NYC Vegan Restaurant Guide
Angelica Kitchen
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300 East 12th Street
New York
NY
10003
(212) 228-2909
Fax: (212) 228-3108
Angelica Kitchen website
Veg level:
100% Vegan
Price Range:
$$$$$ (Average entree cost: $10-$15)
Accepted Payments:
- Cash Only
Hours:
11:30am-10:30pm daily.
Directions:
Between 1st & 2nd Avenues. Take the L to 1st Avenue, or take the 4, 5, 6, N, R, Q, or W to 14th Street-Union Square.
Delivery notes:
Angelica Kitchen does not deliver.
Notes:
A NYC mainstay. If you love old school vegan food or if you were in gradeschool or a coma in the 90s, Anglica's might be the place for you.
Next door to the main restaurant, there is a seperate entrance for take-out or counter service (with very limited seating).
Warning to caffeine fiends - the strongest thing here is Orange Pekoe tea; they do not serve coffee.
The information on this page was last updated on April 8, 2009.
Review by beanmail on November 15, 2009:
- WHAT is all the fuss about the reuben? It consisted of a dry, tasteless slab of tempeh, sauerkraut, lettuce (?), and a thimblefull of "russian" dressing. Plus, they charge $1.75 for extra (i.e., sufficient) dressing: so petty. The Angelica cornbread was disgusting (was that rice in there?) and the Southern cornbread was meh at best. The Wrapsody was the best bet: great melange of tastes, textures and flavors. But at $10 it's a little steep for the tiny size with no accompaniment.
Worst of all, our waitress was unabashedly bored, aloof, apathetic, and invisible. Extremely disappointing.
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Review by amko on July 11, 2009:
- I have mixed feelings about this place. Most of the dishes are overpriced and it always feels too crowded/cramped inside. Their combination plates are a good deal, though, so I've learned to stick with that. It's nice that it's BYOB.
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Review by myfi on February 4, 2009:
- Agreed. Best tempeh reuben. I've never had a problem with the staff, they've always been happy, enthusiastic and helpful. Sandwiches, soups and specials are always great. Food comes really quickly, so my only complaint is that I felt a bit rushed.
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Review by PlomeekSoup on December 3, 2008:
- The best tempeh reuben in NYC, hands down.
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Review by Deesse100 on October 4, 2008:
- I love AK. The space itself is comfortable and inviting...you could go there for a nice, casual lunch or a romantic, dinner date. I think the BYOB is awesome and they are aways polite about opening the bottle and offering up wine glasses. Service is usually lacking at vegan restaurants, but I think AK's is among the best in that category. And as far as food goes, I think it's great. High quality, but low cost. They are an old-school 60's hippy vegan food place and that's fine with me. It's not better or worse than say, Candle Cafe (which has a more modern approach to vegan cuisine), it's just different. It's simple. I love the salads and soups. Hummus and mash potato apps are tasty. Desserts are usually pretty good. AK is good all around. I will say one thing though..I recently heard that they make all of their food in the morning and basically reheat your food to order. I don't think they're zapping it in the microwave but take it for what it's worth. I've never had a bad experience there so whatever they're doing doesn't bother me. I say, go to AK and ENJOY.
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Review by BankBank on June 9, 2008:
- I just ate at Angelica Kitchen about an hour ago and found the experience to be great. My friend and I hung out for over an hour (he went to get 2 beers nearby) and we ordered several dishes. The mashed potato appetizer is awesome (tastes better than the unhealthy version) and the cashew spread was very unique. The lemon tofu sandwich on sourdough was *amazing*, especially with some balsamic vinegar from the table.
In the beginning of the meal, our server was very attentive and patient. Later, when we wanted to order more dishes, he was a bit difficult to get ahold of, but I wouldn't hold that against him, and we still tipped generously. I didn't feel any pretension or elitism whatsoever.
The atmosphere was great: very low-key and relaxed, a place where you could hang out with friends or take a date. I was grateful to avoid the blaring music of so many restaurants (not generally vegan restaurants), but the selection was diverse and fit well.
All in all, I had a great meal (at a reasonable price, what was that other review about calling it expensive??), and I will be coming back for more healthy, delicious food soon.
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Review by jennlynskey on May 30, 2008:
- After an evening at vegan drinks (http://vegandrinks.org/) my non-veg husband and I went searching for pizza and ended up at Angelica's. We were directed to the nearby wine store for BYOB and my husband brought back a nice organic wine. Our server promptly brought glasses and happily opened the bottle for us.
We had a special appetizer which was like a mashed potato stuffed falafel with a nice tahini sauce. Yum. I had the open face tempeh sandwich which was good, if a little on the "health food" side. Hubby had the lasagna special, ate everything but some of the salad and wasn't even hungry hours later. Everything is vegan and I would recommended for this adventurous omnivores.
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Review by seg235 on January 2, 2008:
- I love Angelica's. I've always had positive experiences there. I think sometimes people don't know that it isn't just vegan but also a macrobiotic restaurant- hence the "bland' food. If you are used to eating overly processed, overly flavored food natural foods taste bland in comparison.
I think they deliver on what they set out to create and anyone looking for a macrobiotic meal in Manhattan will enjoy the experience.
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Review by JonG on November 28, 2007:
- I've eaten here maybe 3 times in the last 7 years, and am always disappointed. Partially I'm not into the healthy pseudo-Asian cuisine, but it's not just that - it's also bland and uninspired. Not surprising, since the chef says cooking vegetarian food "is like telling a painter he can only use red and blue". I haven't had the service problems others mention, but it's just not a very good restaurant. If you want a better version of the same food, go to Souen; if you need a quick fix in the neighborhood, go to Viva Pizzeria or even Burritoville (or the health food store near Theater for the New City whose name I forget) before Angelica
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Review by rachelsiqueira on November 26, 2007:
- This is the second time I come to NYC and I was very excited about trying "Angelica Kitchen" since I had read good reviews.
I have been to 9 vegetarian/vegan Restaurants in NYC and I can say for sure Angelica Kitchen provided me with the worst experience :(
The food tastes good, actually (which is expectable since the price is not low) but everything else about the place was disappointing. I felt like a retard there, besides the service being the worst I EVER received at a Restaurant, when I complained about it, I was laughed at. I then spoke to the manager, who said they are "busy enough" and if I was unhappy with their customer service, all I had to do was to pay my bill and not return. He then continued: "Where are you from? Ohhhh, it makes sense. Here in THIS COUNTRY we have freedom, you are free to not return to our restaurant if you are unhappy with our service"
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Review by mimcho on November 26, 2007:
- Looking for healthy yet hearty vegan meal, this is the place! You won’t find mock meat in BBQ sweet and sour sauce here (go to Red Bamboo), but you will find well balanced meals containing protein, grain and vegetables with mild yet comforting flavors. If you are a first timer go for the daily special main course. It is the most expensive on the menu but always worth it. The desserts are great and won’t leave you with a sugar rush. Altogether - generous portions at regular Manhattan prices. And if you are looking for a vegan cook book get their “Angelica Home Kitchen”. It contains great recipes and the whole history and philosophy behind their establishment!
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Review by the_food_prude on November 25, 2007:
- love, love, love angelica's. great food and service. even the space is pretty good. i find the community table interesting and theoretically a good idea too though i'm personally not inclined to sit there.
their policy encouraging people to bring their own containers and bags is fantastic.
oh, and their desserts are the best. kanten parfaits rule.
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Review by lowrider on September 19, 2007:
- Black bean soup=heaven. excellent food. I've been a customer for almost a decade now. usually the wait staff is just fine.
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Review by xmotormanx on September 8, 2007:
- Man, I have no idea what these uptight guys are talking about. The waitstaff, I've been there dozens of times, for years, has never been anything but completely cool to me. Breezy and relaxed. I understand its a less-than-wonderful place to work, knowing a few people who have, and maybe that means that somewhere in there is the potential to piss these people off and to have them treat you like a jerk, if some of the staff felt lousy about how they were treated by their coworkers and the whole situation. However, I'll say this: I'm always polite to the staff, and they're polite right back at me. I'd hate for this place to get a bad name because of a few sour experiences, because this is one of the best little vegan places in New York. My guess is that jerky customers get treated, righteously, like jerks. At my restaurant we recognize the power of honesty: you don't want a houseful of assholes, and if you tolerate them, they will take advantage of you for being one of the places that will, and come back again and again, and that's who you and your other customers will have to be surrounded with. Thus when people suck, we let them know. There is more than enough business in manhattan.
I didn't even intend to write a review, but I've got to defend a group of people who keep it as real as they do. No booze, no coffee, cash only so that it stays local, change back when you return some to-go containers, honesty about their 95% and not 100% organic status (believe me, i've worked in several organic restaurants in new york and this is the truth for even the best of them regardless of what is being said) they're really doing a lot more than is called for. On top of everything else, they're one of the few truly health-conscious vegan spots in the city, a dying breed as the junk food vegan world capitalizes on people's self-indulgence.
Wooh, that was firey!
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Review by vegan2525 on August 9, 2007:
- I know this is the Premeire/initial vegetarian restaurant in New York, but I think the waitstaff takes this too seriously (can anyone say "Pretence"?) I however ignore such behaivior and I find them to be professional enough. The food on the other hand... I know real vegetarian food is supposed to taste healthy, but I found it a bit bland (spices are not unhealthy!), with the exception of a tempeh (yuck!) rueben I had there which was pretty good. Their sandwiches, seperate from the rest of the menu, are quite affordable. I certainly can find other restaurants with the same fare and with better palate, but where would they all be without Angelica Kitchen? Thumbs Up to the place.
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Review by veganphilly on May 18, 2007:
- I had absolutely no problems with the staff, actually, our waitress was a sweetheart. The food was fabulous, I had a soufle, the carrot apple/ ginger juice was alright, not great. My only warning is to BRING CASH, did not realize it was cash only and had to run across the street to the ATM.
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Review by megatofu on January 23, 2007:
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Review by frank language on May 26, 2006:
- I've been eating at Angelica Kitchen since I was a sprout - well, maybe not that long, but I do remember their original location and I've been eating their original cornbread with miso/tahini spread and their "dragon bowl" forever.
I haven't had a bad experience with the waitstaff, and I suspect it wasn't just because I had cash in hand to pay. A long time ago, I did ask if they had coffee, and learned that it wasn't "that kind of place." So what? Angelica's was the first place I tried kukicha tea, which I love - even though I'm heavily addicted to coffee.
The food is delicious; I've been eating here since waaay before I was a vegan, and always observed that it just made me feel good. This past Thanksgiving I dragged my omnivore roommate, and he liked what he had (the seitan ragout.) The place was packed, and in spite of the crowd we were served competently.
Angelica's is a neighborhood institution and I'm happy they're still there. When I get takeout there, I try to remember to bring my own bowl, since they post a sign: "We actively dislike the throwaway aspect of takeout," and they offer a token 5-cent discount for remembering to bring your own containers.
And their food still makes me feel good.
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Review by mykeywestangel on May 11, 2006:
- Well what can I say. The restaurant gives off this wonderfully earthy feeling which is immediately let down by pompous wait staff. I felt like a naughty child being ridiculed by "super nanny"! Maybe my whole experinence was let down by the negative energy. Not sure if I'll go back. Oh and by the way, make sure you DON'T ask for coffee or try and pay with plastic, you'll be foolosh to make such a mistake, the waitstaff WILL make sure you feel foolish. What happened to friendly vegans, have they become militant?
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