• Tony’s Darts Away: Vegan-friendly Pub Revisited

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    April 21st, 2010mr meanerLA restaurants, tony's darts away

    My first visit to Tony’s Darts Away pub in Burbank was a somewhat rushed affair. After reading a few things about the pub I was excited to go, but only had a few minutes to spend in the bar after driving there from the west side. So, I was delighted to be able to carve out several hours of my otherwise uneventful Saturday so I could spend much longer in Tony’s in order to drink some more beer, order more food from the menu and generally absorb more of the the vibe and scene.

    Although my initial impressions first time were very positive, would Tony’s hold up for a longer visit? Would the beers all be top notch? Would the other food items be as tasty as the one dog I’d eaten? Would the staff be as friendly? Would the other patrons be as eclectic and nice as last time?

    Well, on a bright sunny day this weekend, we settled into a bar seat and began to order my way through the beer and food menu, while chatting with the staff and experimenting a little with what I ate and drank.

    First off, I can tell you that everything was as good as I experienced on my first trip. The beers were cold and fresh, the food exquisite and the service and clientele as pleasant as ever.

    We kicked off the day with an order of Frizzled Onions, an incredible concoction of wafer thin sliced onions, delicately battered and fried up just right. They can optionally be served with a topping, but we ordered ours straight up. This dish unquestionably elevates the art of fried onions and was bite after bite of succulent and greasy loveliness.

    frizzled onions with your choice of small topping $4

    The onions are almost dry to the touch, yet explode with flavor when you bite into them. According to the affable Tony (yes, THE Tony Yanow, proprietor) the recipe is from a monastery on an island in the Mediterranean that would prepare the onions to serve along with beer to its visitors. The story sounds somewhat apocryphal, but I trust the man! Fried food goes particularly well with stronger beers, so pairing up an order of Frizzled Onions with a hearty IPA is something I can 110% recommend.

    Next up we went crazy and chowed down THREE vegan dogs (quite a feat, I can tell you as these things are not exactly small). I decided to revisit the exact same dog I’d had the first night, as it was so good. As a reminder, that was an Italian sausage with sauerkraut, onions, vegan aoili and vegenaise. It was every bit as good as I remembered.

    Vegan Italian-style sausage with grilled onions, saurkraut, vegenaise and vegan aoili. $6

    Next, we went headlong in to the Beer Brat with onions and Daiya cheese for the large toppings, and crushed garlic with vegan aoili for the condiments. Having a less complex taste than the hearty Italian sausage this was very easy to wolf down and provided a satisfying, although somewhat lighter option than my fully loaded Italian bad-boy.

    Vegan beer brat sausage with grilled onions, daiya cheese, crushed garlic, vegan aoili. $6

    To round off our dogfest, we ordered up the Kielbasa Dog, with Chili Sin Carne (Tony’s secret recipe of vegan chili) and topped with Diaya, This thing was absolutely amazing. Perfectly sloppy, subtly spicy and extremely tasty. This will certainly be a regular for me, and next time I’m going to try a bowl of the vegan chili on its own.

    Vegan chili cheese dog with kielbasa sausage, chili sin carne, daiya cheese, and sweet onion jam. $8

    As we’d decided to eat light (only three dogs and fried onions between two people), we thought we ought to get a side or two in case we were to go hungry. So, we ordered the House Made Russet Potato Chips, and opted for the Cajun Spice topping (you can also get it with Maldon’s Salt, which I suppose is some kind of fancy salt sprinkles). If you’re used to eating Lay’s, freshly cooked potato chips are a very welcome alternative, and these certainly don’t disappoint. Indeed, long after we were full we keep munching on these – even sneaking them out to the car and finishing them up on the drive home.

    Housemade Russet Potato Chips with Maldon’s salt or Cajun Spice $4

    Talking of being full, as if this feast of epic proportions was not enough, we grabbed another side: an order of Pyntch’s Mad Sweet Potato Fries with maple-chipoltle glaze and vegan almond mix. I’m kinda glad that we left this until the end as this thing was more like a dessert than a side dish, it being so sweet and sticky. I’m not a fan of sweet things, but I have it on great authority that if you are then these will not disappoint.

    Pyntch’s Mad Sweet-Potato Fries with maple-chipotle glaze and vegan almonds $6

    Again, I had a great time at Tony’s. Endless vegan comfort food, nicely prepared with a huge beer selection and super-friendly staff and clientele reinforce Tony’s as a go-to destination for me and my crew whenever I’m in Burbank. Being in Burbank is something I will be doing a lot more these days thanks to Tony.

    The only bummer is that Tony’s has a “no bottles” policy, so they don’t have any hot sauce, which we (and others) have asked for. Suggestion to Tony: you could get some plastic bottles and make some hot sauce, thusly avoiding any waste. It’d be a nice addition to the dogs and also goes down well with beer!

    After two amazing visits, I can categorically state without a doubt that Tony’s Darts Away is by far the best bar in LA for vegans—and our favorite bar, period. If you like beer and delicious animal-free food, you will LOVE Tony’s!

    Tony’s Darts Away
    1710 W. Magnolia Blvd.
    Burbank, CA 91506
    818-253-1710

    mon-sat: 11am-2am
    sun: 11am-1am

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43 responses to “Tony’s Darts Away: Vegan-friendly Pub Revisited” RSS icon

  • love tony’s, was there last night. yeah, what is it with no hot sauce?

  • So everything sounds awesome, but I have one question… is there a dart board?

  • Da Data Monkey April 21st, 2010 at 07:38

    Shame on you mr meaner! English? Bah! Maldon salt 😉

    http://www.maldonsalt.co.uk/

  • Ah, thanks Da Data Monkey… The way it was written on the menu “Maldon’s Salt” threw me. Everybody knows about Maldon Salt. As they say here in America: “DUH”!! Thanks for showing me the light and some some cultural reorientation.

  • Beth: There IS a dart board. Down the back by the pool table. Never seen anybody play it though, so maybe it’s just a gimmick.

  • Da Data Monkey April 21st, 2010 at 08:09

    LOL. 🙂

  • Just as a point of caution, they offer a vegan “apple Sage” sausage on the menu, which I ordered. They claim that it is Tofurky brand; however, to my knowledge, Tofurky does not make an apple sage sausage. Field Roast DOES make one; however, I buy that sausage often and what they served me was NOT Field Roast. I sent it back and requested the Italian Sausage, which was in fact Tofurky (they don’t offer a non-vegan Italian sausage, so I felt safe). I have a feeling that the first sausage that was served to me was real chicken (they also offer a chicken apple sage sausage). This was compounded by the fact that it also had real mayonnaise…not vegannaise, as well as real cheddar cheese (which was crumbled, not shredded. I made my point by comparing it to the shredded daiya cheese on the side of chili that I ordered). It took 3 times to get the order correct, but they were very accommodating and took the matter seriously. I imagine that they’re still getting used to serving omni/vegan menus simultaneously, but I was told that Tony is vegan and this is a big issue for them. My main concern was the apple sage sausage. I could be wrong, but when I cut into it, the texture was unlike any vegan sausage I’ve seen.

    Otherwise, it’s a pretty cool place. Again, they were very accommodating and very concerned with earning my repeat business. I do plan to return, but I’ll stick to the Italian Sausage, as it seems to me that the apple sage sausage can easily be mixed up with the chicken version.

  • I had the apple sage – it tasted like the one in my refrigerator. Didn’t do the cheese. Everything was great.

    Tony is a vegan and the kitchen may need a little more training to get everything smooth.

    See you on Friday for lunch Tony!

    James

  • That’s it… I’m going this weekend. Darts or pool anyone?

  • Note: Tony is NOT a vegan. He’s a pescetarian, and a relaxed one at that. As with any omnivorous restaurant, it’s very safe to double and triple check.

  • Thanks Quarry Girl for the warm support and the many others here who like the bar. A new place takes a lot and knowing it works for people makes it all worthwhile. Apple Sage versus Apple Sage is an honest worry and we take our commitment to vegan eaters seriously. We carry two sausages from Field Roast: Italian and Smoked Apple Sage and two from Tofurkey: Kielbasa and Beer Brat. Vegan and Not Vegan foods are kept behind different doors of our fridge and confusion or cross-ups would be a gigantic error I pray we never make. Note to veggie/vegan eaters: Yes we do have two apple sages but we also have two Italians: a vegan Italian from Field Roast and a pork Italian made for us by the great Italian deli up the street called Monte Carlo. Warm regards to all eaters and drinkers!

  • Tony’s is amazing, I have been there 3 times already and have never had something I didn’t like! Thanks so much Quarrygirl for telling me about this place. I live closeby, and it’s my favorite bar.

  • I’ve also been to Tony’s 3 times already. Twice, somebody has overheard me ordering the vegan dog (I’m kinda loud!), asked if I was vegan and also found the place from quarrygirl.com.

    So awesome that a place like this can exist where we vegans can go with our omni friends and just chill…..

    THANKS, QG and Tony!

  • I must go here, I don’t drink but I could just order lunch I think? Those vegan hot dogs and vegan fries stuff looks awesome.

  • That is some poor grammar in that last post. I meant those items “look awesome.” Is what I meant. 🙂

  • HEY, TONY! Great idea to have a vegan-friendly bar. If you’ve been to Pure Luck you know that they only serve beers that are “vegan” in that they don’t use fish bladders, milk etc. in the production process.

    Would you be able to ask your suppliers which beers are vegan and also put that on the menu? I was there yesterday and saw at least one beer that wasn’t entirely vegan.

    That would be a great help as barnivore.com is not that strong on listing west coast brews.

    thanks!! love your place, love this blog for helping me find it….

  • Gauri, of course you can eat there without ordering alcohol. They have fountain sodas and lots of options. My sister doesn’t drink and has been there several times just for the food!

  • ^ Oh cool, good to know, I will stop by soon one of these days.

  • i love how cali-centric this place is. they rep west coast beer in a major way. prices are good too.

  • Hey Tony,

    When I went to eat at your place, I noticed Daiya wasn’t on the menu. Also, their are more fried things on the online menu than on the paper menu. I didn’t see cauliflower or olives on the menu when I dined in.

    Other than that, I love this place and will be a regular!

  • Wife and I were there last Saturday and we are going to hit it up this Sunday….or Friday night.

  • It’s seeing this that reminds me how ridiculously overpriced Chili Addiction is. The exact same dog dressed up this much at CA would be something like $15, and I’m not even exaggerating.

  • Daiya Cheese is in fact available. It was accidentally left off one printing of the menu, but it has always been there and we will keep it on.

    There are a few menu items that are on the website, that have yet to appear but we are working on them and they should be on board shortly.

    We just opened 10 days ago, so please bear with us as we work out the kinks.

    Cheers,
    Tony

  • I love social media. Where else could the owner of a new business get direct feedback from his customers? He’s listening, he’s engaging. I like what I’m hearing so I’m going to go this weekend!

  • beth and mr meaner – i played darts there last night. it appears to be regulation hieght and has a regulation line on the floor.

    i have been to tony’s a few times since you posted last week. i usually go for a late night snack – kitchen is open until after midnight! i work until 10pm and this place is on my way home. the board is usually being used when i’m there.

    the bartender will lend anyone (with an id or set of keys to leave as collateral) a very nice set of steel tip darts.

    the board is tucked away in the back corner and is kind of cramped by the jukebox and the pool table but it’s there and gets used.

    the bar was called tony’s darts away for a long time, and because the new owner is also a ‘tony’ he kept the name. i talked to him last night and he said he’s a terrible dart player but that he gets a lot of dart players in. he did warn, that the set up is not ideal for tournament or serious dart players but good for those that just want to hack around and have a fun friendly game. “with a name that includes ‘darts away’, we better have at least one good board”.

    thank you mr. meaner for turning me onto this place. it has become my after work respite. the food is consistently good and very inexpensive and every time i go a try another great beer.

    keep up the good work.

  • Damn, this place sounds awesome.

  • wah wah wah… TONY: WHERE IS THE FUCKING HOT SAUCE?!

  • Okay, okay – got it loud and clear. We’re working on getting or making some hot sauce. I will discuss it with the cook today and update Quarry Girl when we figure it out.

  • The people have spoken…hot sauce you will have.

  • hey…that little triangle face looks nothing like me….

  • For those that don’t know, Pyntch is our cook. He’s working on a hot sauce. Stay tuned….

  • This is great news about the hot sauce! I can’t wait to try it.

  • I swung by there on Friday night but it was too crowded and we decided not to wait. I think we’ll be trying again Monday night. I LOVE the idea of a vegan-friendly bar. How tired am I of going to bars and watching my friends gorge themselves while I pick at a limp green salad?? Thanks to Tony’s for recognizing how tasty vegan food can be!

    See you soon!!

  • Great place – good vegan sausages.

    I met the GM, but now I’ve forgotten her name. Nice gal.

    It’ll be great if they open early for the World Cup!

  • I live in Santa Monica but some omni friends and I are headed to Fry’s Burbank this weekend and everyone is excited to check out this place. Thanks QG & Tony!

  • We will be open early for World Cup!!! Call us at 818-253-1710 and ask for Andy. he’s hosting the world cup mornings, but not sure if it’ll be every day. if we attract a good crowd, we’ll figure out a way.

    PS vegan breakfast burritos (tofu scrambler) and granola with Almond milk will likely be the breakfast choices. Slim pickens, but it’s an impromptu thing.

  • Went last Friday at about 5pm and was glad we got there when we did! We left at 7:20ish and the place was packed! All in all a fantastic experience. The beers were delicious, the home made chips and frizzled onions were SO tasty and the vegan sausages were out of this world (though they were already out of two of the 4 flavors).

    The buns were too big and a bit dry, but other than that a perfect experience. We even played a game of Connect Four while we waited for our second round of vegan sausages.

    We can’t wait to go back!

  • Went back again Saturday… the vegan Chili is SOOOOOOO damn good! And the $8 beer flights were a great way to sample all they have to offer. Yay for Tony’s!

  • I went to Tony’s tonight and the beer selection was great! The dogs were good, but the daiya cheese and the bun weren’t heated. For my taste, toasting the bun and melting the cheese would have made it much better. But the vegan aioli was great and I’ll be back.

  • I experienced Tony’s (and Tony) last night. I don’t go to bars much but this will be a regular spot.

    World Cup + vegan sausage? I could probably die happy.

  • My husband and I stopped by Tony’s tonight based on your recommendation. Great place! We both enjoyed a beer brat, some of their stellar housemade chips, and a couple of beers. It’s so nice to have a place to grab a drink and chill with some tasty comfort food. Love it! (It would be great if they had bowls of olives for sale as well.) Thanks for the lead!

  • I suggest getting there as early as possible, the place fills quickly and nobody seems to leave. People just sit at their tables playing Connect-4, chess, backgammon or even reading books long after finishing their beers and food. I was there for 45 minutes and needed a table because i had a wheelchair with me but it’s impossible.

    People are just there, they don’t leave. New customers keep coming in and stand behind the full seats at the bar drinking their beers hoping somebody that is currently sitting down has something to do tonight. But, nobody has anything to do except hang out.

    The number of people filling up Tony’s on a Wednesday night just shows how we need more vegan friendly beer bars. I will try to visit again maybe during the lunch hours but the disappointment of driving out there from the SCV just to stand around is a real bummer. I finally had to leave without being able to order anything. The line to order at the bar was at the pool table, my shoulders constantly rubbing with the shoulders of strangers because it was so packed. The door kept swinging open because more people kept coming in. it’s insane, this place is so cool that i am not cool enough to be there.

  • Went tonight with my meat-eating beer buddy. We both LOVED this place!!! I have a special love affair with IPAs and tried 8 since they offer flights. Loved them all. We both got 2 dogs & my buddy even tried my vegan dog and loved it. We finished up with the maple sweet potato fries. It’s like crack. We got there around 7pm on a Friday night. It was already difficult to find a table. (We managed) When we left around 9, it was standing room only. So I’d say on a busy night, get there early or be prepared to stand. Glad to see a vegan venue packed full of people.


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