Food Court Delight!

Gone are the days when vegans have to dread walking into a shopping centre food court. Many of the traditional burger joints offer veggie burgers (on vegan buns!), salads, and of course our old friend, the french (canola oiled) fry. Lots of ethnic restaurants have jumped on the fast food bandwagon, too, so we can often enjoy a bean burrito, hummus pita, tofu veggie soup or stir-fry... the list goes on & on. The third main option is what I went for today - a sandwich shop with meatless, mayo-less, and cheese-less options!

My choice today was Cultures, a fast food joint whose goal is to provide healthful and yummy meals in just a few minutes. They often have homemade (and pretty dynamite) veggie paté, but on my last few visits, they had run out, and were offering tofu salad (full of mayo) instead. The counterperson today was awesome, though - he pulled out a big container full of roasted peppers and zucchini, wrapped them up with parmesan-free pesto, tomato, and lettuce, and threw two vegan (and not too oily!) salads on the side. The fun part was - I actually had at leat 6 or 7 mayo/cheese/cream-free salads to choose from - not just potato and/or fruit. There was avocado, quinoa, cabbage... I went with chick pea, mixed veggie, and a tiny side of curried potatoes (though you can't see them in the photo). The whole dish was delish, filling, and not heavy at all.

Food courts are fast becoming one of my favourite places to eat, because unlike some restaurants, there are tons and tons and tons of options. Visit one soon!

I had to rely on my phone to take this picture, since I don't carry my camera with me everywhere I go, but I think it does the meal justice. You can actually see a corner of one of the potatoes in the bottom left corner!