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Sprouts, shoots, leaves--we're all for healthy vegetarian eating. But sometimes the best way to judge a flesh-free joint is by how convincing its mock meat is. Red Bamboo Brooklyn, a vegan and vegetarian Caribbean home cookery, owns this category. Slip into the intimate brick-walled space and start with an appetizer combo: a trio of soul chicken (in a light panko coating), Cajun fried shrimp (with a convincing sea-salt aftertaste) and kicky buffalo barbecue wings (a stick takes the place of the bone). The Willy Bobo sandwich, which layers soy ham, pickles and vegan Swiss cheese on grilled coco bread, is better known to carnivores as a classic Cubano--herbivores know it as a craveworthy alternative to duller veg fare.

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