Teapot Vegetarian House

Teapot's dual locations — on Capitol Hill and in Redmond — cater to the culinary consciousness of Asian-food-loving vegans, proving the many ways in which tofu can tantalize and faux meat is the answer to no meat.

The Capitol Hill cafe, exciting vegans for the better part of a decade, recently moved up the block to cozy second-story digs where its garden hues matched my green-apple iced tea. Like the Redmond locale — a spare, clean-lined dining space a few doors down from the venerable Malay Satay Hut — it offers a long list of loose-leaf teas (try the pine-smoked lopsang souchong) served in Chinese cast-iron teapots.

Though the Seattle branch dropped its kosher certification when it moved early this year, its Eastside sibling continues to delight kosher-keeping Jews who don't mix meat and dairy and will find neither on the premises.

Take a tour of Thailand, via a spicy tom yum soup properly perfumed with lemongrass and lime leaf ($6.50). Or a trip to China for a clay pot unveiled to reveal bright Chinese eggplant in a garlicky sauce kissed with sweet and heat ($8.95). The decadent "duck" chow mein ($7.95) comes with fried tofu that crackles like the skin of Peking duck. And the bo bo (aka "pupu") platter ($14.95) is a quintet of finger foods including "chicken" satay (marinated wheat-gluten) and crunchy tofu rolls.

Sweet treats like gula Malacca (a Malaysian sundae with tapioca pearls and soy whipped cream) and creamy mango cheesecake (made with — who knew? — tofu!) seal the deal.

Teapot hours: Seattle 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. daily; Redmond 11 a.m.-10 p.m. daily.