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    Vegan in New York: Champs Diner & more

    Published: Aug 28, 2015 · Modified: May 5, 2021 by Cadry Nelson
    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please see my Privacy Policy for more details.

    Hand holding bagel stuffed with non-dairy cream cheese.

    After getting off to a great start the night before at Candle 79, I began my first full day in New York the way every day there must start – with a bagel.

    Where I live, non-dairy cream cheese only exists in the grocery store. In Iowa bagel shops, I usually go with the option of hummus. David opts for peanut butter.

    However, in New York City, tofu cream cheese abounds with a variety of flavors like scallion, vegetable, and olive. (And plain, of course, too.) I snagged a toasted bagel with scallion tofu cream cheese before jumping on the subway to meet up with Dianne.

    Dianne writes the blog Dianne’s Vegan Kitchen and is the editor-in-chief at Chic Vegan. We met at Vida Vegan Con in Portland a couple of years ago, and she showed me around Greenwich Village when we were there last year. We always have so much fun together.

    Since we’re both vegan food bloggers our interests overlap. We’re both happy ducking into vegan doughnut shops and ice cream stores.

    Plus, it’s great seeing the city with a local who knows the best spots and can take you there without getting lost on the way.

    Dianne and I met up at Penn Station. Then we continued on the train together to Brooklyn.

    Champs Diner

    Exterior Champs Diner in Brooklyn, New York.

    I had heard so many raves about Champs Diner, and I was looking forward to trying it myself. There was a 20-minute wait, and so Dianne and I stood outside and talked until our names were called.

    The restaurant is totally vegan and has a cute 50’s diner motif. The extensive menu covers breakfasts to after dinner milkshakes and egg creams.

    Vegan mozzarella cheese sticks with marinara in basket.

    Dianne's hand holding gooey mozzarella cheese stick.

    Dianne and I shared an order of mozzarella sticks with marinara dipping sauce to start.

    They come with four to an order, which was perfect for two people. The sticks were perfectly crisp on the outside with gooey mozzarella non-dairy cheese melted inside.

    If you go to Champs, you need these. No question.

    Seitan reuben on rye with a side salad.

    For lunch, I ordered the reuben. It was stuffed with grilled seitan, like the best reubens are, sauerkraut, melty cheese, and Russian dressing on toasted marbled rye.

    This didn’t take me to the heights of the Chicago Diner reuben, but it was still quite good.

    Dun-Well Doughnuts

    Exterior Dun-Well Doughnuts in Brooklyn, New York.

    After lunch, we walked to nearby Dun-Well Doughnuts. Too stuffed to eat any doughnuts at that moment, I grabbed four to share with David later.

    (To read more about Dun-Well, check out this post from last year’s visit.)

    After that we hopped back on the subway and took the train to Manhattan for more stops at Pearl River and Moo Shoes before parting ways.

    David had been working that day, and we went to dinner with one of his co-workers that evening. The co-worker isn’t vegan and preferred going to a non-vegan restaurant. I had asked Dianne for a suggestion, and she mentioned Pala Pizza, which has both non-vegan and vegan menus.

    Pala Pizza

    Potato chips in metal bucket.

    We started with patatini, homemade potato chips. Usually when I get homemade potato chips at a restaurant, they come out hot. However, these were room temperature.

    They had the flavor of truffle oil and fresh herbs.

    Salad with grilled artichokes and tomatoes in bowl.

    We shared the carciofi al parmigiano, a salad with greens, grilled artichokes, and cherry tomatoes. It typically comes with Daiya cheese, but I asked for it to be omitted.

    The salad had a light, lemony dressing that enhanced without being overbearing.

    Sausage and mushroom pizza on wooden board.

    All of the vegan pizzas come with Daiya. David and I prefer a cheeseless pizza. However, for whatever reason there’s only one that they’ll make without cheese. We weren’t interested in that particular pizza. So we ordered the funghi e salsiccia with light Daiya cheese.

    It was topped with Field Roast sausage, mushrooms, and hot pepper. The pizza comes without sauce. But they’ll add it if you prefer. In retrospect, I think it would have been better with sauce, because it was a little on the dry side.

    This “personal” pizza was plenty for two to share, especially with a salad and appetizer to start.

    After dinner, we walked through the city before hopping on the subway and heading to our hotel for the night.

    To read about the next day of our New York City trip, check out this post on Franchia Vegan Cafe.

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    Comments

    1. Molly

      August 28, 2015 at 11:03 am

      I also visited Champs for the first time last month! We stopped by for breakfast, and their tofu scramble was the best I’ve ever had. I was also excited to see that Dunwell was so close, so the next day when it was a long wait at Champs, we just walked around the corner and had doughnuts instead. And isn’t it amazing when you can walk into almost any bagel shop and purchase a bagel with vegan cream cheese? There are a surprising number of places in Boston that offer vegan cream cheese. Man, I love NYC.

      Reply
      • Molly

        August 28, 2015 at 11:04 am

        Oops, I meant there are a surprising number of places in Boston that *don’t* offer vegan cc!

        Reply
      • Cadry

        August 31, 2015 at 8:05 am

        Oh, that makes me want to go back! I love a good tofu scramble. What made theirs so delicious? It is amazing that vegan cream cheese is so omnipresent in New York. There’s not much better in the world than a NYC bagel.

        Reply
    2. Dianne

      August 28, 2015 at 12:11 pm

      I had such a fun day! I’ll gladly be your tour guide anytime you’re in NYC!
      P.S. The last time I ordered the homemade potato chips at Pala they were piping hot – weird that yours weren’t.

      Reply
      • Cadry

        August 31, 2015 at 8:12 am

        I had such a wonderful day too! Thank you for showing me around. I will definitely be taking you up on your offer in the future, and if your travels ever take you to Iowa, consider me your Rick Steves. 🙂

        That’s good to know about the potato chips at Pala. I thought it was strange and a bit disappointing that they weren’t hot. At least now I know it was a fluke or oversight.

        Reply
    3. Susan

      August 28, 2015 at 8:26 pm

      I hear so many good things about Champs!

      Reply
      • Cadry

        August 31, 2015 at 8:13 am

        Knowing how much you enjoy diners, you would be into it for sure!

        Reply
    4. Veganopoulous

      August 30, 2015 at 5:04 am

      I’m so envious about being able to see Vaute in person! I bought one of their cardigans online and shipping was so expensive to Australia– obviously not their fault and I was prepared to pay. But I forgot to take the exchange rate in to account and had a massive shock when I saw my credit card bill! I’d have no hesitation buying from there again though when the Aussie dollar isn’t so sucky!

      Reply
      • Cadry

        August 31, 2015 at 8:15 am

        Oh, no! I can totally understand that being an unhappy surprise. It was really fun to see all of the coats/hats/dresses in person and try them on. Plus, the people who work there are lovely human beings.

        Reply
    5. Caitlin

      September 01, 2015 at 6:31 am

      I am so jealous of your trip to NYC, I haven’t been in a long time and there are so many places I want to check out!

      Reply
      • Cadry

        September 04, 2015 at 10:03 am

        It’s such an amazing place with a dizzying amount of options. I’m never able to hit all of the places I want to try in one trip, but that means I’m always excited to go back to NYC the next time.

        Reply
    6. Casey

      June 02, 2016 at 9:44 am

      I am going to NYC at the end of the month and your blog posts are so helpful! Champs looks AMAZING. I can’t wait to try so many places. Thanks for your posts 🙂

      Reply
      • Cadry

        June 02, 2016 at 12:21 pm

        I’m so glad to hear that the posts are helpful! You are going to have such an amazing time. NYC is the best!

        Reply

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    Hi, I'm Cadry!

    I’m a longtime vegan. (14 years!) But I grew up eating a Standard American Diet. I know that all of us crave foods that are familiar, comforting, and delicious.

    That’s why it’s my passion to share mouthwatering plant-based recipes that taste like home.

    More about me →

    Spring recipes

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    • Vegan eggs Benedict (for an amazing brunch!)
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    Salads

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    • Israeli couscous salad with olives & artichokes

    Easy weeknight meals

    • Air fryer baked potato in about 35 minutes
    • Buffalo chickpea sandwich with vegan blue cheese
    • Three bean chili: Warm up with a bowl
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