Throw vegans some love and we'll love you back

Native Foods is opening two cafes in DC, and I went to the pre-opening of the Dupont location on Thursday. I brought some (omnivore) friends, who liked the food as much as I did. One friend has celiac's and a number of specific food allergies, and the staff were uber-patient in answering her questions about what she could and couldn't eat. Which goes a long way. This friend loved the "peanut-butter cup" dessert, which actually looks like a parfait and apparently tastes like cheesecake.

I represent an untapped market, not just in terms of vegans, but in terms of people who will only go out for food when it's worth it (and being vegan makes more restaurants, less worth it). I opt for restaurants that have vegan options and make it easy to figure out what they are, and where the food is better than what I can make at home and more complicated than what I can easily make at home. Also, I tend to go out to eat socially, and people tend to defer to me (and any other people with dietary restrictions), so big note to restaurants: when you're giving vegans the finger, you are also losing the business of our friends. I have not only brought but introduced countless people to Busboys and Poets and Teaism (and now Native Foods)--people who wouldn't have heard of these places before, but who now go back with me and on their own--because these places are super vegan-friendly.

And if you're going to start with the "why do you have to make fake meat?" my only response is going to be, what makes it fake? Why are burgers more real when they're made from dead animals? The "fake" meat at Native Foods is probably a lot less processed than "real" meat.

So, welcome to DC, Native Foods. I'll be coming back often. And please consider opening a store in Alexandria, where vegans are way underserved.