Food, glorious gluten-free food! Thank you, Patat Spot!

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Gluten-free isn’t as difficult as I thought it might be when dining out in Charleston.

Patat Spot is one of my favorite places in town.  It’s not just about the food, but the staff, decor, and falafel.  Okay, the food is one of the main reasons I love it.  I was concerned I’d have to forgo the pita with my falafel or black bean cakes, but I don’t.  GF pitas are available and the black bean cakes and falafel are both GF. It works.  It works very well.

Sorry for the dark pic – my phone’s camera is not the best sometimes.

Last trip was the first time we took the kiddos with us, and they were smitten.  Teen Girl does not always love new experiences, but she was willing to give it a go.   She ordered the Frikendel Especial, a veggie dog served with diced onions and Patat’s fantastic curry catsup.  She thought it was pretty good.  If you’ve met her, ‘pretty good’ is her second most enthusiastic rating.  The top rating of ‘awesome’ only applies to electronics and anime.

Teen Boy snagged the Beef Shawarma and inhaled it before I could get a shot of it.  No joke.  He ate like he was starving (which he could have been because he’s always hungry) and praised the flavor between bites.

Hubs went for the Regular Falafel (two patties in pita with all the toppings you want from the toppings bar) and I had the Salad Spot (two falafel or black bean cakes served on a bed of greens and anything I wanted from the toppings bar).  Of course, we all made our meals combos with drinks and friet.  We all left satisfied (well, closer to happily stuffed) and smiling.  Oh, and the falafel can be grilled or deep fried.  Either way, the meals are healthy and filling.

Now that school’s out we plan to go more often, with or without the kids. Swing by Patat Spot at 41B George Street and enjoy some GF comfort food.  Yes, I consider falafel comfort food.  Sue me.

Until next time, peace.

Semi-wordless Wednesday – all about the food

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Nom nom nom

Vegan French Onion Soup from Vegan Nutritionista’s
Cut the Cheese 

Vegan Cheesecake from Cut the Cheese

Same cheesecake topped with strawberries.
‘Twas awesome!

My fav veggie curry from Saffron Cafe and Bakery
 (soon featuring vegan desserts – just ask)

A fab dinner from Sunset Oasis

Black Bean Sliders and Sweet Potato fries from
Sesame Burgers and  Beer

Dinner salad from Runaway Bay 

Are you hungry now?

World Vegetarian Day, Vegan MoFo, and a Challenge

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Another Vegan Kickstart has come and gone and so have 4 pounds. Granted they were lost in the first week, but I maintained for the month and that makes me happy.  Counting Points is working for me and I’m saving money in the process, too.  Less junk is coming in the house and less food is being wasted.  It feels good.

It’s almost October and that means another World Vegetarian Day will kick off another Vegetarian Awareness Month.  I’m a giddy girl because it means another Vegan MoFo is upon us.  My procrastinating butt missed the Vegan MoFo signup deadline so I will be sitting on the sidelines again.  But I won’t be completely out.  I’ll be blogging more often and posting pics more often, too.  That will be a challenge in itself because I don’t always post regularly.

Another challenge that I’m going to take on is the Eat-In Challenge from Cook. Vegan. Lover.  Basically I’m going to eat in for every meal, drink, and snack for the month of October.  I am somewhat torn because I have a new job (yay) and wanted to celebrate at The Sprout next week.  The special events are scheduled monthly, but this one is screaming my name.  Other than this meal, I’m going to stick it out.   It’s easier for me to eat at home anyway since I’m the ‘difficult’ one in the family when it comes to eating out.  Difficult according to the omni family, anyway.  :sigh:

Eating in would save us a bundle.  We rarely spend less than $40 when the four of us are together and most of the time the bill pushes $60. I can throw a killer week of meals together for $60.  Hell, I’ve done it with less.  Once the pantry is stocked, I can work magic with $40-50 a week.  I know I can keep on track because I track Points already.  The most difficult part of this challenge will be the hubby and kidos.   Yeah, I’m going to give it a shot.  

On the health front, the headaches continue while the blood pressure continues to fluctuate, but that’s another post.

Until later, peace.