• August 29th, 2009quarrygirlnews, other, vegan stuff
    a taste of life soul food  combo

    a taste of life soul food combo

    okay, so there’s three events going on this weekend that you should be aware of. choose wisely.

    1.) vegan soul food bbq
    get your weekend started right with a back-to-school vegan bbq in inglewood sponsored by a taste of life. food will be served from 10am to 3pm, plus there will be live music, kids’ activities, speakers and more. if you don’t have plans today, this would be a good bet. a taste of life serves up the best soul food i’ve ever had, and some of the best vegan food in all of los angeles. for info on this event, check out their flyer or PETA’s website.

    2.) rockin’ vegan breakfast
    the first thing up tomorrow is a vegan breakfast concert at downtown venue the smell. the headline act is ted leo and the pharmacists, supported by davila 666 and moses campbell. the menu consists of vegan pancakes, tofu tacos, and coffee. show starts at 11:30am, it’s 8 bucks, and it’s all ages. for more info check out the announcement on losanjealous.com.

    3.) vegan vietnamese and beer
    if you wake up a bit later on sunday mornings, or if you are still feeling hungry after your large helping of rock and vegan pancakes…head on over to the verdugo bar for board games, beer, and (vegan-friendly) bbq. while it may not prove to be the epic 100% animal-free feast that was the hot knives gnosh pit a few weeks ago, the up and coming soon-to-be vietnamese food truck mandoline grill will be serving vegan friendly offerings including cha gio (spring rolls) and lemongrass tofu banh mi.

    although the event isn’t entirely vegan, the verdugo is just about our favorite bar in town, so the fact they are offering a patio session with stuff i can eat is enough to get me down there. plus, i spoke with the person in charge at mandoline grill and they knew their stuff: no bone-char sugar in the ingredients, separate utensils, and fancy egg-replacer to boot. vegans, go check out the scene if you have a chance.

    vegan food at verdugo bar this sunday

    vegan food at verdugo bar this sunday

    have a great weekend. let me know if you hear of any more vegan events going down. and if you go to either of the shindigs i blogged about here, let me know if you had fun.

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  • April 7th, 2009quarrygirlbands, coachella, other, vegan stuff, venues

    UPDATE: just found out the dressings listed in the sweet leaf section of this post contain HONEY. if you order food from sweet leaf, get it with no sauce/dressing!

    we vegans have it pretty rough sometimes. it feels like more often than not we find ourselves in places or social situations at meal times where there is almost nothing we can eat, and even then we live in fear that our salad, fries, or bread roll may be contaminated with traces of dairy. lemme assure you, coachella is not one of those places.

    coachella is fucking annoying for loads of other reasons, don’t get me wrong. it’s hot as hell, it’s pretentious, it’s expensive and it’s inconvenient….but all those things aside, coachella is definitely VEGAN-FRIENDLY. this year i hear they are even going to be carrying VEGAN CUPCAKES in the vip section made by luscious organic desserts. so be sure to score a wristband if you haven’t already…you need to grab a vegan cupcake before morrissey and paul mccartney eat them all.

    i went to coachella last year and took myself on a vegan tour of the festival…here is some of the stuff you can look forward to if you are headed to the desert next week.

    sweet leaf organics at coachella

    sweet leaf organics at coachella

    sweet leaf organics is a solar powered kitchen that shows up at music festivals and serves organic vegan food. kick ass. they were at coachella last year near the main stage, and if their website schedule is accurate, they will make an appearance this year as well. i didn’t spot this place until sunday last year, and i was pretty disappointed…my husband and i only got to enjoy one meal at sweet leaf, and it was easily the best food at the festival.

    marinated tofu wrap with vegetables and peanut sauce. $9

    marinated tofu wrap with vegetables and peanut sauce. $9

    the menu at sweet leaf is simple, but very appetizing. they have grilled tofu or tempeh wraps and burgers, as well as salads, stir-fry dishes and fresh smoothies. we ordered the marinated tofu wrap and tempeh burger, and were very happy with both.

    marinated tempeh burger. $9

    marinated tempeh burger. $9

    they also had vegan items in the vip section, although nothing as awesome as sweet leaf. we found a sushi stand that had vegan vegetable rolls and inari. while it was a total ripoff at 12 bucks, at least it tasted good and didn’t contain animals.

    vegan sushi with a side of inari. $12

    vegan sushi with a side of inari. $12

    for a map of sweet leaf and the vegan sushi place, click here. and for a full review of those places, click here.

    combination plate: coconut rice with dal and tomato pea curry

    combination plate: coconut rice with dal and tomato pea curry

    if you are more of a dance tent kinda person, don’t worry. there will be vegan food for you too. last year there was an entirely vegan place called bombay station near the gobi serving up a ridiculously good curry combination. anywhere serves 100% vegan food is a winner in my book, so i definitely hope this place returns. oh, and if you like to waste money, there is also a place that sells artichokes for $7.

    ridiculously expensive artichoke. $7

    ridiculously expensive artichoke. $7

    for a map to the bombay station and artichoke place, click here. for a full review of these stands, click here.

    vegan tofu naanwich. $7

    vegan tofu naanwich. $7

    if you want more indian-style food and get sick of the bombay station, there was also another place close by selling a tasty tofu naanwich. i don’t remember the name of this stand, but it had the words “vegan-friendly” posted on signs all over it. for a map to this place click here, for full review click here.

    so i think it’s pretty safe to say that vegans won’t go hungry at coachella. you will probably go broke…but definitely not hungry. last year i was there with my husband for 3 days, and between the two of us we didn’t even get to try all the vegan food.

    i will keep you posted on this year’s offerings as well. if you are going to attend the festival, follow me on twitter. i will tweet every time i run across vegan food. that is if i can tear myself away from the VEGAN CUPCAKES.

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  • April 4th, 2008quarrygirlbands, the avalon, venues


    louis xiv live at the avalon

    it takes A LOT of work to see a band in LA these days. you have to order your tickets in advance online, pay exorbitant processing fees, spend ages looking for a parking spot that winds up being miles from the venue, and wait through numerous supporting acts in hopes that the band you paid to go see hits the stage sometime before midnight. it’s a nightmare.

    what you don’t need on a hellacious night like this is for a snobby bartender to charge you $8 to pour a warm bottled beer into a plastic cup, without giving you eye-contact. and that’s exactly what you’ll get at the avalon.

    the service is crappy, the selection is poor, and the prices are unreasonable. it’s one of the worst venues i’ve been to in LA, as far as beer goes. if a band you love happens to be at the avalon, i recommend you go see them…just be sure to hit up a bar in advance.

    on a side note, if you ever have the chance, i definitely suggest you see louis xiv. i’ve seen them 4 times and each show has been an absolute treat. not only are they great performers and incredible musicians, but as an added bonus you get to play the game, “what will jason hill be drinking on stage tonight?”! last night he was swigging straight from a bottle of hennessy, the time before that it was a bottle of chianti (basket and all), and before that it was a martini in a proper glass. i don’t know where he can possibly go from here. absinthe maybe?

    here’s an mp3 from their latest album. enjoy. it sounded just as good in person.

    01-theres-a-traitor-in-this-room

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