Double Zero, a plant-based restaurant in the East Village, ranks among the city’s best spots to hang out and eat. It’s hip and fun, and most importantly, all vegan. Double Zero specializes in wood-fired pizza with vibrant toppings and nut-based cheeses. The restaurant is beautiful, and the food is a work of art. It’s the creation of celebrity chef, author, entrepreneur, and plant-based cuisine educator Matthew Kenney.

A super friendly and helpful waiter named Anton greeted me. He was as attentive throughout my experience as any waiter in recent memory. We spoke about his hometown of Russia and all things plant-based. Kenney would be proud that his staff is so invested in his restaurant and customers.

I felt a moral obligation to order a pizza–the pièce de ré·sis·tance–because how else would people know if it’s good? Reviewing the world’s best plant-based restaurants isn’t easy, but somebody has to do it. I opted into the tomato and basil pizza and felt like I entered the lovers’ temple at Parc des Buttes-Chaumont. I kissed each bite, got down on one knee, and told Double Zero that it would always have my heart.

Double Zero is a New York City gem of compassion and fantastic food. I’d recommend it to the finest food connoisseurs and the biggest plant-based pizza skeptics. Most importantly, the restaurant shows meat and cheese eaters that animals and the planet don’t have to suffer for them to have a good time and eat amazing pizza.