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No diner — from macrobiotic to hardcore carnivore — should give up an opportunity to visit this sumptuous townhouse restaurant in Center City East.
Set in the onetime home of the long-running Deux Cheminees, Vedge has kept its predecessor’s historic details like leaded glass windows and wood paneling while brightening up the clutch of rooms with marble top bars and an open kitchen.
The rule here is to expect the unexpected — and to plan to share many plates in order to sample as much of the menu as possible.
Eschewing every last stereotype of cruelty-free food, owners and life partners Rich Landau and Kate Jacoby — both James Beard Award nominees — turn out high-end, palate-zinging fare alongside excellent cocktails and a smart list of natural and organic wines.
Vedge offers dinner service only, though the bar’s happy hour and menu of snacks (Monday through Friday, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.) merit a special visit.
The rule here is to expect the unexpected.
The plant-based spread begins with the Vedge Bar, or small bites like pastrami-spiced beets on rye bread and a soft pretzel with a rutabaga “fondue” that so convincingly mimics melted cheese that it could convert new pledges to veganism on the spot.
The Dirt List covers a changing seasonal array of preparations — it might include smoked onion dashi with pea leaves or kim chi-glazed Brussels sprouts. The Grill component encompasses heartier dishes, such as thinly sliced smoked rolls of eggplant with salsa verde and cured olives, or seared maitake mushrooms with celery root fritters.
Dessert should never — repeat, never — be skipped, lest the genius of Kate Jacoby’s dairy-free workarounds be overlooked.
Homemade ice creams stun with creaminess, while cleverly wielded flavors create sweet alchemy, as in her “trail mix,” pecan mud pie embellished with cranberry, butternut squash and sage marshmallow. Meanwhile, the bar mixes chamomile toddies with bourbon and sparkling wine cocktails with red bell pepper juice.
Mocktails, craft beer and a mostly Old World list of natural wines round out the offerings.
The Vedge Bar serves up small bites and snacks. — Photo by N. Santos for Visit Philadelphia
Before opening Vedge, Landau and Jacoby owned a meatless restaurant called Horizons in Willow Grove, later opening up a branch in Bella Vista.
Their dedicated following, at first mostly limited to counterculture vegans and their (once reluctant) dining partners, grew, attracting national attention for the way the couple could render mushrooms and carrots and tofu into richly satisfying indulgences.
In 2011, they opened their fine-dining restaurant Vedge, moving away from the “protein at the center of the plate” model and a reliance on soy-based meat substitutes, and instead creating a wholly different eating experience, in which the vegetables come first, last and in between.
Over the last decade, Philadelphia has proved itself a leader in meatless dining — and Jacoby and Landau have led that charge.
Their influence — and in many cases, their direct tutelage — can be tasted in nearly a dozen other vegan restaurants in and around the city.
Now owners of a growing family of restaurants that includes V Street and Wiz Kid, the couple continues to innovate at their flagship eatery, their elegant dinners turning skepticism into surprised delight.
Chefs Landau and Jacoby are pioneers in meatless dining in Philadelphia. — Photo by N. Santos for Visit Philadelphia
La Visit Philly Overnight Package — rezève plis pase 190,000 fwa depi 2001 — vini ak pakin otèl gratis (ki vo jiska $100 nan Center City Philadelphia) ak lojman otèl pou yon nuit.
The hub of LGBTQ+ culture in the heart of Philly …
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