Last week I wrote about the best meaty bites you can expect at Taste of NoVA. To recap, Northern Virginia Magazine’s gigantic tasting event takes place on October 11 and 12 at Manassas’ NOVA LIVE.
I don’t want to leave my vegetarian friends behind, and some of the most appealing of the more than 120 vendors on both days are offering meat-free fare from around the world. Here’s what I’m looking forward to sampling.
The global tour begins on Saturday with Egyptian offerings from Fava Pot. The falafel patties — or ta’ameya, as the spiced, fried treats are known in Egypt — are made using fava beans. I’ll also be digging into tangy, garlicky chickpea-based hummus.
Taco Bamba will have creamy coconut-flavored ceviche for pescatarians, but if you’re avoiding anything with eyes, get ready for the Great Big Mexican. The vegetarian taco features walnut chorizo, chipotle, cheese, huitlacoche crema, and pickled onions.
On Sunday, the indulgence continues with Serbian-style cheese pies from Ambar. The phyllo dough filled with a gooey cheese blend is dressed up by being presented on top of red-pepper spread emulsion and topped with yogurt.
Celebration by Rupa Vira doubles your meatless pleasures with two dishes. The benne dosa is a crisp, buttery pancake made from rice batter. The lotus stem chaat is one of my favorite dishes at the Ashburn restaurant. The crispy lotus root is spiced with mint and tamarind chutneys, then cooled with yogurt pearls and fresh fruit.
Want something French to cool your palate? Bastille Brasserie & Bar is serving up gnocchi Parisien topped with mushroom Bourguignon. Never had Parisian-style gnocchi before? Unlike the Italian version which is made from potato or ricotta, this is made from choux pastry. You’ll get a sweet dose of the same choux batter in the form of dessert, too. Wait and see!
Feature image of Fava Pot falafel by Alice Levitt
