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Neatloaf with
mash and mushroom gravy from The Rainbow-Silence-Heart
The Age, October 2003
"Oh no" you cry upon reading the name of this café, "not another hippie joint mired in mung beans".
And you're right, it's not.
Sure, if the chipper little spiritual message cards on the table are anything to go by then there's something of a philosophical nature going on here, but it doesn't get in the way of darned decent vegetarian food. Food with flavour, served with a sense of humour, and likely to satisfy even the most dedicated of meat eaters (i.e. me).
For instance the neatloaf (yes that is neatloaf – the recipe's Californian, which may explain the name). It's a stout slab of cottage cheese, egg, tofu, oats, rice and herbs, densely compacted and baked in the oven, just like a real meatloaf. Caramelised onions lend a sweet and savoury edge and with a side serve of mash and chunky mushroom gravy to boot, who needs meat?
Fancy something a leat less meaty? Try an unsausage roll, which as the name suggests, contains no sausage. With the inclusion of crunchy walnuts in the cheesy, oaty, tofu mix, it is pretty good.
There's a hefty lasagne, curries, lassie, sweet nibbles,
burgers. They'll even try to cater for vegans.
-John Weldon