During our last foray into the Southland, we had the pleasure of trying Crossroads Kitchen, a high-end vegan restaurant in the Melrose District of Los Angeles. Unlike many vegan spots that seem quiet and dull (I’m thinking about you, Little Pine) this place was boisterous and fun with linen tablecloths and dark wood, this is the new version of plant-based eating at its finest.
We began our journey with their kale Ceasar, a well-dressed take on the perennial restaurant classic. One of the things I really like about the menu at Crossroads Kitchen was that they called everything more or less what you’d expect it to be labeled as, such as this simply being dressed with a Ceasar dressing as opposed to a Ceasar-style, or other explicit mentions that something is plant-based beyond just the simple understanding of where you’ve come to eat. I also liked that the “proteins” section of their menu contains things like lentils, chickpeas and Italian sausage, sans the scare quotes, as well as a moussaka with eggplant and Impossible meat.
As I get to eat at more and more places with vegan options, I’m tending to see more and more stand-bys. Everyone’s doing some version of a cauliflower appetizer, and a lot of people are trying to do these hearts of palm crab-cakes. I have to say I think this is one of the better versions I’ve had. This somehow really nailed the crabby texture better than most while also still retaining a lot of the sort of seasoned seafood taste that you’re expecting when you get a crab cake. These little guys really hit the mark and I would totally do some more of these the next time I go back.
I’ve always been a big mushroom fan, and it’s fun to see them take center stage in something like this: a very typical sort of French dish with a slices of mushroom stems baked in a delicious, mustard-y cream sauce for the ages. A delicate, crispy crust completed the presentation and taste.
Talk about a crispy crust! These were one of my very favorites of the evening. Soft, tender potatoes with crispy edges infused with an intoxicating truffle flavor. I was ready for a second order of these. The presentation was so unusual that it led to a debate about to how to recreate the dish. I’m thinking a blow torch must have been involved in some way.
Rounding down the meal was this delicious bowl of chickpeas with chraimeh sauce, a spicy, lemony concoction I was completely unfamiliar with until now, but upon doing a little research may become a new staple.
Our final dish for the evening, because there just wasn’t going to be any room for desert after this feast was their homemade Corn Tortoloni, a slightly sweet “ravioli” purse in a delicious corn puree. I’ll be back for seconds.
Crossroads Kitchen is 100% vegan and has a VegScore of 100. Despite items on the menu labeled with commonly understood foods like meat (as in “meat”balls) and cheese (as in almond ricotta), neither of these non-plant sources are actually present in any of the food served.
Crossroads Kitchen
8284 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90046