Some fads really bother me: Skinny jeans with Uggs, for example. Other fads have quite the opposite effect, one such being the plethora of vegetarian Indian fast food restaurants that are opening in West LA. The most recent addition to the scene is Bawarchi Indian Kitchen in Culver City, a deli-style shopfront serving up tasty Indian food mainly for the to go market.

Just a few blocks from LA’s original Samosa House, Bawarchi (translation: “Chef”) offers a counter service choice of over 20 vegetarian Indian dishes, many of which are vegan. If you decide to sit in, there are a few small tables crammed together for limited seating.

bawarchi vegetarian combination with matar koftka (vegetable balls and green peas), jeera aloo (cumin and potato), dal banjara (lentils) and pilau rice. $8

The best value option is the “Lunch and Dinner Special”, where you can choose a rice, 2 pieces of bread (make sure you get the roti, as the naan isn’t vegan!) and and three vegetable dishes from the buffet, a garden salad and pappadum for only $8.

bawarchi vegetarian combination with bey koftka masala (lotus root), arbi (tarro root), oven roasted lahori jackfruit and pilau rice. $8

If you go with a friend, you can mix ‘n’ match, leaving with six different dishes, and enough salad, rice and bread to fill you up.

channa patta (garbanzo) and makki da saag (corn and spinach) $4 each

If you’re super hungry, an extra $4 will get you a single 8oz size serving of any dish, and you can get two hot and fresh samosas for the ridiculously low price of only $3.

vegetable samosas. 2 for $3

On our recent visit, we got two Dinner Specials, a couple of entrees and two samosas for only $27. As you can see from the pictures, this was A LOT OF FOOD, and has lasted several days in the fridge.

While the dishes varied in taste and flavor (some were certainly better than others), they were all consistently good, and the portions were a reasonable size for the price – though not generous by any means. What was generous, though, was the huge mound of rice and large Tawa Roti bread that we used to scoop up the food.

Once you get your food home, you’re in culinary heaven: a place you deserve to be after the difficult process that is visiting the restaurant. From the minute you arrive in the crowded, often full, strip mall parking lot you’re in for a confusing and borderline uncomfortable experience as you negotiate barrier after barrier in your quest for food.

First, there’s no clear indication on what you should do when you enter the restaurant. Some people were just standing by the door waiting to be shown in, while others sat down at empty tables, waiting to be served (there’s no greeter or table service that we could determine). When you get to the deli counter, a couple of servers are smiling and ready to accept your order, but there’s no clear place you’re supposed to stand for attention, so it’s a bit like ordering a pint at a pub in the UK: you hope to luck out and get noticed in the midsts of organized chaos.

For vegans, it’s even more tricky, as the chef (who is buried away in the kitchen) is the only person who knows what’s vegan and what isn’t. He kindly wafted into the restaurant, and individually pointed out roughly 16 out of the 20 or so dishes one by one “this is vegan, this is vegan, this is vegan… SIXTEEN TIMES”. All they really needed is some labeling to make the whole process much easier, and we had to get several reminders of what was, and was not vegan, having somewhat limited short-term memory.

Anyways, we ordered the following food:

Bey Kofta Masala (Lotus Root) – An east-Asian style curry that was very sweet, with crunchy Lotus Root.
Arbi (Tarro Root) – Similar sauce to above, but with a texture similar to well cooked carrot
Matar Kofta (Vegetable Balls) – Mushy, crispy falafel-esque balls of vegetables in a tomatoey sauce
Lahori (Jackfruit) – Not my cup o’tea, but seemingly everybody else’s favorite

Jeera Aloo (Potato and Cumin curry) – Pretty much as you’d expect: Slightly salty, but could have done with more taste
Dal Banjara (Lentil Dal) – One of the best dishes: Spicy lentils in a perfectly creamy base. I could eat a ton of this stuff, and probably will over the next few months.
Channa Patta (Garbanzo Beans) – Fresh tasting curry with tangy sauce and perfectly cooked Garbanzo beans
Makki Da Saag (Corn and Spinach) – Looked, and tasted like the lovechild of a can of spinach and a can of corn. Nothing to write home about.

Samosas – The signature dish of Samosa House, and seemingly Bawarchi too. Perfectly cooked, crispy, packed with vegetable stuff and totally awesome. Even the morning after.
The rice, bread and salad were all very nicely presented and tasted fresh.

Along with Samosa House, the flavorings were subtle, bordering on a little bland with not enough spice and heat to any of the dishes. Having said that, though, it’s a lot of food for the price, and really is quite decent as well as very filling.

In fact, the food was SO SIMILAR to Samosa House that we asked the server if they were related — he told us that the chef had recently left Samosa House, and is now one of the partners in Bawarchi: perhaps he took the recipes with him? Who knows….

After you’ve been to Bawarchi once, you know what to expect next time, and can, I’m sure, bustle through the place getting exactly what you want quickly and with little fuss.

Also, we heard that yet another Indian deli-style kitchen will be opening close by over the next few weeks. Add to that a second Samosa House location within a 5 minute drive, and we’re looking at a very interesting place to visit for Indian food lovers such as myself.

Good luck to Bawarchi – I’m sure that as they perfect the processes in the restaurant and branch out with new dishes things will only get better. Oh, and competition doesn’t hurt either.

Tip: Bawarchi is slightly better value than Samosa House. Although the prices and quantities are the same, you do get an extra side salad at Bawarchi, and the Pilau-style rice with spices and vegetables rice is much better than the boring steamed basmati at Samosa House.

bawarchi indian kitchen
10408 Venice Blvd
Los Angeles, California 90232
310-836-8525
open daily 11am-10pm

it’s no secret that we have a checkered past with the samosa house in culver city. we’ve written two posts about them, both complaining that the food was bland and uninspired. well, i’m here to set the record straight because over the weekend we gave the restaurant another try, and walked out with a feast that was plentiful, inexpensive, and absolutely awesome tasting.

vegetarian combination: 3 dishes, rice and 2 rotis. $7.99

as you can see from the picture above, samosa house serves one hell of a lot of food for under 8 bucks. they have a large selection of 100% vegetarian dishes, most of which are vegan…and a combo consists of 3 dishes of your choice, plus a portion of rice and 2 pieces of roti bread. on a previous visit, we complained that our meal consisted of mainly rice and not enough curry, but this time that was clearly not the case. pictured above is our first combo, overflowing with curry dishes including lotus root, soy tikka masala, and a potato & pea dish.

all of these selections were delicious, but the stand out for me was definitely the lotus root. this stuff was cool, crisp and crunchy and coated in a perfectly-oily sauce…i can’t even tell you how much i loved it. if i could, i would get a whole tray of this stuff and eat it all. the soy tikka masala was also damn good as well, even if the lotus root did upstage it a bit in my mind. the soy clumps were moist and slightly chewy, and the sauce was rich and flavorful.

in our second combo, we got a spinach dish, some lentils, and my personal favorite, the JACKFRUIT. i’m just gonna say it (and this may shock you), but i think samosa house’s jackfruit is even better than the stuff at pure luck. it’s hearty, yet soft…and sooooo delicious mixed with the indian seasoning. if you go to samosa house, this is the one dish you must get no matter what!

while i loved the food from the samosa house on this visit, there was a secret ingredient that was needed to make it 1,000x better. you see, the place isn’t just a restaurant, but an indian market as well…so we picked up some fresh hot chillies to add to our meal at home in order to combat thee inherent mildness of the dishes. these things added loads of spice, and improved our meal greatly. if you like any kind of heat in your indian food, adding chillies is a must.

after this great experience at samosa house, i know i will be back soon. we had more food than we could eat for just $16…and i don’t think i can go very long without some more curry-flavored jackfruit.

the samosa house
11510 w. washington blvd.
culver city, ca 90066
310-398-6766

follow them on twitter!

flore cafe vegan soul food buffet. all you can eat. $10. (photo courtesy of cuteanddelicious.com)

hey los angeles vegans, we’ve got some news about one of your local restaurants and some important info about what you should be eating this weekend. it turns out flore cafe has switched up their business model a bit. they are no longer open during normal hours, and are instead bringing us a few bottomless epic vegan feasts each week for just 10 bucks a pop. coming up saturday through monday, flore cafe is hosting three vegan buffets consisting of soul food on saturday, brunch on sunday, and curry on monday. this is gonna get awesome. (btw, do not confuse flore cafe with its sister restaurant flore down the street. flore cafe is at the corner of sunset and descanso!)

if you are wondering why the picture above is so damn lovely…it’s because i borrowed it from last week’s review of the flore cafe soul food lunch buffet on the cute and delicious blog. the post praises the buffet and asks, “What could be better than all you can eat vegan macaroni and cheese?…The cole slaw was honestly the best slaw I’ve ever had in my life…It was fresh, crunchy and sweet. So good.”

while flore cafe is still around (they not be for long), you should really take advantage of their ten buck all you can eat deals…starting with this weekend. saturday you have the amazing soul food deal as raved about above, sunday you have the incredible brunch that we have blogged about several times before, and monday you have an all new indian dinner that sounds pretty damn exciting to me.

Read the rest of this entry »

hugo’s restaurant is quickly becoming one of my favorite places to dine. even though they are an omnivorous establishment, hugo’s menu boasts several vegan options and even has a handy legend to help us determine what’s safe to eat. anything with a ▼ symbol next to it is vegan, and this (▼) means that the item can be veganized. this whole labeling system makes ordering at hugo’s a cinch.

among the many appetizing vegan dishes the restaurant has to offer are tacos, burritos, tamales, casseroles, pastas, salads, burgers, wraps and sandwiches. on a recent trip to hugo’s with my mom, we tried out the veganized version of spaghetti and meatballs which came with thick house-made noodles in a rich tomato sauce, topped off with chunky artichokes and veggie balls. this dish was absolutely spectacular, and even won over my mom, who is a big time omnivore pasta lover.

vegan spaghetti and meatballs: veggie balls made from our 'New American' vegetable mixture. Served atop our fresh house made spaghetti tossed with marinara sauce blended with diced tomatoes and artichoke hearts. $13.50

the sauce and vegetables in this dish were flavorful and perfect, but the real stars were the meat balls made up of hugo’s new american veggie burger mixture. a combination of “organic sprouted mung beans, organic brown rice, assorted fresh vegetables, mushrooms, pumpkin & sunflower seeds, herbs and spices fried crispy.” hugo’s uses this mixture in several of their dishes, and i gotta say it’s a winner. definitely the best meatball/patty replacement i’ve ever tried. they also offer it on a burger or in a wrap…which i’m sure is incredible as well.

tikka masala vegetable patties: Made of organic, sprouted mung beans, organic brown rice, assorted fresh vegetables, mushrooms, pumpkin & sunflower seeds, herbs and spices. Covered in an Indian inspired sauce of tomato, onions and spices. Served with turmeric rice, leafy greens and cilantro-mint chutney. $13.75

another item which hugo’s puts the veggie mixture to good use in, is the tikka masala vegetable patties. this dish is entirely vegan as it comes, and is one of the best things i’ve tried at the restaurant. the delectable vegan patties are fried up nicely and bathed in a sauce of tomato, onions, and indian spices. the dish comes with tumeric rice littered with nuts and raisins, as well as a side of succulent leafy greens. the patties are perfectly moist in the center and crispy around the edges, and absolutely amazing all mixed up with the creamy curry sauce. with two full-sized patties, this meal is huge…but it’s so damn good i don’t see how anyone could resist eating it all.

vegan asian stir fry: marinated organic tofu, snow peas, fresh tomatoes, broccolini, mushrooms, jicama, green onions, cilantro and a mild sesame chili sauce served with a choice of quinoa, rice or kelp noodles. $13.50

if you are in the mood for loads of green vegetables, i highly suggest the vegan asian stir fry entree. this comes with mounds of broccolini, mushrooms, jicama, green onions, cilantro and tofu all mixed up in a sesame chili sauce. plus, you get to choose between quinoa, rice, or kelp noodles as a base. i prefer the protein-rich quinoa…hugo’s does it just right, all fluffy and soft like it should be. this whole dish just oozes with delicious freshness—it definitely gave me a healthy pick-me-up.

another vegetable-rich option is the veganized very green casserole, a dish of broccolini, spinach, asparagus, zucchini and herbs topped off with a veggie patty and vegan cheese. this dish is awesome because you get lots of greens AND one of hugo’s amazing new veggie patties. score! the only thing i can fault with this entree is that the vegan version comes covered in follow your heart cheese (yuck). hugo’s actually somehow makes the cheese, which i normally can’t stand, taste pretty decent…but hopefully they will come to their senses one of these days and switch to daiya. are you listening hugo’s?

very green casserole: Sautéed broccolini, spinach, asparagus, zucchini, with garlic and fresh herbs in a tomato basil pesto sauce. Topped with a veggie patty and melted goat and mozzarella cheeses. Served with organic mixed greens. Vegan cheese substituted upon request. $13.75

although hugo’s can tend to be a bit pricey, the huge portions and incredible food ensure you get your money’s worth. i’ve never walked out of the place disappointed, except for when it’s been too crowded to get a table! hugo’s has two locations for your convenience, one in west hollywood and one in studio city. i’ve only been to the weho outlet, but i hear the food at the valley hugo’s is excellent as well, and you can read all about it here.

so go check out hugo’s if you want some high-quality vegan deliciousness. there’s plenty of selection to keep herbivores and omnivores happy, and the food never disappoints. HUGO’S FTW!

P.S. a few quick notes about hugo’s: the mashed potatoes ARE NOT vegan. remember that. also, at the time of this post, they don’t have a separate fryer…the french fries and chips hang out in the same place as the calamari. my advice would be to stay away. ALSO, be sure to specify vegan when ordering, they have been none to use butter on stuff that it doesn’t seem like there would be butter on. just tell ’em you are vegan and they will look after you.

hugo’s restaurant
8401 Santa Monica Blvd.
West Hollywood, CA 90069
(323) 654-3993

12851 Riverside Drive
Studio City, CA 91607
(818) 761-8985

Monday – Friday
7:30 AM to 10:00 PM
Saturday – Sunday
8:00 AM to 10:00 PM

basu’s homestyle masala at whole foods, available from TODAY at Santa Monica and Fairfax outlet

One of my earliest memories was helping my grandmother prepare Indian food in her kitchen. I recall the brightly colored spices and the wonderful aroma while the pots bubbled away, and became hooked on the food of that nation at a very young age. Years later, I asked her for the recipe of her potato and pea vindaloo as she gave me a bewildered look and said “Well, there isn’t really a recipe. You take the ingredients, combine and cook them in the way you were shown, and hope for the best!”. You see, my grandmother lived the first 30 years of he life in India, and was taught to cook Indian food by many families in their kitchens and around their stoves.

As an ex-pat Englishman living in Los Angeles, I’ve always missed the taste of real Indian food. West Coast Indian cuisine rarely has the depth of authenticity and complexity of flavors that Indian and British people love so much. I think it’s because there are fewer resident Indian families to share their techniques, and even fewer Indian restaurants of quality. I had even taken to creating my own curry recipe as a facsimile of what I was used to back home.

Imagine, then, my interest when we received an invitation to a tasting at Whole Foods for a new range of vegan Indian home-style food. For sure, Whole Foods is creeping up on the vegan community in SoCal. From their early adoption of Daiya vegan cheese to an entirely new range of vegan Indian food, Whole Foods is rapidly becoming a one-stop-shop not only in the grocery department (like it always has been), but increasingly in the Prepared Foods section. Yeah, you can get a kick-ass vegan pizza and now some amazing vegan Indian food on your way home from work and at reasonable prices!

Indian food is a combination of several things, the most important of which is the base “Masala” (meaning sauce and spices), in which one cooks the vegetables and proteins. Then there’s the carbohydrate portion, usually rice and/or bread. The key to tasty Indian food is in the Masala, which for Whole Foods is provided by Basu’s Home-style, a small family-run business headed by Basu Ghosh and his son Robin. Basu hails from Calcutta in Bengal, one of the regions of India that has the most incredible traditional food. Bengali cuisine is the intersection of aromatic spices and sweet flavors. It’s not uncommon to find raisins and even pineapples in a Bengali dish, all bathed in a glorious masala, served over rice.

I’m delighted to let you know that Basu’s Homestyle has not only brought some amazing masalas to Southern California, but has delivered a kick-ass selection of them to Whole Foods, allowing the wizard chefs of Prepared Foods to create some amazing dishes.

clockwise: basil vindaloo with peas and mushrooms, tofu apple masala, vegan curried beef with basil vindaloo, channa dal, peanut masala with roasted red potatoes.

Our tasting was a smorgasbord of contrasting tastes that came together in a way rarely experienced this side of West Bengal (or East London, take your pick). From the Basil Vindaloo through the Peanut Masala with Roasted Red Potatoes, we were spell-bound with the flavors. Whole Foods even invented a “Vegan Curried Beef with Basil Vindaloo” – Indian flavors paired perfectly with Gardein, raisins and apples using Basu’s masalas.

vegan curried beef with basil vindaloo using gardein beef strips and basu's masala

Also, I’m really impressed with the way Basu’s and the chefs at Whole Foods have taken traditional, family-style masalas and combined them with non-traditional ingredients like tofu, Gardein and apples. Truly an amazing and interesting way to create tasty vegan Indian food.

We were pleased to meet with Basu and Robin during the tasting, and hear their stories about how Basu and his family members from India perfected the masalas in his kitchen at home! They made multiple batches, tested them and modified the formula so that the sauces could be made commercially in large orders yet still have a home-style taste. They then repeated the process to “veganize” the two masalas that had non-vegan ingredients.

robin ghosh (left) and his father basu, owners of Basu's Homestyle

About the best vegan pizza is now available in Whole Foods, and I can 100% assure you that the best Indian food in Los Angeles is now also available at your local Whole Foods for sale by the pound. Fill up that container, I promise you won’t be sorry! Whole Foods told us that the West Hollywood outlet (Santa Monica and Fairfax) is rolling out he program TODAY, and the other stores will get with the program at various stages throughout this week. If in doubt, call ahead.

Oh, and talking of pizza, Basu’s masala and chutneys are available on some specialty vegan pizzas as well. Yeah, a “basil vindaloo sauce with daiya cheese, zucchini, carrot, and fresh basil” pizza is available (think that through — what an amazing and innovative idea!)…

vegan indian pizza: vindaloo basil masala, daiya cheese, zucchini, basil and carrot.

as well as a “channa dal with fresh cucumber, red onion, tamarind chutney” pizza. We’re talking perfect Indian flavors, mixed with stuff we vegans love on top of a delicious pizza.

Basu’s mission statement says it all: “If you could visit our home in India, this is the food you would be served.”, and my grandmother was right: there is no recipe for Indian food. The only good Indian food is prepared by the family, and for the family.

Let’s show Whole Foods and Basu’s how much we love vegan Indian food.

Gangadin, an Indian restaurant on Ventura Place that’s close to the intersection of Laurel Canyon and Ventura Blvd. would otherwise be an average Southern Californian interpretation of a Northern Indian curry house, but it smashes through a barrier of mediocrity by offering a special menu for vegans. I’m not talking about a typical vegan menu where meat is substituted for vegetables (kindly for the same price), but a REAL and seriously prepared vegan menu with a respectful kitchen and staff that are knowledgeable about what a vegan is and what we require as dietary predicates. All of this in an omnivorous environment with a cool vibe and convenient location.

As it happens, I’m weeks away from hosting some omnivores that hail from England: recognized as the home of Indian cuisine, so following a recent post on the Quarrums, we decided to do a dry run of Gangadin so we could check out the “vegan friendly” options on the menu.

Upon arrival, we were searching the menu for vegan items (the word “Vegan” doesn’t appear anywhere), and were planning to play the substitution game with long faces until we noticed the “ask about our vegan menu” subtitle on the front page. Upon reading that, I went to the rear of the restaurant to ask about vegan offerings (as our server was at best inattentive, at worst rude) and was handed “GANGADIN’S VEGAN MENU”, so I scuttled back to our table, and we began to order with aplomb.

First, we had the Tofu Pakoras. In some ways, they reminded me of the vegan fish and chips at Weird Fish, as they were slabs of firm tofu fried in batter and perfectly seasoned. It’s a fact that I’ve eaten Indian food in all 13 continents (including India), and this is by far the best appetizer I’ve ever had. In fact, it was so good I was tempted to order another serving as a main dish!

tofu pakoras: firm tofu dipped in spiced gram flour, fried. $6

Next, we mixed it up with Aloo Gobhi (potatoes, cauliflower and vegetables)…

aloo gobi: cauliflower and potaoes sauteed with tomatoes, ginger and spices. $10.50

Saag Tofu (spinach and tofu)…

saag tofu: spinach and tofu cooked in onions and tomatoes. $10.50

all washed down with a Vegetable Biryani (Rice, vegetables and spiced)…

vegetable biryani: basmati rice with mixed vegetables. $6.50

with a side order of Spinach Paratha – basically two paratha breads with steamed spinach stuffed inside and cooked in a hot Tandoor oven.

spinach parantha: parantha stuffed with rich leafy spinach, baked in the tandoor. $3.50

The quality of the food was superb — with or without it being vegan. The spices and textures worked very well together, and the seemingly endless supply of condiments and biryani rice gave a rather filling feeling to the evening leaving us most replete in our quest for curry.

I’ll proudly take my English friends to Gangadin, and while they enjoy their omnivorous whatevers I’ll sneak to the back and order from the vegan menu that (until now) was only available if asked for when visiting. Minor gripes like reheated potatoes and vegetables that were frozen before cooking (and, yeah, I can tell for sure) pale into insignificance with a menu like this. Gandadin might not be the best Indian restaurant in LA, but the fact it has a special vegan menu (even though it is mysteriously hidden) speaks volumes about what we vegans can expect these days in regular restaurants. here’s the vegan menu so you can see for yourself:

Do you know of the poet Rudyard Kipling? If so, you’ll certainly know the poem Gunga Din. It ends with “Tho’ I’ve belted you and flayed you, By the livin’ Gawd that made you, You’re a better man than I am, Gunga Din!”. Kinda sums up Gangadin (sic) in many more ways than one.

Gangadin
12067 Ventura Pl
Studio City, CA 91604
(818) 509-0722

i have been a fan of paru’s indian vegetarian restaurant for quite some time. the entirely meat-free establishment, located on sunset in hollywood, specializes in south indian cuisine and cooks up some of the best curries i’ve had on this side of the pond.

i have raved about them before, and as i said in my earlier post, don’t be alarmed by how sketchy this place looks on the outside; once you get buzzed in through the metal gate, the restaurant is absolutely lovely. although i have had many pleasant and delicious visits to paru’s, my meal there last week left a lot to be desired. if you haven’t been to paru’s, i still suggest you check it out, but maybe i can help you with what not to order.

bonda: 2 spicy potato balls. $4.50

for our recent dinner, my husband and i started with the spicy potato balls known as bonda. although only one is pictured above, the order came with two and the balls were pretty sizable. the appetizer was absolutely delicious, i have nothing to complain about here, as it ended up being the high point of our meal. super crispy and fried on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside, and littered with little chunks of spicy jalapeno. plus, the dipping sauce the ballz came with was insane. paru’s is very knowledgeable about veganism, and when we told them we were vegan they said they would take care of us. however the green sauce the potato balls came with was so delicious and creamy, i was convinced it was dairy-based. our friendly waiter laughed when i questioned him, assuring us it was coconut milk, and that that almost all of paru’s dishes were dairy-free. phew.

punjab glory: poori, vegetable curry, peas & rice, papad, (no raitha). $12.95

as a main dish, my husband got the punjab glory, which was basically 3 little pots of curry with a tray of breads and a huge mound of rice. knowing we were vegans, they kindly left off the side of raitha. you see, this dish was pretty good, but for $13 it just seemed like an awful lot of carbs. we are used to getting a few side orders which are 8 bucks each, and then splitting a side order of rice. while that can turn out to be a little more expensive, at least you get a lot of curry. i mean, look at the picture, do you see how much rice, bread and sauce that is? the actual curry only took up about 25% of the plate. at the end of the meal, all the curry was gone (there being about 5 or 6 bites of each of the 3 types), and almost all the rice and bread were left over. i think we will definitely stick to ordering side dishes in the future, like we did in my more complimentary post about paru’s.

yogi's delight: indo-American combination bringing you chickpeas curry on a bed of beans and sprouts, topped with onions, tomatoes, cucumber, and other vegetables, plus paratha. $12.95

my main dish is where it all kind of fell apart. i ordered yogi’s delight, which appeared from the menu description to be a light chickpea curry with vegetables and bread. imagine my shock when it arrived and was just a huge ice berg lettuce salad. ummm…the menu description didn’t even mention lettuce!! i thought i was getting a chickpea curry on a bed of beans, topped with onions. instead i got a bed of lettuce with cold chickpeas on top. there was nothing ‘curry’ like about this thing. even for a salad, it wasn’t good. oh and here’s the real kicker: it was also filled with unadvertised bell peppers, which i absolutely hate. gah! and for $13?!? talk about adding insult to injury. i managed to pick around and eat some of the chickpeas off, plus i helped myself to my husband’s never ending supply of rice and bread.

so there you have it, go eat at paru’s because some of their stuff is absolutely amazing. just avoid yogi’s delight like it’s the plague, and be sure to order side dishes if you want a decent amount of curry. i hear the dosas are great too, but i have yet to try them. when i do, you’ll be sure to hear about it.

paru’s indian vegetarian restaurant
5140 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 661-7600

Well, not IN the Beverly Center, but right across the street across from Souplantation on 3rd St., just East of La Cienega. Holy Cow is an honest to goodness fast-food style Indian eat-in/carry-out kitchen with a range of veg and non-veg offerings. As is common with many Southern-Indian restaurants there’s no beef on the bill of fayre (probably due to quasi-Hindi leanings of its owners) which leaves an extra-large gap in the menu for vegetarian food, much of which is either naturally vegan or can be made as such.

vegan take-out dinner from holy cow

On our recent visit, we rolled up at 8pm on a Saturday evening, and made that classic mistake: allowing cell a couple of ‘phone babbling people to go into the restaurant ahead of us. By the time they’d figured out what they wanted to eat, changed it three times, and had any number of ‘phone conversations with friends about the menu selections, we’d been standing by the counter for a good 10 minutes. However, the experience was rather educational as we deduced the gang in front of us were somewhat observant Jewish people, most particular to ensure that there was no dairy in anything they ordered – in this way, we got a good grounder of what could, and could not be, veganized without having to go through a big Q&A with the person taking the order.

When it was finally our turn, a very nice Indian gentleman of some stature and presence politely engaged with us, helping guide our choices. As is common with West Coast outlets like this (especially Indian), ordering a “dinner” is excellent value. For only a couple of bucks more than an a-la-carte single main dish one can get a appetizer, main dish, side of vegetables, rice and bread. Sadly for us, the naan bread contained eggs, so we had to order a-la-carte, even though a better economic decision might have been to order the dinner and trash the naan bread. But that’s not very vegan, now is it?

vegetarian samosas: crisp turnovers filled with potatoes and peas. $3.95

We started off with two Vegetable Samosas – at only $3.95 they were exceptional value and extremely tasty, being freshly prepared in the kitchen when our order was taken.

They had that crispy outside with hot steamy inside that is so unique to this dish. The nearest thing is a Chimichanga – that decadent Mexican-style deep-fried burrito, but I’d rather a samosa any day!

aloo gobi: potato and cauliflower cooked with herb and spices $6.95...and saag tofu: pureed spinach with tofu and spices. $6.95. plus rice!$2.95

I have a complete weakness for Potato and Cauliflower curries, particularly the Aloo Gobi which, if done right, can be a sublime dish. There’s something about the intersection of basic ingredients like vegetables, spices and oils that Indian cuisine does so well, and Holy Cow’s rendition holds up to the highest standards.

Our other entrée was Saag Aloo with Tofu – basically pureed spinach (spinach haters stop reading this paragraph now!) with chunky potatoes, spices and small, firm tofu pieces. This can very much be a hit or miss dish in many Indian restaurants because the cooking times of everything vary so much – seconds for the spinach, but 30 minutes or more for the potatoes and tofu, so a juggling act in the kitchen is needed to pull this delicate dish off to perfection – and whomever was back-stage at Holy Cow knows exactly how to make Saag Aloo happen: the end result being perfection.

Finally, we ordered White Rice, which was a bit misleading (albeit in a good way), because the rice was actually cooked in herbs and spices, including turmeric, which gave it a yellowy look and, spicy flavor that complemented the food perfectly.

So, bottom line, Holy Cow was a GREAT, inexpensive Indian take-away very much in the tradition of my homeland in England where you can take home the curry or sit in a brightly lit restaurant and eat it there. Holy Cow has the ambience of a vegan Thai restaurant, but the food is so much better.

With convenient parking, incredibly polite and helpful staff as well as completely above-average food, you can’t go wrong. The only competition is Samosa House, which is distant competition both in miles to travel (it’s in Culver City) and taste of the food.

Thanks for being there, Holy Cow, and thanks for understanding about vegans and our standards. We’ll be regular customers.

holy cow

holy cow
8474 W 3rd St
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(323) 852-8900

monday – friday
11:30am-9pm
sat and sun
5pm-9pm

It’s no secret that I’m a HUGE fan of Indian cuisine. Growing up in the UK where it is, of course, the national dish has enabled me to be quite discerning when Indian food is placed in front of me. So, I was delighted at the prospect of visiting the Samosa House in Culver City this past weekend to try their extensive vegan selection (they have seven vegan and three vegetarian entrees).

a samosa with potatoes, chickpeas, lentils, potatoes w/ long beans, bitter melon, spinach tofu and jackfruit.

Well, I can tell you that the experience started off really well. The restaurant is deli-style, where orders are placed and served from heated containers right in front of you in a very clean and orderly environment. The service is excellent – the nice man behind the counter described all the dishes, including which were vegan. We could not decide which of the seven to taste, so we ordered them all as two 3-side samplers (with rice and bread) for $7.99 each, and one side (for the odd man out, final entrée: more to come on that).

The seven dishes were as follows:

Potatoes: Pretty much as the name suggests – lightly spiced potatoes served dry in no sauce
Chickpeas: Your common chickpea curry served in a light sauce
Lentils: Usually my favorite side, lentils served in a dark, creamy sauce, of which more later
Potatoes with Long Beans: The name says it all – again, not a very saucy dish
Bitter Melon: Seemed to be small fruits in a tangy sauce. Much more of a condiment than a side, if you ask me
Spinach Tofu: Creamed spinach and small tofu chunks (although there were al most no tofu chunks in ours)
Jackfruit: Pure Luck style jackfruit in a dry curry sauce

We also had a very hearty serving of rice with each sampler (in fact, the rice accounted for around 60% of the volume of each container) and two small chapatti breads. Of course, we couldn’t help but order two of their signature samosas which were wrapped and fried right there. No microwaved samosas wrapped in foil here!

We ordered the dishes to go, and hightailed it through West LA as fast as we could to get home – largely because carrying Indian food in your car leaves a lingering odor that lasts in direct proportion to how long you carried the food for. Although our journey was only about 20 minutes, I could still smell the curry in my car the following morning — even though we carried it in the trunk!

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curry can be a vegan’s best friend, especially if you get it from a restaurant where the staff is knowledgeable and straight up about ingredients. fortunately for us herbivores who live west of vermont (sorry, ¡yo soy!), the owners of the vegan-friendly hipster hangout electric lotus also have another fine, less trendy indian restaurant on san vicente: india’s grill.

the service at india’s grill is impeccable, the interior is lovely, and most importantly, the food is delicious. we often get our curry to go, however, because india’s grill is on the way home from my husband’s work. plus, i like to eat dinner and watch twin peaks at the same time.

because the portions from india’s grill are pretty huge, i usually end up with leftovers. hence takeaway breakfast curry. i assure you, it’s just as good the second time around.

whole wheat roti ($1.95) with pulao rice ($4.95) and aloo gobhi ($8.95)

i think curry for breakfast is underrated. it’s great to wake up with tons of flavor and food that sets your mouth on fire. gets you ready for the day, i tell ya!

while india’s grill specializes in several vegetarian dishes that can be made vegan, aloo gobhi is my favorite. potatoes in cauliflower in a light sauce blended together with the perfect spices. i always ask them to make it extra hot, because most curry dishes are too mild for me otherwise. this dish goes perfect with the pulao rice: saffron, grean peas and onions all sauteed together.

and don’t forget to wrap everything up with a big piece of roti to make a scrumptious curry burrito. i’m pretty sure the naan contains eggs, but the roti is a-ok. just a minute on the grill, and the roti will be as good as new, even on the following day.

so if you want an indian feast near weho or beverly hills, be sure to give india’s grill a shot. dine-in or take-out, they always rock my world.

What’s more British than Winston Churchill, Queen Elizabeth and the red ‘phone box COMBINED? the answer is an authentic Indian Meal (referred to as a ‘curry’ by my good countryfolks). Living in the UK it’s easy to get Indian food quickly and inexpensively – for under US$15 you can enjoy a three-course meal that will leave you bursting at the seams with enjoyment. And, if you order carefully, the food is naturally Vegan – butter and yoghurt are used, but only in certain dishes.

Unfortunately, stateside, there’s almost no customer demand for good curry in the face of ubiquitous ethnic foods of the US immigrant population (Asian, South American, etc.). Above all the lack of expertise to prepare Indian food (the British way, that is) means that it’s impossible to experience anything remotely like a British curry on this side of the pond. So, what’s a Brit over here to do?

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