On a very rainy Sunday afternoon, I went to The Seed Experience – a vegan lifestyle event – in NYC, for a couple of hours of vegan immersion.  Having grown up part-vegan and part-vegetarian, I am always on the look-out for great tasting vegan food.  That’s right, for me taste is paramount and if it’s vegan, that’s great!

At The Seed Experience 2013, I was not disappointed to find many tasty vegan products, and many products (snacks, juices / cleanses, ready-to-eat food etc.) that will likely taste delicious to the vegans, but were on the margin for me.  Those interested in a vegan, compassionate lifestyle would have been thrilled – vegan, jewelry, belts, bracelets cosmetics, etc. were on display.  I did not stay for any of the cooking demonstrations or talks as I had limited time.  If I could have laid my hands on a printed schedule, I would have planned my visit around a talk that might have picked my interest.  Alas, that was not the case – the website offered precious little information about timing of the talks / demonstrations and when I checked-in I did not ask for a printed schedule.

Overall,  I can’t say that I gained a lot from The Seed 2013 in NYC, although I was not disappointed either.  I would have enjoyed The Seed more had there been more vegan restaurants offering samples and if many of the excellent tasting products were easily available (either in store or on-line) in NYC.

Meanwhile, here are some of the top tasting food that I came across at The Seed Experience NYC on May 19, 2013.

My absolute favorite is the Organic Truffle Mayonnaise (both black and white) from da Rosario.

I loved this smoked cashew cheese from Treeline Treenut cheese.  It is made in the Catskills in upstate NY and is available in many locations in NYC.

I also liked the Bee Free Honee made from apples, non-GMO sugar and lemon juice. It tasted almost like real honey and closer to maple syrup.  The coconut bacon made by Vegan Bodega was excellent – smoky and salty to taste (kind of like real bacon) – but I wonder how this would taste when the coconut turns rancid. Vegan Queso by Food for Lovers was also delicious.  They are working on a gluten-free version of the queso.

Loved the chocolate chai vegan, gluten-free ice cream made in Long Island by Alchemy Creamery .

Talking about chocolate, I could not get enough of the vegan, organic, fair trade, kosher peanut chocolate crunch bar by Rescue Chocolate.

The falafel-like Mediterranean Veggie sausages and the pastirma-like Veggie Turkish Roast were simply delicious.  They are made from a blend of soy and wheat by Viana USA.  Their snack sausages were great too.

The red pepper and horseradish dips from Soyatoo (a sister brand of Viana) were loaded with flavor.  Soyatoo’s onion butter made with palm-oil, tasted almost like butter, with crunchy, caramelized pieces of onion.

I was hoping to find some restaurants serving snacks and there were but a few.  Pure Food and Wine was serving spring rolls.  Excellent as always. Have to go back to Pure Food and Wine to taste their latest seasonal menu.

M.O.B (Maimonides on Brooklyn), a vegan restaurant just a couple of blocks from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn served excellent fare.   The corn soup with curried pop-corn and the chocolate hazelnut torte were absolute winners.  Now I have to add M.O.B to my list of vegan restaurants to eat at.

Loved, loved, loved this smooth, creamy chocolate avocado mousse (wish I could remember who was giving this away, sigh!!)

Here are some pictures of products / food that tasted OK in my opinion, but may have been delicious to others.

These are some lifestyle products on display. My favorites of these were Haute Latitude (jewelry made from jute, wood, bamboo), The Orange Owl (hand-made body butters and soaps made from Mango Butter) and Michelle Leon Vegan (belts made from recycled fabric that felt like leather) .

Books on vegan food, recipes and lifestyle on display.

Overall, The Seed Experience was well attended and there was barely any space to move by the time I left the venue on Sunday afternoon.

For those who did not get enough to eat at The Seed Experience, there was Cinnamon Snail  (2012 Vendy Award winner) – a vegan, kosher, organic food truck (also serving gluten-free food) – parked right outside the event space.  There were at least a dozen people waiting patiently in the rain, while I found the nearest subway home.

If you were at The Seed Experience NYC over the weekend, what did you like / enjoy?  Did I miss anything that tasted delicious?