Food

First Experience at a Plant Based Restaurant

Planta Queen, MiamiCurated — Udon Noodles

Though I love, even crave vegetables, full disclosure, I’ve never been to a plant based restaurant. It never seemed to me that a meal could be totally satisfying without meat (you know what a carnivore I am!), chicken or fish. The turning point was a lunch at Planta Queen in Coconut Grove, with a menu inspired by Executive Chef David Lee’s favorite dishes from across Asia. Hmmm, thoughts of new twists on sushi, dumplings, bao buns. Would they be delicious and exciting? Yes, they were, very. My girlfriend thought the same.

The restaurant, in CocoWalk, has a bright, light, casual décor with rose pink and Asian design touches that make for an inviting atmosphere. The menu seriously follows the categories of Asian restaurants with categories including sushi, dumplings, small plates, wok and noodles and chilled and raw (salads). Dishes are attractively presented and work well for sharing so as to try a number of different plates.

Some of you may wonder how do you get your protein when it’s plant based? It comes from ingredients like tofu, nuts, beans and chickpeas, all found in different menu items here. (Parenthetically, in an article recently in the New York Times about protein bars and are they good for you, the writer said we need a lot less protein than we think, .4 grams per pound of body weight, and confirmed that we can get enough from sources like tofu, nuts and legumes).

Everything we tried was tasty, and even worked well as heated up leftovers the next day. (I often get the question about how I watch my weight, and this is part of the answer; I leave a part of every dish so frequently have a doggie bag).

We started with a dragon roll filled with tempura broccoli, spinach, avocado and a spicy unagi sauce. It was heavy on the vegetables as opposed to rice, and was tastier than many sushi rolls I’ve had anywhere with an added perk a light crunch ($16).

Though the avocado lime tartare with beetroot tuna, pine nuts, capers, citrus, soy, sesame and cilantro sounded appealing, we felt we had to try the sweet corn dumplings recommended by the waiter. Squarish in shape, they reminded me of the Turkish manti dumplings. Filled with corn, they were seasoned with cilantro and chimichurri and had a kick ($14.75).

One of my favorite dishes was the bao slider. Incredible how perfectly fried chick/n fried mushroom filling the soft bun along with hoisin and pickled cucumber could be so flavorful. ($6.28). Next up was our hands down favorite, the udon noodles, a decadent delight. Perfectly al dente noodles were cooked in a rich, creamy sauce with pieces of shaved black truffle, well worth the calories and a bargain at $25. Other dishes I’d like to try next time are the spinach shitake dumplings with black bean, chili ginger vinaigrette; crispy rice with spicy ahi watermelon and avocado; jackfruit wings with yuba sesame soy glaze and nuoc cham sauce; Singapore noodles with curry, kale, peppers, cilantro, crispy shallots, thai basil, lime; and more!

The finale was a cake like brownie with chocolate sauce on the side and vanilla soft serve ice cream.

Brownie sundae with soft service ice cream

The beverage menu features cocktails ($15-$16), a selection of juices and fizz, sake, beer and cider and wine (from $12 per glass and from $48 for a bottle).

They offer a selection of specials, what they call “the weekly line up” with maki Mondays deals after 5 p.m. (maki rolls); half priced bottles of wine on Wednesday; pisco and dumpling Fridays after 5 p.m. and weekend brunch with $25 endless sake sangria and mimosas.