St. Regis, Atlanta

I recently had the pleasure of staying at the St. Regis in Atlanta, a 5-star hotel. I'll start by saying that this hotel is amazing. It is definitely one of the nicest places I have ever stayed and the service was beyond belief.

I was there for an event that my company was putting on so all of my food experience was from in-room dining and special catering by the hotel. On my first morning there, I ordered the McCann's Irish Oatmeal. These steel cut oats were topped with banana brulee and served with raisins and brown sugar. I paired this with a freshly squeezed orange juice. For $33, it was the most expensive oatmeal and orange juice of my life, but also the best. It was like they torched the bananas with that sweet topping and there were oh so good.

For my lunches there, the good new is they had a vegan meal on the menu. The bad news is that there was just one vegan meal and little did I know, they planned to serve me the same meal every day for four days. On day one, I thought the Quinoa and Kale Power Bowl was great--chickpeas, black eyed peas, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, edamame, sweet potato, and miso vinaigrette with alfalfa sprouts and avocado. It's so much goodness in one bowl. But, by day four, I had to walk across the street to Whole Foods to get something different.

One morning, they served me potatoes sauteed with greens and mushrooms and it was fantastic!

Bowls of fresh fruit were served as my dessert.

And at our reception, there were lots of vegan options including hummus, olives, grilled asparagus and carrots, tabbouleh, and artichoke hearts.

But, back to the service--it really couldn't have been better. This is a five-star hotel with five-star employees. They were attentive to my every need during our reception, event, and in my room. I really have nothing but great things to say about the St. Regis. And for the television in my mirror in the bathroom--I never knew I needed this until now. ;)

St. Regis
88 West Paces Ferry Road
Atlanta, GA 30305
(404) 563-7900

R. Thomas' Deluxe Grill

My good friend in Atlanta has been raving about this diner that is open 24 hours and is vegan friendly for a long time. Since I had a whole week in Atlanta, I finally got to check out the R. Thomas Deluxe Grill!

Now this place is a funky place. It was quite dark on this weekday night, but what I could see was eclecticism! Holiday lights, pinwheels, plastic flamingos, and plants all graced the outside of this restaurant. On the way in there were caged birds like Toucans that were apparently all rescued birds. They were sleeping so we didn't mess with them, but I was curious as to the story behind the birds as an animal activist myself.

Inside, the funkiness continued with brightly colored tablecloths and a green floor within the tent that shielded us from the outside. The menu was extensive and hard to navigate as nothing was labeled vegan. As soon as I asked though, the server said that many things are vegan and began to list them as he was apologizing for a menu that he said hadn't been updated in decades. Wow!

I started with a fresh juice, the Champ, made with organic carrot, apple, and ginger. Yummy.

For our started, we chose the Raw Walnut Sunflower Pate and Raw Guacamole. Our server said the cashew cheese was better than the sunflower pate so we subbed that out. It showed up with Flackers flax chips and carrots and other veggies. Both spreads were fantastic. We were very pleased.

I asked what the server recommended as a vegan entree and he said The Southern Vegetarian was vegan, so I went with that. This hearty meal had layers of millet corn casserole, collard greens, smashed potatoes, and shiitake mushroom gravy surrounded by butternut squash and a salad with chili flax dressing. It was simple and delicious.

For dessert, we got a massive slice of caramel cake. The cake tasted like it had been frozen and was a bit too cold, hard, and perhaps stale. It had good flavor, but wasn't as fresh as it could have been.

Prices here were pretty reasonable at $15 for the entree and $10 for the raw appetizer. The service was great, the decor and environment fun, and the food was good. I give this old school 24/7 diner two thumbs up!

R. Thomas Deluxe Grill
1812 Peachtree Street NW
Atlanta, GA 30309
(404) 881-0246

True Food, Atlanta

Interestingly enough, when I asked the locals where I could go for good vegan food, they all said that True Food Kitchen was great. True Food is a chain that also exists in Maryland, which is somewhat close to where I live, so I wasn't sure if I wanted to waste one of my dinners on a restaurant that is close to me. But, seeing that I hardly ever go to Maryland and this seemed like the restaurant of choice, why not?!

True Food is located in Lenox Square in Buckhead, which is a very fancy mall. Amidst the Lamborghinis and Porsches, I was finally able to find a parking spot after circling for 15 minutes. How all the parking spots were taken on a Tuesday night, I will never understand, but there is also the option for valet parking.

Inside True Food, it was just as busy! My friend was meeting me in 20 minutes or so, so I added my name to the list and took a seat at the communal high top tables, sipped a Prosecco, and waited. I was seated with other lone tourists who struck up a conversation that kept me interested until my friend arrived.

The decor was inviting with its bright green booths and large lighting fixtures. Wine bottles lined the walls and the open kitchen was interesting to watch as well.

When my friend arrived, our table was ready. What I love about the menu is that there are tons of vegan options and they are labeled as such. For appetizers, I could choose from Shiitake Lettuce Cups, Kale Guacamole, Charred Cauliflower, and Winter Squash Toast. The Charred Cauliflower appeared to be the crowd favorite, so we went with that and I'm so glad we did!

The cauliflower was covered in harissa tahini and mixed with fresh dill and mint along with pistachios and medjool dates. It was fantastic!

For my entree, there was so much to choose from including vegan pizza. I ultimately went with the Ancient Grains Bowl. Miso glazed sweet potatoes, charred onions, snow peas, grilled portobello, and tofu were topped with turmeric, avocado, and hemp seeds. There was also pesto in my bowl, which wasn't on the menu and seemed like an odd pairing. Other than the pesto, I thought it was great!

My friend ordered the Teriyaki Quinoa bowl with broccoli, carrots, bok choy, mushrooms, brown rice, avocado, and sesame seeds. It had a great charred flavor to it and was very tasty.

For dessert, we ordered the chia seed pudding with bananas and coconut chips. Again, another delicious dish.

The bowls were $17 and the appetizer was $9 so a bit on the pricey side, but it was all so worth it. The service was pretty good. The only bad experience we had was that we were both brought the wrong dishes initially and my friend's had fish sauce in it, which neither of us realized until it was too late. Both our meals were replaced, but that wasn't cool. Besides that though, the food was really exceptional. I'd eat here again in a heartbeat and may even check out the one in Maryland too!

True Food Kitchen
3393 Peachtree Road NE
Suite 3058B
Atlanta, GA 30326
(404) 481-2980