Vegan

5 Places Vegans Should Visit in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin

https://www.chicvegan.com/5-places-vegans-should-visit-in-lake-geneva-wisconsin/

Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, has been a popular summer haven for rich Chicagoites. After the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 many moved here and starting to ring the 20.6 miles of shoreline with their swanky mansions. Nowadays, it’s an all-season destination for summer boating, fall foliage, winter snow sports and spring relaxation. While Lake Geneva is not vegetarian central, vegetarians and vegans can eat well if they know where to go. Here are the places I discovered on a recent October visit.

Tuscan Tavern and Grill

This lunch and dinner spot had pumpkin fever when I visited. Pumpkins festooned the entryway, making for a warm and festive autumnal look. As you’d guess from the name, Tuscan Tavern and Grill specializes in Italian food. As soon as I told the server I was vegan, she skillfully took over. I was the only vegan in a large group. But the server made sure the mozzarella was on the side, so I could eat the eggplant caprese appetizer.

Eggplant caprese at Tuscan. Photo by Teresa Bergen

She directed me toward some vegan bread to pair with the bruschetta topping. I had the Mediterranean salad, minus the feta and pita chips. Vegans can also order dairy-free wood-fired pizzas. Highly recommended.

Mediterranean salad at Tuscan in Lake Geneva — Mediterranean salad at Tuscan. Photo by Teresa Bergen.

Oakfire

Owner David Scotney started making wood-fired pizzas in his Chicago backyard as a hobby. Then he’d deliver his practice pizzas free to his neighbors. But when a popular Lake Geneva diner went up for sale in 2015, he decided to go pro.

Oakfire is a top choice for vegans, and has a dazzling lake view. The original Native American name for the lake is Kishwauketoe, which I’m told means “the water has light.” Indeed, you can watch it sparkle from Oakfire.

People sitting at a table with a view of Lake Geneva — Pizza with a view at Oakfire. Photo by Teresa Bergen.

And there’s vegan pizza right on the men. “That pizza came about because lots of vegans were requesting pizza,” Scotney told me. He studied dough making under a master in Chicago. The trick is make the dough out of flour, salt, water and yeast, then let it sit for 24 hours. At 1200-1500 degrees, the Oakfire oven is so hot that pizzas cook in 90 seconds. And a good thing they do, because in summer Oakfire serves up to 1500 people a day. The kale salad minus cheese is another good vegan choice.

Grand Geneva Resort

I never thought I’d be sitting at the country’s first Playboy Club Hotel eating a gourmet vegan meal. Nowadays, it’s called the Grand Geneva Resort. There are no longer young women in bunny ears and rat pack artists performing in the lounge, but there’s still a distinctive bunny head-shaped pond, and other souvenirs from the resort’s past.

Executive chef and long-time Wisconsin resident Nelly Buleje oversees the enormous resort’s multiple restaurants. I got to meet him and he was extremely kind and happy to prepare the most beautiful vegan delicacies for me, complete with edible flowers!

Edible flowers crown an appetizer at the Grand Geneva. — Too pretty to eat? I ate it anyway. Photo by Teresa Bergen.

Also, I felt comfortable enough with him to ask him to throw in some chili peppers which made my risotto much more exciting.

Risotto at the Grand Geneva — Risotto a la Chef Nelly. Photo by Teresa Bergen.

The resort’s menus are not overtly veg-friendly. However, they are committed to accommodating many diets, so if you tell your server at the beginning of the meal, the Grand Geneva will whip up something veg-delicious.

Avant Café

If you like bikes and/or coffee, you’ll want to stop by Avant Cycle Café while visiting Lake Geneva. This combination regional biking center and coffee shop fixes bikes, rents bikes, advises on local bike routes, and serves up coffee roasted in small batches. I appreciated the multiple nondairy options for my cappuccino. They even rent fat bike tires for snow rides, if you happen to visit Lake Geneva in winter.

The interior of Avant Cycle Cafe in Lake Geneva — Drink coffee, ride bikes. Photo by Teresa Bergen.

Sprecher’s Restaurant & Pub

With a bit of creativity, you can get a good vegan meal at Sprecher’s. The Southwest Salad is a huge, filling entrée. Just hold the cheese and switch out ranch dressing for balsamic and you have a vegan lunch. Or order the Asian chop chicken salad, hold the chicken, and you’re left with an enormous plate of cabbage, veggies, peanuts, mandarin oranges and sesame seeds tossed in ginger-garlic sauce. They also offer vegan patties for their burgers. If you like sodas, don’t miss their line of craft sodas brewed in a gas-fired kettle.

Asian chop salad — Hold the chicken. Photo by Teresa Bergen.

Vegan

Malvani Chicken Curry (Western Indian Coconut, Kashmiri Chili, Onion Curry) gluten-free, nut-free

Explore regional Indian cuisine with me and Try this fantastic Malvani Chikin curry! Western Indian spicy caramelized onion, toasted coconut and kashmiri chili sauce with crisp tofu! This sauce is flavor packed and has its own malvani masala spice blend! 1-pan meal meal that’s delicious served over rice or with flatbread or naan.

malvani chicken curry in the pan after cooking

Malvani cuisine originates from the western coastal region in India. It has overlap with Maharashtrian(cuisine of state of maharashtra in India) as well as Goan cuisines and includes a lot of fish and local meat dishes. The flavors are very specific to the cuisine, with its own spice mixes (malvani masala or malvani garam masala) and cooking techniques.

I’ve been exploring amazing regional flavors from various parts of India and brining you vegan versions, simplified or inspired dishes and today we are making vegan malvani chicken curry! For the sauce base, we use a blended roasted onion and coconut mixture, which is called vatan, making our own malvani spice blend with some spices, and using crisped up tofu in place of the meat. You can use other protein such as chickpea tofu, vegan chickin or beans as well. Traditionally, you don’t add any cream to this curry, but you can add some(it will also balance out the heat), add in some cashew cream or other non-dairy cream right at the end.

close-up of malvani chicken curry in the pan after cooking

The sauce and spice mix includes a lot of Kashmiri chili powder (I know right, you need some!) and black pepper, so it can get pretty hot. You can reduce these spices to suit your heat preferences, if needed.

Like I mentioned above, we make the flavorful Malvani masala spice blend from scratch. It is so delicious! If you have access to Malvani garam masala, I recommend using it in this recipe instead of the spice mix that I’m making below, to reduce active time. Just mix it with two teaspoons of Kashmiri chili powder and use. You can use this fragrant spicy blend over roasted veggies or with beans. It’s flavorful and can be used in many ways!

Key features of Malvani Curry

Malvani masala: this spice blend and the curry are known for the deep red color. It can be made with milder chilies with deeper color like byadagi chilies and Kashmiri chilies. I am using Kashmiri chili powder for a quicker version

Vatan: the sauce made with blended caramelized onion and toasted coconut makes the base of the curry. It adds a delicious sweet toasty flavor and some texture.

Slow long cooking: the longer cooking time helps the flavors meld and the colors to show up. The sauce when well cooked will get a glaze of the deep red color and a settled flavor. Before that state, the coconut might be a stronger flavor and the sauce might be lighter.