The Wallflower (In CANADA!)
Today is my first international nacho post! Rejoice! It also happens to be vegan. Nachos for all!
I’m not a vegan, but guest Nacho Novice Cassie is, so I eat a lot of vegan food with her. Cassie probably should be the nacho expert this post, not me, because I’ve never had vegan nachos nor do I know a lot about vegan cheeses. But don’t worry, I will still give you my ill-informed yet expert opinions.
May 20th, 2017 was my 30th birthday. So like all dirty 30 celebrations, Cassie and I ventured North to the foreign land of Vancouver, BC. It was so beautiful and amazing and expensive. I want to move there and eat all the nachos. I digress.
On my birthday Cassie and I went to get vegan nachos at The Wallflower, a modern diner where, “Omnivores, Carnivores, Vegan, Vegetarian, and Celiacs can all dine together in comfort.” How cool they serve everyone! The Wallflower had a huge menu with tons of options for all diets. I really like diners, especially for breakfast, so I definitely want to go back and sample the rest of their menu. The diner had a nice but retro feel with neat art and a fun bathroom mirror (you’ll have to visit yourself to see). I can’t wait to go back!
The Verdict:
Nacho Expert (That’s me, obviously): As I mentioned, these were my first vegan nachos. And they were delicious! First off, the plate was HUGE, probably the biggest order I’ve ever seen (they do offer a half plate). But for $18 CAD (plus another $3) for guacamole, they better be huge. That’s a steep price tag, but at least with conversion to US dollars it’s slightly cheaper (about $16 USD).
Baked vegan cheese (they used Daiya) ends up being kind of crispy, not stringy like real cheese. I liked the flavor though and with the crunchy texture the nachos tasted like a cheese cracker or cheesy poof. They weren’t oily at all! The nachos were also covered with toppings, although the beans and jalapenos were hardly noticeable (more, please!). They also put corn on the nachos which was new to me. That counts as a serving of vegetables, right?
Even though the guacamole was extra, they gave us a ton. We didn’t even finish it all. There was also plenty of pico de gallo. Oddly, both those toppings came in side bowls. Not a big deal, just odd. One thing that was missing was sour cream. There are vegan sour creams out there, people. Let’s eat them! All in all, I think I could be vegan if I ate these every day.
Official score on a scale of 1 to 10 (1 = Horrible, but better than no nachos at all. 10 = Holy Shit, my life is complete.): 7/10
Nacho Novice (Cassie): As a vegan, finding nachos can be tough. A very important part of the meal is the cheese. Sure, ratio of other components and proper layering are important, but you want cheese — and a lot of it — in your nachos. Wallflower’s nachos didn’t hit the mark with the cheese. I get it, Daiya cheese is a popular and easily accessible cheese substitute. And in a pinch, it’s not terrible. But when your whole meal relies on it, there are better options. That’s really my only complaint about the nachos from Wallflower. There were jalepenos, black beans, and roasted corn in the nachos which were all a nice touch. More of those ingredients mixed in probably would have allowed for less focus on the cheese.
Novice score on a scale of 1 to 10 (1 = Horrible, but better than no nachos at all. 10 = Holy Shit, my life is complete.): 6/10
Have you had The Wallflower’s nachos? What are your thoughts? Want to be the next Nacho Novice? Comment below!
