Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Food
Cozy Gourmet Vegan Comes To East 7th Street With Avant Garden
By
Nell Casey
Published Sep 21, 2015
Modified Sep 21, 2015
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
View all 7
By
Nell Casey
Published Sep 21, 2015
Modified Sep 21, 2015
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Straight off the opening of his Golden Girls tiki fanfic, restaurateur Ravi DeRossi tackles "upscale vegan" at his new East Village restaurant Avant Garden. With a decor evoking the great outdoors—if the great outdoors came with cozy fabric chairs and elegant votive holders—the restaurant celebrates the bounty of nature while preserving the lives of our animal brethren. Sorry vegetables—it's time for your slaughter.
The kitchen, led by Executive Chef Andrew D'Ambrosi, is executing veggie-focused dishes like gourmet toasts topped with pickled peach, tomato, almond ricotta, and basil (Tomato Jam, $12) and cold dishes including a Kale Panzanella salad with onion, olive, garlic and croutons ($14). There's no steak on the menu but mushrooms—often thought as of the meat of the vegetable world—are the star of the King Oyster ($18), with miatake, smoked macadamia, and crispy leeks.
In addition to the restaurant, DeRossi has launched BEAST (Benefits to End Animal Suffering Today), a nonprofit animal advocacy group that'll offer grants to other non-profits in support of animal welfare. Once it gets up and running, the organization will raise money through events to support the well-being of groups that "make caring about animals of all types eternally cool."
130 East 7th Street, (646) 922-7948; website. Open Sunday - Thursday 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. and Friday/Saturday 5 p.m. to midnight
Avant Garden Dinner and Wine Menu
Tagged
avant garden
east village
new restaurant and bar radar
ravi derossi
vegan
original
Nell Casey
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE food
North African restaurants are rare in NYC. These 10 are the best.
Egyptian, Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian food is delicious but underrepresented in the city.
By
Robert Sietsema
Published Oct 10, 2026
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
The global dish is shapeshifting and ubiquitous.
By
Robert Sietsema
Food
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
The global dish is shapeshifting and ubiquitous.
By
Robert Sietsema
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
By
Sonia Rao
5 NYC banana puddings as good as Magnolia's
By
Hannah Frishberg
Where to eat in Greenpoint, Brooklyn right now, from Polish to Sichuan to Iberian
By
Robert Sietsema
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .