This time on Downtown Highlights, we visited Dough, a brioche doughnut shop. Dough started as a small shop in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. Their popularity quickly grew, encouraging the opening of more shops across New York City. Now, Dough has seven locations including Flatiron, Brooklyn, Rockefeller Center, Astoria, Urbanspace Vanderbilt, City Kitchen, and Smorgasburg.
In this episode, we had the pleasure of interviewing Vicky Pantazi, the manager of the Flatiron Dough location. When asked what makes Dough special, Pantazi said without hesitation that it’s the dough.”It’s very fluffy, it’s very soft, and that’s what makes us unique” Pantazi stated. All doughnuts at Dough are made fresh in small batches daily to ensure that all customers only receive the best.
Dough has vegan options as well. Vegan options include Vegan Plain Glaze, Vegan Cinnamon Sugar, Vegan Hibiscus Glaze (Seasonal), and Vegan Blood Orange (Seasonal). Even though these options are vegan, the dough is still really soft and fluffy. We tried the Vegan Cinnamon Sugar doughnut off-camera and fell in love with it. We couldn’t even tell that this doughnut was made solely with vegan ingredients!
The Taste Test – Hibiscus Glazed Doughnut
Since Dough has not yet developed a line of gluten-free doughnuts, Sam came out from behind the camera to do the taste testing instead. She decided to try the Hibiscus Glazed doughnut. This flavor is available year-round. The bright pink glaze on this doughnut was so eye-catching, she couldn’t resist.
The doughnut was as delicious as it was beautiful. The dough was soft and fluffy, just as Pantazi had described. The pink glaze was sweet and smooth, and of course, strongly tasted like hibiscus. The glaze is made fresh in the kitchen by cooking down hibiscus flowers. No wonder it tasted so fresh!
The next time you are looking for some breakfast to start your day with, check out Dough. You won’t regret it! For the last Downtown Highlights episode, click here.
The 100% Cheese Cracker Enters the Plant-Based Category to Expand Consumer Base
When we received the press release about yet, another plant-based snack we were like, really, not again. Almost everyday snacks and beverage drinks would arrive at our office, and not one person in our office would give a thumbs up.
Finally, one arrived, and after just one bite it had our entire staff’s approval. With not one, but two thumbs up!
One editor was heard saying, “I only wish that we had a case of these delectable, and perfectly flavored plant-based snacks.”
Discover snacking again GF, Vegan, and DF
ParmCrisps, the nutritionally on-trend snack brand, has once again broken through the confines of the cracker category. The brand is eager to announce its newest line, Plant-Based ParmCrisps, made from 100% dairy-free cheese. Plant-Based ParmCrisps will come in two timeless flavors: Sea Salt and Cracked Black Pepper and will be a first-of-its-kind product that caters to the plant-based lifestyle.
Grocery sales of plant-based foods have grown 29% in the past two years, according to SPINS data released in 2020. Plant-based cheese, in particular, has seen an 18% spike since 2019. Americans are increasingly enlisting in a plant-based lifestyle with vegan options, and the plant-based category has exploded to reach $5 Billion in 2020. As a result, restaurants, retailers, and food brands are innovating swiftly and strategically.
“THANK YOU, SAM. A snack that I can’t stop eating, and no tummy aches. Having food allergies, I was worried. Grace Capobianco Ceo- Downtown Magazine”
Parmcrisps_PlantBased
“The ParmCrisps innovation strategy has always been developed with the consumer top-of-mind,” says Sam Kestenbaum, CEO of ParmCrisps. ”When we noticed a trend toward plant-based snacking, we partnered with Whole Foods to create a solution for both our consumers and our retail partners. Plant-Based ParmCrisps is that solution, and it tastes so good that we’re confident both mainstream and plant-based consumers will fall in love.”
SPINS, for the last 52 weeks has proved ParmCrisps as the number one Cheese Crisp brand in both the Natural and Grocery category, and we can see why!
Natural Channel’s fastest-growing brand in the entire cracker set. As the Natural Channel leader, Whole Foods and its parent company, Amazon, partnered closely with ParmCrisps for the development and launch of this dairy-free crisp and will have an exclusive on the item in 2020. This first-ever dairy-free cheese crisp will be driving incremental basket sizes and bringing new consumers into the exploding Cheese Crisp category.
Find these first of their kind, plant-based cheese crisps in Whole Foods nationwide in October 2020 for an SRP of $4.79. ParmCrisps are the first-ever no sugar, no gluten snack made from real, oven-baked cheese, and now, dairy-free options.
Parmcrisps_PlantBased
About ParmCrisps
ParmCrisps Branded Snacks are artisan-crafted, crunchy crisps made from oven-baked cheese and premium seasonings. Whether consumers are Keto, Plant-Based, or Sugar-Free, ParmCrisps brings them a go-to snack that fits their cravings and lifestyle. ParmCrisps also offers Snack Mixes, the first low-carb, low-sugar Snack Mix to satisfy even the biggest cravings. The brand has been celebrated as a favorite, innovative snack by Food Network, Hungry Girl, NOSH, Medium, Whole Foods Magazine, Oxygen Magazine, and now Downtown Magazine NYC. ParmCrisps can be found and purchased on ParmCrisps.com, and in major retailers nationwide.
Don’t walk but RUN to your nearest Whole Foods Store. We highly recommend this product and congratulate Sam on his growing success.
Walking into Olfactory NYC on Mott Street feels a bit like wandering into a chic, friendly science lab. The minimalist, white décor allows the senses to focus entirely on the task at hand: creating your own custom perfume. Free will is the approach of the brand.
The Olfactory NYC experience begins with a selection of standard bases (all categorized with unisex names), and a vast array of accords (a choice of various blends) to enhance the scent. Each of the bases show examples of the actual seeds, leaves, and sources of the natural oils used to create the fragrances. You get a little education as well, with brief presentations and explanations. The company is very transparent about where their scents come from, and they are passionate about ethical sourcing.
Photo: Alice Teeple
Olfactory NYC is certified cruelty-free by Leaping Bunny International, and all of their products are vegan. Additionally, all fragrances are sustainably and locally sourced, phthalate- and paraben-free, and contain ingredients certified safe by IFRA (learn more).
Olfactory NYC offers the base blends as they are, but if you want to personalize one with a few extra notes, you can select from the menu.
Feeling fruity? The Ashton blend boasts lemon, bergamot, and white tea, with options to boost it. Maybe some blackcurrant and patchouli for a surprising twist? How about sage, orris and clearwood for an earthier approach? The choice is yours!
Olfactory NYC offers some unusual accord combinations, my favorite being English toffee/oud/saffron. One pleasant surprise was a tomato/basil combination that smelled like a summer garden after a gentle rain.
After choosing your two favorites, you are presented with perfume cards with the various combinations of the base and accords. You select which scents you enjoy the most, choose up to four combinations, and test the blends on your skin to see how they react to your personal chemistry.
Ever the Venus in Scorpio, I narrowed my choices down to the sensual Cam (designed by Le Labo Santal 33 creator Frank Voelkl) and the smooth Jayden (designed by perfumer Harry Fremont). It was difficult to decide. Cam, a blend of fig, violet leaves, and incense, was wonderful; the leaves had a fun little bite to the scent. After some deliberation, however, I knew Jayden would be more of an everyday scent for me.
Jayden’s signature is sandalwood, bolstered with a gently searing musk and refreshing cedarwood. After blending it with several different combinations of accords; my nose landed squarely on cedarwood and incense. (Although the toffee/oud/saffron accord was intriguing and smelled heavenly, it was too light and sweet for my own personality. I like an element of mystery!
Photo: Alice Teeple
Photo: Alice Teeple
Once the selection is finalized, the blend is then poured into a bottle and you choose the name and color for the custom label (available at no extra charge). Voilá! Here is my own personal scent, which is kept on file by Olfactory NYC in case I ever want to get another bottle (highly likely).
Photo (and perfume!) by Alice Teeple
Although some perfumes can be saturated with heavy citrus or patchouli elements, this is not the case with Olfactory NYC. All blends smelled wonderful and packed a punch…without overwhelming sensitive noses.
Four hours later, the “Alice” blend still smelled fresh and fragrant on my skin.
This is a wonderful perfume and having input in its creation was a delightful way to spend an hour. Best of all, a custom-made, 50ml bottle runs at $78. Their 50ml/1.69oz core fragrances are $50 (purchased as-is, without scent customization). Additionally, they offer 10ml/0.33oz travel spray and rollerballs of their core fragrances for $20. Olfactory NYC’s minimalist approach extends to its packaging, and because all scents are created in-house, this quality perfume is something special that won’t break the bank. Why pick up a tired old standby when you can have a little choose-your-own-adventure with your sweetheart…or your friends…or yourself?
If you want to give Olfactory NYC as a gift, they do offer empty gift bottles that lucky recipients can customize for themselves. Because scent is so deeply personal and can be hit or miss as a gift, this is a fantastic idea. They also offer rotating seasonal base scents. In addition to fragrances, Olfactory NYC also offers body lotions, candles, and body wash in their base scents. (Only fragrances can be customized, however.) You can also personalize your wedding celebration with the gift of custom scent!
No appointment necessary! Go in and have some fun.
According to John Parker’s article in the Economist, he believed that 2019 would be the year of the Vegan. Especially among Millenials. Yes, folks, even the Guardian and Forbes agree that veganism has gone mainstream.
In response to increasing demand for plant-based dishes –
Wagamama has once again collaborated with innovative UK vegan Chef Gaz Oakley to put his twist on his highly popular recipe for smoky, spicy and sticky seitan BBQ ribs.
The dish was adapted from the original seitan recipe, taking advantage of Oakley’s flavor profile but using Wagamama’s own cherry hoisin and sticky vegan sauces, and accompanying the dish with rice, caramelized lime and broccoli topped with chili for a more complete menu offering.
Chef Gaz Oakley
Dan Metz our Associate Editor had the pleasure of tasting the Vegan dishes this past Monday. “Wagamama has a really good vegan/vegetarian menu filled with all kinds of delicious options that would help even a meat-eater like myself est more vegetarian. The ribs dish was tangy, crunchy on the outside, and definitely reminiscent of real ribs. It was an interesting direction but isn’t necessarily a standout compared to all of the other vegan and vegetarian options available.”
Wagamama Vegan
More and more people are opting to consume less meat –
driven by concerns about health, the environment and the ethical treatment of animals. The additional upside is that eating a more plant-based diet has shown to support health, contributing to lower levels of cholesterol and blood pressure, and reduced risk of developing coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
Don’t worry if you are not based in the US, you can go to your nearest Wagamama’s as it features more than 29 vegan or vegetarian options diners and they will gladly customize other dishes to satisfy their dietary concerns.
Could you imagine a world-class, 150-year-old French patisserie going vegan? Through a partnership with Elisabeth and David Holder, presidents of Ladurée USA, plant-based chef and author Matthew Kenney, introduced vegan dishes to this world-renowned brand.
Downtown: When did you decide to specialize in plant-based cuisine?
Matthew Kenney: It was an intuitive decision. I really made a career for myself in the NYC restaurant scene after first entering it, and my restaurants definitely didn’t have a focus on anything related to vegan. This was in the 90’s, so the term “vegan” just wasn’t something anyone, including myself, really recognized. The restaurant industry is a tough one, and I began taking up yoga and meditation to keep me centered amidst it all. The more in touch I became with my body, the more I began returning to my passion about the “source” of food.
It wasn’t until I ate in a hole-in-the-wall vegan restaurant, by complete chance, that something finally clicked. The food was raw vegan, not at all glamorous, but I walked 5 miles around the city afterwards because my body felt so revived. I knew there was an opportunity here; what if I could make food that made people feel this good, but without making it feel like a compromise? So I became determined, right then and there, to create innovative, gourmet vegan food could be as sexy and luxurious as a traditional fine dining experience.
DT: How did your partnership with Ladurée start?
MK: Elisabeth actually reached out to me on Instagram direct message. She and her brother, David, run the company, which has been in their family since the early 90’s. The company itself is 150 years old, and I can imagine the challenges presented when dealing with antiquated practices in a modern day market. Both Elisabeth and her brother are strongly influenced by health and wellness in their personal lives. David has been a vegetarian for over a decade and both stick to vegan standards for the majority of their diets and incorporating that into the Ladurée legacy is really important to them. Our conversations fostered this excitement about how we could pursue this partnership and introduce a plant-based focus within a brand that has a long-standing reputation for its love of dairy and butter.
DT: What are some of the dishes that you created for Ladurée’s special vegan menu?
MK: The Beverly Hills location is the first 100% plant-based restaurant, while we are adding vegan menus to other international locations as a supplement to the regular menu. We have plant-based omelets that taste almost identical to the real thing but with a mung bean base. There is plant-based Croque-Monsieur with nut-based gruyère and tofu ham that is phenomenal. We’ve redone all of the macarons with the same selection of classic flavors, as well as all of the usual French staples: meringuèes, biscuits, croissants, puff pastries, pound cakes. There’s a lot.
DT: What does world-renowned Ladurée going vegan represents to the future of cuisine?
MK: To quote Elisabeth and her incentive to pursue this partnership, it’s a “Green Evolution”. The world is acknowledging the impact that our diets have on the planet and our health, and the surge of plant-based menus and products in today’s market are an indication of that. Following a vegan diet has never been mainstream. It’s conceivable that people are daunted, or maybe just puzzled by, the concept of cutting out animal products, because it seems so obscure and restrictive - when the reality is that it’s not.
If a world-class, 150-year-old French patisserie can serve the exact same menu with the exact same style and chicness, with the only difference being the source of ingredients, we can open the minds of a lot of skeptics. It showcases the potential of plant-based cuisine and allows people to understand that eating this way is not a sacrifice of their favorite foods or flavors. It’s not hard, but actually more appealing in more ways than one.
There’s a new food pop-up in Astoria, and it’s looking downright appetizing!
Dead and Berry’d appeared on 31st Street at an abandoned hot dog cart under the Ditmars stop this week. Its tasty “vegan/non-vegan fusion” offerings have certainly been tantalizing the block!
Photo by Hayley Bing
Green frankfurters, double-decker neon hamburgers, and frozen delights await the hungry masses at this formerly unloved street cart chained to a “No Parking” sign. The authentic artisan cuisine is skillfully handmade with indigestible Sculpey polymer, plated on eco-friendly thrift store china, and blends the finest in conceptual slaughter and foraging.
This forward-thinking chow wagon is committed to saving the environment and politely demands customers bring their own straws, on a sign plastered to the side of the cart. With all the roly-poly pigeons roaming the immediate area, and a farmer’s market across the street, Dead and Berry’d is committed to providing fresh farm-to-table squab for busy commuters.
Photo by Hayley Bing
The Dead and Berry’d logo alone is a masterpiece in graphic design: a KO’d pigeon with berries spinning over its head, invoking the spirit of the classic Rainbow Peace Dove poster of the great Milton Glaser, but with a tragic twist.
Their rustic menu, supplied by the neighboring Astoria post office Priority Mail rack, is artfully hand-drawn and calligraphed by a talented Anonymous…such a feast for each sense.
Astoria resident Hayley Bing, who spotted the new joint on her way to work, sent in these photos. She was one of the lucky few who got to sample the rare goods firsthand:
“The menu item they called ‘hotdog’ was reminiscent of the modeling clay I used to eat in art school on special occasions,” she says.
We aren’t sure what’s in those offerings or even the head chef’s true identity, but perhaps it’s best to keep this a beautiful mystery. Ditmars certainly needed a little zip in its step with all the new construction and changes happening to the beloved 31st Street promenade. And what a gamble! Food is flying off the shelves. By Thursday they’d sold out of their signature hot dogs, hamburgers and shakes, but we’re anxiously waiting for the next installation.
Photo by Hayley Bing
Photo by Alice Teeple
Perhaps Time Out had no idea what to say, but Downtown is ready to chow down.
