Peacefood Café, 41 E. 11th St., New York, N.Y.
Hours: 11:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Sunday-Wednesday; 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Thursday-Saturday.
Menu: https://www.peacefoodnyc.com/peacefood-menu
Suitable for: Vegetarians, vegans, lovers of cake
This most recent visit to New York brought with it our second visit to Peacefood Café down in the East Village. The first visit was back in December 2022 during the polar vortex, when we’d taken refuge inside the restaurant after warming ourselves (and our wallets) up at The Strand bookstore a couple of blocks away. The food was amazing on that first visit, but I always felt like we didn’t get the full experience given the subfreezing temperatures; no restaurant’s heater could keep up and we spent most of the weekend freezing everywhere we went.
This time, however, it was a perfectly temperate May day – Mother’s Day, actually – and we were able to sit at a table sans space heater and enjoy ourselves without our blood turning to ice. Mind you, we still tell the “polar vortex Christmas” story over and over again to anyone who’ll listen, so don’t cry for us, Argentina. I’m just saying, visiting New York when it’s “normal” weather outside makes a world of difference.
Anyway, back to Peacefood.
LeeLee keeps notes of all our meals and activities from when we travel, so we knew going in that he highly recommended the turmeric soy latte. We both ordered one today and with the first taste, I practically melted into the floor in ecstasy. I’m not sure I’ve ever had a latte – turmeric or no – that tasted as good as this one: Subtly sweet and mellow, with a smoothness and creaminess that made every sip a pleasure. I wish I could have another here as I type!
For lunch, I ordered the seitan medallion panini, which was a behemoth of a sandwich and absolutely wonderful. Breaded seitan teeming with all the herbs and spices, nestled among leaves of arugula and slices of tomato, in between two slices of fluffy focaccia garnished with pesto – what’s not to love? I ate every bite, with the exception of a taste I gave to LeeLee for quality control.
LeeLee, meanwhile, started off all restrained with a bowl of artichoke-cauliflower soup, which he thoroughly enjoyed, but I knew he had an ulterior motive. Before too long, it became clear: The man was going to have a hearty slice of vanilla cake for lunch. The soup was just a warm-up.
Since I gave him a couple of bites of my sandwich, it was only fair that I take a couple of frosting-laden bites of his cake, which was adorned with too many sprinkles to count and tasted like heaven on earth. The frosting was buttery and thick yet not cloying; the cake was light and airy and had an undertone of spices that made the whole thing so downright interesting, it was hard to stop eating. If LeeLee had turned his back for even a minute, I’d have snatched the rest from his plate – I’m not proud of it, but there you go.
With that, we signed our check and headed back out the door – but a not-insignificant part of me wished we’d ordered two more turmeric lattes and another slice of cake to-go! Maybe next time. And there will be one!
:)