The Skinty

Horizons Philadelphia-Vegan Restaurant

When I want to eat well without having to stress over calories fat, grease, etc. I tend to steer towards vegan cuisine. Now that can be tricky because vegan doesn’t necessarily translate to healthy and low fat and going into such a place to eat with that mindset could set you up to fail. However the likelihood of finding healthier choices at vegan restaurants compared to say your favorite pizza spot is much much greater. And a larger scale to choose from as well. Therefore when I heard that Horizons Vegan Cafe was moving from Willow Grove PA to South St Philly I was oh so thrilled and could not wait to finally try this place I’d been wanting to visit for quite some time.

The night that I visited, it was a rainy cold day and I refused to sit in the house, figuring it the perfect time to check out Horizons new location off of 7th and South. Being the upscale spot that it is, I was not able to get a reservation that day at a reasonable time for me. However was given the offer to come in, sit in the downstairs area and order tapa (small plates) so I did just that. Tapas actually work very well for us that are focusing on loosing weight as well, especially when you are sharing a bunch of them, because it gives you an opportunity to get the flavor of the food you want without the calories you’d eat if you ate a full entree.

The interior of the restaurant is beautiful at first glance so I asked if I could peek upstairs to see the rest of the design and it was just as gorgeous from the stairs to the seating. That is a big deal for me being into design and all, plus it’s just nice to every now and again go to a restaurant that’s wonderful from the decor to the service to the food.

Anyway I sat downstairs, unfortunately due to the rain coupled with the crowd I was really cold. I sat right in front of the door and every time someone came in they brought a gush of wind with them. Yet I was so determined to give this restaurant a try that it was well worth it. I went with my daughter and the two of us shared about 3 tapa if I remember correctly and a dessert. The first was their Jamaican BBQ Seitan which was pretty good. Seitan gives you the texture and feel of meat without actually eating meat so I found this to be pretty good however I’ve had other dishes that were more satisfying in a this is like a regular meal oppose to feeling as if I’m eating mock meat.

I’m forgetting and dish that’ll hopefully come back to me while I’m writing about my favorite dish of the night, their version of a Shepard’s pie. Being a tapa, it came in this cute little serving dish which consisted of veggies, mash potatoes and more seitan. The flavors came together perfectly and this time around didn’t have that I’m eating mock meat feeling that I got with the BBQ Seitan.

Welp can’t recall the other tapah, however I do recall the blueberry cheesecake we had for dessert. Who knew that a cheese-less cheesecake could taste so good. This is one of those meals that you have to eat, looking forward to what it’s flavor has to offer oppose to hoping it’ll taste just like the real deal. Which really can be said about any vegan meal you partake in that’s out of your norm hence the BBQ seitan comes to mind again.

All in all, I’d give this restaurant a 4 out of 5, including ratings for service and decor and I’m looking forward to going again to dine within the actual restaurant, ordering a full meal. Because there will be no Nutritional Info provided and again that temptation to eat more because it’s vegan, I recommend this restaurant either going with friends and sharing plates or tapa, OR going on a day when you’re stricter concerning your other meals during the day.

To find out more about Horizons, check out their website at http://horizonsphiladelphia.com/. Also their menu seems to have been updates since I’ve last visited which gives me a great excuse to go again:-) But also if you visit and try other dishes, please consider posting in comments about it to let us know.