The idea of an all-vegetarian restaurant is often stereotyped in terms of a location in a college town, a hippie vibe, an emphasis on meat substitutes, and a beverage menu full of smoothies and juices. None of those traits are intrinsic to meatless cuisine, so it's refreshing to see a new generation of restaurants defying those cliches with dishes that celebrate vegetables, grains, and legumes on their own terms and bars that mix creative cocktails. Near Roosevelt Row in downtown Phoenix, Sin Muerte is a local harbinger of that trend towards modern meatless.
smoked ratatouille and Moroccan stewed chickpeas
Sin Muerte, which is Spanish for "without death," has at least two possible explanations for its name. Most obviously, its vegetarian approach means food produced without slaughter. A second link is found with the 1937 mission-style building the restaurant occupies. Long ago, it was used as a funeral home, and even today it has a look that is a mix of stylish, sacred, and sepulchral. The restaurant is about two-and-a-half blocks from the Roosevelt/Central light rail station, and bike racks are found clustered at the nearby corner of Garfield and First Street.
Hatch chili felafel
The entrance faces First Street with a shaded patio leading to a host station just inside. High ceilings, stained glass windows, and church pews create a sense of the space's prior use while the chandeliers overhead add some drama. A bar on one side offers counter seating, and long tables with geometric tile make the restaurant well-suited to larger groups. That approach makes sense since much of the menu is centered around small, shareable dishes that blur the boundaries between appetizers, entrees, and sides produced in the open kitchen in the back.
creamy mushroom pasta
Sin Muerte is a project of Instrumental Hospitality, best known for Belly in Uptown Phoenix and Gilbert. Their newer vegetarian restaurant repeats Belly's themes of cocktails and communal cuisine but deviates not only with its meatless menu, but also with a different geographic emphasis. While Belly focuses most intensively on the food traditions of southeast Asia, Sin Muerte is more aligned with southwest Asia. While much of the food is Middle Eastern in its inspiration, there is room for some influences from Asia and the American Southwest as well.
smoked mushroom and walnut ragu
The menu begins with items classified as "dips," both cold and hot. At its most fundamental level, that means smooth, creamy hummus. The ratatouille is chunky and a little messy when presented on a plate rather than a bowl, but stands out with a pulpy texture and smokey flavor that approaches the taste and mouthfeel of baba ghanoush. Moroccan stewed chickpeas are minimally adorned with tomato and cucumber, allowing their own flavors to flourish. All dips are served with a fluffy pita direct from the restaurant's beehive oven or fresh vegetable planks.
cauliflower mushroom stew
The most indulgent and filling of the dips is a mushroom fundido. More cheese than anything else, this molten platter of melted dairy with bits of umami interspersed within can be spread on the accompanying bread to create a sensation almost like a mushroom pizza. The next section of the menu is dedicated to snacks and salads. These include crunchy items like house made dill or Israel pickles, spicy green beans, and crispy onion strings. These are dishes best shared as appetizers and their salty, savory flavors work well with a round of drinks to start a meal.
canteloupe and shaved fennel
Salads are larger but lighter. A seasonal farm salad makes use of the best of locally available produce, while a bowl of cantaloupe and shaved fennel delivers an unexpected taste sensation reminiscent of Vietnamese or Thai salads. At first bite, it might seem that the kitchen has made an exception to its usual meatless ethos by using fish sauce. Instead, it has fashioned its own dressing made from fermented pineapple, resulting in a nearly identical flavor. A plate of Hatch child falafel has a mild spice level and each ball has a crisp exterior with a yielding interior core.
sticky rice
The entree selection, meaning larger bowls or plates less easily shared, are all about pasta and mostly about mushrooms. Tofu, seitan, and any sort of Impossible products are nowhere to be seen. Instead, the earthy taste and texture of all sorts of edible fungi are used to add substance and flavor. A smoked walnut and mushroom ragu, for example, fulfills the role of a classic Bolognese meat sauce. A creamy mushroom pasta features big ribbons of chewy Sonora pasta, and for those who prefer to skip mushrooms, a simple cacio e pepe offers a fulfilling classic.
fry bread
A cauliflower mushroom stew skips the pasta in favor of abundant gold potatoes. The sauce the vegetables swim in is comparable to an African groundnut stew. Beyond the usual menu, Tuesdays bring tacos with something new each week. Mushrooms, squash, beans, and corn might on any given week be served atop a trio of tortillas. Desserts come in two varieties: sticky rice with seasonal fruit, a direct transplant from sibling restaurant Belly, and fry bread, one of the restaurant's signature pitas crisped in oil and served with preserved figs and rosewater syrup.
mock mojito
Sin Muerte's cocktail selection leans towards spirits like rum and rye combined with nutty notes such as sunflower seed orgeat or almond bitters. A spicy margarita and an Arizona mai tai offer original adaptations of classic drinks. An impressive selection of alcohol-free mocktails, as well as beer and wine, offer some additional options. If none of this seems like textbook vegetarian restaurant 101, Sin Muerte succeeds by making meatless food something to be enjoyed on its own merits. The result is a surprisingly up-to-date and vibrant scene in an old funeral home.
817 N. 1st St., Phoenix AZ 85004
https://www.sinmuerte.com
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