Patio · Vegetarian

Vegan Street (Beltline)

To celebrate Summer’s successful internship, we went out to celebrate. I checked around, and most places couldn’t accommodate a group of our size. Sunflower mentioned Vegan Street is one of Summer’s favourite restaurants. I called, and they were happy to accommodate our group. For this post, let’s listen to “Summer of ’69” by Bryan Adams.

Vegan Street reserved two tables for us in one room. Our table was between the bar and the patio. It had just started to rain, so with the open door, the air was cool and fresh.

On Wednesday, wine by the bottle is half off, and appetizers are three dollars less. I ordered a bottle of Landlust Organic Dry Riesling ($39, HH $20) to share with Dalhousie. We debated a little as to if the wine was tart or sweet. As we are both pretty chill people, we decided we found the wine acidic and/or sweet.


Sunflower and Queen’s Gambit ordered a Virgo cocktail ($15, HH $10). Queen’s Gambit mentioned she always gets the featured drink because it is seasonal and won’t be on the menu for long. She remarked her cocktail wasn’t overly citrusy and nicely balanced with matcha tea’s flavour.


When the rest of the crew arrived at our table, I recited the specials and gave my recommendations: the kalamari and fish tacos. I mentioned the fish is made from heart palm, which gives it a creamier, smoother, superior texture than fish. I also said that I heard the Chickin Bites ($16.50, HH $13.50) were supposed to be very tasty, as well as the mushroom tacos and truffle mushroom burger. Field asked if I had shares in the restaurant because I knew the menu so well. I said no, I just had a deep love for delicious food.


Vegan Street makes its Kalamari ($16.50, HH $13.50) from local blue oyster mushrooms. The firm texture mimicked squid’s bounciness but without any fishy flavour. The batter was light and melted in my mouth. The best thing about the kalamari was the flavour of the seasoning and the creamy, zippy tzatziki sauce.

There were pops of flavour from the pickled capers, spiciness from the jalapenos, and aromaticness from the onions. This dish is so good that I could happily eat this vegan version over any other ‘real’ kalamari.


I tried Dalhousie’s sweet chilli chickin bites. I thought the outer skin layer of the tofu imitated the toothsome texture of real chicken. Lighty breaded and heavily sauced, the tofu bites were finger-licking good.
I want to take L here for the fish tacos and the mushroom truffle burger, even though I know he will resist. He’s a die-hard meatatarian. However, if Vegan Street can make a version of calamari and fish better than the real thing, they can convert anyone. Hitting the Sauce gives Vegan Street two phat thumbs

Happy Hour · Vegetarian

Vegan Street in Inglewood

After our wine tasting at Brick’s Wine Company, Sunflower and I wanted to grab a drink and bite to eat. As Sunflower is a vegetarian, I suggested Vegan Street. It turns out she’s already visited, and she’s a fan of the margaritas and food. Let’s listen to “Girlfriend” by Avril Lavigne for this post.

As I was lugging six bottles of wine, I walked slower than usual. Sunflower offered to take my bag partway, but I told her I could use the exercise as I neglect weights in my daily workout routine. She’s seven years younger than me, so she doesn’t know about the trials we older broads face.

We made it just in time for happy hour. Every day from 3:00-5:00 p.m., Vegan Street offers five-dollar draft beer and tacos and six-dollar margaritas, house wine, and tall beer cans.

Sunflower recommended the Charred Pineapple ($6). Oh man, these vegans don’t mess around with their cocktails. This margarita was even better than Anjeo. My drink was sweet but not sugary. I could taste the roasted pineapple and fresh citrus. I would order this again. This is easily the best margarita in the city.

I ordered two tacos. The No-Fish taco ($5) consisted of beer-battered palm hearts. The smooth, buttery texture and taste mimicked white fish so well that I couldn’t tell it wasn’t fish. I also enjoyed the burst of flavour from the ripe mango and sweet corn garnish. This taco is a winner.

The Korean Fried Chickin was huge, piled high with sweet deep-fried soy curls. This taco was messy to eat – the spicy aioli and kimchi would drip down and plop onto my plate. Of the two, I preferred the palm heart taco because I could still taste the soy in the chickin. The litmus test for vegetarian food is if it even better than what it seeks to imitate.

Sunflower tried three tacos – the No Fish, Asada Portobello, and the Pulled Porque. Of the three, her favourite was the Asada Portobello taco. I’ll have to come back and try this one. I noticed the tacos were all generously stuffed. What makes these tacos stand out are the creative ingredients, such as the grilled pineapple salsa, watermelon radish, and lime crema. When vegetables taste this good, you don’t miss the meat.

Thanks, Sunflower, for treating me to this delicious vegetarian experience. I’m keen to come back again and check out their other dishes. Hitting the Sauce gives Vegan Street to phat thumbs up.