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New Year's Resolutions: Eating healthy at Vic's Pizzeria

Olympia pizzeria offers vegan options

Vic's Pizzeria serves vegan slices. Photo credit: Nikki McCoy

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Each week until the new year, I will examine common New Year's resolutions by testing them at South Sound businesses. And since I don't feel like quitting drinking like I tried last year, I figured I'd focus on more attainable goals: eating healthy, exercising and saving money.

First on the checklist is eating healthy, and since Vic's Pizzeria just opened its new location in Olympia's Wildwood neighborhood (2822 Capitol Blvd. S.), I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to check out those vegan slices that are the talk of the town.

First of all, the place is gorgeous. And aesthetic quality creates a more peaceful environment, thus allowing for better digestion, and that's healthier already, right? But seriously, it has these cool tables made out of old bowling lanes and a custom chandelier that looks like it came from the solar system. These things were custom made by Joe Andreotti, who also happens to be the manager and who also happened to be making killer pies the evening I dropped in for some vegan yumminess.

Vegan slices weren't available when I first came to the counter, so I ordered a vegan cookie while I waited. It was chocolate-y and didn't crumble - and was gone entirely too fast.

I sat down at the biggest table, which already had people drinking beer and eating pizza, cafeteria style. I was welcomed by a friendly lady who said, "it's family style!"

This friendly lady turned out to be Cassie Andreotti, Joe's sister. She also happened to have made the cookie I had just demolished. Cassie was able to fill me in on all things good and vegan, including the popular Tex-Mex sauce, used on many of the vegan pies, which is made out of jalapenos, almonds and nutritional yeast.

She also told me about Vic's vegan calzones, with red or white sauce that can include spicy fried tofu for extra protein. Vegan soups include six-bean chili, split pea, white bean and roasted tomato and sweet potato curry lentil. Ground flax, full of Omegas, fiber and micronutrients is used in many of the recipes. Plus they get all their veggies from their neighbors at Spud's Produce.

"We try to make it all as delicious as possible," Cassie said.

And delicious is right. My vegan slice was heaven. With spinach, red onion, red potato and mushrooms, smothered with Tex-Mex sauce, the flavor and texture combinations were awesome. The sauce was creamy and had spice, but was not overbearing. The crust was perfectly crispy.

With two Vic's open, with food that good, my goal of eating healthier just got easier.
Check back next week for New Year's resolution two: exercising, where I will try my hand at pole dancing classes.

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