California Vegetarian

As promised, George and I returned to California Cafe to check back in on their quality of food and service for vegetarians, and we were not disappointed. Read my original review here.

They had started their autumn menu this time. We really enjoy restaurants that change with the seasons, being cognizant of season vegetables and yet retaining a high quality of food. It turns out that California Cafe is one such restaurant.

This time around we each ordered the chef’s butternut squash soup. It wasn’t too sweet, and wasn’t too savory. It was just right, and not only did it lack animal stock, it was also dairy free. So, the vegan in your party would be happy, as well. Oh, I should make one small note: Our host asked the kitchen for us if the soup was vegetarian because our server was a bit tardy in getting to us. The kitchen sent the host back with instructions to tell us that it was animal stock and dairy free. So, we ordered a cup of soup each ($4.75). We were surprised when the cup arrived at our table with a small marshmallow sitting on top of the soup in the middle of the bowl. We chose to simply remove the marshmallow, assuming that it, like most marshmallows contained gelatin. We could have been wrong, and the marshmallow could have been gelatin-free, and we could have been sticklers and sent it back because of contamination if it wasn’t gelatin-free, but we decided that easiest and least wasteful thing to do would be to spoon it off before it could melt any and enjoy the soup. This is all to say that any given server may need a bit more guidance when dealing with vegetarian dinners even if the establishment as a whole seems aware, or vice versa. Still, the soup was excellent, and we highly recommend it. Just tell your server to make sure the kitchen leaves off the marshmallow if it contains gelitan.

We decided to go from the healthy dairy-free cup of soup to sharing an order of the super unhealthy ‘Maytag Blue Cheese Fries’ ($7.50). They were outstanding. The cheese was not too strong. The fries were perfectly crisp, not greasy. And the seasoning was balanced with just enough trufflr oil and herbs to be flavorful but not overpowering.

The autumn menu had a few hearty vegetarian entrée options. There was a mushroom pizza made with wild mushrooms, a white sauce and mozzarella and parmesan cheeses ($12.40). There was a wild mushroom stroganoff served with fresh pappardelle and horseradish crème fraiche ($14.50). And there was a Thai vegetable pasta made with udon noodles, served with broccoli, peppers, snow peas, onions, water chestnuts in a (animal stock-free) hoisin sauce ($14.50). George and I both had the Thai vegetable pasta. It was scrumptious. The noodles and the vegetables were perfectly cooked and the sauce was not too heavy. Only the fact that we had filled up on fries kept us from finishing our bowls. In the end, we took home enough of the pasta dish for another complete meal, which tells me that the portion was a bit too generous. But given that it tasted so good, I was not about to complain.

For dessert, George chose their ‘Cajeta Cheese Cake’. It was a vanilla cheesecake with a Mexican caramel ribbons, and top layer of chantilly cream, drizzled with a touch of caramel on top. The menu read that it came with berries, but it did not. And George enjoyed it so much that he totally forgot that berries were supposed to be on it. We did verify that the cheesecake was gelatin-free. So, a vegetarian would be very happy with this super-rich dairy dessert, but a vegan would have to skip it obviously—I do not think that I have ever seen a vegan attempt at a cheesecake, but that is a topic for another day.

I ended up with their poached pear, which they served with white chocolate bread pudding and vanilla gelato. The pear was apparently poached in triple sec, but I could not tell. That is not to say that I did not enjoy it. The dessert was very good. The pear was well cooked, but served cold. This surprised me, but made it match nicely with the bread pudding and the gelato. I enjoyed the bread pudding, but customers who do not like ‘eggy’ bread puddings will want to skip this one. And again, the vegan will need to steer clear. In short, a vegan would only be able to enjoy the house’s sorbets.

Oh, we did not see any seasonal sangria on the menu, and I forgot to ask about it. So, I do not know if they had already run out of whatever they had made for the autumn menu, or if there was just none that evening, or if they had abandoned their plan to served mixed wine. Unfortunately, this means that now I will need to go back a third time to investigate. I think I will be able to handle it.

In the end, we were very much pleased, just as we had been on our first visit to California Cafe. Vegetarians should not leave this restaurant hungry.