Vegan in Boston, Tibetan in Cambridge

Boston is not generally counted among the very vegan friendly American cities. This is not to say we’ve got nothing veg going on, not in the least, but there’s just not as much vegan action here as you might think. Which is to say, we turn out huge crowds of caring, animal-loving people who want to eat vegan food at the Boston Veggie Food Fest every year, we’ve got veggies and vegans of all kinds, we’ve got hipsters, we’ve got anarchists and punks, we’ve got yuppies and liberal healthnuts, we’ve got more college students than anyone…so where’s our all of our veg?

Boston has certainly cornered the market on Whole Foods (seriously, I am walking/light bike riding distance from no less than three of them—which I do think says a certain something), but is somewhat limited when it comes to options for eating out in purely vegetarian establishments.

Am I complaining? Oh, well, ok, you caught me. I know I don’t deserve to. Believe me when I say that I’ve lived in a place where popular local sentiment would have vegetarians (to say nothing of vegans) rounded up and deposited at the mouth of a lonely country road at the edge of town with stern instructions to “walk that way,” so if you’re protesting that I, a city-dweller with soy lattes at my doorstep and access to all manner of vegan treats, have no right to whine, I feel your pain. It is my sense though that Boston could do better.

Grasshopper, a vegan Vietnamese restaurant in the college-kid-ghetto of Allston, is the Boston vegan’s go-to place, especially on the third Sunday of every month when they host all you can eat buffets and Boston Vegetarian Society informative programs. (Veggie visitors take note: third Sunday of the month: Boston, be there.) But there is in fact more to Boston eats than Grasshopper, and I’ll periodically be shining my vegan light on them here at the Conscious Kitchen.

If it's not already obvious, I will state plainly, I like to eat out. I like it a lot. In a wave of brilliance, it has occurred to me that I can re-contextualize this vice, re-frame it as a public service. I will report to you, fair readers, about vegan food from home and abroad. Wherever there is vegan food that needs eating, I will be there--camera in one hand, fork in the other, smiling. It begins today with a quick look at Rangzen.

Rangzen: A Little Piece of Tibet in Central Square

Vegans have lots of options for eating in non-vegan places around Boston and many restaurants are helpful and accommodating, some are down right vegan-friendly. One such restaurant is the lovely Rangzen of Central Square, Cambridge. It is located, dangerously, on my way home from work. It is also right off Massachusetts Ave., just down from the Central Square T stop on the red line, which makes it an easy stop off for anyone in the area. We had takeout from them yesterday and so I thought I'd share a little about Rangzen.

Rangzen is a tranquil, serene restaurant (as you can see in from the neighboring picture by Jessica R.), perfect for long cozy meals with lots of introspective conversations and relaxation with friends. It's one of three Tibetan restaurants in the Cambridge/Somerville area. It happens to be my second favorite of the three, but only because I am of the opinion that House of Tibet's Tenchur Momos (tofu and spinach stuffed dumplings of perfection served with outstanding fresh hot sauce) could challenge just about any dish on earth to a death match and win. So, on momos, Rangzen can’t compete for me, but their wide selection of really wonderful dishes and their excellent lentil soup, in addition to a consistently great, very veggie lunch buffet win them big points.

I’d never had Tibetan food before I moved to Boston, but it has since become a favorite cuisine of mine.

Rangzen’s menu features a lot of stirfry type dishes, about half of which are vegetarian. The dishes are fairly light, but very satisfying because of all the fresh vegetables they employ. About half of the veggie menu is made up of dishes with tofu, which is served just lightly sautéed with the vegetables and sauce.



Since I save my momo eating for House of Tibet, I go in for these stirfry dishes at Rangzen. My favorite is tofu with watercress or spinach (as pictured above). The entree portions are generous, and come with a nicely cooked a very long grain basmati rice and a really enjoyable side salad of mango, green apple and grape tomato. I highly recommend spliting an entree with a friend. Sharing is not only good for the soul, it will also leave you with room to try the big bowls of lentil soup at Rangzen (pictured below), made, I think, with chana dal and tangy slices of lemon, which look beautiful floating in the warm soup.

Appetizers are great here too, though I wasn't ready to eat anything fried yet (my stomach is still a little jumpy after a stomach virus) so we didn't get any this time. My pick, however, is chickpea battered eggplant that is served with two different espresso cups of fresh sauce, one a rather spicy cilantro based one that I would think I'd hate since I despise cilantro, but actually like, a lot, and the other, a rich tomato sauce that is as mild as it is delicious. A buck also buys you a basket of papadum: thin, crunchy lentil bread/cracker/chip things that are served with the aforementioned sauces. Pretty much the best dollar you can spend in Central Square.



Rangzen is located at: 24 Pearl St., just off of Mass. Ave in Central Square, Cambridge, MA 02139 (617) 354-8881