It’s the great Ponsonby News Veg Friendly Challenge, in which Ponsonby area cafes and restaurants line up to be judged on their vegetarian friendliness.
Finalist: Salta
We’re going to name the cafes and restaurants that cater well to vegetarians and vegans, whether or not they’ve also got meat on their menus. Each month, we’ll review one of our favourite ‘veg friendly’ eateries and, at the end of it all, we’ll name an overall winner in our coveted Veg Friendly Challenge Top 10.
There’s nothing quite like discovering a whole new dimension to a venue that seemed
a little over-familiar. Some years back, I remember thinking about Three Lamps cafe Atlas: “Well, that’s one place I really don’t need to go back to.” It wasn’t that Atlas was bad, just that this small cafe seemed to have done its dash in a scene in which expensive fitouts and bold new menus had become increasingly de rigueur.
I never quite thought to try it again some years back after new owners bought the business, renaming it Salta when they replaced Atlas coffee for their favourite blend, Allpress. I was over-familiar with the rather small interior, so it would have taken something rather bold to titillate my curiosity.
Thank goodness for my pal Martin, Ponsonby News top dog, who has recently become addicted to Salta’s vegetarian club sandwiches. It was his idea to audition Salta for lunch, and it turned out to be the perfect idea on the perfect day for it.
We had just nabbed a table when our friendly waitress made a bold suggestion: “Would you like to sit in the courtyard? It’s lovely out there.” After a cold snap and so much rain I’m surprised a Noah’s Ark Revival group hadn’t sprung up on Facebook, the sun was beaming down, and it turned out that we’d chanced upon the perfect, sheltered garden in which to soak up its healing rays and much-needed vitamin D. We were taken on
a veritable magical mystery tour down behind the kitchen and out the back, where indeed, there was the perfect courtyard. I should hasten to add that there’s also an upstairs room above the cafe for those with the climbing instincts of a goat.
So, what did Salta have to offer two hungry men looking for some nourishment outside of the realm of fowl or beast? Well, they’ve got a delectable-sounding range of breakfast starters (bircher muesli with grated apple, coconut curd, banana, berries and LSA, steel cut oat porridge with grilled pears and ginger tamarind/prune syrup and coconut flakes), but we were here for lunch, and on the hunt for something savoury.
Martin was quick to fix on the avocado, tomato and red onion salsa on rye with coriander, chilli mole and a poached egg ($16). I’d just spent a week recovering from a nasty tummy bug, so I opted for the Goody Good Salad, featuring baby spinach, raw beetroot, carrot and soybeans with avocado smash, boiled egg and activated almonds ($17.50). Martin went all health-nut with a what he called “very fresh” no-sugar green smoothie with spinach, cucumber, banana, tahini, yoghurt and mint ($9.50), while I needed a coffee fix, and went for a soy latte that did the job perfectly.
Martin seemed perfectly happy and devoured his dish with great gusto. Mine was just what the doctor ordered: I had forgotten how scrumptious edamame (immature soy beans) are. The fact that they’re full of goodness was a bonus. In fact, this generous serving kept me slowly munching for the best part of 40 minutes (sorry, Martin!), with the ‘activated’ almonds a special pleasure.
This essentially means that the nut has been soaked, thereby bring it back to life and making it extra healthy and tasty. I reckon they should ditch the egg, however, and put a nice slice of tamari-soaked tofu on the top instead. While it’s great that Salta goes for organic when it can and free-range eggs, there are just too many eggs in cafe dishes all over Ponsonby. We both thoroughly enjoyed Salta, and I’ll be back in a flash now that I know they’ve got a rejigged menu and a wonderful courtyard. Open Monday-Friday 6.30am-4.30pm, Saturday/Sunday 7am-4.30pm. (GARY STEEL)
SALTA, 285 Ponsonby Road, Three Lamps, T: 09-360-1295
Gary Steel is an Auckland-based journalist who runs online vegetarian resource
www.doctorfeelgood.co.nz He can be contacted via beautmusic@gmail.com