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vegans, help! save mani’s bakery!
10February 16th, 2009LA restaurants, mani's bakery (closed)so the economy sucks and lots of people are out of work. that’s a fact. businesses are closing, personal savings are being depleted, and the unemployment rate is skyrocketing. we all know and love people who have been laid off…maybe we even are those people in some cases. but wtf mate, the tragedy has officially now come home for all los angeles herbivores and started to affect local vegan/vegan-friendly restaurants. within 2 short months we saw the shutting of the vegan spot and of doomie’s home cookin’, arguably the best 2 places to get a meat-free sandwich in la. both closures were untimely and undeserved…so vegans, please, let’s go throw our moneys at some of the local restaurants that need our help, starting with mani’s bakery on fairfax.
the long-standing los angeles institution is nearly as old as i am, and is still being threatened by the crappy economic climate. in a recent plea on their blog (which i saw via eater la), mani’s tells its customers,“Unfortunately, we face the very real possibility of not making it through 2009, unless we can modify our business to function more efficiently in today’s environment.” they go on to add, “December was the weakest sales Mäni’s has ever had. At this level we will not be able to continue.” ummm…i dunno what you make of that, but to me that sounds like some fatal-apocalyptic-scary shit meaning, buy our food if you want us to be here in the morning. well, it worked on me. i hit up mani’s as soon as i read this, and i gotta say, i will feel pretty bad and dead inside if they do go out of business. their vegan food is really, really, really good. i’ve posted before about mani’s ENORMOUS VEGAN SELECTION…and let’s just say on this return visit, i was even more impressed.
chocolate dipped chocolate chip cookie. $3.50
i’m gonna work in reverse on this post because the dessert is the best thing that mani’s offers. the menu is absolutely huge, and all the vegan/veganizable items are clearly marked. almost everything can be made animal-free, and this is extremely handy when it comes to the desserts. vegan truffles, breakfast bars, almond rocas, cakes and pies are just some of the decadent treats that mani’s has in store. my husband and i split a chocolate dipped chocolate chip cookie on our last visit, and we could barely finish it. it was so rich and tasty, i think any vegetarian would be fooled by it.
but not just the dessert items at mani’s are awesome…there are also tons of vegan-friendly appetizers and entrees. on our recent visit and attempt to save mani’s from bankruptcy and decline, i ordered the pesto sandwich.
the pesto: vegan pesto spread on rosemary bread with fresh mixed greens, avocado, tomato and marinated tofu. with a vegan caesar salad. $11
of course i got the vegan version (with tofu instead of meat) and everything was divine. the pesto was thick, oily, and slightly greasy in a really good way. the tofu was grilled but still soft in the middle, and it was all stacked with fresh vegetables on really soft and spongy bread.
my husband got the california club, which was also excellent. the sandwich came in neatly chopped pieces, all stacked high with vegan cheese, vegetables, crispy tempeh bacon and crunchy breaded seitan. there was nothing to complain about. i mean seriously, with the vegan spot and doomie’s both totally gone, i don’t know where else to obtain such a hearty and satisfying vegan sandwich in this town.
the california club: layered bread, breaded seitan with tempeh bacon, vegan cheddar, lettuce and tomato. $12
yeah, yeah, yeah, mani’s is a bit expensive. but so fucking what?!?! where isn’t at this point? it’s as good a deal as pure luck or m cafe, plus the menu is like 90x bigger. they also have the best vegan bakery and pastry selection in town. if they do shut, i know i will feel the same way as if a beloved relative has died—totally wracked with guilt, torturing myself over every lunchtime or coffee break i could have spent in mani’s company.
in my opinion, the vegan scene will suck a lot more hardcore if mani’s goes away. let’s ensure that doesn’t happen. please go eat there as soon as possible…um, it may be your last chance. 🙁
mani’s bakery
Tags: club, cookie, dessert, fairfax, lunch, pesto, sandwiches, seitan, tofu
519 S. fairfax avenue
los angeles, ca 90036
(323) 938-8800
9 responses to “vegans, help! save mani’s bakery!” 
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Mani’s is one of my favorite places. I love the NY/European cafe type of atmosphere. Their bakery selection is outstanding. I used to live around the corner and my roommate introduced me to it. I even took my mom there when she was visiting.
I went to M Cafe de Chaya for breakfast this morning, because I live close by and had never been, but I made my boyfriend promise that next time we would hit up Mani’s. Hopefully they’re doing well this month anyway, after the publicity, so we’ll go next month. 😉
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That Club looks amazing! I really don’t know why I don’t go there more often. I know if that fake Santa Monica Mani’s served that club I’d be there. With the closing of Jax/Doomies/Vegan Spot we have to remember RFD expanded the size of its SM location, MCAFE has grown to 3 locations + great distribution of their MREs + Native Foods expanded the size of its Westwood location + Veggie Grill is growing in #s + A new Vegan Thai restaurant opens every 6 months. We’re clearly winning and at the same time Vegan restaurateurs are facing competition from mainstream places that offer more and more vegan options.
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This is really shocking news. Mani’s is always so crowded that I didn’t think it would feel the effects of the economic crisis as badly as newbies like Vegan Spot and Doomie’s. I heard your battle cry and will do my best.
As an aside, I think FYH’s sandwiches trump any in town, but that’s just me. Oh, and I absolutely love RFD’s club.
I haven’t had sandwiches at Mani’s…yet…as I’ve been too busy sampling their other vegan fare!
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naturally I freaked when I found out that Man’s might close. I’vee written a couple of times and am writing again, it’s too good to close! I know some of the new servers can be a bit indifferent but the food and the baked goods are amazing and when i took friends there visiting from Chicago, a big food town, (two hearty eating guys) they LOVED it! and not one of us is vegan. Altho I haven’t been working lately and funds are tight, I managed to go there 6 times in the last 3 weeks-slightly down form my old 3 times a week- but will do what I can. We all can!
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I’ve gotta head over there ASAP… No vegan pastry shall go untasted!
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I wanted to try Mani’s baked good! I’m under the impression they might taste “healthy” though! hah.
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Oh my gosh this all looks SO amazing. I could go for that cookie…
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James July 30th, 2009 at 18:18
What’s that spongy bread called? Looks like it has a lot of potential in some of my recipes.
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Lostsaylor November 12th, 2009 at 15:36
Just an FYI… I went to Mani’s a year or so ago and ordered a salad with quinoa and stuff and they brought it to me with *chicken* across half of the salad. Mind you, the menu didn’t list it as having chicken. I told them I would like it remade without the meat…so the bitch server went to the kitchen, took the pieces of chicken off and brought it back. (I could see the remnants). Not cool, especially coming from a place that’s supposed to be pro-veg…
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[…] putting out a plea for help in the form of business and feedback. The story was picked up by Quarrygirl who wrote a great review and helped get the word out that Mani’s is in urgent need of […]
Meredith February 16th, 2009 at 23:07