IT’S easier to find vegan and gluten-free choices on the menu these days, as opposed to back
in the day when hapless vegetarians had to contend with people’s perception that you only take out the meat bits in, say, pansit, forgetting the whole thing was probably sautéed in pork and fat.
Now, it’s only a hop and a skip away from food trends all over the world to your table.
SUSI, which bills itself as “the key to sustainable living,” is dedicated to serving not only both gluten-free and vegan (some restaurants will only offer one or the other) meals but also do it with careful attention and a desire to make the meals hearty and familiar.
The interiors are decidedly pinterest-y with distressed wood accents, and a charming sun room that recalls a bistro. We started with mushroom gyoza. I’d say mushrooms are always a good idea. This is more of a deep-fried dumpling because a gyoza would imply it was partly steamed, but it’s a delectable savory parcel, with sweet aftertaste.
Half the fun in vegan/gluten-free cooking is the substitutes, and for people who aren’t that familiar with this way of eating, the way to being able to appreciate this kind of cuisine is to not compare them to the ingredients they are being substituted for, but to enjoy the ingredients in their own way.
The Greek salad substituted tofu cubes for feta cheese, and while you might have missed the salty tang of a feta cube in salad, I still enjoyed the tofu and liked the salad’s refreshing orange vinaigrette. The dishes are often named after people, and the Emerson presented itself like a meatloaf or an embotido, if you will, and served with rice. Rice, as we all know, is both vegan and gluten-free. The meat loaf is made of quinoa and lentils, which immediately reminded me of a dhal dish that a former officemate, who was vegan, always bought from TAJ, and it was also similarly spiced.
The carbonara is delicious and lighter, of course with gluten-free noodles. The “cream” is made with an emulsion of cashew nuts and other ingredients. Noodles dishes tend to lend themselves very well to gluten-free dishes because there are many substitutes to choose from. The cashew-nut cream also had bits of sun-dried tomatoes and capers. This is probably my favorite of all the dishes. The gluten-free bread that most use is made from chickpea flour, which already has a built-in savoriness to it, and which I enjoy.
The vegan churri-burger is a lovely sight, and obviously a lot of experimentation happened to make it look this good. The patty looked like a medium-rare meat burger because it has beets, along with brown rice and black beans for heft. The burger is topped with chimichurri, which gives it a good zest. There is a perception that meat substitutes taste the same, but the chef is careful in making sure that the “meats” have their own distinct flavor profile. Everyone loved the sweet potato sprinkled with paprika, especially dipped in a smooth garlic aioli. I actually preferred this soy milk aioli because it had a smoother finish and had less umay.
I assumed the spicy vegan ramen as going to have a miso base, but I was surprised with a rich, thick and milky mushroom broth that also had a bit of kick. The noodles used in this had a brown-rice base, which again lends itself well to vegan and gluten-free dishes. They carry Super Scoops premium vegan ice cream, which we had for dessert. Super Scoops is a local premium brand of ice cream using coconut milk. It is rich and silky smooth and sweetened with coconut sap. You probably wouldn’t realize this didn’t have dairy, but then again, that coconut milk makes for good ice cream something that isn’t really surprising to us because ours is the land of sorbetes. I had the dark chocolate red-wine flavor, which marries the sweet tanginess of both these flavors so well. Susi has an interesting curated wine list, as well as specific beers, because you might assume that most spirits are vegan, but some are processed with gelatin or egg whites.
Vegans and those on gluten-free diets will surely be happy with Susi, which keeps in mind the taste and pleasure of dining, as well as the nutritional value of the dishes, making sure they are the right amount of protein and carbohydrates, as well. But those of us who are on regular diets may do well to try plant-based substitutes from time to time, not only does it give your palate a break from the richness of a carnivorous diet, it’s also quite tasty.
Image credits: Michael Pituc