Ital Kitchen
Long before veganism became a relatively mainstream, aspirational lifestyle, Rastafarians were all about following a plant-based diet. “We started this thing,” says Michael Gordon, chef and owner of Ital Kitchen. “It’s just that it had a different name. We call it ital.”
Derived from the word “vital” and designed to increase energy, ital cooking is free of meat, additives and processed ingredients, focusing on natural foods from the earth. Michael, 49, adopted an ital diet after joining the Rastafari religion and movement as a young man in his native Jamaica. But he sprinkles his Crown Heights BYOB menu with French techniques picked up from his culinary training at Le Cordon Bleu.
“Something I see with Rastas is we start things, and we don’t take it to the next level,” he says. “That’s kind of my mission with this. I’m not saying I’m fancy — but I do have a little swag.
“I hope each person who comes here feels like I’m individually cooking for them.”
“The concept is: I don’t want to feel like I’m working,” Michael says of Ital Kitchen’s warm atmosphere, which seats about 20 and feels like someone’s home, down to the family photos, colorful hand-painted chairs, small but well-stocked bookcase, potted plants and assorted art and ephemera (plus a large back patio when weather permits).
“I want you to feel like you’re getting home-cooked food; nothing rushed. I hope each person who comes here feels like I’m individually cooking for them.” And y’all? That’s exactly what it’s like.
You’ll see Michael freshly preparing delicious vegan meals from the restaurant’s open kitchen, and he’ll likely chop it up with you about politics, history and culture at some point while you enjoy. Ital Kitchen opens at 4 pm (closed on Mondays), though on Sundays it opens promptly at 4:20 (wink, wink). If you imbibe, bring a bottle of wine, kick back and take in the irie vibes.
Ital Kitchen’s all-natural menu is intended to boost your health and energy, but its vegan takes on Caribbean classics and fusion fare were also developed to taste amazing.
Particularly inspired are the rich Thai-Fi curry stew of oyster mushrooms, bok choy, chickpeas, red beans and tomato; and “Noxtail” made from packed portobello mushrooms, chickpeas and sun-dried tomatoes (pierced by a celery “bone”) with butter beans in a deeply flavorful coq au vin sauce.
We also recommend the satisfying veggie jerk chicken and curry jackfruit; the fresh beet-carrot juice and a “Tumerical Ting” concoction of turmeric, lemon, ginger and apple; cinnamon-dusted sweet plantains and the vegan carrot cake.
“Cooking this way has kind of magnified the family feel of the place,” says Michael, who hosts a free Thanksgiving dinner at the restaurant each year. “We’re here to grow with each other.”
1032 Union Street, 347-405-9727, www.italkitchenbk.com
