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Method actors stay in character even when they’re not on camera. Daniel Day-Lewis has a bunch of Oscars because he made the cast and crew of Lincoln refer to him as Mr. President for three months, and he learned how to trap animals and build canoes before filming The Last of the Mohicans. Regardless of the value of making a canoe before hopping in a helicopter to get to the next set location, we can’t argue with the results.
So when we checked out Modern Love, an entirely vegan restaurant in Williamsburg, did we take a page out of DDL’s playbook and avoid meat for a month? Of course not. But you also don’t need to be vegan to enjoy the food at Modern Love, a cool spot where dinner won’t feel like a compromise for anyone.
Modern Love’s name might make you think it’s the kind of place where servers say namaste as they bring you grain bowls, or that it’s a takeout spot that sells bags of ashwagandha for $13. That is not the case. It’s a modern space with high ceilings and industrial chandeliers, and we’ve had to wait for a table each time we’ve shown up without a reservation. Also, don’t come here expecting plates of micro greens on macro greens - the food here is as heavy as you’ll find at most comfort-food places around the city.
photo credit: Noah Devereaux
The menu is made up of vegan takes on classic comfort foods from around the world - they serve BBQ cauliflower wings and mac and cheese, but also stuff like arancini, fish and chips, and our favorite dish, the Caribbean jerk tofu. It comes with strips of spicy tofu, plantains, and coconut rice in a pool of curry, and whether you forage for ramps in the McCarren Park Farmer’s Market or you never pass up veal sweetbreads on any restaurant menu, you’re going to want to eat this.
That said, there are definitely a few places on the menu where it’s obvious there’s no butter or cheese. If you’re not used to bacon cheeseburgers that have bacon and cheese and burger, then you’ll probably enjoy the version here. We are used to those things, though, and we’d rather eat an actual bacon cheeseburger and a poutine with real gravy. Either way, we’d advise you commit to trying the more interesting items on the menu for best success.
Modern Love is a vegan restaurant, but that isn’t the selling point of this place. The selling point is that it’s a great place for a date or group dinner, where everyone will enjoy what happens to be vegan food. No method acting required.