When you walk in the main entrance of Hickory Ridge Mall, you feel like you are walking into an abandoned building. There are only a handful of shops open, and the carousel sits silent. To be honest, it’s kind of eerie.
But as you turn the corner at the food court, bright balloons and pops of vibrant lime green, orange and yellow catch your eye.
New restaurant Sun of a Vegan is a bright spot in this quiet mall. Owner Ayesha Collier is serving up vegan comfort food so tasty and delicious, you will never miss the meat.
What I ate at Sun of a Vegan
I know I could never commit to a vegan diet. I just love ice cream and cheese so much that I don’t think I could ever give up those dairy delights.
One sip of the Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake at Sun of a Vegan, and I thought I might change my mind. This shake was so creamy and delicious I would never have known it was dairy-free.
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Then I took a bite of Sun of a Vegan’s loaded nachos. Oh my!
The SOV Nacho Supreme is a bed of corn tortilla chips topped with queso style vegan nacho cheese, seasoned veef (textured vegetable protein) that can be made spicy or non-spicy, black beans, tomatoes, jalapenos and avocado crema.
I had the spicy version, which had just the right amount of kick. All the flavors I love about loaded nachos were there. To be honest, I think I preferred this version to some meat-topped nachos I have had in the past because Collier’s signature veef is so well seasoned.
While I was waiting for my meal, I asked some of the regulars who were in line what was their favorite dish. Every single person mentioned the Philly Cheesesteak, so I ordered that too. It wasn’t quite the same as a traditional meat-based Philly cheesesteak, but it sure was tasty.
Served on a hoagie roll, plant-based ground meat is seasoned to perfection and tossed with mushrooms, peppers and onions, layered with cheese and dressed with mayo, jalapenos, spinach and tomatoes. Think of it as a Philly cheesesteak made with ground beef instead of sliced meat — made vegan, of course.
A plant-based journey
Collier started her plant-based journey as a quest to lose weight and get healthier. “It was life-changing,” she said. “I felt better and had more energy. Meat used to be at every meal, and cutting it out made a tremendous difference.”
To help keep herself on track, Collier challenged herself to eat a raw food diet for one month and post what she was eating on Instagram for 28 days.
Her posts caught the attention of festival organizer Cynthia Daniels, who encouraged her to participate in her Memphis Vegan Festival.
“I was just a home cook who loved to play in the kitchen,” Collier said. “I had 30 days to come up with a business. I am grateful my husband believed in my dream.”
That was June 2021. Her first foray into food service was a huge success. “We ran out of everything,” she said. “I knew then that this was a thing.”
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Sun of a Vegan was first launched as a prepared foods business serving vegan meals for pickup or delivery.
In February, she took the leap and opened her own restaurant. It’s a family affair with her son and husband working alongside her.
The menu features familiar comfort foods that have been made vegan. Collier uses recipes from her childhood and creatively tweaks them to be plant-based.
The Hickory Ridge Mall may seem like an odd choice, but Collier said the mall was a good choice due to its location. “We are central to everything here,” she said. “People find us when searching for vegan food in Memphis, and customer reviews are also bringing people to us.”
My next visit will be on a Thursday. That’s the day she makes her now famous vegan lasagna.
“It’s the most intensive thing I make,” Collier said. “I hand skin 7 quarts of almonds so I can make them into the ricotta, make my own marinara and my own meat mixture.”
Now that’s a labor of love.
Jennifer Chandler is the Food & Dining reporter at The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at [email protected] and you can follow her on Twitter and Instagram at @cookwjennifer.
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Sun of a Vegan
Where: 3707 South Hickory Ridge Mall, Suite #458
Hours: Noon-8 pm Tuesday-Saturday
Online:sunofavegan.com
Phone: (901) 249-7697
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