hey vegans, you still have until february 20th to get a 25% discount at hugo’s tacos between 5-10pm when you mention “quarrygirl”! have you taken advantage of it yet? i seriously suggest you get over there and try all the insane vegan food this taco stand has to offer.

vegan green tamales: sweet corn and spinach tamales. $2.39 with QG discount!

i’ve recently fallen in love with the tacos and green tamales…

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you probably already know by now that hugo’s tacos is offering a 25% discount on all vegan items until sunday between 5pm-10pm when you mention “quarrygirl.” if you haven’t tried the amazing vegan torta ahogada yet, this is your chance.

it doesn’t look that intimidating wrapped up all neatly in yellow paper, but let me assure you, this thing is one beast of a sandwich…

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if you live in los angeles, you’ve probably heard of the counter, a super popular burger joint with several locations and loads of quality beer on tap.

lucky for us herbivore folks, the veggie burger patty at the counter is vegan…and even though the buns are not, you can opt for your burger in a bowl atop a salad. normally, we wouldn’t be thrilled by this option, but the killer draught list inspired us to check the counter out.

we hit up the brand new wilshire location over the weekend and were pleasantly surprised…

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WTF?! this can’t be good! cru, one of our favorite vegetarian restaurants, has shut down temporarily and is changing chefs?! the news comes to us via eater.com:

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pizza fusion hollywood is continuously looking out for their vegan customers. from carrying 2 types of dairy-free cheese (daiya and follow your heart), to offering cruelty-free specials on both superbowl and valentine’s day…they always seem to have us covered.

in addition to their incredible pizza menu, i recently found out they have VEGAN BEER FLOATS and a new selection of vegan-friendly wraps. of course, i had to get over there and try this stuff out.

vegan wrap: romaine, arugula, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, soy cheese, tahini & fresh lemon. served with side arugula salad. $8.99

first up, the “vegan wrap,” which (naturally) comes vegan by default…

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we’ve got exciting news, people! every evening this week, hugo’s tacos is offering a 25% discount on all vegan items for quarrygirl readers!

here are the details of the deal…

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got plans today?! why don’t you head over to locali and support one of our favorite vegans ever, clara polito. the 13 year old baker behind the delicious clara’s cakes is holding a bake sale to raise money for a school trip to new york.

let's send this girl to nyc!

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argh, i forgot that february is a short month…which means it’s almost half way over! this is just a quick post to alert you to some of the excellent monthly specials that hugo’s is offering, because they won’t be around much longer!

i am still working my way through these babies, but here’s what i’ve got so far…

Le Crostini: Crispy garlic herb toast (coated with a nut and seed spread) with red pepper hummus, blanched broccolini, artichoke hearts, Kalamata olives, sundried tomatoes. Garnished with roasted garlic jalapeno sauce, a marinara drizzle and chopped basil. $7.50

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heads up, readers! i just wanted to throw this out there in case you are already starting to make your dinner plans for next week: be sure to pencil in a couple evenings at hugo’s tacos.

throughout next week, the super vegan-friendly taco stand is gonna be offering a pretty epic vegan dinner deal that i’ll post about on monday morning. it’s gonna be every day from 2/14 – 2/20 after 5pm, at both locations (atwater village and studio city). details to come, but i know you’re gonna love it. i mean, have you been to hugo’s tacos yet?! they have insane vegan burritos, taquitos, nachos, tortas, tostadas, soft serve—i could go on and on—and it’s all part of the deal!

mexican food on valentine’s day? you know it makes sense. i may just need to have dinner at hugo’s tacos every day next week.

tuesday evening was pretty awesome because it marked the launch of highland park’s din din a go go, a weekly vegan-friendly truck feast in the parking lot of figueroa produce. i arrived at right at the beginning (5:30pm), and there were already tons of hungry peeps milling around, waiting to get their grub on.

when i saw the multiple trucks lined up neatly behind figueroa produce to the right, i knew it was gonna be an epic night. all the trucks had vegan items on their menus (many added specifically for this event), so i had a pretty tough time deciding what to order. i chose my meals (yes, i ate multiple meals) depending on who was ready to serve and had the shortest line. first up, lomo arigato.

tofu lomo saltado: tofu sauteed with onions, tomatoes, french fries, soy sauce, and red wine. served over peruvian rice.

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over the past couple years, we’ve seen west hollywood grow into quite the little vegan mecca. santa monica boulevard, west of la cienega specifically, has been just blowing up with options lately—from zpizza, to tender greens, to millions of milkshakes, to o!burger—everyone is serving up cruelty-free cuisine. the latest addition to the list is fresh east, a quick casual asian eatery that specializes in healthy fare with loads of meatless options.

after scoping out the menu online, we decided to check out fresh east for a fast weeknight dinner. when we walked in, i was immediately smitten by the bright, clean interior—colorful yet simple with lots of comfy seating.

we approached the counter to place our order, and i noticed that fresh east’s menu was even more vegan-friendly than i thought. there’s a little V symbol next to each item that can be veganized, including several dishes where tofu can be subbed for the meat. unfortunately the vegan symbol isn’t shown on the online menu right now, but trust me, there are loads of options.

after much deliberation, we decided to share a noodle and a curry dish, both of which were exceptional…

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i can’t believe it, WE FINALLY TOOK A SPORK FOODS CLASS! and it was every bit as awesome as we hoped! read on.

personal seitan pot pie with a biscuit topping and caramelized onion mashed potatoes with crispy sage

spork foods has been on our radar for ages. the popular cruelty-free cooking class, run by adorable local sisters jenny and heather goldberg, has been written up by everyone from vegnews, to the los angeles times, to LAist.com, and various vegan blogs alike. i’ve tried their marvelous food in the past, first at the opening of their weho instructional space, and next at an LA vegan drinks shindig. i’ve also had the pleasure of virtually taking their classes and making their dishes in the comfort of my own home via the newly-launched sporkonline.com, a website that gives you access to high quality instructional videos as well as recipe breakdowns.

even though i’m usually pretty intimidated by the thought of cooking, the sporkonline classes were so fun, i knew i had to take one in real life. the sporkies do a different themed class every weekend with several time slots available. they are $65 each, and include about 2 hours of instruction plus a huge home cooked meal at the end! they’ve covered everything from italian food to curry, to holiday feasts and healthy meals. plus, every month they do an entirely gluten-free class for people with gluten sensitivities. we tracked the cooking class calendar until we found one that sounded perfect for us: “throwback to the 50’s – TV dinner edition” with recipes such as succulent succotash, personal seitan pot pies with a biscuit topping, crispy sage and caramelized onion mashed potatoes, and rich chocolate peanut butter brownies. sounds too good to pass up, right?! well it was…

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i LOVE mashed potatoes. love, love, love. so naturally i was super excited when i heard about bangers and smashed, a company that specializes in gourmet mashed potatoes and always has at least one vegan flavor on hand. they don’t have a storefront at the moment, but they are currently taking orders for pickup in west hollywood, and also cater special events.

the menu at bangers and smashed is changing constantly, and their current vegan offering is moroccan spiced squash: a medley of sweet potato, winter squash, root vegetables, and a touch of african spice. i tried a pint of it and was absolutely blown away by the silky deliciousness…

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The Leaning Tower of Pisa, Puccini, Truffles and Chianti: Buildings, music, food and wine respectively are all synonymous with Tuscany in Italy, probably one of the most beautiful places on earth. Boasting a similar climate to Southern California with a natural beauty and centuries-old architecture and culture, Tuscany is a place that you know you’ll always go back to after you’ve been once.

I am, therefore, glad that I don’t have to travel for 18 hours to experience a little bit of Tuscany thanks to Rosti Tuscan Kitchen, a traditional Tuscan-style casual dining restaurant with two locations in Santa Monica and Encino. The owners have also taken great steps to accommodate their vegan, gluten-free and vegetarian guests, and we each have our own menu in addition to the main omnivorous menu.

Hungry for some vegan Tuscan cooking, we dropped by the Santa Monica location and were greeted by the owner, the super-nice restaurateur Kevin Goldfein who was kind enough to tell us about his restaurant concept and advise us on ordering a bunch of items from the vegan menu.

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we have been waiting for awhile, and the day is finally here! kindkreme, LA’s dairy-free ice cream parlor, is opening a second location in pasadena this weekend!

i got a chance to scope out the new digs, and this place is even bigger and better than the original. here are some pix and things you can look forward to at the grand opening on february 5th…

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