vegan bean chili. $6.50

the hollywood farmers market is a vegan mecca. of course we know about the amazing animal-free vendors like a taste of life (best breakfast sandwich ever) and c’est la v (killer cupcakes), but even the meat-peddling vendors like chili addiction have options to please us!

i never thought a stand called chili addiction would be so damn vegan-friendly, but when i read a glowing blog review of their meatless options, i was inspired to check them out. sure enough, i hit them up at the farmers market and was blown away by their vegan chili! they are at the hfm every sunday, right next to the c’est la v stand on cosmo street, and offer at least one vegan selection each week.

when i visited, they had a vegan bean chili on special that consisted of garbanzo, pinto and black beans. plus, they had a self-serve bar (if you can call it that—it was tiny!) of chopped onions and fresh jalapenos. so delish. bonus points to any restaurant or food stand that grants me unlimited access to jalapenos. just sayin. the homemade chili was amazing, oozing with full-bodied flavor and perfect seasoning. my only gripe would be that it was kinda expensive. a tiny bowl for $6.50?! just seems a bit steep.

in typical farmers market fashion, this chili was enjoyed quickly, while standing. as you can see above, a bollard became a makeshift table for our meal. soon though, i will be able to relax and eat me some chili addiction whilst sitting at a proper table inside a permanent building. they are opening up a restaurant on la cienega within the next coupla weeks, and will be serving at least two vegan chilis at all times! i can’t wait.

since you will probably already be up on sunday morning to buy the best breakfast sandwich in the world at the hollywood farmers market, while you are there be sure to head over to cosmo street for some vegan baked goods from the c’est la v booth. created by kim garr, one LA’s most popular vegan bakers, c’est la v specializes in treats that taste just like traditional decadent baked goods…but with no refined sugar or animal products.

c’est la v has been offering their amazing animal-free desserts at the hollywood farmers market for a while, but now that the weather has cooled down a bit, they have finally started selling the most beloved vegan treat ever—cupcakes! and these aren’t just any old vegan cupcakes, these are seriously some of the best.

do you guys remember leda’s bakeshop in sherman oaks? they shut down a while ago, but back in the day they used to have the most delicious cupcakes in town—seriously worth a drive to the valley for. well kim garr was the original vegan baker at leda’s, so the fact that her vegan cupcakes are available to the public once again is quite a big deal!

last sunday when i dropped by the c’est la v booth, they were selling 2 flavors of cupcakes—chocolate chocolate and velvet with cream cheese. both of them were excellent.

velvet cupcake with cream cheese frosting. $3.25

the velvet one was moist and delicious, topped with a dollop of incredibly rich vegan cream cheese frosting. it was basically like a red velvet cupcake but without the food coloring, so if you are a RV fan, you will LOVE this.

chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting. $3.25

and the chocolate chocolate…wow! this flavor was my personal favorite. i am a huge chocolate fan, and this thing did not disappoint—the cake was packed with amazing sweet flavor, and the frosting was so fluffy. i’m glad i was pretty far away from the c’est la v booth when i started eating it, because i would not have been able to resist going back for more.

whatever your plans are on sunday, you should figure out a way to work in a trip to the hollywood farmers market and pay c’est la v a visit. sure, you can always order their stuff online…but you usually have to order like 12 cupcakes at a time. here you can go grab as many things as you want, and try a variety of their goods! i know i will be back again on sunday.

C’est La V
Hollywood Farmers’ Market (Sundays)
Cosmo Street near Selma Avenue
Hollywood, CA

if there’s one reason to drag your ass out of bed before noon on a sunday morning, it’s this breakfast sandwich from a taste of life. that’s right, the makers of the best vegan soul food in los angeles have also created LA’s best vegan mcmuffin—a soft gooey faux sausage and tofu biscuit complete with deliciously creamy cheese. although the restaurant recently closed its storefront, they are still serving food at the hollywood farmers market every sunday from 8:30am to 1:30pm…the only catch is, these hot little muffins tend to sell out. when i arrived last weekend at around 10:30am, there were still several left, but i heard that by 11:30 they were all gone.

vegan breakfast sandwich: sausage, tofu, and cheese on a fluffy muffin. $5

damn, i can’t even tell you guys how much i loved this thing. i unwrapped my sandwich and ate it right there in the street, and it was honestly one of the best breakfasts i’ve had in my life. the biscuit was incredibly soft and fluffy, the sausage was hearty and meaty, and the tofu was soft in the middle and nicely browned on the outside. oh, and the CHEESE….the cheese was just amazing. it’s the same stuff that a taste of life puts in their vegan macaroni and cheese, which is the best in LA.

there is absolutely nothing lacking or meh about this sandwich. it’s seriously decadent, perfectly greasy, and not “vegan-tasting” in any way. my only advice would be to order a drink as well, because this thing made me seriously thirsty. i know i will be returning to the farmers market and buying these on a regular basis…they are total vegan crack as far as i’m concerned.

so who is getting up early on sunday morning to eat the best vegan breakfast sandwich in los angeles? trust me, it’s worth it.

a taste of life
at the hollywood farmer’s market
northern side of selma between vine & ivar

PS: special thanks to brittany from sick of lettuce for telling me about this breakfast sandwich. without her, i wouldn’t know it existed, and my life would suck slightly more.

it with much regret that i bring you the bad news that one of our favorite restaurants in los angeles , a taste of life, has closed down its storefront. the entirely vegan soul food restaurant has been a staple of LA meatless cuisine, serving up the best milk-free mac and cheese in town, southern black eyed peas, sweet bbq tofu, and amazingly flavorful greens. plus loads of other items such as burgers, sandwiches, lasagna and “secret” off-the-menu delights like fried pot roast and gyro meat. the portions were huge, the prices were decent, and the food was amazing. i know that hundreds of vegans agree with me when i say a taste of life will be sorely missed.

the good news is…you can still get a taste of life’s amazing food in the pre-packaged section at several stores around town, and many of their hot menu items (see the combo pictured above) are available every sunday from their booth at the hollywood farmers market.

before officially announcing all this on the blog, i did get a few emails, comments, and friends telling me that a taste of life had closed down its storefront. hoping it wasn’t true, i contacted a taste of life, and received this statement from the restaurant:

Quarrygirl, what’s up? Long time. Well, I got bad news and good news…Bad news first–sadly the rumor is true. We have closed the restaurant. It just got really slow and of course the area it was in didn’t help. Good news–we are still providing our foods in several ways: Retail, catering, meal plans (coming in November), holiday catering (for the holiday season), personal chef services. Vegetarian/ Vegan consumer trends suggest that people are leaning more towards chilled and frozen prepared foods so we decided to move towards the trend. The economy is tricky. So yes, you can still have your beloved mac and cheese…We still cook out of the kitchen. Thanks for reaching out! Oh, we’re doing cooking classes too starting in November. I’m sure you’ll spread the word. Thanks dear!

they also sent me this handy flyer, with a list of where you can still find a taste of life’s delicious food.

so there you have it. it’s a sad day in the los angeles vegan world, and we are hoping a taste of life finds a way to re-open. until then, don’t miss your chance to get their soul food combo at the hollywood farmers market, and buy their prepared foods (mac and cheese!!!) at your local store. also, if any of you crazy kids plan on getting married, i hear they are great at catering weddings!

a taste of life vegan soul food combo. with some of the best mac and cheese i've EVER tasted.