Gust Organics, West Village

While Matt was in town, we visited Gust Organics for a delicious vegan brunch. I had never heard of this place until the NYC Vegetarian Food Festival posted about it on Instagram. It’s right by the 14th Street PATH station… apparently I don’t pay much attention to my surroundings, heh. It was kind of gloomy on the day we visited, and the bright interiors of Gust Organics were very inviting. Large windows and skylights filled the space with natural light.

One thing worth pointing out is that Gust Organics just went fully vegan a few weeks ago. That’s right, folks. A restaurant that used to serve meat decided to go 100% vegan. They’re also certified organic and offer plenty of gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free options. I’ve lived in NYC for almost 4 years, and the veggie scene has come a long way in that time. It’s pretty exciting, and I look forward to returning for lunch/dinner.

For brunch, Gust Organics offers an a la carte menu with prix fixe options. $20 gets you a starter or soup, entree, and coffee or tea. $10 for unlimited drinks, and there are six brunch cocktails to choose from: mimosa, bellini, cranberry vodka, bloody mary, red sangria, and strawberry bliss. I had to try the strawberry bliss. It’s a mixture of vodka, muddled strawberries, orange, agave, and sparkling wine. Delicious, but deadly. It took a while for the first round to come out, but they kept bringing out more drinks throughout our meal. I believe we had 4 rounds total.

Matt decided to go all out with the $20 prix fix and the $10 unlimited cocktails. The soup of the day is one of the starter options. This was a very full bowl of vegetable tortilla soup.

Matt ordered the Veggie Burger ($16) as his entree.  The patty is made of pumpkin and sunflower seeds and topped with carrot mayo, lettuce, and tomato. Comes with greens and potatoes.

I guessed that John would order huevos rancheros, but he surprised me and ordered the Southwestern Scramble ($15) instead. The tofu scramble included some beans and bell peppers. I make scrambled tofu from time to time, but mine is never this colorful!

As much as I love poached eggs and hollandaise, I enjoy vegan interpretations of eggs benedict too. At Gust Organics, they call it the Veggs Benedict ($14). The smokey tofu patty had a nice crust and the hollandaise was rich and creamy. Possibly the tastiest vegan interpretation I’ve had so far. Instead of sweet potato fries, it came with home fries. I wish they were more crispy. Half of the English muffin was a bit lonely… perhaps it could have used some avocado or jam?

Even though we were quite full from our entrees, we decided to order dessert! I blame the delicious cocktails. Matt ordered the Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie ($10) with vanilla ice cream. He mentioned that the peanut butter flavor was quite subtle.

John and I could not settle on which dessert to share, so we each ordered our own. John had the Carrot Cake ($10) with vanilla frosting and walnuts.

My Red Velvet Cake ($10) with vanilla cream cheese frosting was quite a treat. Can’t remember the last time I’ve had red velvet cake, let alone a vegan one. This was a pretty hefty slice. Rich and indulgent. I recommend splitting it between two people. I make vegan cakes from time to time, but haven’t tried making a vegan cream cheese frosting. It’s going on my list!