Veggie Grill: New Menu Items

It's been two years since the first Veggie Grill opened in Portland, Oregon. I remember being honestly completely surprised that I enjoyed their food: I am usually not a fan of anything "chik'n" or fake bacon (y'all know my purist views on bacon, right?), but I found almost everything I tried at this 100% plant-based restaurant to be delicious and filling.

Fast forward to two years later, and Veggie Grill continues to serve up creative, tasty vegetarian and vegan dishes. They invited the Bliss Kids and I to try their new summer menu.

Veggie Grill Summer Menu

The crown jewel of Veggie Grill's new summer menu, in my opinion, are the Crispy Cauliflower starters ($5.95).

Cauliflower florets sweet are tossed with panko breading then coated with a slightly spicy orange glaze, finished with a sprinkling of sesame seeds and green onions. It's like a healthier version of orange chicken.

I also recommend trying their new Chargrilled Street Corn ($3.95).

Corn is one of my favorite summer foods (have you seen my Avocado Corn Salad or my Pasta with Sausage, Peppers, and Corn recipes?). Veggie Grill's corn on the cob is made with organic sweet corn and grilled “elote” style, then drizzled with southwestern mayo, soy parmesan, and topped with chopped cilantro. Squeeze the lime slice over this before eating; the flavor combo of the southwestern mayo, cilantro and lime really make the corn pop.

Of course, I also had to try their new BTLA sandwich ($9.95).

The Veggie Grill take on a classic Bacon Lettuce Tomato Avocado consisted of smokey tempeh bacon, sliced tomatoes, avocado, cilantro pesto tossed arugula, and aioli mayo, gingerly sandwiched between grilled sourdough. My favorite part of this sandwich was the arugula. The cilantro pesto added such a nice flavor and the arugula was incredibly fresh, as were the tomatoes. The smokey tempeh bacon passed over well for regular bacon for me, but not for my son: he was skeptical about that "bacon" from the get-go.

He did, however, enjoy the kids chickin' meal, which comes with chickin' nuggets plus your choice of sides and dessert. Both of my kids chose the Yukon Gold potato fries and the "Oreo" cookies. All kids' meals are $5.95.

If you're looking for heartier fare, I definitely suggest one of Veggie Grill's signature salads. My two favorites include the Thai Chickin' salad ($9.95) with grilled chickin’, quinoa, romaine, cabbage, corn salsa, green onion, mandarin oranges, sesame seeds, cilantro, wonton strips, topped with a spicy Thai dressing.

The All Hail Kale salad ($9.25) is not only gorgeous and delicious, but it also boasts having five times the recommended daily value of vitamin A, three times the recommended daily value of vitamin C, plus a healthy dose of calcium and iron. It has marinated kale, quinoa, red cabbage slaw, corn salsa, agave-roasted walnuts, and is served with a ginger-papaya vinaigrette.

I feel like the salads are where Veggie Grill really shines. These are the kind of hearty, amazing salads that most everyday folks like you and I wouldn't have the time or energy (or even all of the ingredients) to just whip up at home on a busy Saturday afternoon, so I love that we can order "fast food" like this that is healthy and yummy!

Veggie Grill Desserts

For dessert, we tried their summer seasonal parfait, which included grilled peaches and Veggie Grill crema. It was a nice, light summer treat.

If you're a dessert fan like I am, I highly recommend trying one of their regular dessert menu items as well, such as the Carrot Cake. I would honestly choose Veggie Grill's carrot cake over non-vegan carrot cake any day, and that is saying a lot! It's mighty tasty.

And their Chocolate Pudding Parfait is a crowd pleaser, for sure. It is made with from-scratch chocolate pudding, then topped
with chocolate sauce, crushed cookies, walnuts, and their Veggie Grill Crema. Yum!

Veggie Grill is such a great spot not only for vegetarians and vegans, but for meat lovers, too. It's a bright, fun, colorful, airy space that makes healthy eating on-the-go easy and delicious.

There are more than 30 Veggie Grill locations that can be found throughout California, Oregon, and Washington. Sorry for those of you who don't live in one of these three states: you're totally missing out! I hope that, as healthier food options become more in-demand across the country, Veggie Grill can expand to other states.

Have you eaten at a Veggie Grill? If so, what's your favorite dish there, and if not, what's your favorite plant-based dish to enjoy at home?