Thai Chili, Elk Grove, CA

Elk Grove, CA is a city in the middle of nowhere land where vegans go to die. Okay, maybe I'm being dramatic, but, seriously, finding vegan food here is a challenge to say the least. When in doubt, head to your local Thai restaurant and hope they don't think fish is a vegetable. Not willing to take a chance, I called ahead to Thai Chili and they actually sounded pretty accommodating.

It was a Saturday night and they were pretty busy so instead of sitting in the main dining room, we were seated in their new "banquet room," which was really just another dining room that was more narrow than the main one. I immediately inquired as to what was actually vegan on their vegetarian menu and, surprisingly, most of the non-noodle dishes were. They do not use fish sauce in the vegetarian dishes. Yay!

So, Zach and I started with Thai Chili's Crispy Tofu, which was tofu deep-fried, then stir-fried with tamarind sauce. I had never had fried tofu with tamarind sauce before and thought it was a delightful combination.  And, for only $4.95, you can't beat the price.

For my entree, I had the Eggplant in Spicy Red Chili Sauce. It was your classic stir-fried veggies in sauce. The tofu was sauteed with eggplant, onions, snow peas, broccoli, green peppers, onions, and carrots in a spicy red chili sauce with Thai basil leaves.

Zach had the Bangkok Street Noodles, which consisted of tofu sauteed with snow peas, broccoli, green beans, cabbage, carrots, green onions, and cilantro in soy garlic gravy on a bed of steamed wide flat rice noodles with bean sprouts.

Hey, for being out in the middle of nowhere, we were delighted at the quality of food. And, for only $20, we had a complete dinner for two! There was even enough food for lunch the next day. I'd eat here again in a heartbeat. It ain't fine dining, but it sure beats the other options in the neighborhood. Now you know of yet another option in Elk Grove, CA!

Thai Chili
8696 Elk Grove Blvd. #5
Elk Grove, CA 95624
(916) 714-3519

Fat Mike's Pizza, Elk Grove, CA

There I was, stuck in the middle of nowhere in Elk Grove, CA, about 2 hours northeast of San Francisco when I was invited to dinner at Fat Mike's Pizza. Yep, you heard that right -- Fat Mike's. You just can't make this stuff up. I took a look at their menu online and did not see any vegan cheese, but, then again, I really wouldn't have expected to at a place called Fat Mike's. I gave them a call and asked about their crust. They said that although their regular crust is not vegan, their gluten-free was. Heck, I've never had gluten-free pizza, but why not give it a try, right?!

So there we were -- a group of 20 at Fat Mike's for dinner.  Me and my friend, Omnia, ordered the Pesto Garden Style with red sauce (the pesto wasn't vegan) on gluten-free crust without cheese, old-school style. This is what life was like before Daiya. I really wasn't looking forward to going back in time until the pizza came out. Talk about being loaded with veggies!

Wow - for a pizza without cheese, they sure made the most of the space. It was loaded with red onions, mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, artichoke hearts, green onions and oregano. The gluten-free crust was crunchy and really good. The pizza was about as good as a gluten-free, vegan pizza without vegan cheese could be!  We left happy and satisfied. So, if you get stuck in Elk Grove, now you know where to eat.

Fat Mike's Pizza
8970 Grantline Road
Elk Grove, CA 95624
(916) 686-8543