Alamo Drafthouse New Vegan Menu - Austin, TX

I got a tweet the other day from the Alamo Drafthouse telling me that I was invited to a tasting for their new vegan menu (which will be available at the Village location only). This is awesome, and something I've been hoping for since I starting going to the Drafthouse 11 years ago.







The tacos were tasty, with crunchy tortilla chips in it, and slightly spicy salsa that complimented it nicely. The bruschetta was also good, with super creamy avocado and good flavors provided by the lemon vinaigrette and balsamic reduction. The samosa tasted fairly standard for samosas (delicious, in my opinion), and have my vote for the easiest thing on the new menu to eat in the dark). The cookie was warm and chewy, with a nice fruitiness from the cherries.

When the menu launches tomorrow, the bruschetta will be a full cup of avocado and tomato mixture, with crostini all around the edge of the plate.

Some of the other people at the tasting mentioned that a chocolate dessert would be quite welcome, and Trish, the chef, said that she'd had a hard time finding vegan chocolate at a good price point. We told her about the vegan chocolate chips in bulk at Wheatsville, and suggested that she contact some of the vegan bakers in town to get suggestions from them about where to buy. I also mentioned that I would love to see soy milk for the coffee drinks at all I the locations, and Trish said that she would make sure that it happened, since it should have been happening already (she said if it wasn't, it was an oversight).

An Apology And Old Fashioned Custard Pie

First of all, I apologize for the long delay with no posts. I was hibernating with the hedgehogs for the winter, and lately I've been spending all of my time performing music at the Sherwood Forest Faire and getting ready to move to a new house at the end of this month (which means I've only got two more days to pack and move before I spend my entire weekend out at faire! Eek!)

I've got SO much I want to share with you - I've visited a bunch of awesome restaurants, made several yummy dishes, and got a new kitten, who is the most adorable kitty ever (but don't tell my cat.) However, it's going to have to wait another week or two until after I've moved and unpacked enough to have some semblance of my office intact.

For the time being, I shall share with you my vegan interpretation of Old Fashioned Custard Pie, which I'm modifying from Hillbilly Recipes. I haven't actually made this yet, but I plan on it once we move and unpack all our kitchen paraphernalia. If you made it, let me know how it goes!

Old Fashioned Custard Pie

1 unbaked pie shell (or make your own - my favorite is the olive oil crust from "Vegan Pie In The Sky")
3 flax "eggs" OR 1 flax "egg" and 1 mashed banana
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
2 2/3 cups of non-dairy milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract


Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix "eggs" [1 tablespoon fresh-ground flax meal plus 3 tablespoons water per "egg", and refrigerate mixture for 15-60 minutes to thicken] and mashed banana (if using), then add sugar, salt, nutmeg, and milk. Beat well and pour into the unbaked pie shell. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven and cool. Sprinkle the top of pie with fresh ground nutmeg.