what’s better than a happy hour with $3 beers and $5 martinis? a happy hour with all that, plus a vegan menu, that’s what! desert rose, the upscale bar/restaurant in los feliz has introduced a separate animal-free menu with everything from bar snacks to pasta & sandwiches…and even cruzer pizzas with daiya cheese. they’ve even veganized the drinks at the bar, adding organic martinis and cocktails sweetened with agave.

finally a bar in los angeles with a full separate vegan menu, i can’t tell you how excited i am. check out the new menu and all the food they are offering here. i am making it my mission to try it all, and so far i’m doing pretty well. these are the things i’ve tasted so far…

Garlic “Cheese” Fries $7

the vegan garlic cheese fries at desert rose are absolutely phenomenal. perfectly cooked, they come topped with melted daiya cheese. these fries make for a great bar snack, and taste just like the cheesy garlic fries i remember eating as a vegetarian.

i can also highly recommend the portabello and cheese panini, epic sandwich success!

Portobello Mushroom & “Cheese” Panini with choice of French Fries, Sweet Potato Fries, Mixed Green Salad or Fresh Fruit $14

it also comes with melted daiya cheese and a thick fresh slab of tasty marinated portobello. the bread they serve it on is exceptional, crispy on the outside, soft in the middle, and packed with flavor. i had to double check that it was vegan, it tasted so damn good.

they also whip up a mean house made hummus that comes topped with a kalamata olive and drizzled with olive oil. i know hummus sounds pretty standard, but desert rose does it right. thick, just the right amount of oil, and a really rich flavor.

Housemade Hummus with Pita Bread $5

the sweet potato fries are also top notch and the serving portion is pretty huge. for you vegans who love sweet potato fries, i can tell you that these are some of the best in town.

Sweet Potato Fries $5

they have salads as well, including a garbanzo and edamame salad topped with crispy tofu. i only had a few bites of this thing because it was full of bell peppers (which i hate), and other than the red demons it was pretty damn good…especially the fried tofu on top.

Garbanzo & Edamame Salad with Mixed Greens, Tomatoes & Crispy Tofu with a Sherry-Walnut Vinaigrette $6/$9

while the portobello panini is definitely my favorite at desert rose, the falafel sandwich is awesome as well. huge, soft green falafel balls all rolled up in soft pita with with fresh vegetables and creamylicious tahini.

Falafel Sandwich with choice of French Fries, Sweet Potato Fries, Mixed Green Salad or Fresh Fruit $7

when i was at desert rose, the chef offered to make me a sandwich that wasn’t on the menu, a mediterranean vegetable wrap with melted daiya cheese. oh my, it was delicious. i think you could add melted daiya to anything and it would drastically improve it, because it took this vegetable wrap from damn good to fucking incredible. even though it’s not on the menu, i’m sure if you ask for it, they would be happy to whip this up for you.

Vegetable Wrap with Daiya Cheese

and in addition to all the mouth-watering food pictured above, desert rose also offers 7 different vegan pizzas topped with daiya cheese from cruzer next door. now you can enjoy a delicious cruzer pie with a bottle of wine in a scenic setting.

if you haven’t been to desert rose already, you should get over there stat. it’s a great bar in its own right, and now they have added a bunch of vegan options that are available all day (not just during happy hour). there’s really nowhere like it in los angeles. this is definitely my new spot for drinking and eating good food.

desert rose
1700 Hillhurst Ave
Los Feliz, CA 90027
(323) 666-1166

oh, and one more thing: desert rose’s vegan menu is all thanks to farm sanctuary’s vegan outreach program. i could not be more grateful.

if you like healthy food, relaxing lunches, and damn good tap beer, you need to hit up tender greens. the casual eatery has two locations, one in culver city and a brand new one in west hollywood. i checked out the weho outlet with friend and fellow blogger jennshaggy, and was blown away by the taste and quality of the food, the friendliness of the service, and the overall atmosphere of the place.

happy vegan: tabbouleh, hummus, pasta pearls, farro wheat, young kale, tender greens. $10.5

after browsing the menu online, i wasn’t expecting much from tender greens. they seemed to have mostly salads and nothing really jumped out at me. however, the minute i walked into the restaurant and was greeted by the smell of freshly baked bread and could see all the fresh vegetables being chopped and prepared behind the counter, i knew i was in for a treat. i could tell this was no ordinary salad place, and that our food was likely to be exceptional.

i ordered the happy vegan pictured above, which was a mix of several small dishes accompanied by soft leafy greens and crunchy bread. of the several mounds of delicious food on my plate, my favorite was the green hummus (pictured below), which tasted like a mix of hummus and edamame…absolutely amazing. of course i washed everything down with a pint of delicious draught beer. i don’t even remember what kind of beer i ordered, but it was something fancy. you don’t see crap like bud light and mgd on tap at tender greens, but rather selections like chimay and fine ciders.

while tender greens only has two salads that come vegan by default, most of their other creations can be veganized as well. jennshaggy ordered the chinese chicken salad, but with vegetables instead of chicken and tomato rather than sesame dressing. the roasted vegetables included squash, baby carrots, cauliflower, and asparagus….all of which were cooked to perfection. i tried a bite and jenn’s salad was even better than my happy vegan plate! i am definitely gonna take a risk and order off the menu next time like she did.

chinese chicken salad with no chicken, add roasted vegetables. spicy greens, golden pea sprouts, carrot, crispy wonton, cilantro, green onions, roasted peanuts, tomato dressing. $10.5

in addition to great food and fancy tap beer, tender greens has a super comfy and laid back atmosphere. you order at the counter and pay for your food then take your tray to one of the many sun-soaked booths or tables underneath the large windows. on a weekend i could spend hours at this place, sinking beers and eating hummus.

so overall, tender greens gets an a+. the food is fresh and tastes good, and everything is unbelievably light and healthy. i think i would do myself a favor by eating here more often.

tender greens
8759 Santa Monica Blvd
West Hollywood, CA 90069
(310) 358-1919

it was a super eco-friendly day in los angeles as hippies, vegans and all around earth lovers gathered to partake in worldfest, “a solar-powered celebration of music, the environment, animals and humanity.” basically a big grassy field in the valley was fenced off and people were charged 7 bucks (+ $5 for parking) to hear to jam bands, listen to animal activist speakers, and have the opportunity to purchase a wide variety of all vegan food and alcohol. i went for a couple hours today and didn’t spend much time with the speakers or the music…i did get my fill of food though, and that’s what i’m here to tell ya about.

wordfest vegan corn dog. $3.50

between the two of us, my husband and i murdered a lot of vegan goodies. one of my favorites was a corn dog offered up by a stand selling field roast sausages, tofurky links, curly fries and vegan burgers. the corn dog was a standard veggie dog turned spectacular with corn batter and a deep fryer. this was nothing like your out-of-the-freezer family meal corn dogs…this thing was just like the old school hot dog on a stick meals i used to get at my local mall. the batter formed a crispy and almost burnt layer on the outside which surrounded fluffy moist corn bread and finally a plump and juicy soy dog. this totally brought back childhood memories.

we also tried the vegan chicken curry from the bodhi tree stand, which was excellent. the bodhi tree is a vegetarian restaurant located in huntington beach, and after eating their curry, i know i will be making a trip there very soon. the sauce was sweet with a perfectly subtle spiciness, and the soy meat was thick and juicy. all the vegetables were fresh and well-prepared as well, and they had so many other appetizing dishes i didn’t even get to try.

bodhi tree vegan curry chicken. $7

the chicken sandwich from follow your heart was another high point of the festival—at only 5 bucks it was a total steal, considering it was huge and came with a side of greens and potato salad. we interrogated the booth about the ingredients in the bun (normal follow your heart buns contain honey), and they ensured us that not only were these special vegan buns ordered just for worldfest, but that their restaurant buns may soon no longer contain honey either! (we will try to keep you posted on that.) aside from the bun, the sandwich was awesome and extremely well priced. the bbq sauce was mild and tangy, not overwhelmingly sweet, and the slices of soy meat were thick and hearty. the potato salad was on point as well: soft and creamy yet not too full of vegenaise. total perfection.

follow your heart vegan chicken bbq sandwich with potato salad. $5

for dessert, we rounded off the feasting with some maggie mudd ice cream all the way from san francisco. they offered a whopping bowl filled up with ice cream, chocolate sauce, nuts, sprinkles and whipped cream (ALL VEGAN) for just $7. it came with the choice of three flavors, but i stuck to two: memphis mudd pie (coffee flavor with chocolate cookies, fudge swirl and whiskey) and tarmack (chocolate peanut butter flavor with chocolate cookies and peanut butter swirl). the ice cream itself was extremely decadent, and it came with the most amazing toppings….this has to be the best old-fashioned dessert i’ve had since i was a child. no vegan ice cream has anything on maggie mudd; this stuff was so good, i’m considering a move to SF.

big bowl: tarmack and memphis mudd ice cream topped with whipped cream, nuts, chocolate sauce and sprinkles

to top it all off, worldfest had a bad ass beer garden serving up $5 pints of lagunitas ipa and $10 bottles of double ipa. that made coachella’s beer garden look like a total shithole. i’m telling you, this beer was off the chain. not only was it well priced, this stuff was hoppy and flavorful as hell…i’d be stoked to get brew this good in a bar, so imagine how thrilled i was to drink it at a sweaty festival in the valley.

lagunitas double ipa

although i did try a lot of great stuff at worldfest this year, i can only eat so much…so naturally i missed out on tons of vendors. i wanna give some shout outs to places that looked delicious, yet i was way too stuffed to try. to name a few: luscious organic desserts, c’est la v bakeshop, friedel caribbean cuisine and sunpower cafe. the frankenstand was also supposed to make an appearance, but to everyone’s dismay, ended up cancelling. basically what i am trying to say is, even with all the ridiculously tasty vegan food i got to eat today, it was still just the tip of the iceberg. worldfest is apparently THE PLACE to get your vegan eats on—i’m talking several entirely animal-free stands with stuff ranging from salads, to burgers, to fried foods, to desserts including ice cream, cookies, funnel cakes, and cobbler.

word to the wise: save up for worldfest 2010. the amazing food will make all the bitchy fees and unhealthy calories worth it. i’ve never seen so much food i can eat in one place, it made me feel like an omnivore…in a good way!

yo yo yo los angeles vegans, if you are in town tonight, be sure to hit up the frankenstand! the all-vegan hot dog cart is one of our favorite places to eat, and they will be out in full force this evening from 5:30pm for vegan drinks at the little bar!

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I discovered my love of vegetables as a toddler ‘helping’ my grandfather plant and dig potatoes, carrots and green beans in his small suburban garden. Although he passed away when I was only two years of age, his passion for growing things, and glee when he held vegetables he was responsible for producing was an early part of my subsequent vegetarian commitment, and reinforced my transition into the Vegan world some years later.

For me, it’s therefore very fitting that the one of the UK’s few entirely vegetarian pubs should be called The Gardener’s Arms, and my love of the great institution that is the English Pub is no secret! So, imagine how pleased I was on a recent trip home to be able to visit The Gardener’s Arms, and I enjoyed absolutely wonderful vegan pub food like never before.

the gardener's arms in oxford

Now, vegan dining in the UK is fairly ubiquitous — there are lots and lots of great vegan, or vegan-friendly restaurants to frequent (usually before or after a visit to a pub). With The Gardener’s Arms, though, you get the entire experience all rolled into one. On a basic level, The Gardener’s Arms is a traditional English Pub, complete with fireplaces, friendly bar staff, comfortable couches and even a house dog that had its very own chair to sit on!

However, the menu is entirely vegetarian and most dishes either come vegan or can be prepared vegan upon request. The menu is an interesting intersection of traditional pub fayre – burgers, sausages, chips (fries for you Americans), pies and vegetables – and exotic stuff like Thai curry, Tapas and Flatbread Calzone.

Well, after a long day of driving in the rain we were completely famished so were ready to pig out and drink up. The restaurant part of the pub is officially called “The Garden”, but it’s fully integrated into the pub so you can order everything from the bar.

In the usual style, we started off with a couple of choice ales, before ordering a combination of traditional pub food and a couple of dishes from the more eclectic side of the menu. I almost had to pinch myself when I inquired if the food contained dairy or egg – I got a kinda snooty “of course, your food is entirely vegan”, which to me is always a good sign. Indignation over an accusation of dairy/egg content is one great litmus test of how serious a place about catering for vegans.

Anyway, on to the food. We started with Garlic Flatbread and a Side Salad with Pita. Well, OMG! The Garlic Flatbread was crispy on the outside (clearly griddled with some form of vegan butter), but creamy on the inside, just like it is supposed to be. We ate it so quickly, but I can still remember the taste and texture: Perfectly garlicky, crunchy and gooey. I think it’s the best garlic bread I’ve eaten since becoming vegan.

garlic flatbread. £2.90

The Side Salad deserves little mention, because it was exactly what you’d expect: crunchy, fresh salad with olives and pita bread.

side salad (with sliced wholemeal pitta) £3.95

Moving on to the main dishes, my burger and fries were awesome. Served in a floury bap with all the trimmings, it wasn’t fancy or anything — in fact, its simplicity and “back to basics” approach (as you can see in the picture) were its defining characteristics. Yeah, it had fries too, and they were surprisingly clean tasting — clearly because they were never fried in the same oil as chicken, fish and god knows what in that contamination tank called a “deep fat fryer”.

burger: 2 vegan patties served in a flour bap with toppings and sauces of your choice on a basket of fries. £7.50

Our other main dish was the Flat Bread Vegetable Calzone. The bad news is that is looked like a repeat of the Garlic Flatbread – I mean, it was a doppelganger for our appetizer visually, but tasted quite different. It had, like, a million vegetables in it with that similar creamy sauce as the Garlic Flatbread, but the end result was a completely different type of taste. Even though it didn’t claim to have any kind of vegan cheese inside, it had a most cheesy kind of texture, something that’s rare for us vegans.

flat bread calzone. £7.95

For most visitors to the UK, The Gardener’s Arms is off the beaten track on the outskirts of Oxford, some 60 miles outside London. If you find yourself with a spare day in London, Oxford makes a nice day trip (the train journey is about an hour), and it really is a beautiful town with lots to see and do. If you’re looking for a bit of Old England, with great vegan food you might not find better than The Gardener’s Arms.

Map of the pub after the jump.

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I’ll admit it. I have something of a reputation in SoCal for consuming beer and vegan food. Other than geeky Internet stuff, that’s pretty much all I do. I like to drink before I eat, because I have to consume less alcohol to get a buzz, and can sober up before driving home (I never break my “one beer per hour before I drive rule” that’s served me well since the early 80s).

As there are so few bars that serve good vegan food, I usually lean toward good bars within a very short walk of decent vegan restaurants – an intersection of possibilities that’s remote to say the least.

Last summer, this blog reported on Vegan Plate, an above average Thai-style vegan restaurant in Studio City. Now, “above average” for the aforementioned stereotype is hardly an accolade of note, but – in a push – vegan Pad Thai with Seitan is nicer than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick, and a good deal better than just about any vegan offering in a bar (contaminated French fries included). So, we have the restaurant part down but what about the bar? Well, in October 2008 the Laurel Tavern opened its doors which are, quite literally, across the street from Vegan Plate:

Any bar with the word “Tavern” in its name usually implies sticky carpets and flat Bud Lite on tap, but fortunately (as you can see from the exterior photo above) not in this case. In fact, the Laurel Tavern is a polar opposite of what you’d expect from both its name and location right on Ventura close to the intersection with Laurel Canyon. The inside is hip and cool without making an old man like me feel uncomfortable, and the bar staff are absolutely delightful – polite, efficient and very friendly.

Also, the beer selection is a superb offering of local and national microbrews including the venerable Craftsman ales from Pasadena (including 1903) which are also served cross-town at Pure Luck and have passed the vegan test time and again. Also, at $6 for 16 Oz, they’re a little on the high side for 818-land, but about the same price that us westsiders are used to paying for a brew.

craftsman 1903: $6 per 16 oz. pint.

So, after a few beers one is likely to be hungry. I won’t even mention the food at Laurel Tavern as it’s gratuitously meaty and there’s nothing remotely vegan on the menu (including the Steak Fries, which are (and I quote) “drizzled with pork fat”). But, to us vegans, a 25 second walk from the Laurel Tavern puts us inside Vegan Plate.

I find that the strip mall ambience of Vegan Plate is a little much after such a nice drinking experience so I usually call and order when I’m half way through my last drink then walk over, grab the food and high tail it away from the fluorescent lighting to home, where I gleefully throw a bunch of stuff into a bowl, and wolf it down.

chinese broccoli: stir-fried chinese broccoli with garlic sauce. $8.95

As you can see from the picture, the dish is relatively uninspiring visually but actually tastes better than it looks because everything is cooked to order and very, very fresh.

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for ages i have been meaning to check out bulan thai. it’s this all vegetarian thai place where most dishes can be made vegan, serving up food from two locations—one on melrose and one in silver lake. the melrose location is kinda near to my work, and it always looks so clean and inviting…for so long though, i was just never able to resist the urge to grab a panini or burger from m cafe instead. plus, on any given day of the week i’m probably already asian-fooded out, what with the ten million vegan thai places with the word vegan in the title, hawking their wheat meat and salty noodles on every major street in los angeles.

bulan vegetarian is different though, it doesn’t adhere to the same rules as all these other thai vegan clones. there are no cowboy burgers, no wraps and no salads swimming tahini dressing. nope, none of that westernized stuff at bulan. the standard vegan cookbook that the other thai places have adopted, bulan completely ignores. it’s so refreshing to visit a thai food restaurant with food that both a.) is authentic and b.) i can trust. bulan is just that place, and i love it.

the husband and i hit up bulan recently and decided to get a full on feast: 2 main dishes and an appetizer to share. we started with the summer rolls. so simple, but so exquisite.

summer rolls: baked tofu and fresh vegetables wrapped in clear wrappers, served with vietnamese dip. $8

i’ve had rolls similar to this at a million thai places in the past, but none have been this good. the summer rolls were tiny and tightly packed with the freshest and most delicate of vegetables. the peanut sauce was also supberb and went down well with several spoons of chili powder. i would definitely order these again. the somewhat hefty price tag was made up for with the finest ingredients, great taste and beautiful presentation.

we also shared the broccoli with dried chili and tofu. It turned out to be the perfect mix of greens and protein.

broccoli with dried chili plus tofu: broccoli sauteed with dried chili and choice of protein in house sauce. $8

this was a great light dish for 2 to share. the broccoli was fresh and crunchy, while the tofu was moist and well seasoned. the chilis provided some definite heat, but not enough for us. we of course had to drown our plates in spoonfuls from the hot sauce carousel. it was so tasty. plus, i love any thai restaurant that brings an impressive selection of hot sauce to the table.

lastly, we split an order of the pad kee mao or “drunken noodles”. these were probably my favorite.

pad kee mao "drunken noodles" plus veggie chicken: pan-fried flat rice noodles with carrots, mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, basil, chili and choice of protein. $8

the drunken noodles were thick, fried and slathered in the most impressive sauce along with nicely cooked vegetables and scrumptious “chicken” chunks. there was nothing about this not to like. everything was moist, crispy, and full of flavor. bulan really shows what quality thai is all about.

i really can’t wait to go back to this place. the menu is simple and traditional, but truly outstanding.
plus, who doesn’t want to eat at a restaurant with a sign as awesome as this posted on the window?!??!!

you really ought to check bulan out asap.

bulan thai vegetarian kitchen on melrose

and for all you drunken vegans out there, as an added bonus, the village idiot is right across the street. this slick gastropub offers my all time favorite vegan lager, craftsman 1903 at the fair price of 5 bucks a pint. a few beers and some vegan food is just way too good to pass up. head to melrose now.

UPDATED 2011: this place is now closed. RIP vegan burgers and beer.

recently, i joined fellow la blogger and chef extraordinaire jenn shaggy for a fantastic vegan lunch as she introduced me to the local 8 oz. burger bar on melrose. apparently jenn doesn’t just write about vegan food and make fabulous cruelty-free twinkies; she can also drop knowledge on new vegan-friendly los angeles eats and thirst-quenching watering holes. 8 oz. burger bar turned out to be a both: a chill restaurant offering one of the best meatless burgers in town, and also boasting a large selection of beers on tap. the perfect place for two alchie vegan girls to get their eat and drink on.

8 oz. veggie burger: sunflower sprouts, wild arugula and avocado. with roasted mushrooms and hot sauce. $10

you see, 8 oz. burger is one of those joints that serves vegan food but advertises it nowhere on their menu. to many melrose-shopping la peeps passing through, the word “vegan” probably means “healthy-and-bland-beyond-belief,” and makes hip meat-eaters recoil in horror. 8 oz. is smarter than that, they avoid the v-word entirely. they simply list the ingredients of their veggie burger on the menu and and also offer a wide array of sauces and condiments that are almost entirely vegan. if you have any doubts, the knowledgeable staff will let you know exactly what is animal-free. for instance, even THE ONION RINGS ARE VEGAN…they aren’t fried along in the same fryer with dead creature bits and god knows what else. i can’t wait to go back and try them out.

that being said, all i had this time was the veggie burger with roasted mushrooms and hot sauce. the patty was absolutely delicious. a blend of grains, vegetables and total awesomeness; it was thick, juicy and filling. so many places offer a soy protein vegan burger that obviously comes out of a box in the freezer. not this badass, it was cleary homemade and not even trying to emulate meat. the mushrooms were a great addition to the avocado and wild arugula, and the hot sauce was spicy and tangy as ever. jenn ordered the same but with purple mustard and heirloom tomato ketchup, which i tried and were both out of this world.

so in the end, while  8 oz. burger doesn’t have what i would call a huge vegan selection, it does offer one kick ass veggie burger. they also have tons of vegan additions, condiments, side dishes and starters. i figure one burger can go a long way, and i have loads of meals to eat at 8 oz. before i get bored. it’s a great place to saddle up, grab a bite, drink a few good beers and spend the afternoon.

PLUS…8 oz. burger bar is an awesome place to hang out with your meat-eating, beer-drinking hollywood friends when they want a “gourmet burger”.

for thanksgiving this year, we here at quarrygirl.com threw a non-traditional dinner party and invited the parents. sure, my parents will still have their slaughtered carcass tomorrow…but today, their holiday feast was all vegan.

everyone seems to be blogging about their thanksgiving menu, so i thought i may as well do the same. i’m no cook, and i didn’t spend tons of time in the kitchen. but we did manage to throw together a mix of store-bought and homemade dishes that pleased our omnivore guests. here is the rundown:

suds: we celebrated nonturkey day this year by opening up our first bottle of homemade beer. it’s been brewing downstairs in our guest room for two weeks, and today it had finally reached a very drinkable and alcoholic point. full disclosure, we made our wort beer from a kit. we didn’t go all mad scientist, boiling hops or anything. that’s for next time. thankfully, the beer came out quite well. a strong, delicious, fruity dry-hopped lager.

appetizers: we really, really know how to class it up for thanksgiving. that’s why for a pre-meal snack we served a bag of doritos spicy sweet chili nachos with terra potpourri potato chips, along with fritos hot bean dip and calavo guacamole. super fancy, eh? in our defense, this dish was super last minute. (duh.) we stupidly headed out to go grocery shopping on thanksgiving morning in search of horderves and ended up abandoning ralphs because the parking lot was too crowded and bristol farms because it was a fucking zoo in there. (i did see pauly shore though, and had to explain who he was to my husband, yay!) we ended up at the closest place to our house by far to purchase food, the canyon country store. i don’t know if you’ve ever been to this little hippie shack, but they don’t have much selection. hence the truck stop appetizers we ended up serving. it’s all good though. tasty as fuck, and no prep time.

salad: mr. meaner took care of the salad this year, because he kicks ass at that. he made the previously blogged about “best salad in the world”, although this time he toasted the pine nuts and whipped up his own batch of zesty lemon balsamic vinaigrette. total hit.

stuffing: this is actually the first year i’ve ever cooked homemade stuffing. usually i just grab a box from whole foods, add a few ingredients and call it a day. this year, i decided to try a really healthy and simple stuffing from happy herbivore’s cookbook, pudge-free holidays. she’s compiled a list of tasty-sounding holiday recipes without all the fat and calories that usually come along with this time of year. i made a batch of the traditional thanksgiving stuffing with mushrooms and vegan sausage. the only change i made was i added some garlic, because i can never have enough of that. i can tell you this is much tastier and much healthier than the store-bought box crap i’m used to making.

sides: we outsourced the cooking of our side dishes to the awesome vegan soul food restaurant, a taste of life. i could never make food this good, so why even try? we ordered two sides of mac and cheese and two sides of kale. both were delicious and impressed the hell out of my omnivore parents. if i could cook this well, i’d never eat out. but i can’t…so i get take-out on thanksgiving day. yay.

vegetables: mr. meaner took it upon himself to toss some thickly sliced potatoes and carrots in olive oil and oregano, then bake them to perfection. we also had some steamed broccoli and cauliflower to round it all off.

roast: since our favorite thanksgiving centerpiece, the unturkey, is no longer available, we have been looking for a worthy replacement. we spent the last two years with the tofurky, which is good but not great. this year we opted for the very scrumptious celebration roast. field roast is a company up in seattle who makes tons of great faux meats, from sausages, to slices, to several different flavors of roasts. their products are kind of hard to find in los angeles, so if you ever see them, buy ’em up. follow your heart consistently stocks the celebration roasts, and a handful of whole foods carry the sausages. while the celebration roast is no unturkey, it’s pretty damn incredible. the body, crust and middle stuffing are all magnificent. (please note, some folks have made a website and posted a recipe for the original unturky. i’m way to much of a cooking n00b to try it, but others have. and i am jealous). the celebration roast will totally do for now.

dessert: i actually did some baking some baking this thanksgiving! when i bake, things usually go wrong…but luckily, this holiday my shit came out pretty nice. i went through several recipes online and adapted my own from many to make a chocolate-chip vegan cheesecake. a total crowd-pleaser, this cheesecake made me so proud. plus it satisfied my sweet tooth for the day.

here’s the recipe i “came up with,” standing on the shoulders of giants:

vegan chocolate-chip cheesecake

ingredients:
1-14 oz package firm silken tofu
1-8 oz package tofutti better than cream cheese
2/3 cup sugar
splash of lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp cornstarch
about 1/2 a 12oz bag of chocolate chips
1-9 inch vegan pie crust

method:
preheat oven to 350F.
put silken tofu and tofutti better than cream cheese in the blender and blend until smooth.
add the sugar and blend until no granules remain.
add a splash of lemon juice, the vanilla and the corn starch, then blend until smooth.
add 1/2 a 12oz bag of vegan chocolate chips and stir it up with a spoon.
pour the mixture into the pie crust and bake for 40 minutes.
refrigerate before serving for at least 4 hours.

result:
yum.

all around, we had an epically delicious thanksgiving. good to know we could gorge ourselves on all kinds of dishes—healthy stuff, junk food, salty appetizers, sweet deserts, salads, roasts and vegetables—all without killing any animals. what a fucking concept, right?

here’s to hoping the rest of the world will catch on. hope you had a great thanksgiving!

back to restaurant reviews now for quarrygirl…

with pure luck under construction lately, i’ve been searching for new ways to get my fancy beer/vegan food fix. over the weekend i discovered a pretty great alternative: flore. but they don’t serve beer, you say? nope…but the good, located right across the street, does. the good offers tons of beer on tap and like a million bottles, so it’s a great place to get a buzz before walking over and soaking up the drunk with pure vegan awesomeness. i just cannot get over flore’s amazing food…and the menu is freakin’ huge!

the wrap: stuffed with baked tofu, roasted vegetables, shredded kale and brown basmati rice with a drizzling of creamy tofu dressing wrapped together in a wheat tortilla. served with potato salad. $9.95

the wrap is enormous, delicious and satisfying—filled with delightfully seasoned tofu and very tasty dressing. it comes cut in half, so it’s perfect for sharing. hell, get 2 wraps and switch it up! the potato salad hit the spot as well—light, fresh and not too soggy.

burrito flore: brown rice, black beans, tempeh bacon, cilantro cream, cashew cheese, lettuce, avocado and tomato wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla. served with a side of pico de gallo and a green salad. $10.95

i really, really, REALLY love burritos. when i was a vegetarian they were my second favorite food, and now that pizza is gone, they are definitely #1. seriously, when i eat at a restaurant that has a burrito on the menu, i find it very difficult to order something else. that being said, flore’s vegan burrito is one of the best i’ve ever had. they cram so much stuff inside, i almost can’t handle it. they’ve got the fake meat, beans, fake cheese, vegetables and even fake creamy stuff as well. with most vegan burritos, you are lucky to get any kind of protein along with the standard rice and beans…not to mention fake cheese! this burrito really takes it to the next level.

i mean look at that. it just belongs in your face, right? and it’s not just crammed full of cool shit, it also tastes really good. all the ingredients are so fresh and juicy, your mouth will have a party. thanks a lot flore, now i am gonna have a really tough time ordering anything else off your majorly enticing menu.

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friday update, after the post.

if you read my blog, there are probably 2 things you know about me: 1.) i hate bell peppers and 2.) i loooOOOOoooOOOove pure luck. the very first time i ate there, i knew i had something special: fancy tap beer, the best vegan food ever, great service and a funky chill atmosphere. i often found myself relaxing at a window table, bathed in sunlight, about 1/2 way though my second pint of craftsman as a steaming hot plate of potato pals was brought to my table and lou reed’s transformer drifted through the speakers…thinking, this place is just way too good to be true.

i’m beginning to believe i was right.

torta: sauteéd jackfruit "carnitas", plus pinto beans, lettuce, tomato, onions, tomatillo salsa, sliced avocado and vegan mayo on a grilled rustic roll. $9

ahhhh…the torta, pictured above. this photo was taken months ago, before the restaurant started going downhill. please notice: a plastic order number to the way upper left, a 20oz beer next to it, and a generous serving of potato pals with the entrée (at no extra charge, mind you)! these things have now all gone…they don’t exist at pure luck anymore, and neither does the window that’s lighting them.

you see, on july 19, 2008, a fucking truck plowed through the window and wall of pure luck, fatally wounding my favorite eatery. i was hopeful at the time that they’d get the shit repaired stat, but unfortunately since the accident i’ve seen the best employees leave, the portions reduced, and the atmosphere sacrificed. plus they haven’t even bothered to fix the window. even before that awful day, they had switched from counter to table service…a decision that formalized the once-super-chill establishment and led to many an awkward moment between me and my plastic-carrying/no-cash co-workers. (splitting the check sux.) anyways, the truck barreling through the restaurant seemed to be the last straw. pure luck jumped the shark; the shit officially hit the fan. i’m so sad. and so over it.

let’s take a look at what changed.

the first thing i noticed after that dreadful day, was the portions got smaller at pure luck and the prices (kind of) increased. i say (kind of) because, they didn’t officially. it used to be a sly trick to order the unadvertised potato pals as a side dish, and the staff would happily comply. well, after the accident, the staff still happily complied…but for a dollar more. an extra dollar, that was never mentioned, just sitting there on the bill. the portion of potato pals (or any side for that matter) also shrunk a great deal. don’t believe me? see for yourself:

angélica's garbanzo salad sandwich $7

before the truck crashed into pure luck, life was good and this sandwich was awesome! so much vegenaise and so many chickpeas! they forgot to put the tomato on, but that problem was promptly fixed when i questioned my waitress. plus, a HUGE pile of potato pals—subbed for fries, no worries, no extra $$. let’s jump forward one month to after the truck went through the window:

todd's bbq sandwich: bbq jackfruit "pulled pork" with pickles, onions and vegan mayo on a rustic roll. $9 (or $10 to my surprise with potato pals!)

totally disappointing. not only am i forced to pay a premium for my favorite side…but the quantity is reduced! both the side and the main dish are considerably smaller. i know this, because one of my insatiable carnivorous co-workers even noticed…”hey, isn’t this bbq sandwich much smaller than it was like last week?” uggggggggh. the last thing veganism needs is “the best vegan restaurant in LA” recruiting meat-eaters by serving them tiny portions at a high price in a darkened restaurant that appears to be undergoing demolitions. oh well.

…at least the beer is a good deal, right? NOT ANYMORE! first pure luck tried to spoil the fun by raising beer prices for 16oz pints AND 20oz pints, each by a dollar. then they changed the plan and stopped offering 20oz pints all together. in the old days you could get a 16oz for $5, and a 20oz for $6. now, after all the blackboard erasing and price-changing fuckery, a 16oz is still $5 and an 18oz is $6. 20oz beers are no longer available. sigh. to beer drinkers like me this is a huge setback. not to mention the selection of brew on tap is constantly dwindling, and they tend to be “out” of the better beers more frequently. i can tell you, it’s not what it used to be.

and to be fair, it’s not just the sides, or the beer…but the portions themselves are getting smaller. check out the difference in the fresh noodle salad. it used to be a plate of spinach with a mound of tofu and other good shit on top…now it’s an entire bowl full of spinach, with a skimpy amount of tofu & toppings sprinkled on. totally disappointing.

oh, and the atmosphere. yeah, that sucks now. at first, after the accident, it was charming like, “what a great restaurant, they are pulling through even though a truck smashed into them!” now a month later, it’s just annoying like, “why is this place always so fucking dark and why is there nowhere good to sit.” oh yeah, and TONS of flies get in and swarm around your food now, because they haven’t repaired the damage properly. one window went a very long way. sad. sad. sad.

pure luck window, before and after the crash

as you can see, pure luck is totally bumming me out. as if all this accident-related and price crap wasn’t enough, they fucked with the menu as well. each dish used to come with a side of fries or a cesar salad. now, they just serve your meal with a boring spinach italiany salad instead. i haven’t bothered to order it, i was pretty disappointed when i saw my friend’s wrap arrive with a tiny mound of spinach and some see-through dressing. i prefer to remember the wonderful wrap and side in their former glory:

kristen's carnitas wrap: jackfruit "carnitas" with lettuce, tomato, pickles, onions and césar dressing, wrapped in a flour tortilla. $8

when i ate that wrap i wish i’d have known that it was a shrinking commodity: the new wraps are much smaller and their side salads are waaaaay boring. ugh. if only i could have the old pure luck back.

more injustice after the jump.

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way back in march when i started this modest blog and was still posting pix taken with my cell phone, my first post wasn’t really about vegan food, but instead a super hoppy and wonderful beer: pliny the elder. now 4 months and 87 posts later, i’m returning to pliny. while in santa rosa, i had the fortunate opportunity to visit the place where the magical beer is actually brewed, the russian river brewing company.

now, unfortunately there isn’t much vegetarian stuff on the menu. but honestly, who needs food with beer like this?

with an abv of 8%, pliny is too strong to legally be sold in a pitcher. that didn’t stop me from ordering 3 pints of the hoppiest beer i’ve ever tasted!

so if you are a beer lover in santa rosa, drink up at russian river. you won’t regret it! and hungry vegans can be satisfied at the sushi restaurant down the street.

I’ve been to Yard House outlets in Long Beach, Pasadena and Palm Desert, although there quite a few in the chain. What I like best is the selection of beers on tap (usually over 100) and a very nicely prepared vegan option on the menu. What better way to enjoy four beers than by ordering two half-yards of beer (or one yard if you’re feeling rather adventurous and have strong biceps).

Sitting at the bar (and this is a real bar: black granite and stainless steel with cared-for keg pumps by the polytope, and nice seats to boot) one can choose from by far the best selection of beers in any bar probably anywhere.

I usually order Young’s Double Chocolate Stout which is also served from a keg back home so tastes almost the same as in the White Hart (incidentally a pub that Roger Waters can often be found drinking in).

Oh yes, a Yard House is a GREAT way to drink away the afternoon with nice beer and chilled edamame served just right. Do it. Do it now. You know it makes sense. And, there’s a Yard House under construction at LA Live right now, due to open at the end of the year so we Los Angelinos will have less distance to travel.

See the rest of this post for more pictures…

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i love going to see opening bands when i don’t care about the main act. it’s awesome. i get to stand right up front in a semi-empty venue and watch the band as the rest of the crowd (who will have to wait hours until the show starts) pours in. and going home before the main act begins means i don’t have 3 hours of downtime, with nothing to do except drink ridiculously expensive and shitty bottled beer, as i wait for them to take the stage.

so, imagine how happy i was when i went to see the fuck buttons open for caribou at the el rey, and i found out the bar was selling large cups of tap beer. they were plastic cups, i admit, and they cost $8…but they were 20 oz! budweiser, bud light, and even stella were all readily available. now i know even if i need to go see a headliner at the el rey and stand around waiting for several hours, at least i can pass the time by drinking cold draught stella.

on a side note, the fuck buttons were awesome…totally unique. it’s not like at every show you get to see someone screaming unintelligible ramblings into a fisher price microphone.

here is one of their tracks that i quite enjoy.
sweet love for planet earth

i recommend checking them out while they are still an opening act, then you can leave when they are done and still get home early just like i did! 🙂 i know that makes me sound fucking old, but going to gigs is a stressful hassle. thank god i always have the beer to rely on.

overall, the el rey bar gets a B! I love the fact that they have stella on tap, but have to take some points off for the high prices and the plastic cups.

tofu pesto sandwich:
grilled tofu and fresh basil-spinach pesto on a rustic roll, with romaine and onions and vegan mayo.

pure luck is hands-down my favorite restaurant in los angeles. it’s great. they have a delicious 100% vegan menu and an impressive selection of quality tap-beer, none of which is over-priced. they truly are one-of-a-kind.

BUT…

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