Reviews written by shvegan

If you live in Corvallis, or the surrounding area, the co-op is definitely the best place to grocery shop and their produce is some of the best I've seen a store anywhere. The majority of it is farmer-direct and insanely fresh and tasty.

I wish I could say the same for their hot bar and packaged food selection. Though they have a few vegan selections that are quite tasty(a tempeh salad and a thai noodle salad) there is never any guarentee they'll be available. Many times I've gone in there and found there was not a single vegan selection available. I find this very frustrating, and completely senseless, given the population that they serve and the ingredients that are available to them. There is no reason that they should not be able to commit to at least a few good vegan selections in each main food category(entree, hot bar, salad, dessert, etc) for each day.

If you're not a vegan, I'm sure I'd probably be pretty happy with their cold selection, though I'd still stay away from the hot bar, unless you get there within a half-hour of them putting it out.

Interzone features quality organic coffee in a relaxed atmosphere. I'm a black coffee drinker, so I have not had many of their other coffee drinks, though my boyfriend says they have the best soy lattes in town. It's my favorite coffee in town too.
Interzone has a weekend breakfast with a seperate vegan menu. It's basic, but tasty, and everything is cooked to order. You can also order everything a la carte if you don't want a whole meal, or don't like the combinations offered. Other than weekend, they offer bagel sandwiches during the week, and I'm not sure what else, but it's not a full menu. On some days(I have yet to figure out which ones, or what time) they have fresh baked muffins and coffee cake, which are also vegan. The coffee cake is the best ever! The muffins can be hit or miss. I had a gorgeous hot berry muffin one day, and the next time a banana muffin that was crunchy on the outside with a giant piece of soggy banana on the inside.

The atmosphere is nice too. Some of the people who work their are very friendly and remember your order, and a few are pretty standoffish, but not rude. It is often quite busy, but not excessively noisy, a good place to read or hang out and study. They usually play pretty good tunes as well, an eclectic mix. Sometimes they have poetry readings, art/craft shows, and other events.

Nearly Normal's is the best place in Corvallis for vegan/vegetarian food. I like their veggie plates the best,meaning the entrees that feature veggies over other items. They also offer seasonal specials that make good use of what veggies might be available and freshest at the time. The sunburger is also good. The menu is a bit schizophrenic. There are alot of mexican type dishes, and some italian/pasta type dishes, most of which are not vegan. I find this unfortunate, as they could easily offer modified versions of non-vegan entrees with a bit of extra effort. It does kind of limit the choices, and as the only fully vegetarian restaurant in the city, it's disappointing that they don't cater to vegans a bit more. They can also be a bit crabby about substitutions, depending on who is behind the counter.

I would not recommend their breakfast dishes so much, as they ones I've had tended to be over spiced and heavily reliant on potatoes.

The atmosphere is nice, with lots of seating options(small tables, big ones, tucked away ones etc.)and they have a great patio in the warmer/drier months.

My partner and I were wanting to try Govinda's for quite awhile and finally decided to drop in one night. Unfortunately, we were a bit disappointed and did not stay to eat.

The buffet had several tasty looking items, like fresh looking salad greens, and a yummy looking dal. The 2 or 3 make entree-type dishes, however, all contained dairy. Additional items on the smallish buffet were either non-vegan or a bit picked-over so as to appear as if they were on the verge of needing to be replenished.

At the full dinner buffet price, we did not feel that greens and dal worked out to a good deal, or a satisfying dinner on a day when we were feeling really hungry.

I will go back and check Govinda's out again, but perhaps for lunch instead.

Morning Glory is yummy yummy and the best place in Eugene for a good vegan breakfast. They offer a nice selection of entrees for both breakfast and lunch, as well as vegan pastries and fresh squeezed orange juice.

The food can be a bit inconsistent, but is reasonably priced, generously proportioned, and generally tasty.

I can't actually rate the waffles because I've never eaten one, but a recent trip to attempt to eat a waffle did not go so well.

I saw their advertisement in the weekly, which mentioned a vegan waffle, cooked in a non-vegan iron. Wanting to know a bit more about their vegan options before showing up, I called to ask a few questions. The guy to answered the phone was very friendly and explained that they did have a vegan waffle, but that it was cooked with other non-vegan waffles. I don't know much about waffle irons, but after asking a few more questions, I was not quite sure how vegan the waffle actually was. I sort of wandered: If you are going to advertise vegan waffles, why not make them 100% vegan and just set aside 1 iron for the job?

In any case, I really like lots of margarine and a bit of pure maple syrup on my waffles, and so I asked if these were available. He said they were out of both, but that their waffles were so good they did not need any condiments.

At this point the conversation, I thought it was a little odd that a waffle house would be out of syrup and the like. Naturally, I was imagining sitting down at a table with a fresh hot waffle on a plate and a cup of coffee. I was not convinced that would happen, but got really intrigued and wanted to know exactly what it was they served there. Since my partner and I were going to drive past on our way to our favorite breakfast place, we though we'd drop in, check it out, and if it was good, just eat there.

Well...the outside of the house that Off the Waffle operates out of is cute and charming, with a little patio and lights. There were several people outside enjoying coffee, but I did not see any waffles. Upon entering the house, we walked into a very small room(think an apartment-sized living room). There were quite a few people in the room and it felt very crowded; small children were playing with toys strewn all over the floor, and the only table(a two-top) was occupied. A few feet from the door was a counter, and behind it a guy with a big orange fro(like their advertisement) and behind him a curtain. It was all very wizard of ozish!

My partner and I stood around in what we thought was a lobby or something for a minute or two before realizing that this was it! This was the whole dining area! I kind of wanted to talk with orange fro guy and ask a few more questions, but my partner was not feeling it and so we left.

When I got home, I did a bit of research and finally figured out that they sell a special kind of waffle that is like belgian street food or something. It comes in a little brown paper sack and is very sweet. After reading about the product, the whole set up make a lot more sense.

I still want to try a waffle someday, but if the guy on the phone would simply have explained what the product was, and if the advertising was clearer about the fact that this is not a traditional, sit-down waffle house, it all would have been so much easier.

I still don't understand the quasi-vegan waffle, though. I'd love it if someone could explain that a little better.

PRI is the only place I'll go for vegan pizza in Eugene. And, its difficult to get away from the P3, which what I end of ordering pretty much every time I go. Personally, the huge veggie chucks on the chef's choice are just not that appealing to me.

PRI opened at a new location recently, and though the decor and ambiance get a bit better everytime I'm there, I have to say I kind of miss the funky intimacy of the old PRI. The new space has a lot of potential(to serve more people, offer live music, large patio, etc) but I think it will just take some time for it to develop its own vibe.

If you're in Portland the Blossoming Lotus is definitely worth a visit. Yeah, it is a tiny cafe in a "trendy" yoga studio, but the food is fresh and delicious, generously portioned, and reasonably priced. I've been there five or six times now and have sampled a variety of foods from the menu. I'm not much of a raw food fan, but the live nachos are very good. You also can't go wrong with a bowl, which I can never finish. The soft serve was pretty good, and I had a pumpkin muffin once that was very yummy! In my experience the service has been inconsistent, sometimes friendly and efficient(they even offered free chai after a long wait one night),and other times slow and spacey.