Positioned just 17 minutes by automobile from Emory University, Cafe Sunflower presents a stellar vegan cuisine with a vast array of meals from all all around the planet. No matter if you are a plant-based eater, wanting to dip your toes into veganism or are just hoping to accommodate your vegan or vegetarian close friends, this cafe is the ideal location to go for a unforgettable eating working experience.
I went to Cafe Sunflower with my dad on Feb. 23, a birthday tradition that commenced a several months in advance of the pandemic began in 2020. For a Wednesday night, the restaurant was surprisingly crowded, with just about each and every table occupied. The dining area alone was informal and comfortable, with straightforward wooden decor. The hanging lights and present day artwork all around the cafe brightened the inside noticeably, giving it a charming atmosphere.
(Krithika Shrinivas / The Emory Wheel.)
For our appetizers, we ordered the Buffalo Lollipops and Steamed Dumplings. The lollipops were my favourite aspect of this evening meal. These soy chicken drumsticks ended up coated in a loaded buffalo sauce with a vegan blue cheese dip on the facet together with a number of refreshing sticks of celery.
The drumsticks were being so tender and succulent, and their daring flavors had been complemented properly by the mild and creamy dip. My only complaint was that there weren’t adequate of them!
The steamed dumplings ended up incredibly flavorful, as effectively, filled with a vibrant blend of Asian cabbage, carrots, tofu, black mushrooms and spinach and accompanied by a piquant soy-ginger dipping sauce. This appetizer is a terrific option for everyone who enjoys Asian foodstuff but prefers a milder spice degree.
(Krithika Shrinivas / The Emory Wheel.)
From shrimp tacos to orzo eggplant lasagna, Cafe Sunflower provides delectable most important programs from a variety of intercontinental cuisines. We made the decision to get the Pesto Pasta and Spicy Pad Thai Noodles, outdated favorites of ours that we wished to expertise at the Cafe Sunflower.
The pesto pasta was mouthwatering, with a walnut pesto sauce that could very easily pass for classic pesto. The dish was topped with broccoli, spinach, mushrooms, artichoke and capers, with two parts of garlic bread on the facet to make for a very well-well balanced and filling food.
Although the pesto pasta was a treat, the spicy pad thai noodles were being a bit disappointing. Not simply because the dish wasn’t delicious, but instead since the noodles have been a pretty Americanized model of this vibrant, zesty Thai dish, coming throughout more as a bowl of pasta than noodles because of the creamy sauce.
(Krithika Shrinivas / The Emory Wheel.)
A superior selection for people who stick to a gluten-cost-free diet regime, these rice noodles ended up garnished with zucchini, environmentally friendly beans, red bell peppers, mushrooms, baked tofu, kale, carrots and crushed peanuts with a prosperous coconut-tahini sauce. The sauce reminded me of alfredo sauce, except that it was strongly infused with coconut essence.
It was a considerably cry from traditional pad thai, which is sweet, savory and tangy, and it did not dwell up to its spicy advertisement. Even so, this entree was comforting and the assortment of veggies created it healthy and eye-catching.
We chose to skip dessert, as the restaurant only gives a collection of vegan cakes that we did not want at the minute. From prior ordeals, the cakes are scrumptious, with my beloved staying their carrot cake.
Skipping dessert gave us time to look at the many plaques at the entrance of the restaurant that are devoted to Lin and Edward Solar, the chefs and house owners of this nationally recognized and award-winning cafe.
While their Sandy Springs cafe, established in 1994, closed following 25 decades of being in business enterprise, the Buckhead restaurant, started 3 a long time afterwards, is open up and thriving. The chefs started Cafe Sunflower right after mastering about holistic well being and starting to be vegetarians in the early 1990s.
Presently in the restaurant small business, the house owners bought their current places to eat to discovered Cafe Sunflower, hoping to make vegetarianism much more obtainable and to alter a frequent perception of vegetarian fare as flavorless and monotonous.
The chefs accomplished this mission, as the world wide cuisine provided at this restaurant is delectable. Cafe Sunflower has revolutionized the plant-dependent culinary scene in Atlanta, and I would really recommend it to everyone, vegan or normally!
In general: 4.5/5
