Preparing for Pittsburgh Vegan Restaurant Week, Cucina Vitale Chef Frank Vitale was surprised to find out how many ingredients on his menu were already vegan. At the traditional red-sauce Italian restaurant in Green Tree, pasta is made fresh from semolina flour and water. Wines from the family-run Allora Wine Group — folded into several dishes — are produced organically with minimal intervention. It inspired Vitale to get creative and keep branching out.
“I think every chef gets excited about a new creation or a different genre of food to get into,” he said.
Making vegan or plant-based food approachable, even vibrant, is a goal of Pittsburgh’s second annual Vegan Restaurant Week, running May 11 to 17.
Hosted by Pittsburgh-based Human Action Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh Vegan Restaurant Week — or Veg Week — invites those curious about plant-based eating to try a vegan meal at 15 local restaurants.
Favorites Con Alma and Cafe Chocolade in Oakdale will return along with new additions, including Millvale’s Abeille Voyante Tea Co., offering finger sandwiches; Esquina Cantina, serving vegan tacos; and Ruggers Pub, featuring funnel cake, a vegan falafel crunch wrap and seitan wings. Other local spots include Senyai Thai Kitchen, Khalil’s Middle Eastern Restaurant, Spirit in Lawrenceville and EYV (Eat Your Veggies) Restaurant, the already veggie-forward haven on Pittsburgh’s North Side.
“This year, we’re really doing it bigger and better,” HAP executive director Natalie Ahwesh said.
Participating restaurants will offer a three-course prix fixe menu. To further entice guests, menus are also affordable, ranging from $16-$55 for a three-course meal. A new incentive program also offers diners a chance to win $20 gift cards from participating restaurants when they visit three or more of them during Veg Week.
A kickoff party on May 11 will take place at Iron Root, a vegan, Buddhist-inspired restaurant inside Bakery Square’s City Kitchen. Iron Root is also rolling out its own special Veg Week menu.
As much as Veg Week aims to reduce meat consumption — which in turn lowers greenhouse gas emissions and reduces an individual’s carbon footprint — it’s also a showcase for local eateries. The goals align for HAP, a nonprofit that advocates for animal protection statewide through legislative lobbying and community events.
“We’re hoping this week is also a chance for restaurants to reach new customers and tap into growing interest for healthier and more sustainable dining options,” Ahwesh said.
Vitale came to vegan cooking before Veg Week, inspired by health-conscious friends he met taking yoga classes. He wondered if his family recipes, which lean on butter and cheese, could be adapted.
Catering a yoga party, he tried making vegan tiramisu and lady fingers — not easy to come by locally. To prepare the desserts, he used aquafaba, a starchy liquid strained from chickpeas often substituted for egg whites.
“It whips very close to egg white, and that blew my mind,” Vitale said. “(I thought), if I can do vegan options for my friends, then why not do it for the restaurant, too? Because I see it becoming more popular as well.”
Cucina Vitale’s Veg Week menu ($32) features vegan meatballs (shiitake mushrooms and chickpeas) with vegan marinara sauce, a lentil bolognese and vegan brownies with chocolate frosting. The three courses are a preview for the restaurant’s permanent vegan menu, which will add a vegan mozzarella pomodoro and a vegan lasagna made with cashew cheese.
“There’s not many vegan traditional Italian (options) in Pittsburgh, so it might be the start of something,” Vitale said.
El Sabor Latin Kitchen in Bloomfield sees Veg Week as a new way to highlight their existing menu. Since opening in 2020, their scratch-made kitchen and food truck have served vegan items including tacos, chimichangas and fajitas filled with potatoes, grilled veggies and tofu.
Initially, owners Rebecca and Henry Avila were surprised when their tofu got “rave reviews.”
“We don’t necessarily promote ourselves as a vegan restaurant, because we have so many other things,” Rebecca Avila said. “But I think it’s exciting to be promoted as a vegan restaurant option for people.”
Their Veg Week menu ($30) offers chips and guacamole, a chimichanga with grilled veggies and tofu topped with salsa verde, and pineapple coconut cake.
If you’re getting hungry reading menus, Ahwesh said this Veg Week’s appeal is to provide an entry point into plant-based eating, particularly at a favorite local restaurant.
“This is a great opportunity to start with one meal,” she said. “Because every vegan or plant-based meal someone has is a win for animals and the environment.”
For more information, including a list of participating restaurants and their menus, visit humaneaction pennsylvania.org.