelizing is a process of cooking onions over high heat until they start to break down and sweeten. Usually this uses a lot of oil. I thought this method would thus combine two of our favorite reuben toppings, and "red-wine braised" just sounds romantic. If you are worried about your onions burning and sticking, keep more red wine on hand to deglaze as you go. You could also probably use a good vinegar instead of red wine if you prefer.

4 large white mushrooms with stems on, cleaned however you prefer, sliced
1 small yellow or white onion, halved and sliced thinly into strips
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 to 2 cups red wine
salt and pepper to taste
Note: I'm sure this recipe would also be wonderful with the addition of some fresh herbs, like thyme, oregano or rosemary.

Heat a pan, a wok or cast iron skillet could work well, but you need to have a lid for it, and toss in your onions. Cook on high heat, stirring frequently, and adding red wine as needed to keep from sticking. When they start to brown, add mushrooms, garlic, salt and pepper. Stir and cook for five minutes. Reduce heat, add more red wine, and cover, allowing to simmer for about two minutes. For the last few minutes, cook uncovered until the majority of the wine evaporates.

When you are done marinating the tempeh, simply transfer the dish to a pre-heated 350 degree oven and bake for 30 minutes. Reubens are typically grilled and usually the kraut is warmed also. For this recipe, I recommend trying to put the sandwich together while the mushrooms and tempeh are still warm and the bread is fresh out of the toaster. It also might be good to let your spread and slaw come to room temp if they've been in the fridge.

Toast your bread. Top one piece with tempeh, mushroom and onion mixture, and then slaw. Slather the other piece with dressing and lay on top. Or feel free to use dressing on both pieces if you like. Enjoy!



Since this is a reuben review site, I feel compelled to rate my own performance, though I think that would be sort of awkward. Over all I aimed for a recipe that was healthy and relatively easy to replicate and I think I succeeded. And don't get me wrong, it was tasty! But this recipe is certainly nothing if not heavily open to adaptation. As you can see from the pictures, the marinade turned out quite thick -- I went with applesauce instead of say, apple juice or straight apple cider vinegar because I had an open jar and wanted to see what would happen (in case you couldn't tell, I didn't really test any of these recipes before this first trial run). Since applesauce is a popular ingredient in vegan baking, I figured lots of you would have it on hand as well -- but feel free to substitute at will, or include other flavorings, like ginger, pickling spices or sweeteners, to the marinade. Same goes for everything else really. I think the wine-braised mushrooms and onions was my favorite part, but take my note about fresh herbs to heart.



Thanks must go to Susan, for hosting this fun contest, all the vegan cooks out there whose various reuben recipes have informed this one in one way or another, and of course to you, for reading! Susan will post the entries on Fat Free Vegan on February 11th, when you'll get to vote. While the prizes look awesome, I'm just happy for the excuse to craft this little labor of love. See you next time (or in approximately a month, if you're B.)!

TRUEBEN: Papa G's Vegan Organic Deli

Papa G's opened several months ago, a few blocks east of Seven Corners. I lived nearby at the time, had just begun this blog, and was very excited about a new vegan dining option as well as the potential for a new reuben. It's a deli, right? And a reuben is a traditional deli standby.

I investigated Papa G's immediately after it finally opened, with somewhat sparse offerings, and sadly dismissed it as an unlikely reuben source. The centerpiece seemed to be their salad bar and hot, by the pound options like mashed potatoes and gravy and quinoa pilaf. Little besides their signature chewy, seasoned tofus graced the refrigerated deli case. I've returned a few times since, enjoying many of their offerings, but feeling a little bittersweet -- if only there were a reuben!

Since then, Papa G's has come into its own, expanding their offerings and instituting specials that make their per-pound options more attractive. A few weeks ago I was there enjoying the bowl special and a root beer float I'd made by combining a few scoops of their Temptation soy cream and a Virgil's root beer, when the word "reuben," like an ethereal whisper snagged my ear. I looked over to the deli case, where some employees were chatting, and was surprised to see that for who knows how long, Papa G's has indeed sold tempeh reubens. The plastic-wrapped sandwiches, almost indistinguishable from the tempeh burgers they rest beside, sit in the long, lower refrigerated case to the right of the hot offerings and cash register, above a variety of chilled salads and desserts I'd never paid much attention to.

B. and I opted to split one, supplementing our lunch with a few other dishes, and finding a seat at one of Papa G's outdoor tables.



Here it is after being unwrapped and warmed up. (Papa G's is sort of cafeteria style, you grab your own silverware and bus your own table, but the cashier/server was kind enough to bring it out to us after warming, which he recommended.)

It's sort of an unassuming sandwich, obviously not on rye but on some sort of savory bun that was a bit crispy around the edges and contained flecks of vegetable or seasoning, but of what my tastebuds couldn't detect. I took a closer look at the insides.



That appears to be a baby dill pickle sliced length-wise and a smattering of their house-made dill sauerkraut. Slicing it in half revealed a more interesting sandwich. The tempeh patty, which I assume is found on their tempeh burger as well, appeared to have seasonings mixed in. The tempeh was cushioned by a creamy layer of dressing. In fact, biting into it, my first thought was, "Wow, this is cheesy and creamy-tasting." If I didn't know Papa G's was 100% vegan, I might have been suspicious. The dressing softened the bun and I actually enjoyed the texture. B. wasn't positive warming up the sandwich had been a good idea, and wished we could compare.

As I expected, I was disappointed by the tiny amount of kraut. Is there a cabbage shortage in this town I'm not aware of? I didn't mind the pickles, but B. thought they were a strange touch. We both noticed a cheesy flavor, at first I thought it was the bread, B. thought maybe it was the tempeh itself, but I'm thinking it was probably the sauce, or a hard-to-see layer of cheesy spread next to the sauce.

I think B. was disappointed by this sandwich, not because it wasn't tasty, but because it didn't seem much like a reuben. The sauce lacked something "reubeny," obviously the bread wasn't rye, and there wasn't much kraut at all. Though I enjoyed the sandwich, I had to agree. It basically seemed like they took a tempeh burger and put some kraut, and maybe a different sauce, on it. I did like that creamy, cheesy taste, even though it wasn't really even reminiscent of a reuben.



I think B. was leaning even lower, but I give this sandwich a 3 out of 5. It's a TRUEBEN, it has some unique flavors and textures going on, everything is made on the premises, and hey, I thought it tasted good. It might be better with more kraut, a tangier sauce maybe in addition to whatever was making it cheesy, and the pickle on the side. All in all, I'm still glad Papa G's delivered on my expectations -- grab one sometime if you are passing through SE and need some quick wholesome vegan grub to go.

Papa G's Vegan Organic Deli
23rd and SE Division

$5.99 gets you a little burger-like tempeh reuben with the pickle on the inside. There are plenty of by the pound options to supplement your meal. Yes, it's pricey, but it's vegan, organic and pretty healthy.

In the Kitchen: Candle Cafe Reuben

B. and I have developed a pretty deep affection for tempeh reubens. This recipe came well recommended by Swell Vegan. This week it seemed it would be hard to get a reuben in at a restaurant, so we opted to try to make another at home. I'm happy to give you the recipe below, gleaned from this website. We halved it, but a bit roughly, so I'll just put what we ended up putting in. I'll note that there were many ingredients here I sort of resented buying, simply because I never use them any other time. Mostly the apple juice. But really blame is due to Trader Joe's, for having things like apple juice and vegan mayonaise only in gigantic containers, not the recipe, which turned out pretty awesome. I made a commitment to follow the recipe as much as possible, and I stuck to it -- even when it meant sending B. to the neighbor's for an eighth of a cup of ketchup.

Adapted Candle Cafe Tempeh Reubens (makes 2 sandwiches)

1/2 cup apple juice
1 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons soy sauce
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped (I used more garlic than the original recipe, because I love garlic)
4 slices of fresh ginger (I never know what recipes mean by "slices," I just shaved off a generous amount)
8 ounces of tempeh, cut into two sandwich-sized pieces
4 slices of rye bread
Approximately 1/4 cup sauerkraut
Approximately 1/2 cup caramelized onions

Russian Dressing:
1/4 cup of vegan mayo
1/8 cup ketchup
1/8 cup stone-ground mustard
1/8 cup finely chopped onion (We used dried minced onion we had in the cupboard).

You can follow her steps in the recipe. We pretty much did what she said, flipping halfway through during the marinating and also again when it was baking in the oven. B. was in charge of caramelizing the onions, though truthfully, neither of us were quite sure what that meant. I feel like all the times I've caramelized onions have been by accident.



I have to say he did a pretty good job, despite the fact I kept ignoring the timing of the recipe, and told him to start the caramelizing while the tempeh was still marinating, realized we didn't need over half an hour to caramelize onions, then made the same mistake again right when the tempeh went into the oven.



I did most of our shopping at Trader Joe's, so our mayo was Trader Joe's Reduced Fat version, and our bread was this Black Sour Rye, basically a cross between sourdough and rye. We assembled the dressing at about the same time we prepared the tempeh for marinating, so both got about half an hour in the fridge.



The tempeh baked for another 30 minutes, and were we ready for it. The recipe didn't say to toast or grill the bread, but we decided to toast it in B's toaster oven. It couldn't accommodate all four pieces, so we did the two bottom pieces first, and started assembling the sandwich while the top pieces of bread toasted. We slathered a bit of dressing on (it turned out quite thick, maybe because we used dehydrated onion instead of fresh), placed the tempeh slabs, added sauerkraut 'til it looked about right, then divided the onions between the two. When the top pieces came out, they got the dressing treatment also. We ended up with a couple tablespoons of extra dressing.



We were definitely ready to dig in (with our Apple Blossom cocktails, an attempt to use up a bunch of the apple juice) but I found my sandwich to be so pretty I had to go outside and try to get a good picture.



Let me just say that B.'s first words were, "Wow, this is really good." I was having my mind sort of blown as well. Later he stated that if we had ordered this in a restaurant, he would have come away very pleased.

I for one was very gratified that we'd actually followed the recipe. Because it was one frickin' tasty sandwich. I don't know if it was the combination of apple and maple flavors, the caramelized onions, or the McMenamin's Terminator Stout mustard we used in the dressing, but there was a delicious, smoky flavor to the sandwich. I almost would have sworn we'd put some liquid smoke in there. The bread was pretty good, too. Even though it threatened to fragment a little when I sliced the sandwiches, it held up quite well and I thought complimented the other flavors. It wasn't as pungent as other ryes, but there were so many other good flavors, it was good to have a bread that didn't overpower the sandwich. We might have toasted it more in the future. We were so eager to eat, and didn't want the tempeh to get cold, so each piece only got lightly toasted in the toaster oven. We were also too lazy to warm up the sauerkraut, but because the onions were warm, the tempeh was hot out of the oven, and the bread was toasted, we thought the over all temperature of the sandwich was good.

The only other improvement we could think of was that we should have tried to slice the tempeh lengthwise, to make it thinner, as the lovely author of "i eat food" does with her reubens. I had considered this at the start of the recipe, but this particular tempeh seemed a bit fragile and I didn't trust my knife skills, despite the fact that this was a lesson we'd learned long ago, when attempting other reuben recipes.

Over all, we give this sandwich a big hand all around. The recipe is so simple, yet in our experience, yields very tasty and complex results. Though apple juice is never really found in my fridge, and I almost didn't purchase it to use a scant half cup, I think it was definitely worthwhile, and I appreciated a marinade that didn't assume oil was necessary. All in all, I think the only real source of fat in this recipe was the dressing, which had a hefty amount of mayonnaise. The sandwich ultimately felt as light and healthy as it came out on paper.

I think we have to give this sandwich, a TRUEBEN, by the way, a 4.5 out of 5. This sandwich is so good...maybe our quest is over and we don't need to eat out anymore. Gasp!

TRUEBEN: The Hungry Tiger, Too

UPDATE 1/3/2010: B. and I were back in town briefly and stopped by the Hungry Tiger for dinner. They certainly have upgraded the vegan menu, but we noted that the reuben is still served with Tofurky slices. Maybe they've improved their technique, but I wasn't willing to risk it. We went with the tempeh BLT (yum!), the basket of corn-dogs (yes, they are battered in house and totally worth it) and of course, the squash wontons.


I think I can call this a trueben, though it really is a veganization of a traditional reuben that the Hungry Tiger, Too offers. As you may have heard, The Hungry Tiger, Too, a reincarnation of the divalicious Hungry Tiger that was leveled a year or so ago to make room for condos at 28th and Burnside, has an extensive menu with many vegan options. The menu states that certain items can be made vegan, and denotes those items with a little heart/diamond type symbol. They seem very open to substitutions, and the menu lists a variety of vegan sandwich components including a Boca patty and a portobello mushroom. Maybe I should have taken that to heart, a mushroom or even Boca patty may have improved this sad, dry, vacuous reuben (spelled Ruben on the menu for some reason).

First, I am of course obligated to commend the Hungry Tiger, Too, for being so vegan friendly. And their food is often very good. I had the squash wontons once and they were awesome, and a pretty good deal. Their portions are typically very generous. Like any bar, the food is going to be uneven. Even though it's a bit out of the scope of this blog, I feel compelled to warn you that the polenta fries we had as a starter were very disappointing -- approximately 5 or 6 overfried, greasy, crunchy rectangles resting on a sea of mayonnaise. It made me wish I'd ponied up less and gotten a basket of sweet potato fries instead. The Hungry Tiger has daily drink deals, usually a dollar off something from 7 pm on, which are a good deal, but I had to remind the bartender of it when closing out, and ultimately still got overcharged. All that aside, I have a warm spot in my heart for the Hungry Tiger, Too, and will undoubtedly return. But I will certainly not get the reuben.



B. declared it the worst reuben we've had. I would say it's certainly the worst trueben. But it wasn't a horrible sandwich, and I might choose it over a vegan Rachel's Reuben, and maybe attempt to improve it with extra condiments. When it came out, I was surprised it wasn't tempeh. I'm not sure why I was expecting this, as most of the vegan sandwiches on the menu utilize Tofurkey deli slices and/or store-bought tempeh bacon. I guess I expected to see the tempeh that tops some of their salads. I was actually intrigued and kind of excited to review a trueben that isn't tempeh for a change.

Though the Hungry Tiger does employ vegan cheese in some offerings, this sandwich contained just Thousand Islands, sauerkraut and deli slices. I think the sauce was pretty good, with bits of pickle relish, but I think I was too distracted by the other perplexing aspects of the sandwich to pay attention to it. Cheese might have helped, or more sauce, as the most disappointing thing about the sandwich was how dry it was.

The bread, a marble rye, was grilled to dryness. The deli slices had all the moisture grilled out of them as well, and were sort of crunchy and seared even, which wasn't that bad on its own, but with the dry bread and small amount of sauerkraut, seemed to simulate the texture experience of eating a bunch of bark or twigs.

Though our bellies were full enough at the end, mostly thanks to the large vegan greek salad that we paid extra to sub, the sandwich fillings didn't reach the edges of the bread, so you got a few bites that were just dry bread. The dryness meant it wasn't a messy sandwich, at least, but at a cost. B. actually described it as "begging for moisture." There was a pickle spear.

I think this "Ruben" could be up there with other great vegan reubens in town, and maybe even as renowned as the vegan Club or vegan Mac and Cheese the Hungry Tiger offers. Don't grill the deli slices. Or better yet, replace the deli slices with a portobello mushroom cap or burger (or, god forbid, tempeh). Add more sauce. Add more sauerkraut. Maybe add some fake cheese, though I can't say whether the brand the Hungry Tiger usually uses is any good. When eating out, I will probably always prefer a reuben made with tempeh or mushrooms over one that uses fake meat that you would buy in the deli case at New Seasons, but this could be seriously good pub grub if someone put some extra thought into it. As it stands, I think we have to give this a 1.5 out of 5.



Hungry Tiger, Too
SE 12th and Ash
Vegan Ruben. $8. Sauerkraut, Thousand Islands and Tofurkey deli slices on marble rye. Fries, tots or coleslaw, or side salad or cup of soup for $2.

In other news, Try Vegan Week starts tomorrow! I hope to treat you to frequent posts, perhaps even on topics other than reubens! Shocking! One of those threads will feature B. as he actually TRIES BEING VEGAN FOR A WEEK. That's right, folks, the week is not just about activities like Vegan Prom and primers on vegan shopping at People's. B. eats meat. You have probably noticed he eats cheese, as he usually opts for the original version when we go out to veganize vegetarian reubens around town. I hope that this blog will chronicle this experiment over the next week.

Speaking of Try Vegan Week events, you may wonder why the Vegan Pub Crawl I've mentioned on this blog isn't on the Try Vegan Week schedule of events. To be honest, I'm wondering that, too. When I contacted the organizers about helping put something together, I was invited to take over the happy hour event at the Bye and Bye which was originally scheduled for Friday, with the Prom on Saturday. I put the pub crawl into the Pedalpalooza calendar, to make it a bike event as well and doubly cool. Then, without notice to me, the Vegan Prom got moved to Friday and the Bye and Bye happy hour to Saturday on the Try Vegan Week schedule, and the folks there haven't responded to my e-mails. Ah well, I know they're busy. Anyway, the purpose of this explanation is that I am keeping the pub crawl on Friday night -- I guess it will just be a Pedalpalooza event in honor of Try Vegan Week. Maybe this will be good, it can serve as an alternative to the Prom, or hey, come out and have a few drinks before you get dressed up.

The Vegan Cyclist Pub Crawl will be Friday, June 13th, at 6 pm at the Bye and Bye, a 100% vegan bar at 10th and NE Alberta, though I might start right at 5 somewhere like the Mash Tun, which is higher up on Alberta, and has a few inventive vegan options, though I don't know the low down on all their beers. The itinerary is not set in stone, but we plan to continue to the Hungry Tiger, Too, and probably end at Plan B.

Hope you'll join us for some drinking and tasty vegan pub grub! If you're vegan, encourage someone to try it out for just a week to see how easy and delicious it can be. If you aren't, try it! Why are you reading this blog anyway?