A vegan coffee, ice cream and pastry shop is usually pretty hard to come by. Lucky for downtown Phoenix, that’s no longer the case thanks to Chef Damon Brasch. If you've ever been to Green, you may have tried a Tsoynami. Now he has created an entire concept from the Tsoynami — simply called Nami.
The menu at Nami is simple and sweet. They have traditional coffee offerings such as espressos and macchiatos as well toddies.
The pastry case is large and filled with different 100 percent vegan-baked goods every day. The employees said the Nami cakes are the most popular item. It's a basic chocolate cake with a cream filled center and icing on top. And by cream, they don’t mean that thin pasty stuff; they mean thick and delectable white goodness.
The pastries range from $2 to $4.50. Nami also has gluten-free items such as their Yankee Doodle. If you aren’t a sweet person, the employees recommend the chive and cheddar scone, which they call a “dinner pastry that’s very filling.”
The Tsoynami is a vegan ice cream that starts with house made organic soy-base soft serve ice cream. Then you can pick a signature combination of ingredients or mix your own. The concept is similar to something like ColdStone, but the ingredients are much more tempting such as organic peanut butter and Newman’s Chocolate O’s.
Nami is a great spot to get some homework done because of its relaxing vibe. It’s bright and cheerful with cool wooden tables and benches. There is also nice artwork on the wall, which adds a pop of color.
If you go… Nami 2014 North 7th Street, Phoenix 602.258.NAMi, tsoynami.com Hours: Monday – Sunday, 7 a.m. – 9:30 p.m.
Reach the reporter at cavohs@asu.edu
