I had a delicious vegan meal at one of the last places on the planet where I would expect to find one, Patriot Place’s Citizen Crust restaurant/sports bar, in Foxborough, MA. I grew up in the area and went to a few New England Patriots football practices as a child. I was the youngest of the neighborhood kids, and I later learned that they would drag me along believing that my cuteness would somehow help everyone get autographs. I wasn’t disappointed hearing about the role I played in my friends’ clever schemes, as much as I was surprised to learn that I was once cute!
“Isn’t it funny how day by day nothing changes, but when you look back, everything is different.” – C.S. Lewis
I rarely make it back, and although the Patriots football team’s run of championships has been a lot of fun, and completely unexpected, I had only been to Patriot Place once before as I do believe that our culture’s obsession with celebrities/athletes is a bit of an issue. If you watch any major sporting event on TV you will also understand why it is unusual to find healthy food at a sports bar, as the viewer is typically deluged with advertisements promoting harmful animal products & other types of junk food (oftentimes endorsed by popular athletes), the military, and the pharmaceutical drug industry. Having said that, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that a Patriot Place restaurant that has a sports bar feel, would also offer wonderful vegan options. Who knew? Our waiter Jake was thoughtful and kind and he made multiple trips to the kitchen to verify, amongst other things, whether the tofu was non-GMO. Jake is an aspiring history teacher, who has the kind of personality that makes you want to heed his suggestions and become a regular patron. I ordered the Crunch Cashew Bowl (GF), which has baby kale, carrots, shredded cabbage, edamame, crushed cashews, and a hot honey vinaigrette. I added the tasty baked seasoned tofu (non-gmo), and substituted balsamic vinegar for the honey vinaigrette, and boom, a home run! My dining partner, who is mostly vegan, had the POKÉ Bowl, which is made of seaweed salad, edamame, avocado, jasmine rice, crispy onion, wasabi peas, everything seasoning, and spicy mayo. She gave it high marks as well. Jake explained that Citizen Crust is shooting for a “Global Street Food” standard, and that their hope is to “have something for everyone.”
We then met the General Manager of both Citizen Crust and the Italian eatery Tavolino, Thomas Perruna, who couldn’t have been more affable as well. Thomas explained that their chef Greg has an allergen certificate, and that one of their goals is to accommodate the guests’ needs according to what they eat. Thomas’s parents owned a restaurant in NYC for many years, and he learned that the secret recipe for delicious food is always fresh ingredients, with the emphasis on fresh! Interestingly, the creators of the menu for Citizen Crust actually flew to various countries in order to develop the best combinations of seasonings and flavorings for many of their dishes.
Although it has a giant sports bar atmosphere, the interior walls of Citizen Crust are decorated with the extraordinary artistic creations of Sam Malpass. The murals alone are worth a visit (click here to check out her website). A perfect restaurant/sports bar to me would be entirely plant-based and offer zero animal products. Citizen Crust is making strides in that regard, and will hopefully inspire other establishments to follow suit. The only things that were missing at this stage were more vegan options, and a GF, vegan beer (Green’s Amber Ale anyone?). The bottom line? Highly recommended! In addition to the excellent vegan food, the warmth and friendliness of Thomas, Jake, and the entire staff, made our dining experience even more memorable. 🙂
Click here for the Citizen Crust website.
Click here for the Citizen Crust menu.
Click here for the Green’s GF and vegan beer website.
Click here to learn which beers, wines, and liquors are vegan.
