When you enjoy food at a certain restaurant and they change the menu, it can send you into a panic. Unless those options improve. For instance, my favourite thing on Bodega's menu used to be the Mahi Mahi with sweet potato mash. It was amazing but it was taken off the menu long before I decided to stop eating fish. They then introduced new veggie options and I found a new favourite but now, Bodega have decided to change things again. Is it for the better? What are the vegan options like on this new menu? All questions are answered below.
I tried one of the mocktails, the Passionfruit Twist to be exact. It's not new but it is the first time I've tried it and it was pretty tasty, as well as being sweet, refreshing and fruity. I'm a huge fan of passionfruit so it was a great choice for me and it looked pretty too.
So, this is the new menu in question. The Plantain Salad I have tried before and is the only thing, alongside the nachos and sides, that returns on vegan menu. My thoughts on the Plantain Salad can be found in a previous post here. They have now cut the nachos into a nibble size option too, which comes with one dip, but the fillings to the quesadilla and burrito have significantly changed, there is also a beetroot salad option, two new large plates and the tacos are served in blue corn tacos, so gothic that I love it.
First up, the Vegan Quesadilla, which is meant to contain mole mushrooms, shredded lettuce, refried beans and spicy pickled onions. However, the version I had seemed to only contain mole mushrooms and black beans with a tomato salsa on the side. The filling itself was tasty and worked well with the homemade looking tortilla. But it needed a little crunch, a little spice, basically it just a little more. This is £4.75 and I was wondering why to be honest. A nice appetiser but nothing that I would go back for immediately.
Next up, the Aubergine with mixed vegetables, quinoa and mole sauce. I love aubergine and it was baked beautifully in this dish. Caramelised and there were big fat pieces that worked wonderfully with the quinoa and green sauce. I really enjoyed this dish and it would most likely be the option I would choose again. However, this can again be made at home. But I liked how it was a different option to the usual aubergine dishes you find in restaurants and liked the South American flair they added to it. It's a good sized portion for £8.95, you definitely wouldn't go home hungry.
Whilst at a Blogger event at Bodega last month, I was able to try more of the vegan options on the menu. There was the Salsa Fresca & tortilla chips (£2.50), Guacamole & tortilla chips (£2.95) and the Refried Beans and tortilla chips (£2.75) (all shown in the first image on the left), which can be found in the Nibbles section of the vegan menu. Basically these are smaller one person portions of the nachos because the portions are normally mahoosive. As always, the nachos were on point and lovely. It was nice to have it in this size and I am loving the new addition of the refried beans and the guac is always a favourite but there was more filling than sauce. I'm not about the more sauce then nacho life, haha. Then there was the Quinoa Chifa, which is quinoa, mixed vegetables, broccoli, teriyaki sauce, tofu and chimichurri. As shown in the image in the middle above, it was basically just quinoa with some veggies in. Quite basic and not inspiring for £8.50. Considering you'd get this with a fat aubergine in one of the previous dishes, it's pretty excessive. Lastly, it's the Vegan Tacos, which contain mole mushrooms, pickled red onions, refried beans and shredded lettuce. Again, there was no lettuce and instead of refried beans, there was black beans. Plus it was super messy and dripping everywhere. Not something I'd have again.
Overall, I love the aubergine dish and would happily go back for that. The other options are ok but nothing amazing. I will miss the vegan burrito I normally have. That plantain filling was lovely with dirty rice and avocado. Please bring it back, Bodega!
Have you tried the new vegan options at Bodega?
**Both these meals were complimentary but my opinions are my own**
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