HAAM Caribbean Plant Cuisine
Vegan restaurant · Williamsburg ·
Caribbean vegan dishes, burgers, and sushi with island vibes
Caribbean vegan dishes, burgers, and sushi with island vibes
"Pop-up and ghost kitchen Healthy As A Mother (or HAAM, for short) is bringing its fresh sugarcane juice and plantain boats stuffed with vegan beef to a brick-and-mortar location in Williamsburg. In addition to plant-based dishes with Dominican and Trinidadian influence, they’ll also have wine, beer, and cocktails." - bryan kim, neha talreja, willa moore
"HAAM is short for “Healthy As A Motha,” but health isn’t the first or even second reason we go to this restaurant in Williamsburg. We go here because they serve delicious Dominican and Trinidadian-inspired vegan food, and they know how to have a good time. You can order tall stacks of crispy oyster mushroom “chicharrón” and mofongo, presented like a king’s feast, or creamy queso plantain boats wearing a crown of microgreens. There’s also a full bar, and whether you’re sneaking in a drink during lunch or here for dinner, it’ll only take you one strong guava cocktail to start table dancing and ordering extra jerk chicken onigiris." - neha talreja, nikko duren, kenny yang
"HAAM, short for “Healthy As A Motha” got their start as a ghost kitchen operation, before becoming an popular stall at Smorgasburg. Now, fans can get their Dominican and Trinidadian-inspired vegan food at HAAM’s brick-and-mortar in Williamsburg. Inside, you’ll find a casual sit-down restaurant with rattan light fixtures and a full bar. To get an idea of the playful fusion dishes they’ve got going on, order Yuh Motha’s Mofongo, topped with oyster mushroom “chicharrón,” BEC empanadas, and the Island Onigiri, filled with jerk chicken and plantains." - neha talreja, will hartman, bryan kim, willa moore
"HAAM is short for “Healthy As A Motha,” but health is the last thing on our minds when we dine here. We like this Williamsburg restaurant first and foremost because they serve delicious Dominican and Trinidadian-inspired vegan food, and they know how to have a good time. You can get the classics, things like crispy oyster mushroom “chicharrón” and mofongo, or go wild with something new like their jerk chicken onigiri. Everything arrives with a date-night presentation, and they have a full bar with strong guava cocktails." - neha talreja, bryan kim, kenny yang, willa moore
"Tucked into 234 Union Ave., Brooklyn, HAAM (an acronym for 'healthy as a motha') is a white-walled, sunlit, entirely plant-based Caribbean restaurant whose cooking felt like pure sensory happiness. The Buss Up Shut Roti Plate is a kaleidoscopic riot of flavors: a pliant, chewy paratha roti piled beside a vivid-orange swipe of earthy-sweet mashed pumpkin, tender stewed greens, and a sharp, deep, spicy curry mango that made every neuron fire; the turmeric-yellow 'curry chicken' is actually 'chik'n,' a soy-and-wheat substitute that convincingly mimics bird, and what looks like crispy fried chicken atop the mofongo is a teetering stack of oyster mushrooms. When I dropped in, a server suggested the Chimichurri Chunk Steak ($29), made with Chunk Foods faux beef that arrived seared and tender-pink—eerily like an actual filet—and was marvelous alongside fried plantains, rice, soupy black beans, and Ramdass’s ultra-garlicky chimichurri. Chef-owner Yesenia Ramdass, a mom of three from Washington Heights who veganized Dominican and Trinidadian family favorites after discovering Skinny Bitch, started HAAM as a pop-up and Smorgasburg stall; the menu still includes social-media-friendly snacks (like barbecue-sauced faux meat with tamarind chutney on a fried-plantain split) while the dine-in offerings allow for more refined plates: a mofongo studded with smoky tempeh in a pale coconut-cream curry sauce, precisely plated yucca fries beside a jerk-mushroom patacón, and a lime-bright ceviche of hearts of palm on tostones topped with a tiny HAAM paper flag and bested by a few dashes of the house Hot as a Motha sauce (made from peppers grown by Ramdass’s father-in-law). The space—basket-cane lights and murals of tropical greenery—feels like sunshine even on rainy days, and drinks like fresh-pressed sugarcane juice and Tyrian-purple sorrel punch (hibiscus steeped with clove and cinnamon) reinforce the West Indian vibe. The restaurant keeps slightly odd hours, opening at 1 P.M. on weekdays and closing most nights by nine, and while I remain skeptical of 'healthy' as a moral goal, dining here feels indulgent and joyful—and, I suppose, healthy by some definitions." - H, e, l, e, n, , R, o, s, n, e, r