It’s a sad fallacy that veganism and health food are intrinsically linked. While we’re always searching for the next superfood, it is always a pleasure to sink back into a comfort zone. Veginity does a little bit of both on its menu, but with a little flair. We went in late afternoon for a long lunch, over the river and past the Hugh Lane into the Georgian blocks, hungry and expectant. Veginity, which had previously been a food truck, is now a settled restaurant in Inns Quay. We were curious to see how it had fared in the transition. The front looks like a hole-in-the-wall cafe, the till lined with dairy-free pastries and a coffee machine. Behind the shelves and into the restaurant it is darker with a matching decor, more formal than either of us expected from its reputation. While the place may benefit from more light, we were cosily huddled in from the chilly autumn air.

Sitting down, we were immediately distracted by food arriving to the next table: a leek and potato quiche with a salad of the day, the other a plate loaded down with thrice-cooked potato wedges and a stacked burger. The decision was made. Two orders of burger and fries came shortly, along with ginger beer kombucha. The sight was glorious to us, and we dug in. Substitutions in vegan food often fails and neglects the ingredients we’re cooking with. We forget that meat, or even the suggestion of it, is not the essential centre of a dish and good food can happen without it. Here we were both pleasantly surprised by the sweet taste of the burger patty and the slightly spiced scrambled protein, a soft egg-like texture that was juicy with the ketchup. The real treat, however, was the potato fries, crisp and hefty  but lightly salted. They stole the show. Not often is the verb ‘to gobble’ true to life, but we gobbled.

When we finished, the many other options returned to mind: marsala dosa with Japanese blue pumpkin and ginger curry or the portobello mushroom and hazelnut pate on onion rye bread, what could have been. We made a pact to return, perhaps in the evening for the dinner menu, full of polentas and risottos and luscious-sounding desserts. Having too many choices is a problem a vegan/vegetarian may appreciate, so it might be worth stopping by to make one.