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Foodie 
​Fridays

Read all about our favorite places to eat and favorite meals around the globe!

Good EATs

Freesoul Caffe

6/6/2014

4 Comments

 
Here in Old Town Tustin (California), you'll find an unsuspecting surprise...

A small little eatery with a whole lot to offer!
This quaint little cafe started back in 2010 as just a coffee house that offered some yummy vegan baked goods. Well in the four short years since they opened, this little coffee house has already twice expanded its menu. And let me tell you - it just keeps getting better! 

I semi regularly go for a morning visit to order my favorite scrumptious (and vegan) 'Belgium Waffle' (only served until 11am). 
Boy in all of my 25 vegan years how I've missed these! There is absolutely nothing that would give away the fact that these waffles are vegan. They are cooked to perfection, light, airy, and crisp. Served with a side of pure maple syrup and vegan butter. You have the option of also getting it with farm fresh sweet seasonal berries on top! Yum! 
They offer both classic as well as green tea waffles on their breakfast menu, and in case you happen to be more of a pancake person they have 'Buckwheat Walnut Pancakes' too!
In the most recent addition to their menu you'll now find traditionally hand tossed pizzas, delicious pastas, as well as a wonderful selection of home-made burgers, paninis, sandwiches, and more. 

They are committed to using only 100% natural, high quality, and plant-based ingredients. How can you go wrong when they bake our own graham crackers for cheesecakes and pies! They roast their our own peppers, Portobello mushrooms and Roma tomatoes for the sandwiches and soups. And their artisan pizza dough, dressings, spreads, and sauces are all made in-house daily. 

The pizzas (served after 5pm) are all amazing and come with a wide variety of delicious toppings. With 8 different pizzas to choose from, they have something for everyone! In the mood for a classic, they have a super take on a 'Marinara Pizza' (crushed San Marzano tomatoes, sliced garlic, fennel pollen, extra virgin olive oil), and if you're feeling a bit more exotic try the very tasty 'Leek Pizza' (creamy white sauce, leeks, scallions, garlic) or the 'Brussel Sprout Pizza' (creamy white sauce, brussels sprouts, red onion). All surprisingly good and definitely worth trying out for yourself!

While most recently I had the pleasure of eating Freesoul for dinner. We happened to be placing an order to go and we were definitely in the mood for their 'Truffle Burger'. 
The handmade patty comes prepared with caramelized onions, sautéed mushrooms, and truffle aioli. We've had it before and knew that this was one great burger to be had - I'll have you know that I'm not even a fan of burgers - so can you imagine how good it is?! 

Other burgers to choose from are their 'Hatch Burger' (vegan jalapeño cheese, hatch chili relish, sriracha aioli), the 'Sprout Burger' (organic alfalfa sprouts, avocado, Roma tomatoes, red onion, house spread), and the 'FSC Burger' (arugula, Roma tomatoes, vinaigrette, sun-dried tomato aioli).
Each burger is served on flax seed bun with a side salad of bloomsdale spinach, baby kale and grape tomatoes. 

The first time I tried the 'Truffle Burger' it was based on my sister Jet's suggestion. I reminded her that I'm not much for burgers - she asked that I trust her and give it a try. So I did, I ordered the burger to share with Dave and she was right! It really was so good! Which only means one thing...that this time around we were both ordering one each (way too good to share). 
We also ordered a cup of their Portobello Mushroom Soup - my very favorite soup over at Freesoul. So good that it has won several 'Best Soup' awards in Orange County publications - and just keep in mind that it wasn't being judged up against other vegan soups. 
That's pretty impressive for any non-vegans who might be wondering!

As being a rather hungry food lover that I was, I also added a side order of their Roasted Cauliflower, which was a first time order for us and a repeat order of Charred Brussels Sprouts. The Cauliflower was actually tri colored Cauliflower, as well as Romanesco Broccoli. It was tossed in their house vinaigrette and it was good, just probably much better being eaten while still hot (as we were eating everything at room temperature). The Brussel sprouts cooked in medjool dates, garlic, chili flakes, and their house vinaigrette are really quite delicious; especially for a vegetable that isn't even one of my favorites!

And as a special surprise treat to be had in the morning we picked up a Coconut Banana Muffin, and a treat it was. Very good, maybe too good. As I was eating it I questioned my thought process at getting just one muffin to share??? But I suppose I was looking out for my waistline rather than my tastebuds, because although these baked goods are cruelty free and made with wholesome ingredients; they don't happen to be low calorie - therefore if I were to gobble up as many muffins as I perhaps may have wanted to...then let's just say that I might start looking like one and have a muffin top of my own (that I really don't need)! 
In addition to all of these wonderful items that happen to have gluten, this cafe is also very conscience of gluten-free diets. 

All of the soups and salads that they offer are gluten-free and soy-free. Even including some desserts!! The gluten-free, soy-free desserts they carry are the chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter bars and coconut-almond bars. 
-T
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FreeSoulCaffe 191 East Main Street Suite 1B, Tustin, California 92780 
(714) 371-0976 
 Mon - Sat: 9:00am - 9:00pm
Please note that they are closed on Sundays.


4 Comments
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    Elisa

    Elisa is co-founder of Travelin' Cousins travel blog along with her cousin "Travelin' Tanya." She lives on Long Island, New York with her two daughters and her dog Punkin. An entrepreneur whose professional career has included a variety of businesses in the toy, licensing and direct marketing businesses, she is now a blogger and freelance writer. Since her teen years, she has traveled extensively throughout the United States, Europe and Asia and continues to travel these days throughout the world with her daughters and cousin Tanya. Her other passions include cooking, dining, the theatre and shopping.

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    Tanya

    Tanya is a free sprit who resides in Southern California with the only family that she has outside of NY (you can take a girl out of the city, but you’ll never take the city out of this girl). Her housemates include her mom, her 2 sisters, her brother, her sister’s boyfriend, her niece, her 2 kids and her ex! Yup...all under one roof! Her professional career and background was in film (writing, production and acting). Currently she is a stay at home mom - who is hardly ever at home, and who’s passions are: everything travel related, food (both cooking and eating), photography, skiing and of course, shopping! 
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