Peace o' Pie

Closed in 2013
Peace o' Pie

487 Cambridge St

Allston, MA 02134

617 787 9884

Website

Sunday, I headed into Boston to visit the SOWA (South End Open Market). Since I was already in the city, I decided to try one of the new vegan restaurants.

Peace o' Pie opened up in the old skeleton of TJ Scallywaggles, near Grasshopper in Allston. They did a great job cleaning up the store front. Seriously, it no longer looks like it was designed by elementary school kids. The counter is redone with with sustainable bamboo and the kitchen area is spotless. There are handful of nice tables and chairs for customers who stay to dine in.

The menu is definitely more upscale and gourmet than the old digs. They use Follow Your Heart cheese, though it can be upgraded to Daiya for a small fee. In addition, both Dandies vegan marshmallows and Daiya cheese is available for sale.

I checked out the menu and opted for "The EP" which is: Smoked tempeh, sundried tomatoes, sauteed spinach, and garlic. Based on what I'd heard from other folks, I also ordered a side of breadsticks. For my first visit, I chose to stick with FYH. Next time, I'll give Daiya a try. While waiting for my pizza, I got a feel for the atmosphere.

The new owners are really great folks. They checked in with any of the tables, cleared plates, and delivered orders to folks who were waiting. The vibe was a lot different than the self service attitude of TJ's.

When my pizza was done, I grabbed it to go and headed home. The car smelled wonderful and I ended up sampling one of the breadsticks on my way back. They were full of garlic and "buttery" flavor and the texture was just great. At home, I gave the pizza try. The crust is a far cry from the cardboard base that their predecessor used. The topping mix they came up with was wonderful and the sauce was just right. All in all, I was very impressed and can't wait to visit again the future.

They have daily specials on the board, so check those out. On the counter, they had some mighty fine looking desserts. One of the customers was gushing about how great the cinnamon peanut butter roll was. I'll have to snag one, next time.

Plenty of free on street parking available.

Below is a pic of my pizza. It doesn't really do the pie justice!

Prana Raw

Prana Raw Cafe
292 Centre St
Newton, MA
617 527 7726
Website

Prana is the newest raw restaurant to the Boston scene. I've enjoyed Organic Garden in Beverly, but the food is definitely a little on the "granola" side. Grezzo is amazing, but it is very high end. Prana falls right in the middle. This includes price as well as food.

The restaurant is very bright and cheery. There is a children's club house/seating area and a children's menu. Since the family that owns the restaurant has 3 young children, they definitely know how to cater to a more picky palate.

The staff was extremely friendly even though we showed up shortly before closing. We were never rushed at all. I had the burger with kale chips. It was very good! On the way out, I ordered the chocolate torte to go. When I dug into it later, I found a very creamy chocolatey pie.

Prana is great and I'm looking forward to when they are open in the evening too. For now, you can only stop in for breakfast or lunch!

Lots of on street parking is available. The closest public lot is on Pearl St.

Malachi's

Malachi's
134 Ives St
Providence, RI 02906
401 861 2977
Website

We stumbled upon Malachi's after we stopped for dinner at United BBQ next door. This is a cool coffee bar with lots of vegan options. They serve organic fair trade coffee and offer either soy or hemp milk for those looking to avoid dairy.

The night we stopped in, there was a sign outside advertising vegan brownies and cookies. The brownies were very good. The menu listed vegan lentil soup, Tofurky sandwiches, hummus, Tofutti cream cheese, Earth Balance, and even soynut butter. They also have smoothies!

The owner was super nice and told me all about the vegan offerings and chatted with us for quite awhile before we headed out to the movies. As we left, he told us to stop by and tell him about the film on our next visit!

Fiore's Bakery

Fiore's Bakery
55 South Street
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
617 524 9200
Website

Fiore's is a standard bakery that happens to offer a large amount of vegan treats. You'll find cookies, tarts, truffles, pies, cup cakes and loads of other goodies to appease your vegan sweet tooth. They are located just a short way from the Arboreatum in Boston, so you can easily make a stop at Fiore's into a a day trip.

On our visit we tried an orange spice cookie and two of the tarts (gluten free, BTW) Both the peanut butter and the chocolate tarts were delicious. The cookie was mighty tasty as well.

Little Lad's Vegan Bakery

Little Lad's
482 Congress St
Portland, ME 04101
207 871 1636
Website
*Also has an NYC location

Little Lad's is one of my favorite places to stop when I am in Maine. The have a $3.99 lunch buffet with loads of healthy and delicious vegan dishes. In addition the have a regular menu which consists mainly of sandwiches served on Lad's fresh whole grain bread. Each entree comes with their famous herbal corn. My favorite is the Stake Out sandwich, it is soooo good.

The store also has a small grocery area where you can purchase more of the popcorn including herbal, Snacker Jack (better than CrackJack), and BBQ flavors. You'll also find breads, crackers, granola, cookies, and hand pies. In the refrigerator case you'll find Not Cho' Cheeze (makes great mac and cheese or nachos), Buttah (made with no uddah) , ice cream and other items depending on what day you stop in.

Everyone in the store in incredibly friendly and helpful. In Maine, there is on street parking only. Garages are nearby if the town is busy.

If you are lucky enough to see cherry hand pies on your visit, gobble one up!

Cafe Noche

Cafe Noche
147 Main St
Conway, NH 03818
603 447 5050
Website (not operational at the time of this review)

I found Cafe Noche while I was in North Conway for two weeks of training related to work. Cafe N is not 100% vegetarian, but veg friendly. Honestly I didn't expect authentic Mexican fare in NH, but they surprised me. The restaurant is small, but cozy with funky decor. The wait staff were very attentive and answered any questions I had about which dishes I could eat. The food was wonderful

Parking is on street, but plentiful. Don't forget to pickup some of their delicious homemade sauces on your way out.

Elephant Walk

Elephant Walk
663 Main Street
Waltham, MA 02451
781 899 2244
Website
(Additional locations in Cambridge and Boston, check their site for address and info.)

Elephant Walk is rather well known and has won awards for both the food and wine list. The fare is French Cambodian. Surprisingly, their have a separate vegan menu. My family and I visited EW for my 30th birthday after my skydiving adventure. I had a wonderful salad from the specials menu that consisted of endive, beets, almonds and a lemon vinaigrette. My meal was the Mee Siem. It was flavorful, but very salty. Last weekend, I was also at Elephant Walk with a larger group of vegan friends. After our food arrived, most everyone at the table also noted the saltiness.

A public parking lot is available at the Waltham location. There is a restaurant owned lot behind the Cambridge location. In Boston, you will only find on street parking.

While Elephant Walk is a great change of pace when looking to try something different, I can't recommend it as highly as other restaurants. The salty food and high prices are a turn off for me.