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    NYC travel: Vegan in downtown New York City

    Published: Nov 8, 2014 · Modified: May 6, 2021 by Cadry Nelson
    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please see my Privacy Policy for more details.

    NYC travel highlights: Vegan dining at Peacefood Cafe, lunch at the acclaimed Cinnamon Snail food truck, a walk around Little Italy, and a respectful visit to the 9/11 Memorial and One World Trade Center.

    Cadry and David in front of One World Trade Center in New York City, New York.

    After a Statue of Liberty visit, Dun-Well Doughnuts in Brooklyn, a walk around Central Park, and shopping in Greenwich Village, we capped off our NYC travels downtown.

    Peacefood Café

    Interior Peacefood Cafe with tables, chairs, and patrons.

    The downtown location of Peacefood Café is in the same neighborhood as Strand Book Store and Forbidden Planet. The clean and brightly lit space was decorated beautifully. And the dessert case beckoned.

    (Heads up: Peacefood Cafe has a second location in Uptown.)

    Oyster mushrooms with sauteed kale, parsnip puree, fried chickpeas, and lotus root.

    I ordered a dish that must have been a special, because it’s not listed on their online menu.

    It was a parsnip puree with fried chickpeas, oyster mushrooms, and sautéed kale. It was topped with crisp slices of lotus root.

    Roasted potatoes pizza with arugula on plate.

    NYC travel had put David in a pizza state of mind.

    He ordered the roasted potatoes pizza, which was topped with mushrooms, oil cured black olives, pesto, and then a healthy helping of arugula.

    Cinnamon Snail food truck

    Cinnamon Snail food truck on streets of New York City.

    Another must when I was in NYC was visiting the Cinnamon Snail truck.

    It has won a ton of food truck awards and seems to be universally loved by vegans and non-vegans alike. Everyone has absolutely raved about going there, and so I could hardly wait to visit.

    (Update: Cinnamon Snail will be closing shop at the end of March 2020. Get there while you can!)

    I hopped on the subway to the location where they were parked that day in the Flatiron neighborhood. 

    Tempeh sandwich on parchment paper.

    By the time I arrived, I was famished. Luckily, the line wasn’t terribly long. I only waited about 10 or 15 minutes.

    I was conflicted about what to get. But when I saw that they had a pretzel-crusted tempeh reuben special with fried capers, I knew what I had to order. I also ordered a couple of pastries to share later with David.

    I thought the sandwich was tasty. But next time I’d probably order one of the seitan options instead.

    Eataly

    Eataly, the large Italian shopping/food court, wasn’t far away from there. So I walked over afterwards to peruse the pastas, sauces, and cookware for sale. There were also several eateries inside selling pizzas, coffee, wine, and more.

    Since I’d just eaten, I didn’t have any food, but it would be fun to do on a future visit.

    Little Italy

    Cadry and David eating vegan sorbet in NYC

    Christmas in New York store in downtown New York City.

    On our last full day of NYC travel, my friend, Katrina, joined us. We walked around Little Italy and stopped at the Christmas in New York shop for sorbet. (All of the fruit flavors were dairy-free.)

    I like to buy Christmas ornaments on my travels. It’s one of my favorite souvenirs, because then once a year I get to take my ornaments out of their boxes, enjoy them again, and remember the trip where I purchased them.

    David and I started the tradition on our honeymoon. We’ve been collecting ornaments on our trips ever since.

    Adrienne’s Pizzabar

    Square cheeseless pizza in baking sheet.

    We went for pizza in the Financial District at a restaurant called Adrienne’s Pizzabar. It’s not a vegan restaurant. But their pizza sauce and crust is vegan if ordered without cheese.

    There was an outdoor eating area that reminded me of restaurant alleyways in Italy. Very quaint. However, on this hot day, we decided to eat inside.

    We ordered one of the large rectangular pizzas that was more than enough for three. We picked our own toppings and chose mushrooms, basil, garlic, and kalamata olives.

    The pizza was absolutely fabulous and popping with flavor.

    9/11 Memorial & One World Trade Center

    9/11 Memorial in New York City, NY

    Finally, we went to the 9/11 Memorial nearby.

    The water from the memorial blocked out the sound from the city. It is a huge open square that flows into another square. The concept of emptiness flowing into emptiness is a powerful one. The names of the victims were written all around the sides.

    There was a guard walking around the outside of the memorial. She reminded anyone with drinks not to put cups on the memorial. I appreciated that she was there to maintain respect for the space.

    There was one woman who was doing a rubbing of a name, and the guard asked if she knew that person. The woman said, “This is my daughter,” and the guard reached out and hugged her.

    The last time I had been to New York wasn’t too long after 9/11 happened. So to be back and see the memorial and the new Freedom Tower (One World Trade Center) was powerful – both remembering and moving forward to create something new.

    One World Trade Center in the rain in New York City.

    For more NYC travels, check out my New York travel page.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. beachmama

      November 08, 2014 at 9:50 pm

      I’ve not been to NYC so I’ve not see the 911 memorial. Your description of the sight is appreciated but your description of the woman doing a ‘rubbing’ and the guard says it all . . .“This is my daughter,” and the guard reached out and hugged her.”

      Reply
      • Cadry

        November 12, 2014 at 9:20 am

        The moment gave me chills. The guard’s presence as both respectful and compassionate was touching.

        Reply
    2. panda cookie

      November 08, 2014 at 10:36 pm

      Oh man. I’ve never been to any of the restaurants you talk about in this post. So much has changed since I lived there! One day I’ll get to the Cinnamon Snail. Glad y’all had so much fun!

      Reply
      • Cadry

        November 12, 2014 at 9:21 am

        Yes, it was such a great time! I can’t wait to go back to NYC again. Hopefully it won’t be over a decade like it was between my last two trips!

        Reply
    3. Caitlin

      November 09, 2014 at 2:13 pm

      Whoa, that show sounds crazy but really cool! I am jealous you tried Cinnamon Snail, I really want to go there!

      Reply
      • Cadry

        November 12, 2014 at 9:23 am

        The show was just amazing, and even better, I had zero expectations going in. David’s coworker/friend had described it a little to us, but that’s it. Otherwise, everything was a complete surprise.

        I’d heard so much about Cinnamon Snail, it was one of my few “musts” on the trip. I’m glad I was able to get there!

        Reply
    4. Veganopoulous

      November 09, 2014 at 8:38 pm

      I’m on the other side of the world and know about Cinnamon Snail 😛 Glad there was a vegan pizza from a non-vegan pizza place that tasted great, down here they mostly seem to be blergh and bland unless you go to a vegan pizza place! What a touching story about the guard at the memorial.

      Reply
      • Cadry

        November 12, 2014 at 9:25 am

        That’s awesome that you’re on the other side of the world but know about Cinnamon Snail. That’s such a classic vegan thing (especially vegan blogger thing) to be aware of vegan restaurants and dishes in places you haven’t been! 🙂

        Reply
    5. Caitlin

      November 10, 2014 at 10:02 am

      that special you ordered is out of control amazing looking.

      Reply
      • Cadry

        November 12, 2014 at 9:25 am

        Isn’t it beautiful? I was so excited when it showed up in front of me on the table. I love the layering effect and especially the lotus root on top. Very dramatic.

        Reply
    6. Bianca

      November 10, 2014 at 4:18 pm

      I’ve never been to NYC! I must get there one day. Man, that parsnip puree looks crazy awesome and supe-fancy!!

      Reply
      • Cadry

        November 12, 2014 at 9:27 am

        I know you will just love NYC once you get there. It’s really a city that has everything. Especially in comparison to my current small-town life, it was a sea of stimulus.

        Reply
    7. glutenfreehappytummy

      November 10, 2014 at 8:12 pm

      yay! you hit some of my favorite NYC spots!! I’ve always wanted to see Fuerza Bruta! glad you had a good time

      Reply
      • Cadry

        November 12, 2014 at 9:27 am

        Fuerza Bruta was amazing! I hope you get a chance to see one of their shows someday!

        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.

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    Spring recipes

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    Salads

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    Easy weeknight meals

    • Air fryer baked potato in about 35 minutes
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