Vegan Mushroom Cheesesteak

The Chefs: Hilary and Jay's Cheesesteaks

The Menu: A crunchy roll spread with vegan mayo and mustard and piled high with thin-sliced seitan, lettuce, mushrooms, grilled onions, tomatoes, pickles, and avocado.

The Dish: Endless brainstorming sessions (for our amazing 2012 content!) exhausted my levels of thinking power, so I had to refuel by mainlining this massive, falling-apart-with-goodness sandwich to my face while simultaneously being pulsed with sweet vitamin D on our rooftop deck. Somehow, I had resisted visiting Jay's for months despite frequent walk-bys, but today it was the only antidote to my stomach rumbles. Needless to say, post-cheesesteak I am feeling totally Mensa, and the well-fed VNHQ is collectively churning out some of our best fodder yet for voracious vegan minds to chow down on. To make sure you don't miss a beat, why not subscribe today? Even better, why not indulge yourself (as I certainly have) via a relaxing yoga retreat in Mexico, VegNews style? 

Vegan Cheesesteak

The Chef: Alexandra and Jay's Cheesesteaks

The Menu: A seitan cheesesteak packed with mushrooms, lettuce, pickles, and vegan mayo.

The Goods: Office Manager Lyndsay and I had originally planned on getting the highly recommended spicy BBQ chicken sandwiches from Rhea's Deli (sounds amazing, right?), but they had to deny us because their oven wasn't working. Lyndsay comforted me as we walked away from the land of broken dreams, our lunch seemingly ruined. Fortunately, all was well when we decided on a staff favorite, the trusty Jay's Cheesesteaks, for an equally as delicious sandwich. Upon ordering, the man behind the counter informed us that not only does Jay's have more than 10 different seitan sandwich options, they now carry vegan Italian hot dogs! We both still decided on cheesesteak, but I'm keeping my stomach ready for trying out those hot dogs in the near future. With SF Vegan Drinks tonight, I might end up eating one sooner rather than later...

Vegan Cheesesteak

The Chef: Alexandra and Jay's Cheesesteak

The Menu: A super messy and delicious cheesesteak sandwich filled with grilled seitan, onions, spinach, pickles, lettuce, and vegan mayo. And let's not forget the fries on the side.

The Goods: It's been decided, cheesesteak sandwiches are the perfect Friday lunch meal. Hearty, comforting, and downright tasty, they're the perfect way to transition into the weekend. Editorial Assistant Anna and I filled our stomachs to the brim while debating which protein-filled meat replacement is the best, seitan, tempeh, or tofu (we decided on tofu and seitan). If that wasn't enough: we just got a giant box of baked goods in from Everyday Gourmet. Food coma, here I come. Speaking of indulgent meals, check out Associate Editor Jenn's recent Press Pass, where she takes on the sushiritto. Yes, that is a burrito-sized sushi roll.

Vegan Cheesesteak Sandwich

The Chefs: Elizabeth and Jay's Cheesesteak

The Menu: A highly delicious (and filling!) vegan cheesesteak filled with seitan, tomatoes, vegan mayo, mustard, pickles, lettuce, and onions, all served on a toasty French roll. Fries with that? Yes, please!

The Goods: Happy Valentine's Day everyone! It's drizzly and dreary here in SF today, and sometimes a stellar sandwich is just what the doctor ordered to brighten up a dull Monday. Did this enormous offering from Jay's totally hit the spot? Yes. Will I now happily return to my kale or green salad lunch routine? Definitely. Chilly weather and a full belly make me want to hibernate. In case you were doing that very thing this weekend, and missed Isa Chandra Moskowitz's cooking demo here in SF, check out her excellent interview with VN Office Manager Lyndsay Orwig.

Vegan Cheesesteak and French Fries

The Chef: Anna and Jay's Cheesesteak

The Menu: A seitan, tomato, and pepper cheesesteak with vegan mayo, grilled onions and lettuce. Oh, you think I forgot the fries? Think again, pal.

The Goods: This morning I woke up craving a huge, yummy sandwich. (Wait. That happens every morning.) Fortunately for us here at VNHQ, the Mission has myriad options for our sandwich-loving stomachs. Jay's stuffed-to-the-brim vessels of vegan victuals are the perfect choice for busy Thursdays (and manic Mondays, and terrific Tuesdays...). Perhaps my sandwich isn't as healthy as some of my coworkers' lunches, and won't protect from winter colds like mushrooms, but it's pretty darn delicious.

Vegan Cheesesteak Sandwiches

The Chef: Lyndsay and Jay's Cheesesteak

The Menu: A vegan cheesesteak, with seitan, sweet and hot peppers, and Vegenaise. Yes, I ate the entire thing.

The Goods: I know this isn't the prettiest picture, but that's a cheesesteak sandwich for you. What this sandwich lacked in cleanliness, it definitely made up in tastiness! It's Monday, and I was craving a delicious sandwich, so I treated myself and editorial assistant Gabrielle Pope to Jay's, which is probably becoming my favorite sandwich in the city, and it's not because my boyfriend's name is Jay. It's going to be a busy week at the VNHQ, and just to let you know, there's a giveaway this week for Manic Panic's new Creature of the Night make-up line. Be sure to enter!

Jay's Cheesesteak

The Chef: Gabrielle and Jay's Cheesesteak

The Menu: A scrumptious sandwich stuffed with seitan, veggies, garlic spread, and hot peppers, all on a fresh baguette, and washed down with a refreshing raspberry kombucha.

The Goods: Today marks the first ever Café VegNews from our new offices in San Francisco's Mission district, so I thought it only right to continue the celebration that began this morning with mimosas and a fruit platter. Before I get on to the food, can I just say how unbelievably psyched we are to be in our gorgeous new space? Our spacious and sunny offices are stunning, and the Mission district is an appropriately vegan-friendly haven full of delicious food offerings. Since office manager Lyndsay Orwig and I both have boyfriends name Jay (though, fortunately not the same one), we headed to Jay's Cheesesteak for insanely delicious seitan sandwiches. I honestly don't know how I'll be able to get through every day without visiting Jay's, but at least I'll have a visit with my own Jay this weekend when he comes to help out at the VegNews booth at the 11th Annual San Francisco World Veg Festival weekend. Hope to see you there!