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| - On a sunny Friday afternoon, the day after its grand opening, my SO and I decided to drive a half hour to try the hot, new restaurant boasting vegan comfort food--an offering that isn't as widely available in Las Vegas as it is in other vegan-friendly cities. Let me start by saying that the menu has an overwhelming number of options, although, nothing compared to the infamous Cheesecake Factory Bible (thank goodness).
As we sat down in the starkly white and monochromatic, IKEA-furnished establishment, I thought to myself that ordering JUST a few dishes would be devastating. But as our smiling server greeted us, she mentioned a long list of items that they were out of. To be quite frank, this was indeed a blessing. The less I had to choose from, the less conflict in my taste buds! Our limited yet still quite varied list of choices allowed us to enjoy three following items: the Louisiana fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy (no coleslaw for me!), a vegan lobster roll with a mountain of French fries, and a heaping side of baked mac and cheese.
Now, I'm not quite sure what it is about this establishment, but I found it so endearing. Maybe it was the Möckelby table in the far end of the room? The millions of pillows nesting on one lonely couch? The strange chain curtains separating the bar? Perhaps the wooden shelves hidden out of plain sight, or the sound of early-2000s Mariah melting into the background of a "modern" atmosphere? Stepping into The Modern Vegan, you forget you're on Nellis and are immediately immersed into a different world, the only reminder being your 8-year-old vehicle parked outside the window.
How much do you enjoy eating? If the answer is a lot, then wait-time could be a critical factor to your experience. We found ours to be relatively short. A mere 15 minutes after ordering, a baked mac and cheese was set in front of us, served in a piping-hot, cast-iron pan. It had that quintessential, crumb-top layer that mac and cheese is best known for. And while I thought it lacked cheesiness and needed a pinch of salt, I did in fact eat every single piece of elbow pasta on that pan. The vegan lobster roll didn't taste too much like it's seafood counterpart, but I thought the lobster mixture itself was refreshing and tasty. Add to that, a mountain of fried potato strips... I must admit I've never once met a French fry that I didn't like.
The true star to me, though, was the fried "chicken". I've had many-a-vegan-fried-chik'n's in the past few years of eating a plant based diet and I have to give it to this one. The Modern Vegan nails the batter, the seasoning, and overall flavor. To me, this was just right. It was crisp, but somehow light, and I couldn't help but to think about how a chunk of soy protein isolate could possibly be so, dare I say it... moist? On this spring-sunny day in March, somebody in The Modern Vegan kitchen knew how to work that deep fryer. A pepper-y gravy and some fluffy mashed potatoes complimented the crunchy, crispy, tender and flavorful vegan chicken. I was content. No animals were harmed.
The portions here met the "American standard". So much so that after licking each plate clean, the thought of ordering from their list of desserts would have been overkill for two rather petite individuals. Nevertheless, knowing I even had the choice was plenty promising. Seriously, check out those desserts! While The Modern Vegan is not perfect, and is at times reminiscent of a club, it has the potential to be such a great asset to the Las Vegas vegan community. I am definitely returning to The Modern Vegan with a bigger party to try and make my way through their menu. Give it a shot! I'm sure you'll find something you'll like.
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