heads up, folks! it’s oktoberfest time, and today the verdugo bar is hosting a vegan-friendly celebration with loads of german beer and food by the international sausage party. admission is ten bucks per person—it includes a commemorative stein, and the opportunity to watch a bunch of drunk people chillin’ in lederhosen. i checked with the food vendor, and they will definitely have some vegan sausages on hand, along with beer onion rings as a topping. WANT.

salad daze dog: vegan dog, special salad daze butternut squash dressing, kraut and red slaw, deli mustard. $6

we got a taste of international sausage party a few weeks ago at the hot knives salad daze cookbook launch, and it was awesome…

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Since I heard about a new bar opening in Burbank with OVER 30 BEERS ON TAP, a complete vegan menu, and an environmentally sustainable mission statement, I’ve become like a thing obsessed, spending hours refreshing the “coming soon” page at Tony’s Darts Away in my web browser waiting for an announcement that they are open for business. As soon as the page changed and hours were posted, I drove like a mad thing from my work in Beverly Hills to Burbank, reviewing the beer and food menu on my iPhone while negotiating CA 170.

I can tell you that the rush hour commute was well worth it, and I’m destined to be a regular at Tony’s Darts Away. The original bar (it never really had a name, but the “Darts Away” sign outside kinda gave locals a handle by which to refer to it) was your typical neighborhood dive bar: bottled beer, Budweiser on tap, a greasy meat-based food menu and chewing gum encrusted floors and bar area.

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the franken stand! 100% plant-based gourmet franks!

whatever you are doing on thursday night, you should drop it and head over to the little bar at 8pm for the LA vegan drinks halloween meetup. and since this is a spooky themed event, who better to provide the food than our favorite food cart ever, THE FRANKENSTAND!

it’s been a while since i first reviewed the frankenstand on this site, and since then the 100% plant-based hot dog cart has become a staple of the los angeles vegan scene. if you haven’t had a chance to try their gourmet steamed franks yet, than this is definitely your chance. just take a look at the vegan beauties they have to offer…

the franken: this classic sausage will make you feel alive! with a monster blend of sun dried tomatoes and basil giving it a slightly sweet taste. $5

the wolf: this is a zesty frank you'll love to wolf down. packed with a fangtastic, chipotle pepper flavor! $3

the witch: how's your hex life? let this big sausage put its spell on you! made with real tofu and micro-brewed with full sail ale! $4

and there’s not just gonna be great food at the little bar on thursday, but also plenty of beer and LA vegans. unfortunately, the bar is for ages 21 and up only…but youngsters can come get their hot dog on in the street outside with the frankenstand.

here is the official meetup.com invite:

Get excited about the first Vegan Drinks HALLOWEEN PARTY!!!

Catering provided by the FRANKENSTAND. If you haven’t tried these delectable steamed Frighteningly Delicious Vegan Hot Dogs you have not lived! Read reviews here on Quarrygirl.com or visit The Frankenstand’s Myspace page.

This is a costume party! Costumes are not required, but the first 2 dozen attendees to come in costume will get a special vegan treat!

In addition, Little Bar is timing a Fat Tire (Vegan Friendly Beer Co) promotion for our party to promote the new Hoptober Holiday Brew. With each Hoptober you order you get to keep the promotional glass.

I know Thursday is a work night, but its a great chance to get the most out of your Halloween Costume this year and mix and mingle with the best vegan crowd on the planet!

There is no charge for the event, but we request you observe a one drink minimum (alcohol or non alcohol) out of appreciation for Little Bar for hosting us and consume as many FrankenStand Vegan Hot Dogs as possible along with me to support a rock’n Vegan Business who’s presence makes it a Vegan Halloween Party to remember.

so who is coming?! this sounds like a load of fun.

P.S. if you miss thursday night, you can also catch the frankenstand at cinefamily on october 31 starting at 8pm. for more frankenstand updates, check out their myspace and twitter.

los angeles vegans, you need to drop whatever you are doing on sunday and get over to the verdugo bar because our favorite catering duo hot knives is taking over the patio again with another epic feast.

we attended both hot knives events at the verdugo in august, and i can honestly say they served some of the best food that i’ve ever eaten. not just that, but the music was good, the patio was relaxing, and the beer was tasty.

this weekend hot knives are coming back to host an “over the oktoberfest” celebration that will feature an arm wrestling competition and vegan german grub. the plan for the menu is vegan soaked in Rausch beer for smokey brats, with veeg sides to choose from. you would be insane to miss this. seriously, how often do we herbivores get to take part in the oktoberfest fun?

here is the press release and more info incase you wanna get involved in the arm wrestling competition:

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it looks like america’s favorite pastime is becoming a little more vegan-friendly, at least in the city of los angeles. now you can enjoy a good old fashion baseball at dodgers stadium with a vegan frank in hand.

now i’m no sports fan, and i will would have never even known the stadium was offering vegan hot dogs…but luckily for you a friend of mine spotted them, tried them out, and even got some snap shots of them for your benefit.

veggie dog. $6.25

dodgers stadium uses lightlife’s smart jumbo dogs, which are completely vegan, as well as bimbo bakeries buns, which are also vegan! while $6.25 is a lot to pay for a simple veggie dog, i guess it’s pretty standard considering the fact that everything is overpriced at sporting events. now you can feel ripped off just like the meat-eaters…it’s only fair.

baseball is way cooler when vegan hot dogs are around!

these vegan hot dogs are available in Reserved level Section 4 at the Wetzel Pretzel stand, so don’t miss them.

one of the concession stands selling veggie dogs! yay!

for more information about vegetarian and vegan options at stadiums all around the country, check out this site called soy happy. it’s great to see so many sports arenas introducing more vegan options. if you do go see a game, you should stock up on vegan food and show support.

special thanks to my friend for making this vegan hot dog discovery. hopefully you will keep this post in mind next time you are watching a baseball game in LA. and remember, veggie dogs taste great with baseball, beer and pretty fireworks.

fireworks at dodgers stadium. just because.

when i first posted on franken’s, the one and only all-vegan hot dog stand in los angeles, i vowed that i would follow them around, show up at their gigs, and get food from them every time they set up shop. since then, the frankenstand has made two appearances in la, and we were there for both of them.

the food was delicious on both occasions…but before i get into all that, i wanna remind you that the frankenstand will be serving it up in echo park this friday, march 13th at pehrspace. don’t miss it!

for more updates on franken’s, definitely stalk them on myspace and twitter.

the frankenstand

their latest appearance was a smashing success, and we were there at the front lines as they sold like a million hot dogs to hungry hipsters at the east hollywood art cycle event on february 28th. they set up shop outside la city college at heliotrope and melrose, right across from pure luck…it was a vegan’s dream come true!

the wolf and the franken

we ordered the wolf and the franken, both 100% vegan tofurky sausages steamed to perfection. i don’t know how the frankenstand makes tofurky taste so good, but it’s seriously something i can’t replicate at home. of course we took advantage of the eat-all-you-want condiment tray and sauce selection.

the wolf: this is a zesty frank you'll love to wolf down. packed with a fangtastic, chipotle pepper flavor! $3

this was my first time trying the wolf, the cheapest and definitely the spiciest of the sausages available at franken’s. for only 3 bucks it’s a really good deal, but it is considerably smaller than the other franks…so keep that in mind if you are very hungry. the chipotle pepper flavor was delicious, but i made it even tastier with tons of onions and even spicier with loads of hot sauce. i can’t tell you enough how much i love all the condiments and vegetables at the frankenstand.

the franken: this classic sausage will make you feel alive! with a monster blend of sun dried tomatoes and basil giving it a slightly sweet taste. $5

my husband got the same thing he always orders, the franken. the hearty italian-style frank is absolutely mouth-watering, with little bits of sun dried tomato chopped up inside. this sausage seems to be most people’s favorite, although mine is the witch…a tofu beer-flavored frank that costs 4 bucks.

the artists and bikers seemed to love the frankenstand—there was a pretty healthy line when we got our franks, and we were there relatively early. for more coverage on franken’s at the east hollywood art cycle, check out sick of lettuce.

we also caught up with the frankenstand at the threat fest in canoga park on february 21st. the valley crust punk crowd couldn’t have been more different from the heliotrope hipsters…but they sure loved the hot dogs just as much. i saw people going back for second, and even third servings of franken’s! you can see some pix from that event in the franken’s photo gallery and on vegan-la.com.

so those are all the franken’s adventures i have for now. stay tuned, and be sure to check out the frankenstand this friday!

the frankenstand
friday march 13th at 9pm
at pehrspace
325 Glendale Blvd.
Los Angeles CA 90026

if you find yourself in england jonesing for some fast food, you can always count on red veg. they deem their fare “proper fast food”, and they are absolutely right—the sloppy little diner has two locations, one in london’s soho and the other in brighton, and both serve up quick and tasty american-style classic burgers and hot dogs that don’t disappoint. the brightly lit interior, along with cheap tables and chairs, and food served in greasy paper sleeves make red veg feel like all the fast food joints back home in the states, with one catch…red veg is 100% vegetarian, and everything on the menu can be veganized.

mushroom vegburger

on our recent trip to the uk, my husband and i stayed in brighton for one night. the only evening we spent there was a rainy one, and to be honest, all we wanted to do was huddle into pubs that were located very close to our hotel. when we finally drank so much that we needed sustenance to continue, we wandered over to red veg, the closest vegan-friendly restaurant that was open after 8pm. we found ourselves in a neat little cafe full of vegan junk food…complete with punk rock posters on the wall and blaring loud music coming from tiny speakers. the staff was cooler-than-thou but very friendly, and most importantly very knowledgeable about veganism.

my husband got the mushroom vegburger pictured above, and he absolutely loved it. it came out in record time, and was pretty cheap. i don’t remember exactly how much, but i remember it being more than reasonable. the picture doesn’t look that appetizing, i know, i know…but this is really just fast food. nothing fancy, just cheap awesome fast food…except, we can actually eat it due to the lack of dead animal bits. the patty was really decent, and the mushrooms were well cooked. we’d totally order this again.

vegwurst with caramelized onions

i went with the vegwurst and carmelized onions with loads of hot sauce. the frank was pretty small, but whatever, it tasted good. the onions were delicious and perfectly sauteed, and the hot sauce topped it all off nicely. now while this dog was nothing to write home about (not everyone can be the frankenstand), it definitely filled the void and reminded me of old school fast food fare that i haven’t had in well over ten years.

fries

we topped everything off with an order of fries to split, and they were great. total thin fast food fries, red veg has got the formula down! and they even served them with a side of vegan mayo! um……..mayo on my fries?!!?!?! oh, you crazy brits!

so if you find yourself in brighton on a stormy evening and need to dry off with some easy burger joint cuisine, check out red veg. they won’t let you down. i assume the london location is just as good, if not better, because it was the first one they opened.

americans should definitely hit up red veg when in england. it will remind you of all the cool burger places that you can’t eat at back home. go get vegetarian fast food, it’s the way of the future!

red veg
brighton
21 Gardner Street, Brighton, BN1 1UP
Telephone: 01273 679910
Monday to Saturday 12 noon until 9pm
london
95 Dean Street, London, W1V 5RB
Telephone: 020 7437 3109
Monday to Saturday 12 noon until 10pm
Sunday 12 noon until 6.30pm

even with all the awesome vegan food options in los angeles, i think it’s safe to say none of it is quite as fun or interesting as the stuff from franken’s, a 100% vegan spooky-themed hot dog stand that travels around the city feeding hungry people outside venues like the smell and pehrspace.

the franken stand! 100% plant-based gourmet franks!

i started following franken’s on myspace, and i can’t tell you how stoked i was when i read their description of the franken stand:

We Heard Your Cries For Tasty Food At Those Late Night Shows! Franken’s Offers Gourmet Franks Fresh Off Our Franken-Stand! They Are 100% Plant-Based And Frightening Delicious! Dress Them With Your Choice Of Trimmings. We Carry Vegenaise, Hot Sauce, BBQ, Mustards, Ketchup, Kraut, Relish, Peppers, Onions, And More… Wash It All Down With A Selection From Our Wide-Variety Of Healthy & Savory Sodas!

in a city full of hipsters chasing taco trucks and rogue hot dog vendors, it’s nice to see a vegan stand has sprung up and thrown itself into the mix. i friended franken’s on myspace to track their location, and was so excited to see they were scheduled to set up in echo park right outside pehrspace for a dance party called hungry beat last sunday night. we hauled ass all the way from hollywood to the east side at 9pm just to get a taste of the delicious franks.

we arrived early (at least for this crowd, it was early!) at around 9:30pm and navigated our way down the dark glendale boulevard, looking for the franken stand. we heard some music bumping from the glen village shopping center, and wandered in to find a hidden oasis of veganism. the franken stand was set up proudly, affixed with flashing LED lights and colorful drawings of monsters. two very friendly people stood behind it, a man and a woman; the man neatly dressed in an old-school conductor hat and stripey shirt. they welcomed us to the stand and explained that everything was plant-based—no meat, no dairy, no eggs—and that we could choose our flavor of hot dog, then pile on as many toppings and sauces as we desired. on the counter there was an impeccably clean tray of chopped fresh vegetables, from pickles to jalapenos to onions, and a carousel of neatly labeled sauces, from mustard and ketchup to vegenaise and cilantro cream. i knew we’d found something really special.

we ordered two hot dogs, the witch and the franken (all the franks have fun, spooky names and descriptions), and piled them high with toppings and sauces from the cart. we found a nearby newspaper stand under a streetlamp on glendale boulevard and tore into our franks like hungry vultures. as you can see, one hot dog didn’t even survive without a bite long enough to be photographed.

the witch and the franken.

the witch tofu dog with full sail ale was definitely my favorite. it had a distinct microw-brew taste and a really thick texture. piled high with fresh onions and slathered in hot sauce and cilantro cream, it was in-fucking-credible.

the witch: how's your hex life? let this big sausage put its spell on you! made with real tofu and micro-brewed with full sail ale! $4

the franken was also awesome. it was thicker than the witch, and stuffed with tons of sun dried tomatoes, giving it a distinctively sweet taste. covered in hot sauce, mustard, onion, and fresh jalapeno…this sweet frank was suddenly transformed into being really spicy as well!

the franken: this classic sausage will make you feel, ALIVE! with monster blend of sun dried tomatoes and basil giving it a slightly sweet taste. frighteningly delicious! $4

both dogs were flawless and scrumptious beyond belief. franken’s ain’t lying when they brag that they offer “gourmet franks”, it’s true! i don’t know where they get them from, but the franks were so tasty and well-crafted…plus, i can’t even stress how fine and fresh all the toppings were. the franken stand is doing it right—offering high-quality, cheap, vegan food to hungry late-night party-ers.

i am so impressed with franken’s in fact, i have decided to be a hot dog rat and chase the franken stand from venue to venue, eating it whenever i can. as of now, their next appearance will be in canoga park at the threat fest on february 20th. hopefully i will see you there, and be sure to follow franken’s on myspace for all their upcoming dates. as soon as you can, i highly suggest you make the drive out to eat franken’s, and come very hungry so you can try as many different franks as possible!

UPDATE! franken’s now has a twitter account! follow them for their location at twitter.com/TheFrankenStand! thanks to commenter foodeater for pointing this out.

find franken's and EAT IT UP. you won't be sorry!