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3rd Ave-14th St (L)
Astor Place (6)
8th St-Broadway (R, W)
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While walking home from work, I stopped in this pizzeria for a quick slice. Immediately, I was amazed and hungry for the tall slices of pizza in the glass cabinet.
After five minutes of decision making, I ordered a slice of whole wheat topped with soy sausage, roasted peppers, and cheese and a diet coke. The owner opened the glass case and took a huge slice (almost a fifth of the pizza!) to put in the oven to warm up.
Once warm, I immediately sprinkled the slice with pepper flakes and ran out to take my first bite. Holy Cow!! The best whole wheat pizza crust I have ever had. It was crunchy and toasty and the toppings were aplenty! I couldn't finish the slice : (
At $4.00 a slice, I will gladly stop here again on a future walk home.
As a former employee, I know a lot about this place.
I have never tried any of their cheese pizzas, being vegan myself, but I know they use good quality Kosher cheese (vegetable rennet if you know what that means).
The vegan pizzas are really quite special. Sure they're a little pricey, but I've never seen anyone eat more than one slice at a sitting. My favorite was the Magic Mushroom, ask for them to cut it in half and put mexicali salsa on top.
If you're worried about the environment, make sure you tell them to go easy on the packaging - 2 plates, tinfoil, paper bag, plastic bag, or just eat it there! Seriously, who needs to take one slice of cheese pizza 10 blocks to eat it at home?
Also, the gluten-free buckwheat pizza is great, made with sprouted organic buckwheat from upstate New York!
SO GOOD! As you can see from the pictures, the slices are big and LOADED with toppings! A great value.
At first I thought I'd be bummed that they don't use a fake cheese for the vegan slices - I like that gooey consistency on pizza, but fake cheeses usually taste pretty gross, so I can see why they opt not to use it. The slices were so delicious, I didn't miss it at all.
I got two slices (took home half of each because they were so big):
Tofu/Sundried Tomato/Kalamata Olive/Roasted Garlic
Broccoli/Green Pepper/Spinach/Pesto
The first slice could've used a little more sauce (I agree with one reviewer's recommendation to buy a side). The second slice was heaven; the pesto base was soooo flavorful, and the slice was loaded with bright green veggies. Great crispy-and-chewy spelt crust! I also like that they put out garlic powder, hot peppers and oregano like at "regular" pizza joints.
The flavors were delicious and inventive, I had a terrible time deciding what to get! If I lived in NYC, I'd eat here every day. Yikes.
This place satisfied my intense cravings for pizza. I am really trying to be a vegan, but I love pizza so much. They use Daiya cheese here, so it is almost the real thing. Without the puss, of course. It is $3.50 for a slice though. So while it is no 2 Bros, it'll do.
Very friendly management in this no-frills spot. Cafe Viva has spelt and corn-meal crusts. If you ask, they also have gluten-free crust made from buckwheat flour and flax seeds (I don't think that the corn-meal crust is gf). I ordered a large pie with mozzarella, spinach, olives, onions and garlic. The crust on the edges was crisp, and I enjoyed the unique flavor. But the cheese (which I think was dairy, not soy-based, but without rennet) was so-so, the sauce was bland, and the vegetables were too raw. To be fair, I generally don't eat rennetless cheeses; so maybe Cafe Viva's cheese is good as far as those cheeses go. One other issue: the pizza was expensive. The large pizza is big enough for 2--maybe 3--people, but it cost $30+.
I love this place! The pizza is great. Its always fresh and the slices are huge. I highly recommend the pesto pizza. All of the others are great but the pesto is my fave.
Oh and they have Habanero Tabasco sauce. If you love crazy hotness then try it. I cant seem to find it in the stores just at Viva Herbal.
Had a slice with soy meatballs in marinara, roasted red peppers, and sauteed onions on a whole wheat crust. The slice was huge and I was happy.
Every vegan on planet earth needs to come in for slice. It's not the best pizza ever, but it's damn good and they have many delicious vegan options. The feeling of going in and having many options is reason enough to run and grab a slice.
Yummy vegan pizza. Usually pizza places with vegan options run out fast, but these guys always seem to have some available. The green tea crust / miso tofu slices are my favorite. They also have some great fake meat and veggie slices with soy cheese. The dining area is just like any regular pizza joint, so this is not really a 'date' place. A Great option for eating in this neighborhood, and possibly the best vegan pizza in the city.
I have a slight obsession with eating weird and "healthy" foods (purely for superficial purposes) but I also LOVE pizza. This place hits both sweet spots with a variety of vegan (and more) toppings you won't find at your neighborhood pizza spot. The spelt/wheat crust has an interesting grainy texture thats pretty good and it's all priced comparable to any other quick pizza spot in the area.
Basically, It's great for a quick slice of pizza that won't give you fatty guilt.
I LOVE this place! Their pizza is amazing. It's not conventional, but the whole wheat and spelt crust options, and the amazing vegetable combinations they have on their pizzas, are awesome. The food is delicious and there are plenty of choices. Whole wheat garlic knots=:).
I got two slices.
A standard fresh mozz, basil, and tomato which was decent, though tasting too much like it had a few days to its age. The spelt bread was a nice touch, gave the crust a very unique taste, which was the highlight of the slice.
A vegan meat slice. It tasted like vegan meat. I do not like vegan meat. I like meat meat.
Some things are really good vegan. Like burgers from Quantum Leap or anything from Curly's. Some things should not be vegan. Like pizza.
A for effort.
F minus for execution.
Where else are you going to get pizza topped with tofu? That in itself gives this place another star.
I got a green tea pizza, it was very green, and I also put up a lot of green for the single slice (about 6 bucks). Keep in mind, however, that slice was about the quarter of an entire pizza. Two slices and I would have been stuffed, and considering I'm known to consume entire pizzas (crusts included) at a time, this point is pure positivio.
So yeah, back to the green tea pizza, ain't getting that ish again. It tasted very green... very grassy... My got the plainer version of the tofu topped pizza and he really liked it.
I got a pumpkin whoopie pie for three bucks. That thing was heaven!
So this will be my go-to for pizza in Manhattan.
My apartment is around the corner from Viva, and I usually stop in for either a cheese or cheeseless square w/ marinara, preferably on whole wheat. With these lower key slices (compared to all the amazing toppings they offer), the quality seems neglected - they're all too often stale, and I don't think I've every had a truly hot slice. Even after asking the guys to put it back in the oven, it's still not quite warm in the middle.
Yay! Finally a place I can satisfy my pizza cravings at. I didn't actually try the vegan cheese pizza (I might some other time), but I did try the Mexicala and the Pesto pizza, both with regular vegetarian rennet cheese. The Mexicala was spicy and yummy! It had a cornmeal crust, and it had a jalapeno-tomato salsa spread on top of the pizza cheese.
The ambience is nothing to write home about, but the people at the counter are so nice! Me likey.
I can totally understand why a meat-eater wouldn't enjoy this place as much, but hey, that's not quite the audience this is catering to =)
LOVE THIS PLACE! The Picante pizza is delicious, and the Santa Cruz calzone is also amazing. Quick and friendly service.
Vegan cheese is pretty gross.
But the plain slice is actually really good! The crust is thin, which is a plus in my book.
Some of the other slices are not for every girl...I can't pretend I like soy cheese. But you'd be surprised by how good "spelt" or "whole wheat" pizza is!
When I recently ventured to NYC a few days before I caught a flight to Israel I was honestly more worried about having to deny the culture and taste of New York style pizza than I was about the threat of possible suicide bombings in the midst of an impending war taking place in my final destination... turns out neither one of them were too difficult to avoid I owe the former to Cafe Viva! The second? well we won't go there for now.
I'd never been vegan in Manhattan before and it is definitely THE place to be vegan... and this is coming from someone that has lived in "liberal" California as a vegetarian for 22 years. I've always seen myself spending a few years In NYC at some point in my life and the pizza at Cafe Viva would surely make the top of the "pros" list if I decide to take the leap (getting fat and going broke over my love of food is on the "cons" list). I had spicy sausage pizza... atop their one and only spelt crust and seriously felt a twinge of depression coming on when I finished it...cuz it was over. Sadly I didn't have time to go back to try other slices but before I do anything else the next time I'm there I'm going to replenish my nutrients and energy at Cafe Viva Pizza!
p.s. I'm drooling. Damn you lucky East Villagers!
If I could eat nothing but a vegetarian slice (tomatoes, broccoli, mushrooms, onions, garlic) from here for the rest of my life, I would be so happy.
Fresh and HUGE. Oh man. Must go now.
UPDATE:
Over the last few months, Viva has added the option to put Teese on your slice for an additional $1.50. Don't do it. They don't shred it, and it comes out sorta funny. Plus, the pizza here has so much flavor and depth that it REALLY does not need the soy cheese.
Also, get an extra container of sauce for .50. You'll thank me later.
Maybe I made a mistake in getting the green tea slice of pizza (for almost 6 dollars!) but I was horribly disappointed. It was seriously flavorless and slightly cold. My friend got two slices of something else and had a similar experience. I love vegan food, but when its done wrong and with what must have been unnatural and processed ingredients, its horrible.
I am constantly amazed at how good this place is. It completely makes me overlook the look, feel and clientele that frequent. They offer vegan, vegetarian and all kosher pizza. I have yet to try regular slices so don't trust me on those terms, but the vegan slices are a dream. I recommend getting extra marinara if you are a fan of the sauce... it brings the pizza from an 8 to a 10 instantly!
They also have vegan desserts & ice cream.
Late night heaven - open till 1ish/2ish...!
Sheer hunger and dumb luck led me to this place. I was wandering the East Village on my way to a party and was in desperate need of sustenance. This place was the closest pizza joint to the locale.
It's perhaps unfair of me to rate this place only 3 stars, because I'm sure if I were a vegan or a even a vegetarian, I would be very appreciative of this joint, but alas, I'm not.. And wheat and spelt crusts do not yummy pizza make. That being said, I was impressed with the varieties of options here - I'm big on toppings. And it wasn't bad, per se, but if I'm gonna go for a slice, I want grease and processed flour. Sue me.
The best in VEGAN pizza, and a good slice in general for vegetarians if you're not opposed to real cheese.
The slices are heavy, and filling. The crust is healthy and hearty. I really enjoy the regular slice, and I have had a wide range of choices from this place. I like to keep it simple, I love the mushroom slice, and I try to avoid anything that looks like it's spilling over with fake meat since everytime I go for a slice like that, I seem to be stuffed beyond my expectations afterwards.
The service is friendly at this place, which is always nice, however a few times I've been erked by the customers who are left to fend for themselves, and clean up after the people before them.
I'd also say, that if I'm in the mood for pizza in general, and I'm anywhere near Viva, I'd just rather go to Artichoke, which is right around the corner. It's not any more expensive, but is far superior to any slice they sell at Viva. The last 2 times I've dropped 10 or 12 bucks at this place, I've kicked myself in the ass, thinking, "man, Artichoke is like 3 blocks away... why! WHY!".
But it does have it's niche. It's good for all the hippie-jews since it's Kosher as well, and they sell China Cola, which is a rare find, and a favourite of mine as well.
A solid 3.
Best pizza place!
The ingredients are fresh and natural. Many options, very exciting though the place is not much to look at, you'll be satisfied.
I love this place!
It's small and quaint; located right on East Village's busy 2nd Ave. The food is great. I've yet to be disappointed. Their mushroom and sun-dried tomato is simply my favorite. The all natural ingredients make the experience of eating amazing pizza all the more enjoyable. I love the sweetness of the pie crust...so good.
If it's just you and you choose to do so, you can probably dine in. However, groups should plan to order to go (or delivery) and enjoy the food elsewhere. There's just very little dining space and this place sees a lot of traffic.
Curse the day someone told me I would never enter a vegetarian pizza joint!!!
Expect to see me here amidst or post EV drunken debauchery in the coming months. Full stop.
Viva the corner pizza place!
Stopped in to grab a slice before my Tribeca Film Festival screening. They take credit cards for +$8 pizza splurges. I got my typical - a slice of regular and a brick of Sicilian. After an unsatisfying bite, the square had to be thrown back in the oven for reheating. Meanwhile, I burnt the roof of my mouth on the plain slice. Pretty good, nothing special. My friend's pesto slice was a disappointment. Too much pest, not enough oo. The Sicilian slice re-emerged from the oven and was fucking great.
Major points deducted for lack of meat. Come on. I really don't know what crazy ass vegetarian needs to avoid having their slice of mushroom kale rudebega surprise hanging out next to my meatball and hot sausage slice. Grow up and eat a cow.
I'd stop back at Viva for a brick of hot Sicilian and to hate on some vegetarians. Wait, no. I'd probably just go to the Alligator and get drunk and eat free pizza there. Never mind. Carry on vegetarians.
So last night I was telling my girlfriend how I really wish there was an amazing pizza place where I could get vegan pizza with different faux meats like soy sausage and pepperoni-- I'm a vegetarian, but I love good faux meats and try and be vegan when I can. About 10 minutes after the conversation, totally by accident, I found this place online. How random!
So, I went to it tonight and it was AMAZING. Not just good, amazing. I had to get two slices (even though they're huge) because I was so excited by all the options (vegans and vegetarians out there know what I'm talking about). I got the Vegan Picante on whole wheat crust which had soysage, marinara, onions and peppers and I got something else, that I can't remember the name of, but it has miso sliced tofu (which does not actually taste like miso), olives, fresh roasted garlic, and sundried tomatoes on cornmeal crust. They have pizza with dairy cheese (which I wasn't in the mood for) and vegan cheese (which I'm generally not a fan of).
I was so excited by how good it tasted that I ate all of it, both slices, and have felt full for the past 3 hours-- but it was worth it! Go to this place immediately. I want to go tomorrow to try out more things. Also, they have a big variety of deserts which all look amazing, including vegan ice cream, cakes, cookies and yes, WHOOPIE PIES! Ahh! Go. Now!
Great vegan/veggie pizzas. They have many alternatives (like spelt crust, wheat crust, corn meal crust, soy cheese, etc.). It takes longer to melt soy cheese. Sometimes they don't keep it in long enough, so it's like having a layer of plastic on your slice. They are nice enough to heat it a bit longer if you ask nicely.
The slices are big and the price is decent. My favorite slice is the Siciliana Marinara. I go for the the normal vegan cheese slice too.
The restaurant space is tiny. Great for ordering out. Nice place for late night munchies.
I really love this pizza. I always get the regular slice which is just the right amount of gooeyness that I like on a pizza. Not too heavy with the cheese - just right. The crust is really good too and overall I love this place. I've tried a lot of the pizza's in the East Village - probably like 40 or more spots - and this is my favorite place.
Also, this place has great vegan cakes and other treats. And I'm not vegan so that's saying something. I've gotten the strawberry shortcake a few times and it's light and nice.
Rarely has five bucks and change been so well-spent. In the 80s it was my very first cassette, Dire Straits, Brothers in Arms. In the 90s it was a sugar cube at the Clifford Ball. Last night it was a slice of veggie pizza at Cafe Viva.
The pizza here is already outstanding, with its big chunks of broccoli, tomatoes, and mushrooms on a whole-wheat crust, and a mildly spicy sauce. But what propelled last night's slice into the upper echelon of life experience was the Teese.
Teese, you see, is a vegan mozzarella introduced by Chicago Soy Dairy in the past few months, and it's the real deal, Bill McNeal. All the melty, salty goodness of buffalo mozzarella without the cruelty or hormones. Be-Bop-A-Lula.
For $1.50, Cafe Viva will add Teese to any of their gigantic slices, and you'll be doing the Walk of Life the rest of the night, no matter how much bourbon you put down at Shoolbred's.
I LOVED IT!!!
Last Saturday I helped my friend move from Astoria to the LES. (this is me being totally jealous, stomp-stomp-pout-pout)
So, around 3:00 on this lovely Saturday afternoon I set out to have 16 Handles for my lunch. (I can do this because I am an adult.) However, I was caught aback by the Viva Herbal Pizzeria.
The selection amazed me and it took me about 2 seconds to drop the fro-yo idea and about 2 minutes to decide on what slice to order.
Traditional- Whole Wheat- Corn Meal- Spelt (and this is only their crust selection) Veggie, tofu, pesto, mushrooms, broccoli. Again, I was speechless.
For $3.75 I had an amazing slice. My husband says, "It looks like salad on a pizza." Whatever. It is some dang good stuff!
And they also have a whole selection of vegan desserts which I was too stuffed to check out.
I was walking by this place and saw the sign for Viva Herbal Pizza. Thinking "What's herbal pizza?", I took a quick browse of the delivery menu that was hanging outside the door. I noticed that they had whole wheat crust pizza which seemed like a great idea. So, I ordered a plain slice (which seemed to be a great deal at $2.45 a slice considering that it came from a vegan/kosher place). As I was waiting for the slice to be heated I noticed that there was quite a selection of tasty looking pizza by the slice. But, I had made my choice and I didn't want to over indulge. Once the slice was ready, I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of cheese that was on it and more so by the taste. The crust was light, but not too light, and the sauce complemented the cheese quite well. I'm very certain that this would make a great base for the other slices, so I plan on coming back here to try various combos.
Great selection for vegans. Go for the Picante, a tomatoey-saugagey pizza. I didn't see any vegan pretend cheese in the house, and some of the pizzas are a bit on the dry side, but it's better vegan fare than most places offer and two people can eat for under $15. The vegetable toppings in these pre-made pizzas are varied and kind of like stir fry, so on the undercooked side. Start with one slice if you're dining in because they're huge. Credit card purches must be $8 or more. They also have a decent selection of vegan desserts, including those pumpkin cake frosting burgers called whoopie pies. Yeah baby.
This is a really great veggie (and Kosher) pizza place in the East Village. They have about 15 different varieties of pizza, all chock full of fresh veggies, herbs and organic cheeses on healthy whole wheat and unbleached crusts. They also have some vegan and kosher cheeses available. These pizzas truly 'eat like a meal' because some of them are really full of veggies and fake sausages. I recommend the Bella white pizza - spinach, onion, mozzarella and fresh herbs.
3 stars for the limited menu and small seating area - pizza is realy the only quality item here, some of the pre-made desserts and salads are a little sketch.
Enjoy!
It's vegan! It's delicious! It changed my palate!
I did not understand what this boyfriend of mine meant with his complaining about how there is no good pizza on the West Coast. Shut the hell up, I'd say, everything is better here and you know it. (You never know how much of a chauvinist you are until someone denigrates your (adopted) home state.) So we'd have this argument, he and I, because I thought he was insane for wanting one-topping pizzas, and he thought my pile-on-every-vegetable-ever pizzas were obscene, and then there would be only discord. Discord, and Yum Yum House.
Late last June when we ended up with a couple of free days in New York, we plotted an eating course through the city, and of course pizza went on the list, because duh pizza is delicious, and also because the argument needed settling.
I lost two arguments that afternoon. Yes, East Coast pizza is the better pizza. I've never had better. It's superlative in every way, and nothing I've had since even compares. God I'm so deprived. Secondly, hemp in fact can be delicious. I had this massive slice of magic mushroom with hemp pesto, and my god it was good. Again, I've never had any foodstuffs made of hemp before or since that tasted like anything but ass, but with this pizza, what more do you need?
Nothing. The answer is nothing. Not even a second slice because those things are huge. It was totally worth losing the argument, and Joel couldn't even rub it in anyway; his mouth was too full of pizza to even smirk.
4 stars because I don't feel comfortable giving a fast foody place 5 stars.
Viva is very good for the unhealthy vegan, as long as you keep in mind it is a take-away joint. That said, the gentle jew behind the counter was super friendly and helpful, so its not Micky-Ds but it ain't the Ritz either.
I've had several dishes and all were a fatty-good-time. The cheese is probably Vegan Gourmet, but its still nice to get vegan pizza with cheese and not have it come out of your toaster oven... plus they have choices of (white, wheat, and spelt) crusts and toppings you can not find anywhere else (check out their Zen pizza: Green tea herbed miso tofu, green tea basil pesto, shiitake mushrooms, maitake mushrooms, carmelized onions, sundried tomato, roasted garlic, on a green tea herbed spelt crust!).
Most of their desserts are run of the mill Vegan Treats (Blueberry, Oreo, and Brownie Cheese Cakes, Peanut Butter Bomb etc) but they also have some specially items, locally baked. I tried their Pumpkin and Chocolate Whoopie pies, which were both super sweet, but good. They also had some tiny cookies which I got to reach my $15 minimum, they were date sweetened and pretty good.
I dislike sitting at dirty counters watching other people eat, so if you live/work in the area I'd say order from here, but don't eat here.
+Pretty good pizza. Lots of vegan options. Kosher.
-The service can be spotty and the seating can fill up fast.
Last time I was there I was overcharged. The price said $3.25 and I was charged $4.25. When I asked the cashier about the price, all he said was, " Sorry, man. You were charged the correct price. The sign is wrong". Not a big deal, I just thought it was bad customer service. The slice was good though.
I recommend the Santa Rosa slice and the Siciliana Marinara (spicy).
Haven't tried all versions but what I had was yummy.
Great value and they have lots of fresh salads too!
Perfect place to grab a slice before of after going to nearby cinemas.
Vive la Viva!
The Picante is obscenely good; the slices are obscenely huge; the vegan whoopie pies are obscenely decadent. All in all an obscene (in an awesome way) vegetarian/vegan pizza experience.
Don't be scared off by the prices. It says $3.75 - $4.25 per slice, but each slice is about 1/5 the pie instead of 1/8 so you get what you pay for.
I'd love some thin crust options and I wish they would reheat the slices more/better than they usually do. Otherwise, definitely a place to satisfy the pie craving.
Just the right spot to have pizza and eat healthy. The slices are huge and chockful of fresh veggie and vegan chunks of goodness. My favorite is the hemp pizza. It's filling in a non greasy, good for you satisfying, delicious way.
If you do not regularly eat vegetables, be wary. The pizza here will act like a colon cleanse and not a gentle one either. You have been warned.
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