Columbia restaurants challenged common misconceptions about vegan food during the second annual Vegan Chef Challenge.
Forget the idea that vegan food means a plain salad or a plate of steamed vegetables. For a month, Columbia restaurants challenged that perception with creative, plant-based dishes that showed just how much variety vegan cooking can offer.
The second annual Columbia Vegan Chef Challenge brought 12 local restaurants into the competition, inviting diners to try special vegan dishes and vote for their favorites through August 31. Beyond the competition, the challenge allowed local chefs to experiment with plant-based ingredients and introduce diners to a different side of vegan cooking.
Molly Jones, lead organizer for the Columbia chapter of Project Animal Freedom, helped bring the challenge to Columbia for a second year with Vegan Outreach.
“The vegan community is getting awesome new food, but made with us in mind, and that’s always super exciting. The restaurants themselves get really into it, and this year a few had learned new things — things they never tried before,” Jones said.
Myth No. 1: Vegan food is bland.
At Cafe Berlin, co-owner Sam Johnson said one of the most common preconceptions about vegan food is that it is bland, underseasoned, or not filling.
“I think that often people veer away from it or [assume] it’s not going to be satisfying, fill you up, or get you through the workday,” Johnson said. “I just don’t think that’s automatically true.”
Cafe Berlin has long offered vegetarian and vegan options, and Johnson said the restaurant continues to see strong demand for plant-based dishes. For this year’s challenge, Cafe Berlin served two dishes: a Peach-Maple Seitan Sandwich and Vegan Biscuits & Gravy.
I tried the Peach-Maple Seitan Sandwich. The peach-maple glaze added refreshing sweetness, while fresh tomato and onions brightened the sandwich. A garlic-mint-cilantro-basil herb sauce added another layer of flavor, creating a combination that was anything but bland.
Myth No. 2: I won’t like vegan food because it’s vegan.
For Gina Overshiner, owner of Gina’s Vegan A Go Go, one of the biggest barriers to trying vegan food can be the assumptions people make before taking a bite.
Overshiner’s own journey into plant-based eating began in 2014, when she started questioning what she had been taught about food and nutrition. Her interest eventually became a business, and after becoming a certified vegan lifestyle coach and educator, she opened Gina’s Vegan A Go Go in 2021. Now, some of Overshiner’s favorite reactions come from people who try her cooking without realizing it is vegan.
“It is a fun thing when somebody has a preconceived notion, and you make them something, and they try it and can’t believe or didn’t realize it was vegan,” Overshiner said.
For the challenge, that meant offering familiar comfort foods with a plant-based spin, including Classic Cheezy Potatoes, Loaded Cheezy Potatoes, a Chik’n Bac’n Ranch Wrap, and Tiramisu.
I chose the Loaded Cheezy Potatoes. The smoky chipotle mayo, spicy jalapeños, and crunchy Frito crumble made the dish feel less like vegan food and more like what Overshiner wants diners to discover: simply good food that happens to be vegan.
Myth No. 3: Restaurants have to reinvent their menus to offer vegan options.
Creating vegan food doesn’t necessarily mean restaurants need to reinvent their kitchens. For Café Poland owners Antoine De Los Santos and Madison Tasker, the challenge showed them they could adapt ingredients they already use.
The married couple were frequent Café Poland customers under the previous owner, Iwona. When they learned she was considering closing the restaurant, they decided to take over and continue her legacy.
This year was Café Poland’s first time participating in the challenge. For its dish, the restaurant created Iwona’s Garden Plate with Rosy Cashew Smietana, featuring a beet salad alongside sauerkraut and mushroom pierogi.
Because of a food allergy, I wasn’t able to try the Rosy Cashew Smietana, but I enjoyed the dish with sour cream — a minor cheat — instead. The Sauerkraut & Mushroom Pierogi added a savory depth that balanced the freshness of Iwona’s Beet Salad. Admittedly, for a small cafe, adding vegan options isn’t without its challenges. Some of Café Poland’s dishes require hours of preparation, including the pierogi.
“We are hoping for other ways to make the vegan dish more efficient but are still exploring options on how to do that,” De Los Santos said.
Tasker, who previously tried following a vegan diet herself, remembers how difficult it could be to find something she could eat while still supporting local restaurants.
“I found that very frustrating because I was trying a new diet and committed to it, but still wanted to go out and support local businesses,” Tasker said. “I found it very hard to meet those dietary needs when going out to eat.”
Participating in the challenge showed the couple how Café Poland could help fill that gap using ingredients already central to its menu.
“I am grateful we did it because it showed us we can use the ingredients we use every day to make options available to people who follow a vegan diet,” Tasker said.
Rethinking What’s on the Menu
For the restaurants participating in the Columbia Vegan Chef Challenge, the competition allowed chefs to experiment, encouraged diners to step outside their usual orders, and gave vegan customers more opportunities to experience local restaurants.
From a gussied-up seitan sandwich to a colorful garden plate and creative comfort food, the challenge showed the variety within plant-based cooking while challenging assumptions surrounding it.
The goal isn’t necessarily convincing everyone to become vegan. Instead, it invites diners to try something different and decide for themselves. Sometimes, changing the way people think about vegan food can start with putting a new dish on the table.
And as for which dishes — and restaurants — came out on top? Stay tuned. The results of this year’s Columbia Vegan Chef Challenge have not yet been announced, but we’ll share the winners once they’re revealed.
