VEG.EDIBLE
Hoppen Hierarchy:★★★⭑
District: Benson
Sweet and savory dishes that are vegan, gluten-free, and nut-free
Perfect For: Baked Goods; Casual Dining; Takeout; Vegan Options
Standout Dishes: S’Mores Cake; Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos; Matty Melt; Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cake
Creating delicious food that’s vegan, gluten-free, or nut-free can be a daunting challenge on its own—making the proper substitutions without sacrificing quality or taste requires enormous amounts of knowledge, research, and trial and error. To incorporate all 3 components into one concept is a task few would dare tackle.
But Stacie Van Clave is passionate, and she likes a challenge.
That’s why, after 15 years in the food service industry, Stacie Van Clave launched Veg.Edible, a pop-up operating out of Kitchen Council, in 2019. A vegan herself, Stacie found many Omaha restaurants didn’t have a general knowledge of ingredients or preparation protocol, leading to dangerous cross contamination.
You won’t find those issues with Veg.edible. Stacie believes everyone should be able to enjoy a delicious meal regardless of allergies or dietary preferences, so her entire menu is vegan, gluten-free, and nut-free (except for coconuts).
Veg. Edible started as a pop-up and became so popular that it graduated into a brick and mortar establishment in the Benson neighborhood. It also offers a variety of baked goods, which can be ordered a la carte or in a tasting box.
While her savory cooking is excellent (we’ll get to that shortly), Stacie’s baking ability really stands out. The flavors she’s able to create without eggs, milk, or standard flour are downright astounding.
It all starts with Veg.edible’s line of cakes, and Stacie is constantly coming up with new flavors to match the season or ingredients she’s interested in. The base of the cake is more dense and chewy and lacks the moistness found in traditional cake. The texture requires an adjustment, but after a few bites, you come to not only accept it, but enjoy it.
And despite working with different ingredients, Stacie makes the flavors in her cakes pop more than most bakers with everything at their arsenal. The rich chocolate cake in the Puppy Chow Cake pairs perfectly with the creamy vanilla icing, and chocolate chips add texture between the layers. The Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cake tastes exactly what everyone’s favorite breakfast cereal would be in cake form thanks to a decadent cereal buttercream and vanilla bean cake layers.
The S’mores Cake combine chocolately cake with marshmallow buttercream tht is sticky and light, adding just the right amount of sugar, while graham cracker crumbs and chocolate drip add texture. And the Dark Chocolate Peppermint Cake is a mint lover’s dream.
Veg.edible’s baked treats go beyond the cakes, however. The Brown Sugar Cookie is a bit crumbly, but it’s flavor (think a gingerbread/snickerdoodle hybrid with firm, Pop-Tart-esque frosting) is divine. And you won’t miss the eggs in the Frosted Salted Caramel Avocado Brownie—the avocados add the creamy richness, keeping the brownie moist and highlighting the delicious chocolate.
Veg.edible has a pastry case with available baked items for purchase in its shop, and it also offers a monthly Taster Box with 6-7 items so you can taste the full spectrum of Stacie’s baking talent.
Again, the texture of each item may seem a bit different to someone without dietary restrictions. But take it from someone who has no allergies to gluten or nuts—I love these desserts and have ordered them again and again.
Now let’s talk savory food.
Veg.edible’s menu contains a variety of familiar, comforting foods like burgers, tacos, nachos, and salads, just without the meat and cheese you’d expect. Some items leave you missing the meat and dairy, but, for the most part, you’ll hardly notice the difference.
That’s certainly the case with the Bang Bang Fish Tacos. I don’t know what plant-based shrimp are made of, but when they’re hand-breaded and fried to a perfect golden brown, they taste just like the shrimp I’m used to. And Veg.edible stuffs them inside hearty corn tortillas with bright pickled onions and a sweet, tangy bang bang sauce to make a taco better than most meaty options you’ll find.
The Matty Melt is similarly successful. The Beyond burger, smashed with onions and topped with vegan cheese, has a solid meaty flavor, and the creamy Matt sauce, punchy sauerkraut, and perfectly toasted bun give it some real life. The vegan cheese is a bit gummy, but otherwise it’s a perfectly acceptable burger, and the fries are very potato-forward and are well-seasoned.
Veg.edible also consistently runs specials and changes the menu. What I appreciate about Stacie’s cooking is the way she embraces vegetables above meat supplements like tofu and chicken substitutes—you’re more likely to find jackfruit, mushrooms, chickpeas, and other natural ingredients as meat fill-ins.
A great example of this was the Mushroom Ramen at Veg.edible’s Asian Cuisine Pop-Up at Chef Around the Block. The morel broth ensured every bite had an earthy, nutty flavor, while four types of mushrooms (shittake, simeji, enoki, and oyster) added woody flavor and textural variety that mimicked meat quite well. The black rice noodles added a pleasant al dente bite, and the bok choy, scallions, and other veggies tasted like they were picked from the garden that afternoon.
Ultimately, I think that attention to detail is what makes Veg.edible a success. Stacie is paying hyper attention to every ingredient, every component, and every flavor to ensure she’s not only adhering to dietary standards, but creating food that anyone can enjoy.
I’m not vegan and I don’t have any food allergies, but I fully endorse and have ordered (and will continue to order) from Veg.edible many times. That’s because dietary restrictions and sensitivities don’t have to prevent you from enjoying awesome food; Veg.edible is living proof of that.