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• Swimming Rama Swimming in Cow's Milk

I was a first-time visitor to Basil Leaf and alerted my server immediately I am vegan. She said anything on the lunch menu (I was there at 2:45 p.m.) could be made "vegan." I ordered the "Swimming Rama" with tofu -- it comes with "house peanut sauce." As I started to eat -- after taking few bites -- I decided to read Basil Leaf reviews on the Happy Cow website. One fantastic review warned of dairy in some of the Basil Leaf dishes. What do you know?! The "house peanut sauce" is made with cow's milk! I spoke to the manager, who had no idea that vegan meant "no animal products"; in fact, he tried to convince me that "vegan" means "no meat." Ugh. Try as I might, I could not convince him (or my server) that vegans do not consume dairy, eggs, flesh, etc. After considerable back-and-forth, he removed it from the bill. Lesson learned: Read Happy Cow reviews if going to a place you have never been before! Be very careful, if you are a vegan, if ordering at Basil Leaf.