I’d had the cheesecake before. That chilled, gluten-free raspberry cheesecake—creamy, clean, kissed with tartness. A dessert that doesn’t punish you afterward. But this was my first time visiting the café and meeting the woman behind it: Chef Q.
From the moment I walked into How Delish, I realized it wasn’t just a restaurant—it was a sanctuary. A space that welcomed you like family and fed you like you mattered. Chef Q, whose full name is Laquan Harvey Davis, isn’t your typical chef—and she’ll be the first to tell you that.
“I’ve never been big on titles,” she said. “I’m not classically trained. Cooking is just something that found me.”
Her food journey started not in a kitchen, but on a construction site. She was running a construction management company when she began to feel spiritually and emotionally out of sync. The real shift came after watching her brother experience a severe mental health crisis. That moment pushed her to seek internal healing, eventually leading her to a course called Inner Engineering. It was there, she says, that she began to reimagine her life and purpose, and food began showing up in unexpected ways.
She started by supplying vegan desserts to restaurants. Then came an invitation to an event in Brooklyn hosted by then-Borough President Eric Adams, who was spotlighting vegan chefs of color. Her cheesecakes and brownies sold out, and word spread.
“After that event, everything exploded,” she told me. “We were doing pop-ups, festivals, and restaurants across the tri-state.”
Chef Q’s husband, who struggled for years with seasonal allergies, also experienced a dramatic shift after adopting a vegan lifestyle. “His symptoms cleared up,” she said. “Less congestion, fewer headaches, more energy. It was proof for both of us that food really is medicine.”
And the science backs that up.
A 2020 study in Nutrients found that plant-based diets are associated with lower levels of depression and anxiety. Another study from Frontiers in Psychology found that individuals who follow whole-food vegan diets report greater emotional stability and cognitive clarity. Much of this is tied to inflammation. The standard Western diet—rich in saturated fats, sugars and ultra-processed foods—feeds inflammation, which is linked to mood disorders. A fiber-rich vegan diet, on the other hand, supports the gut-brain axis and promotes serotonin production, the hormone responsible for stabilizing mood.
June is Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month—a time when these connections matter more than ever. Men are far less likely to seek therapy, but their bodies still tell the truth. Chef Q’s story, her husband’s transformation, and the warmth of her café remind us that wellness doesn’t always start in a clinic. Sometimes, it begins in the kitchen.
How Delish serves dishes like crispy oyster mushroom wraps and vegan po’ boys that taste like comfort food but heal like clean medicine.
“We try to meet people where they are,” Chef Q said. “Some want whole foods, some want something that scratches the itch of what they used to eat. We got both.”
She explained the difference between veganism and plant-based eating: “Veganism is about avoiding animal products; plant-based is more about clean, whole-food eating.” To build on that, vegan food can still include processed meat substitutes, oils, or sugars, whereas plant-based eating focuses more on natural ingredients in their original form. That distinction matters, especially for people looking to heal.
Her home growing up was mostly vegetarian. Her Trinidadian grandmother, now 95, is a raw vegan. Her father’s side stuck with the plant-based lifestyle. Her mother, raised in the South, still eats everything but knows when her body needs to detox. “It’s not about perfection,” she said. “It’s about being in tune.”
Vegan restaurants weren’t always easy to find. In the U.S., the first wave emerged in the 1970s, often associated with the counterculture health food movement. But they were niche and limited in flavor. The second wave in the 2000s brought gourmet, globally inspired vegan cuisine to major cities. Now, we’re in the third wave, where chefs like Q are making vegan food rooted in culture, community and comfort.
Food that isn’t about exclusion, but expansion.
So no, I’m not vegan. But I see the value. I see the healing. And I see how a chilled slice of cheesecake—when made with intention, by someone like Chef Q—can open the door to something bigger.
This June, as we reflect on men’s mental health, let’s broaden the frame. Let’s talk about what we’re eating and how it’s feeding or failing us. Let’s sit down to meals that not only fill us, but restore us.
You might come for the cheesecake. But you’ll leave believing healing has a flavor—and it’s vegan.
