Oh good ol’ Burlington.

Portland is just like B-Town, except we have mass transit.  And more people.  And more bikes.  And, sadly, much more vegan stuff.

I have been so frustrated when visiting my old mother land, as the vegan options are so, so hard to find.

But there, on the horizon, Stone Soup shines for all the wayward vegans searching for something deelish to eat.

Stone Soup is my personal Mecca when it comes to chowing down in this small city, and on this visit I could not wait to get my grub on.

The ambiance is always warm and inviting.  While lunch seating can be a real challenge, later meals offer a lot more room to stretch out.  While their menu is not all vegan (they even serve meat), they are VERY accommodating and everything is well marked.  The staff is intelligent about veganism and always aims to please.

They have a series of pre-baked goodies from cookies and scones, to muffins and crisps.  Most everything has a vegan option, but the selection for us egg and milk free folks is much smaller.  Plus, I would LOVE a vegan blueberry muffin here, they always seem to have odd, complex vegan muffin choices.

You have two primary options when it comes to your meal – choose and build you own plate from the hot bar (which seems to always change based on seasonal offerings) or an old time standard from the chalkboard menu behind the counter.

Last time, I built my own plate but the price was pretty steep.  As it goes by weight ($10+ per pound) you may want to skip the rice and other staples, and focus on the new and exciting offerings.

When it comes to ordering off the board, I can never afford to deviate from one of the best vegan reubens I have ever had.  Their “Seitan Reuben” is made of thinly sliced (and ever so slightly crispy-on-the-edges) seitan that is perfectly seasoned.  The vegan cheese offeres a nice creaminess to the whole sammy, but it can get messy.  So grab a stack of napkins.

What good is an amazing vegan meal without some dessert?  I opted for the Strawberry-peach crisp on this cold 15 degree day.  It was warmed in the oven and tasted absolutely brilliant.  The oat topping really gives it some heft, as my sister wasn’t able to finish her helping (easy enough for me to lend assistance).

We ended our meal with a cup of coffee and some great conversation.

If in Burlington, be sure to make Stone Soup a stop.  Leave yourself enough time to  try a bunch of their goodies, and take some for the road.  And just maybe they will have a vegan blueberry muffin waiting at the counter.