Every week or so, I get on the internet and I do a search for “Best Vegan Restaurant in Chicago” or “Best Vegan [insert cuisine here].” I almost never find anything new. In fact, I’m getting to the point where I feel like I’ve tried just about everything obvious The City has to offer, and I keep wishing there were some more plant-based options.
That’s just when you have to start getting a little more clever with your searches and to start looking just a little bit out of your comfort zone.
So I was super-pleasantly surprised when this weekend I was reading some reviews of places and found out what a decent Vegan Pizza Menu Paulie Gee’s in Logan Square has. We went from reading about it to being in the car in under 30 minutes. They opened at five and the reviews said they were popular and we were hungry.
We got a spot on the street just across the street and walked in about twenty after five to a fairly packed room. It was boisterous, but then this is pizza place.
I didn’t pay a lot of attention to the omni offerings, but what I saw around the room looked good and everything smelled good.
We tried two of the pizzas and I’d have ordered a third when I was done, except they liked for you to order what you want all at once.
We started off the meal with their Gates of Eden salad, a delicate blend of Seasonal Greens lightly dressed with a Red Wine Vinaigrette, and tossed with Gorgonzola Cheese which can easily be removed, house candied pecans, sliced red onions, dried cranberries, and sliced bosc pear.
Then, rather quickly, really, they brought out our two pizzas: the The Rabbit Pie – Italian Tomatoes, Garlic, Baby Arugula, Baby Spinach, House Made Vegan Fennel Sausage, Red Onions, Pickled Pineapples with a Soy Chili Glaze. I could have done without the last two ingredients, frankly, but it was still quite good, and I am a really fan of the crispy, chewy crust. We also had the Vegan Regina, a simple, yet satisfying presentation of the basics: Italian tomatoes, vegan mozzarella, fresh basil, olive oil. If you can’t do the basics right, there’s no point trying anything else. They nailed it.
We loved our pizzas at Paulie Gee’s and we really appreciated how much effort they put into appealing to omni diners, as well as those with more modern palates. They have a well labeled menu that includes omnivore pizzas, vegetarian pizzas, and plenty of vegan options, not just one or two throwaway items for the day. Bravo and thank you.
VegScore: 25% – right about 1/4 of their menu offerings are well labeled as vegan or can be made that way.