Brooklyn Bliss

A close friend coast hopped from DC to NY for a visit one unseasonably bright spring weekend a few months ago. Nora being a theater major and Broadway buff, most of our time was spent in the Times Square and 42nd street area, but we decided that we wanted to get off the beaten path and spent a day in New York's most bespectacled borough, Brooklyn. Specifically, the epicenter of hipsterdom, Williamsburg. We spent a long time choosing our outfits, which probably made us fit in more than anything we wore.

Christopher Walken signing playbills after our showing of "A Behanding in Spokane."

Most of our day was spent poking around the Bedford Ave neighborhoods and boutiques.

Eventually we did want to find somewhere to grab a bite to eat. We figured that Nora's vegetarianism wouldn't be a problem, given the eccentric and youthful vibe in the area, and we were right. We stumbled upon Bliss, a small, brightly painted, and dedicated vegetarian hole in the wall. As is usual with independent cafes, they knew all about gluten, and were able to give me immediate information about their menu, despite not having clear notation about choices.

I decided to go with the server's recommendation and order the house specialty, the Bliss Bowl, a plate full of fresh kale, carrots, broccoli, tofu, and sweet potatoes. Any more of it and my system would have been in shock from such an abundance of neatly packaged vitamins.

The food wasn't particularly flavorful, but it wasn't bad. Nora loved that all of the dishes were vegetarian or vegan, and there were other gluten free choices as well. Not a bad pick for a veg/vegan Celiac, and I'd probably come back if in the area again, although I can only handle that much hipster in small doses.