Feast your eyes on a vegan taco that will have even the most discerning meat eater do a double-take (or a double-taste). “I’ve had vegans send it back, because they thought the soyrizo was real meat,” says chef Drew Bent, the creator of the squash blossom taco at Lola 55. Bent says it’s one of the most popular tacos on the menu, and he sought to develop a vegan option that would please all palates.
It begins with hydroponically grown squash blossoms, filled with an almond “cream cheese.” After a bath in piping-hot oil, the blossom relleno is laid atop a bed of smoky-flavored beet soyrizo, drizzled with poblano salsa, and crowned with a crunchy potato “chicharron”—fried leftover potato skins that Bent saved from going to waste. Every component of the taco, from the soyrizo to the vegan cheese, is made in-house. Bent says it’s a labor-intensive dish, requiring “at least 10 steps” to put together. And all that effort doesn’t go unnoticed: The taco’s flavor and texture show how good plant-based dishes really can be.
1290 F Street, East Village lola55_sandiego
Very Important Taco: The Squash Blossom Taco at Lola 55
