As a vegan living on the UES during my college years, I have always found it difficult to eat out due to the few and far in-between choices of restaurants in this region of the city. However, with the colorful addition of upscale trendy casual/fashionably chic dinner spot V-Note inundated with the success of the owners of renowned vegan eateries Blossom, Cafe Blossom and CocoV, it comes as no surprise that this location will be on my vegan Rolodex.
The interiors are modern, with bright splashes of color and finished with woodsy, mahogany flourishes. I especially appreciated the addition of Alessi-style coat hangers and pristine L-shape couches near the door finished with an array of boldly colored throw pillows. The bar is also elegant and since V-Note just opened this fall, thankfully unblemished by any drunken scrawlings or fisticuffs. 5 out of carrots for interiors!
Comfortable cuisine-ing!
You will appreciate these table-side coat hangers, especially in the colder months!
V-Note serves Saratoga spring water by the bottle.
The service was warm, friendly, but not overly so. At lunchtime, there seems to be only one hostess, but there was really no one else dining at the time, present party excluded (we stayed about an hour or so and ended at 4:01). 4.5 out of 5 carrots for service.
Something I desperately missed since my omni-days was the taste of a Butterfinger candy bar. When I espied a rendition of this guilty confection on the menu in smoothie form by the same name, I just had to try it. Needless to say, I was totally blown away by the authenticity of the flavor and texture of this drink! 5 out of 5 carrots. It’s a must-try!
Here we have the Seitan Schnitzel, which came with a delicious potato salad and blueberry reduction sauce underneath. I am a fan of sweet and salty counter-flavoring, so I much enjoyed this combination. The presentation and plating was impeccable, with a lovely cheddar filigree lace chip artfully inserted into the top of the salad. The seitan slices were crisp, with a savory flavor and overall clean finish. The outer shell was fried to perfection and it was not overly oily, nor was there an overzealous amount of bread crumbs to the pieces. Dipped in the fruity-tart sauce, this appetizer primed my palate for more olfactory nourishment. 4.6 out of 5 carrots.
A staple of a hip vegan diet is the veggie burger. V-Note’s Soy Bacon Cheeseburger does not underwhelm, as the chipotle aioli gives the patty a significant kick to an otherwise default sandwich structure. I like that there are three choices for the sides: Fresh Cut Fries (which I chose), Sweet Potato Fries or Field Greens. The Fresh Cut Fries had a light sprinkling of basil and rosemary which was generously appreciated and had an overall pleasant texture and crispness. The bun was lightly toasted and supported the whole sandwich quite well. If you are in the mood for a burger, then theirs will not disappoint. 4.5 out of 5 carrots.
The next dish, the Seitan Scallopini, comes highly recommended and is already a favorite of many patrons. However, I did not find anything too outstanding about this platter. The seitan was a bit underwhelming with its soggy texture and I found the addition of mashed potatoes underneath a bed of bland, shrivel-ly spinach a bit haphazard and altogether uninspired. The white wine and caper sauce was acceptable, but as a whole, the dish failed to incite any real zest for eating out of me. 2 out of 5 carrots.
Since I am from an Asian household, it is natural for me to want to consume an entree with the addition of some sort of rice or noodle, so I ordered a side of basmati. This is by far the worst texture of rice I have had the displeasure of ordering and paying for. The rice was soggy, as they must have added too much water to the cooker. Having said that, soggy rice basically is that: soggy rice. There’s nothing else to add here but my rating, 1 out of 5. Clean up your act V-Note! Sides matter just as much!
Picture of Mashed Potato Side
As an aside, I had also ordered the Chocolate Ganache cake and must add that for 10$, this is not really a cake, more the size of a glorified brownie. However, I did not taste it, but by portion size alone I must advise not to order it. They really should show the dimensions!
Overall, portion size at V-Note is a bit under average, but even though I did not have the best experience as per my entree here, I would come back. If anything, for the mind-blowing smoothies!
As an added tip, mention Yelp at lunchtime from 12-4:30 for 20% off, I missed out on this offer so I don’t want you to either!