Good Karma Cafe's Chocolate Cake (Vegan MoFo 2013)

I know I have a lot of favorites, but this cake has been one for so long that it deserves it's own showcase; it's the best chocolate cake in New Jersey.

It's simply the top-billed chocolate ganache cake: chocolate cake layered with chocolate ganache and drizzled with chocolate sauce...

Sorry, raw foodies, for cutting off your option.

...from Good Karma Cafe in Red Bank, New Jersey.

The cake is so good and so rich that VM and I have developed a technique for optimal enjoyment.  First, we demurely order a single slice to share at the cafe.

left

right

Next, we devour every morsel.

And then we take a second slice home to share the next day.

It's win-win!

Good Karma is now open on Sundays, so my recommendation is for you to start your day with The Cinnamon Snail at the Red Bank Farmer's Market and then make like the Beans and take a slice from Good Karma, which is just a few blocks away, home with you.  Or two; I don't judge.

Wild Ginger (Vegan MoFo 2013)

It would seem that Wild Ginger is a vegan staple that has been visited by everyone...except me. 

A while ago that all changed when I had the opportunity to dine at the Bedford location (the SoHo and Smith Street restaurants have a separate website, but a seemingly identical menu) with friends I hadn't seen in some time.  I really liked the atmosphere of the restaurant: serene, clean, and with obvious attention to detail.  Translation: we wanted to swipe the table's floral arrangements.

The entrees come with your choice of soup or salad.  The soup is miso; I didn't have, but it received high marks from the rest of the table.

Instead, I went with the salad, which was much larger than expected and very fresh:

We also shared the curry samosas: vegetable pastries with mint chutney.

One friend had the spinach salad: with baby spinach, pine nuts, beets, chick peas, and alfalfa sprouts- topped with citrus yuzu dressing.  I heard no complaints, and it looked just as fresh as my appetizer salad.

Another friend chose the General Tso's soy protein: with breaded medallions of sauteed soy protein with steamed broccoli in a spicy brown sauce.  It was completely different from the General Tso's served at Buddha Bodai and Soy and Sake, but also good.  The sauce- even when ordered non-spicy, was excellent and made the dish.

I'd intended to follow her lead, but I instead chose the sauteed tofu and vegetables: with tofu, broccoli, carrots, zucchini, lotus root, asparagus, sugar-snap peas, and cauliflower sauteed in a rich, brown, kung-po sauce because I wasn't feeling mock-meaty and I really wanted some lotus root.  It was a generous portion and the veggies were fresh and hit the spot, but the dish was bland overall; I'd recommend ordering very spicy for some flavor (maybe they could douse it with General Tso's sauce?).

The last entree of the table was the soy cutlet sizzling platter: thick breaded soy cutlets sauteed in a basil-ginger sauce with zucchini, asparagus, and peppers.  It was very much enjoyed and I secretly coveted the hot sauce that was ordered with it.

While I wasn't impressed with the flavor of my particular dish, based on all of the other positive elements, I would definitely give this restaurant another try. If anyone has a recommendation for improved ordering, let me know; I'm already eying the cold green tea noodles with sesame peanut sauce.