I don’t normally go to vegan restaurants. However, when one of my friends excitedly told me that she wanted to check out Crossroads, I looked up pictures and liked what I saw. Crossroads specializes in vegan small plates and recreating traditionally meaty dishes with vegan ingredients (i.e., pappardelle bolognese). The atmosphere is surprising for a vegan restaurant: it is dimly lit, trendy, and upscale. It would be a good place to take a date, particularly if the date is vegan or vegetarian.

We gathered here to celebrate our vegetarian friend’s birthday in a small group setting. The food was delicious overall, and I enjoyed the creative use of vegan ingredients. The most major criticism I have is that the portion sizes were astronomically small, especially for the price. If there is a market for more upscale vegan dining, then it would probably exist in Los Angeles — however, I wonder if the concept will survive long-term.

In any case, we had an excellent dining experience at Crossroads, sampling the following dishes:

Artichoke oysters. Artichoke puree, crispy oyster mushroom, yellow tomato bearnaise, kelp caviar. This is the restaurant’s signature dish, and it’s not hard to see why. I enjoyed the presentation and the interesting mix of unexpected ingredients.

Polenta fries. With house balsamic ketchup. The balsamic ketchup provided a flavorful dip, but the fries themselves were a bit too mushy for my tastes.

Lentil flatbread with three seasonal spreads. Leek pate, muhammara, English pea pesto. The lentil flatbread was too dry, but I rather enjoyed the muhammara and English pea pesto spreads.

“Crab cakes”. Hearts of palm, charred corn relish, basil aioli. The imitation crab cakes were delicious, as the hearts of palm and corn relish added extra pops of flavor to each bite. The texture of the crab cakes mimicked the soft, fritter-like texture of real crab cakes.

Spiced chickpeas. Oven-dried tomatoes, Italian parsley, garlic whip. We asked our server to surprise us with a dish, and this was the one that she brought over. The chickpeas were incredibly well-seasoned, and the garlic whip nicely complemented the spicy flavoring.

Risotto del giorno. The risotto was rather mediocre in terms of taste and creativity.

Kale spanakopita. Harrisa spiced tomato fondue, mint oil. This was Crossroads’s interpretation of the classic Greek dish, replacing spinach with kale. I really enjoyed the tomato fondue, but the spanakopita was unmemorable.

Pappardelle bolognese. The pappardelle was a pleasant surprise. It was the star dish of the night for me. The chefs were somehow able to infuse this dish with delicious “meaty” flavor, and the pasta was cooked to the right texture. I wish I had ordered my own plate of this.

Smoked sweet corn flatbread. Smoked sweet corn puree, roasted okra, charred cherry tomatoes, Pee Wee potatoes, pickled green onions, arugula. I wasn’t a fan of the grainy texture of the flatbread, but the toppings were fresh and satisfying.

Cannoli. Sweet almond ricotta, candied kalamata olives. The sweetness of the sweet almond ricotta balanced nicely against the mild saltiness of the olives.

All in all, I had an enjoyable dining experience at Crossroads. I wouldn’t mind trying it out again (but next time I will make sure to order my own plate of the pappardelle).

Crossroads, 8284 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046