Grasshopper - Chinese Vegan Yumminess
Asian food is a pretty popular no-meat, no-animal-product, go-to-option. There's typically a ton of veggie things on the menu so you don't have to be stuck eating a bland salad. While I do appreciate a good veggie lo mein, sometimes you just want a heaping pile of General Gao's chicken. There's not too many alternatives for that, or so I thought... then I was introduced to the No Name at Grasshopper.
Any vegans/vegetarians in the Boston area who have not been to Grasshopper in Allston are missing out - BIG TIME. I somehow managed to live in Allston for a year and a half (and spend all of my time there for about 2.5 years) and never go to Grasshopper. It's rare that I say nice things about Allston, but anytime I do it's usually about food (namely Sunset and Bagel Rising). Grasshopper is definitely on my "good things about Allston" list.
I've never had anything other than the No Name at Grasshopper for an entree - it is that yummy. It's battered, fried gluten in sweet & sour sauce with sesame seeds, steamed veggies, and a healthy serving of rice on the side. While it doesn't use General Gao's sauce I think it's a perfect substitute for General Gao's chicken.
It is HUGE. It's just under $13 but can be easily split by two people with leftovers.
There's plenty of other options on the menu for gluten-free people, because if you have Celiac disease then this is probably your worst nightmare.
I saw vegan cheesecake on the menu and ordered it out of curiosity. It wasn't exactly the best thing I've ever tasted, but it wasn't awful either. I'm assuming there was a lot of tofu involved, so the flavor was pretty bland. You can order it plain or with fruit. I got it with strawberries and was bummed to see they use canned fruit. I absolutely hate the gelatinous syrup crap that it sits in... meh.
I feel obligated to say that this meal left me feeling exceptionally shitty afterwards. It could be because it's all fried, it could be because I haven't been feeling that great lately. My doctor thought I may have Celiac disease, but the blood test came back negative last week. So, the huge amount of gluten shouldn't have been a problem. The other reason I felt like I was dying could possibly be because this man works at Grasshopper:
The Allston Ninja; an integral part of Allston folklore. He panhandles outside of Tedeschi's and McDonald's, though apparently has an apartment. The block that I always see him begging on has to be one of the grimiest places in the city. I think the city gave up on street cleaning there. A few weeks ago I saw a drunk kid vomiting on himself outside of McDonald's at, like, 9:00pm. Anyway, I have yet to see the Allston Ninja wear any clothing other than pictured above. The fact that he probably made my food is a little frightening.
Despite the potential upset stomach, Grasshopper is definitely work checking out, vegan or not!
