Vegan Adventure in Jersey City

When you’re friends with a wandering vegan who enjoys "juicing" (not the steroid kind, but the healthy all-fruits-veggies-liquified kind) among other eating habits foreign to this Hobokenista, you inevitably will be challenged to try things you might not necessarily go for on an average day. Hanging with my healthier alter ego, I was convinced to go to a vegan eatery in Jersey City called Subia’sOrganic Café and Market.

Inside Subia's

I’m cautious of vegan restaurants. There is just this stigma about vegan food and, for those who have tried it before, chances are you’ve been disappointed at least once. I’ve had spaghetti that was served cold and room temperature water because the restaurant “didn’t subscribe to extreme temperatures.” I've tried veggie burgers that have attempted to look, taste, and act like beef, yet fell completely flat in that arena. My honest feelings are if you're attempting to be filled with veggies, beans, and other vegan items, just own the items instead of over processing and trying to be something else entirely. However, despite my poor experiences, I have had a couple decent vegan experiences which helped to inform my choice of meal at this particular juncture.  

My limited experiences with vegan food has led me to believe that the best vegan options for non-vegans are those from south of the border. In the past, I’ve really liked vegan nachos. I’m not one to ask many questions at vegan restaurants, but I have learned that the cheese is usually made with plant based products and nuts like cashews and almonds, even utilizing tapioca flour and natural cultures/proteins. For more on vegan cheese, which actually isn’t bad at all, check out the link here What the Heck is Vegan Cheese Made Of, Anyhow? However, despite the odd bad experience, I am ever the optimist who wants to encourage my friend and her superb eating habits, I gave it another go.

We arrived on an off time on a weekend, but the place was pretty full. From the outside, I wouldn't think there was a cafe here since it looks like a grocery store, but low and behold, there are a few cafe tables and a counter to your right as you walk inside. We saddled up to the counter and I began looking at the menu in dismay. One issue I have at places like this, I don't like it when they try to pass off non-meat items as meat items. For example, there is no way that a vegan joint should have something called a meatball Parmesan sandwich on their menu. It's just not right.

After staring and debating, I located my meal of choice - the nachos grande. However, they didn't have it! So, I went for the Subia's burger instead. They didn't have that either! ::crushed:: At that point I just sort of gave up and asked for whatever "burger" they did have. To the credit of the woman working, she suggested I go for the quesadilla. Unfortunately the wait was extremely long! We waited over half an hour for my friends soup/salad and my quesadilla. Frankly, that was a bit ridonkulous.

Vegan Quesadillas (they tasted better than they looked)


 My friend's gigantic salad with avocado

Despite the slow service, the food was actually delicious! The quesadilla was a great choice for my non-vegan self and my friend really liked her salad. I was so impressed with the food quality and so tempted by the cakes on the presentation plates that I even decided to go for a slice of the chocolate layer cake and it was no different than a non-vegan cake! It was moist, the frosting was thick and fudgy. Absolutely worth eating!

 

Vegan chocolate cake (actually moist and delicious!)

I guess I could sum up my experience here by saying, it wasn't as bad as I thought it might be. It was actually quite delectable, but the service could stand to be much quicker.