Phillet no phish: panko-crusted seitan, cheese, tartar sauce, whole wheat bun $10

it’s sunday, and if you don’t have brunch plans, i highly suggest you drive out to tarzana and have a meal at madeleine bistro. recently i tried their phillet no phish (a vegan gourmet take on the popular fast food sandwich), and i was completely blown away. seriously, i’m thinking or re-writing the LA vegan bucket list and adding this thing in.

it’s absolutely huge with a hearty chunk of breaded seitan, homemade vegan cheese, and creamy tartar sauce on a fluffy bun. while i love pretty much everything i’ve tried at madeleine bistro, this is definitely my favorite item so far.

madeliene bistro is serving brunch today from 10am-3pm, but luckily if you can’t make it, this sandwich is also served on their dinner menu. go check it out, you won’t be sorry!

madeleine bistro
(818) 758-6971
18621 Ventura Blvd.
Tarzana, CA

check their website for hours!

as you probably know, we here at quarrygirl.com are on a mission to try every vegan club sandwich in los angeles and review them all for you fine readers.

sadly yesterday was casa de tree‘s last day of business before shutting down, and we were able to get in there just in time to try their double-decker sandwich.

Casa De Tree Club Sandwich: tempeh (organic soy protein), avocado, alfalfa, lettuce, tomato, vegan mayo. $8.95

the other two clubs we have reviewed (from flore and follow your heart) both contained some type of faux meat along with a layer of bacon. casa de tree’s, however, only came with tempeh bacon, no fake meat to be found. this club was also a lot smaller than the others, although it did come with some green leaves and a side of your choice from the salad bar. i went with the curried cabbage, which was excellent. everything was tasty and fresh, and while it wasn’t my favorite vegan club in LA, this sandwich was damn good. oh, and it got bonus points for coming with avocado (which is an extra charge at follow your heart).

who cares though...it’s all academic, really, considering casa de tree has now closed down. 🙁

while the club sandwich may not have been the best in town, casa de tree truly was an amazing restaurant with a 100% vegan menu as well as a pay-by-weight salad bar.

we miss you already, casa de tree. hope you return someday. xo

P.S. PLEASE COMMENT with your FAVORITE VEGAN CLUB in los angeles! i want to be sure to include it.

as you may know, we here at quarrygirl are determined to eat all the good vegan club sandwiches in los angeles and compare them for you readers. this week our club comes to us from flore vegan in silverlake, and i must say it is a damn fine contender for the #1 spot.

club sandwich: battered baked tofu, tempeh bacon, tomato, avocado, lettuce, daikon sprout and eggless mayonaise on sourdough bread. served with choice of potato salad, side salad, or fruit. $9.95

flore’s club sandwich is pretty hefty and comes stacked with baked tofu, tempeh bacon, tomato, avocado, lettuce, and daikon sprouts. it weighs in at $9.95, which is nearly a buck 50 more than the club at follow your heart, BUT this one comes with avocado (which is an extra charge at FYH) AND a hefty side salad.

i would definitely say flore makes one of the best vegan clubs i’ve ever tasted. maybe it’s because the succulent tofu is battered and then baked, so it has all kinds of flavor goin on…or maybe it’s because the strips of tempeh bacon are extra thick and smoky. or maaaaybe it’s the way the slightly toasted bread mixes in with the creamy avocado and juicy tomato. i dunno, but everything about it is just so…perfect.

when ordering any sandwich or burger at flore, i always opt for the potato salad as my side dish. it really can’t be beat, and a side of leaves or fruit just doesn’t come close. trust me, this stuff is awesome.

so there you have it, flore’s delicious club sandwich may just be the best in all of LA. there are still so many to try though. be sure to comment with your favorite.

flore vegan
3818 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026
(323) 953-0611

one thing i really hate about traveling to nyc, is that i always find a wonderful restaurant with food so delicious and lovely, it makes me sad that i can’t pack a lifetime supply and smuggle it back home in my suitcase. sure enough last week when i visited the big apple it happened again, and the one restaurant that screamed “holy shit why don’t we have this in LA?!?!?!” the loudest, was curly’s vegetarian lunch.

curly’s vegetarian lunch is a meatless hole in the wall located in the east village, with a larger than life menu full of greasy diner food that more than makes up for their lack of square footage. to call this place vegan-friendly would be an understatement, considering ANY item curly’s offers can be made vegan (and the most appetizing of the selections are already).

we arrived around noonish on a weekday and were welcomed in from the blustering cold by a friendly gentleman who looked like curly himself, judging by the newspaper clippings hung allover the walls. the service was impeccable; a friendly waitress immediately took our order and was always ready with a refill of hot coffee. we settled on two of the menu items that were vegan by default, the open-faced turkey sandwich and the tofu scramble.

open-faced turkey sandwich: sage and garlic rubbed soy fillet over corn bread stuffing and toasted rye, napped with gravy and served with cranberry dressing, garlicky kale and butternut squash. $12.95

while both dishes were great, and the experience overall i cannot fault….the one thing that keeps haunting my dreams is the FUCKING TASTY TURKEY SANDWICH. i know, i know i rave about food a lot on this blog, but please believe me…this deserves extra attention. first off, it was massive. the plate was so full of food, i only ate about half of it and i went from starving to bloated. secondly, it comes with ample servings of all the food groups we vegans crave: tons of greens, check. seitan, check. ridic amount of gravy, check. not to mention the squash, oily yet fluffy stuffing, and sweet chunky cranberry sauce. wowowow. lastly, this plate (enough to feed 3 people) was under $13….in manhattan. that is less than real food daily, and even m cafe holiday plate prices. oh, and this is offered all year round.

seriously, so many nyc restaurants get talked up, but this REALLY WAS amazing. please put this on your ultimate, must, no matter what, to do list.

on to the next dish! although it was a little late, it was our first meal of the day….so my husband went with the vegan tofu scramble plus added spinach. (curly’s serves breakfast all day!) this thing came fried up with mounds of yellow tofu, sauteed greens, wedges of toast and deliciously crispy curly fries. not quite as good as my sandwich, but definitely a wonderful indulgence.

scrambled tofu: with toast and curly fries. plus spinach. $8.70

look at all that food! eh?!?! i have been brought up to believe that you are supposed to pay more in manhattan for everything…but this was a shit ton of breakfast for under $9, and i challenge you to find a deal that good in LA!

i cannot even stress how superb our experience at curly’s was, and i urge you to visit them whenever you are in nyc. the place is SUPER SMALL (for the LA crowd, it’s about the size of the meet market/flore cafe/the vegan spot) but they do wonders to actually transform it into a comfortable dining experience.

i will be back for sure, because curly’s has earned a place in my heart as one of my favorite restaurants ever.

curly’s vegetarian lunch
328 East 14th Street
New York, NY‎
(212) 598-9998‎
Mon-Fri: 11am-11pm
Sat–Sun 10am-11pm

UPDATE 1/7/10: ok, so i got an email from the staff at follow your heart saying the wheat bread is VEGAN. they also said the burger bun is the only bread-type-thingy with honey in it. so do with that info what you will!

UPDATE 1/6/10: i have heard from a couple people that the wheat bread at FYH contains honey (not vegan, duh)! although i have been told twice by servers that it is vegan. since FYH has a sketchy honey policy, i would definitely avoid the wheat bread. be safe and get rye, yo.

so…since we have declared what appears to be an undefeatable winner in the vegan reuben wars, maybe it’s about time we move on to another sandwich, eh? and what could possibly be better than the vegan club? the traditional double-decker sandwich comes layered with several pieces of turkey meat and vegetables between 3 slices of bread, and is so big that each quarter of it has to be held together with cocktail sticks.

los angeles, being a great town for vegans and all, has several restaurants that offer animal-free versions of the meaty sandwich. we set out in an effort to try all of them, and first on our list was follow your heart.

Club Sandwich: The Classic Triple Decker on Toasted Whole Wheat Bread with Turkey-Style Wheatmeat, Vegetarian Bacon Bits, Lettuce, Tomato, Thousand Island Dressing, and Vegenaise. $8.50

the all vegetarian restaurant in the valley is known for its massive unconquerable sandwiches, and the club is no different. basically two meals in one, it comes with double layers of seitan, wheat bread, green leaves and fresh tomatoes. unlike most clubs this comes with bacon bits instead of sliced bacon, but it’s surprisingly good!

at $8.50 it’s reasonably priced and too big to eat in one sitting. by default it arrives with a side of carrot chips, but you can upgrade to fries for an extra charge…and you can also add avocado to your club, which i’m totally gonna do next time.

as with everything at follow your heart, be sure to specify you want your sandwich vegan. while they don’t serve any flesh at this restaurant, if you aren’t careful you may end up vegetarian animal products. i always just tell the staff i am vegan to avoid any slip-ups.

so there you have it, a damn good sandwich. so far, so good. who will be next to join the club club? wait and see.

Follow Your Heart
21825 Sherman Way
Canoga Park, CA 91303
(818) 348-3240

While we usually cover LA’s extraordinary selection of vegan and vegan-friendly restaurants (vegan, vegetarian and vegan-friendly), some individual menu items in our city stand out as exceptional, and we thought they deserved their own post.

We chose no-compromise vegan foods: menu items that make no apology for being vegan and that, with only a couple of exceptions, you can order pretty much any time.

Have some things to add to the list, or stuff you don’t like? Let us know in the comments!

A Taste of Life “Breakfast Sandwich”

UPDATE: just found out that in addition to being available at the Hollywood Farmers Market, this amazing breakfast sandwich can be found at Locali…so you can eat it seven days a week!

Why? Because it’s awesome, and they don’t run out of them now by 10am like they used to! The Hollywood Farmer’s Market is a Mecca for LA vegans, with plenty of superb things to enjoy. However, the staple food item to eat on the spot is from Taste Of Life. Their amazing Breakfast Sandwich is substantial, filling, tasty and completely vegan, costs only $5 and can be unwrapped and eaten on the go while you’re stocking up on stupidly over-priced organic carrots.

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

Of course, if Taste Of Life does run out of La’s only vegan “McMuffin” , don’t forget you can get a side of amazing Mac ‘n’ Cheese which you can also wolf down while walking around the market.

Locali “Vegan Reuben”

LA’s eponymous Vegan Reuben Wars are, by now, legend. Despite the fact that Locali has done its best to alienate its twitter following, they do make some pretty amazing prepared vegan food, and the Reuben is no different. Like many dishes on this list, somebody sat down, deconstructed a Reuben, thought about how to veganize it, and experimented to perfect it. The resulting complex array of flavors and textures indicate this was no mean feat. We have had readers who have tried this sandwich write in from various different states, and tell us that this is the best vegan reuben they’ve ever tasted. Seriously!

vegan reuben: marinated deli slices topped with daiya cheese, sauerkraut & smothered with homemade vegan russian dressing. $9.75

Pure Luck Anything with jackfruit in it!

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

Why? Because Jackfruit, done Pure Luck style, is practically in a food group of its own. From the world infamous Todd’s Barbecue Sandwich, to the Jackfruit Torta, Tacos and Burrito, whatever they do to this exotic Bangladeshi delicacy (the Jackfruit is the National Fruit of Bangladesh, in case you didn’t know) takes it to a whole new level. Of course, any of the above ordered with a side of Potato Pals will fill you up on amazing, great value food. Oh, and they have a great selection of microbrews too, served on tap at reasonable prices…

todd's bbq sandwich: BBQ Jackfruit “pulled-pork” with pickles, onions and vegan mayo on a rustic roll. choice of side. $9

Madeleine Bistro “Donut”

fresh organic donut with organic fruit compote. $2

Why? Because like everything Chef Dave prepares, the donut is at the pinnacle of vegan cuisine. Something so simple and yet so tasty is a real treat to enjoy, and it arrives warm and crispy to your table. Of course, if you go to Madeleine’s for a donut, don’t forget the other menu items so that you can order some of the best vegan food on the West Coast (or any coast, actually). Yeah, and it costs only $2… WTF?

M Cafe “Vegan Benedict”

vegan benedict: grilled whole-grain baguette steamed kale, tomato, tempeh bacon with soy hollandaise. $10.25

Why? Because LA is awash with Vegan Benedicts, and most are created pretty equal – usually some form of English Muffin with tofu, spinach and a creamy sauce. M Cafe, however, throws all they have into the pot on this one with their own crusty bread (baked on the premises), an awesome scrambled tofu mix, crunchy tempeh bacon and perfectly steamed kale, all topped with a wonderfully creamy hollandaise-style sauce. It’s a feast for two, easily eatable by one.

Vinh Loi Tofu “VL Sub”

ham sub at vinh loi tofu $5.50

Why? Because getting full in this town on tasty vegan food for only $5.50 is only really possible in one place: Vinh Loi Tofu. Chef Kevin Tran takes a generous size half baguette, and stuffs it full of his legendary seasoned “vegan meats” (from his factory out back), tons of vegetables, fresh jalapenos and sells it at a rock bottom price. Oh, and while you’re there, order some excellent deep fried tofu, Pad Thai or noodle soup to eat in, or to go. This stuff keeps in the fridge for weeks, and heats up really well, so stock up!

Purgatory Pizza Any of their gourmet pizzas

vegan pizza: daiya cheese, kalamata olives, fresh basil and tomatoes.

Why? Back in the day, Purgatory was the only pizza joint in LA that truly innovated the art of gourmet vegan pizza – breaking away from the humdrum Follow Your Heart cheese. Even though the legendary Chef Ricky has moved out of LA, Purgatory continues to create his awesome recipes with Daiya cheese as well as Field Roast and Gardein “meats”, gourmet sauteed vegetables and a pioneering creativity unmatched anywhere else. Also, you can BYOB, and eat in – try it, you won’t be sorry!

Purgatory was, is and (until a challenger unseats it!) the best vegan pizza in LA.

Stuff I Eat “The Soul Food Platter”

organic soul food platter: yams, Vegan mac 'n ' cheese, Organic BBQ Tofu, organic kale greens, organic mini cornbread muffins and your choice of organic potato salad or coleslaw. $18

Why? Because just a few blocks from I405 down in Old Town Inglewood lurks one of the most sumptuous vegan dishes known to man, woman or beast. The “Soul Food Platter” is a bit of an understatement, as this dish arrives on two plates, two bowls and a jug or two of sauces and dressing and spans the gamut of Soul Food from beans to mac n cheese to cornbread and greens. (Not all of it would fit into the picture, there are side dishes missing!) This meal is arguably the best vegan thing to eat in LA, is all fresh, organic and just fucking awesome. Nuff Said. Go try it.

Meet Market “All You Can Eat Brunch”

vegans get their fill of breakfast, orange juice, and coffee on sunday mornings. $10

Why? I’ll tell you why. Tofu scramble. Breakfast potatoes. “Bacon”. Seitan sausage. Waffles. French toast. Fresh fruit. All of it the best in town, and all of it (and as much of it) available to you most Sundays for only $10 a person. Add in unlimited organic coffee and fresh orange juice with everything completely vegan, and this event seems too good to be true. Well, it isn’t. It’s good AND true, proving heaven really is a place on earth – or in Silverlake, at least.

The Frankenstand “The Franken” or “The Witch”

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

Mr. Ray “catch me if you can” Frankenstand invented illusive, desirable mobile food dining long before Kogi was a glimmer in Mike Prasad’s eye (he invented Kogi, right?!). Peering out of the shadows of an obscure MySpace page, Frankenstand now has a twitter presence and is much easier to find these days. Show up as late as you like when Frankens are being cooked, and you’ll enjoy awesome service, creative plant-based dogs and a range of sides and toppings, all completely vegan. I love standing in line at 1am outside an event watching omnivores wolfing down vegan food, and going back for more. You should too.

There are, of course, another 10 awesome meals in LA – Samosa House Jackfruit Curry, Native Foods Cheeseburger, Cafe Muse Buffalo Wrap, Cruzer Pizza (form the all-vegan location in Los Feliz), Flore Seitan Avocado Salad, Frysmith Chili Fries, Veggie Grill V Burger, Mamas Hot Tamales Enchiladas, Shojin Sushi, Yummy Cupcakes in a jar (an amazing invention, if you ask me, and the jars have a second life as wine glasses!).

There are also another 10, and 10 after that too. I love being a vegan in LA with such a huge choice of amazing things to eat every day.

yeah, yeah, yeah…so i have already raved about sandwiches from north hollywood’s hy-mart deli on a couple of occasions, but that isn’t gonna stop me from doing it again.

i still can’t choose a favorite menu item, because every sandwich/wrap/creation i order from hy-mart is absolutely wonderful. here we have the shahkloot special (be sure to specify vegan, no cheese!):

shahkloot special (no cheese!): tabouleh, greek olives, cucumber, avocado, hummus, falafel, herbs and all the veggies. $6.95

at under 7 bucks, this is the perfect cheap and satisfying meal. but don’t take my word for it…go to the valley and see for yourselves.

check out this post for hy-mart’s vegetarian menu (which is pretty much all veganizable)!

hy-mart deli
4762 Lankershim Blvd
North Hollywood, CA 91602
(818) 506-7264
Mon-Fri. 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Sat. 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Sun. 12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

PS: hy-mart may not be open today, i dunno. i heard it was a bank holiday or something.

falafel and hummus pita sandwich $5

looking for a great vegan sandwich to shove in your face? look no farther than pita bar and grill on fairfax. for five bucks you can get a pita stuffed with falafel, hummus, and fresh vegetables drenched in tahini and hot sauce.

the restaurant also has a buffet-style salad bar that’s open to all customers, where you can fill up on as many marinated vegetables as you like.

though the pita bar and grill does serve meat, there is no dairy in the restaurant at all. so if you avoid the flesh and egg-based sauces, it’s pretty easy to eat vegan there. i suggest you go try out the falafel sandwich ASAP, and be sure to get your fill from the salad bar.

pita bar and grill
519 N Fairfax Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 653-9024

bld is a trendy little restaurant on beverly that keeps long hours and has a surprisingly vegan-friendly menu. after reading a really positive review of their vegan benedict in the forums, we headed over there this weekend for brunch to check it out. i am happy to report that the benedict was nothing short of amazing, and overall we had a great dining experience.

bld’s vegan benedict comes with two veggie patties, leafy arugula and thick slices of tofu bacon atop round pieces of crispy bread, all smothered in creamy and slightly spicy hollandaise. every single layer of this thing is perfect—from the smokey bacon and crumbly patty to the rich and wonderfully seasoned sauce. this may very well be the best vegan benedict in los angeles, i think it’s only real competition would be from m cafe.

vegan benedict with house smoked tofu bacon, veggie patty, wilted arugula, dairy free hollandaise, choice of potatoes. $13

the meal comes with your choice of breakfast potatoes, and we went with the olive oil roasted fingerlings. wow, wow, wow, were they amazing. i kid you not, some of the most delicious potatoes i’ve ever eaten. small, slightly oily, and crispy around the edges—these were cooked just right.

eggless egg salad sandwich with tofu, celery, red onion, lemon tofu aioli, avocado spread, french fries or salad. $13

we also shared the eggless egg salad sandwich with a side of fries, which was tasty but not as memorable as the benedict. the sandwich came on soft grainy bread and was stacked with soft pieces of cubed tofu in a creamy sauce. my only complaint is that the filling was a little bland, but that sure didn’t stop me from eating my entire half of the sandwich. the fries that came with it, though, were amazing—super thin, crispy, and well seasoned.

bld has a full bar with a great cocktail, wine, and beer selection. unfortunately when we dined there, it was before 10am, which is too early (even for a lush like me) to start drinking. instead i had small coffee, which came in a french press and was exceptional.

for a hip and popular restaurant that caters to mostly hollywood-type omnivores, bld does an amazing job with their vegan offerings. i highly recommend you get over there and try out the benedict ASAP. i know i will be back to bld very soon and very often.

bld
7450 Beverly Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90036-2701
(323) 930-9744
Sunday – Wednesday: 8 am to 10 pm
Thursday – Saturday: 8 am to 11 pm

special thanks to lucysnowe from the forums for letting me know about this place. you can read her review of the benedict here.

about two months ago a veggie grill location opened up in west hollywood (dangerously close to my house), and since then i just can’t get enough of it! for those of you who have never been there…it’s kind of like an upscale fast food place with relatively low prices, that serves an all vegan menu of burgers and sandwiches. unlike your typical fast food place though, the portions at veggie grill are massive and appetizing, and the atmosphere is clean and relaxing.

the v-burger: marinated and grilled veggie-steak burger, pickles, lettuce, tomato, onion, chipotle ranch. comes with a side/ $8.95

veggie grill is the kind of place you’d want to take an omnivore who thinks vegan food is bland and boring. the menu is filled with meat facsimiles ranging from burgers and beef sandwiches to wings and chicken wraps. one of my favorite things to order is the v-burger (pictured above). it comes with a moist and succulent gardein patty (which is probably my favorite product gardein makes, yet it isn’t available in stores!), topped with fresh vegetables and chipotle ranch. it’s hearty and filling, yet not huge and disgusting. i feel satisfied and just right after eating it, not all sick and bloated. if you are a burger kind of person, be sure to try this one because i think it’s one of the best vegan burgers in town.

steamin' kale: tender kale with a ginger-miso dressing and roasted sesame seeds.

the v-burger comes with a side of slaw or chili, but for an extra charge you can upgrade to a side of sweet potato fries or kale (pictured above). while the sweet potato fries are great and come with a really tasty dipping sauce, i can never resist the leafy allure of the kale. veggie grill steams it so that it’s soft and wilty but with a slight crunch. the best thing about it though, is that it’s covered in a tangy miso dressing with sesame seeds that is so delicious i could drink it straight. oh, and over by the soda machine, veggie grill has an unmarked bottle of hot sauce. that also goes well on the kale, and that i could also drink straight.

bean me up chili: red and white beans, touch of soy cream, chopped green and red onion. $2.95

another item i seem to order every time i’m at veggie grill is the bean me up chili. this vegan chili doesn’t have any faux meat in it, it’s just two types of beans in a slightly spicy sauce, topped with vegan sour cream and onion and served with crispy bread. you can get a small serving that’s pretty filling for just under 3 bucks! score!

all-american stack: grilled veggie steak, thousand island dressing, pickles, lettuce, tomato, topped with crispy onion rings. comes with a side. $8.95

the all-american stack is the sandwich i hear people raving about the most from veggie grill, so this may be the one you’d want to recommend to a meat-eater. it comes with grilled strips of steak and fresh vegetables on a bun, all topped off with thick and crispy onion rings. this thing is pretty decadent and very filling, so eat it when you are super hungry.

chipotle bbq: shredded veggie-steak, marinated in tangy bbq sauce, with chopotle ranch, caramelized onion, lettuce tomato. served protein-style on kale. $8.50

for the carb-watchers out there (you crazy freaks), veggie grill will serve your burger or sandwich on kale rather than a bun at no extra charge. i don’t why you would ever want to do this, but my omnivorous co-worker ordered the meal above and absolutely loved it.

so if you haven’t been to veggie grill weho yet, i don’t know what the heck you are waiting for! they are conveniently located at sunset and crescent heights and they even validate parking. i love this restaurant for hearty, simple, vegan comfort food…and it’s a great place to bring people who think eating food w/o animals in it means deprivation.

veggie grill
8000 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90046
(323) 822-7575
7days 11am-11pm

PS: rumor is, veggie grill is gonna start carrying VEGAN MAC AND CHEESE soon too!!!!!!! omg can’t wait.

you are probably aware that there’s a war going on in los angeles right now; an epic battle of vegan reubens. people go nuts over these sandwiches and there’s a constant search to find out which one is THE BEST. so far on this site, we’ve gone over the offerings from flore, cafe flourish, follow your heart and cafe muse, but now i think i‘ve finally found my favorite of them all…the vegan reuben from locali.

locali’s vegan reuben is tasty for so many reasons, i don’t even know where to start. two thick slices of soft and delicious swirly rye bread are stuffed with daiya cheese, creamy russian dressing, sauerkraut, and mounds of thinly-sliced faux meat. before serving, locali toasts the sandwich so it’s all warm and melty when you eat it…OMFG so good!

vegan reuben: marinated deli slices topped with daiya cheese, sauerkraut & smothered with homemade vegan russian dressing. $9.75

i love this reuben because it’s filled with pink deli slices that do a really great job at emulating corned beef. this is the kind of vegan sandwich i would feed to an omnivore to really knock their socks off. locali doesn’t skimp on the ingredients either—they use daiya, which is the best vegan cheese you can get in LA, and also an ample amount of dressing so the sandwich isn’t dry at all. they put so much faux meat and cheese in this thing, i was completely stuffed after eating just half of it. just be sure to specify that you want your reuben made vegan, because i think the default one is vegetarian.

sorry other reubens, as of now this one is my favorite.

locali
5825 Franklin Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90028-5609
(323) 466-1360

UPDATE: just received the following comment from shoop’s. apparently vegan diners should order sandwiches on the baguette. be sure to double check that your bread is vegan when ordering.

Hi! I’m from Shoop’s. And yes, we do our best to accommodate all of our vegan customers. I just wanted to clarify about the bread. The above pictured sandwich is on a baguette, which is vegan. It’s the Foccacia which has an egg wash. We also have a great German multigrain bread. Thanks for the review!!

located on hayworth right at santa monica blvd in weho, shoop’s is a modest hole in the wall shop with an impressive menu of breakfast items, wraps, hot and cold sandwiches, soups and salads. but the place is so tiny and tucked away, that if you didn’t know it was there you would totally miss it. while shoop’s is by no means a vegan mecca and i wouldn’t suggest herbivores make a special trip there, it has some great animal-free selections.

when i hit up shoop’s a few weeks ago, the owner was working behind the counter. she was super-friendly and willing to answer all my questions about which menu offerings contained animal products. in fact she told me she used to be a vegan herself, and warned me not to order my sandwich on the baguette (egg wash), nor to order anything with soy turkey (egg whites). i knew i was in good hands. she also told me that for vegans, shoop’s would be willing to sub tofu and vegan mayo on any sandwich…so feel free to modify.

timber's tofu filet: grilled marinated tofu, avocado, roasted red peppers, sprouts and vegan mayo. served with fruit. $8.95

i wound up ordering timber’s tofu filet on focaccia bread, a hot sandwich stacked with grilled marinated tofu, avocado, roasted peppers (which i left off), sprouts and vegan mayo. this sandwich was simple, but really excellent. the bread was extremely high quality, crunchy and fluffy stuff—shoop’s obviously doesn’t cut any corners—and the grilled tofu was tender and deliciously marinated. the owner even made a remark to me that she thought their tofu was better than most places because shoop’s doesn’t “just soak it in soy sauce.” i don’t know what they do marinate it in, but it was tasty.

as i was packing up the second half of my sandwich (it was way too big to eat in one sitting), the owner brought me a small cup of lentil soup. she explained that shoop’s daily soup is almost always vegan, and i should try it out. yum…thick and hearty with soft lentil chunks, this thing really hit the spot.

while there isn’t a huge vegan selection at shoop’s, it’s nice to know that there is a sandwich shop willing to accommodate us. the place is SUPER vegetarian-friendly, so maybe if we bother them enough they will switch to a brand of soy turkey that doesn’t have egg whites in it!

just remember, get your sandwich on focaccia NOT a baguette! ….and order it with fruit, the coleslaw isn’t vegan.

shoop’s
1107 north hayworth
west hollywood, ca 90046
323-654-9500

oh oh oh, and they have a santa monica location too!

shoop’s
2400 main st. #a-l
santa monica
310-452-1019

over the past couple weeks, i have been heading out to the valley to lunch it up at north hollywood’s hoppin’ little take-out and delivery restaurant, healthyca. the place is just a tiny hole in the wall on lankershim with short weekday only hours, but it has loads of vegan options with several salads, sandwiches and hot plates to choose from. i’ve tried a few things off the menu at healthyca, and so far the way i feel about the food there is, i either love it or i hate it…or i think it’s okay.

vegan feast: tofu trio (teriyaki, tomato and ginger olive) on a bed of red cabbage. $9.95

let’s start with the dish i absolutely loved…the vegan feast. it was the first thing i ever tried at healthyca, and i was so blown away by it that i was ready to call this place my new favorite restaurant. a vegan feast it is indeed with a hearty portion of well marinated tofu, and your choice of two sides. to make things super easy, all the sides at healthyca are vegan except for the potato salad. i ordered this with red mashed potatoes and grilled white asparagus, and dude…it was all phenomenal.

i am such a lame foodie that this was my first time ever eating white asparagus, but i think it’s safe to say that i will now be a fan for life.

the best thing about this feast, though, was the mound of thick grilled tofu chunks, soaked in a most exquisite and flavorful sauce. it was super tomatoey and oily, and went great with all the cilantro and purple cabbage. there was also so much of it, i ended up stuffing myself and still taking a bunch of food home.

now for the dish i hated: the veggie delight.

veggie delight: vegan macrobiotic tofu-grain patty with pesto sauce. $9.95

the veggie delight sounds well and good from the menu description, a vegan macrobiotic tofu-grain patty served with pesto sauce with your choice of two sides. it’s the same price as the vegan feast, so i was a bit disappointed and underwhelmed when it showed up looking so small. instead of a massive pile of tofu, this hot plate comes with two thin patties that without much texture or flavoring. i was expecting them to be much more hearty made of grains and tofu like a good veggie burger, but these limp things just tasted like mashed up garden vegetables. to be fair, the sides of quinoa and asparagus i got with them were awesome, and the tofu pesto sauce was decent, but the patties were just blech.

lastly the dish that i thought was okay: the healthyca sausage (be sure to say “NO MAYO”!)

healthyca sausage: homemade vegan sausage on sesame roll with tomato, lettuce, grilled onion, tofu pesto and red pepper sauces. $9.25

to be fair, this dish didn’t belong to me….it was ordered by my lunch partner brittany from sickoflettuce.com. i did get to taste it though, so i figure i’m allowed to have an opinion on it. at $9.25, this thing really was a good deal. the sandwich was huge, and it came with a healthy-sized side of your choice (she chose quinoa). it actually arrived at our table looking a lot bigger than the veggie delight, which cost 70cents more. hmph. while it was really attractively priced and the portion was large, i thought the sandwich was just alright. it advertised itself as a vegan sausage, it was more like the same vegetable patty i had in the veggie delight! there was nothing mock-meaty about it. brittany seemed to think it was decent, but i definitely didn’t hear her raving about it or anything.

so there you go, a quick little run down of some of the vegan offerings at healthyca. while i thought the veggie delight was gross, and the healthyca sausage was nothing to write home about, i can’t stress enough that the vegan feast was fucking amazing! i know i will be back soon to eat that again. for all you peeps who work in the valley or are jobless, this is a great place for a weekday lunch. for everyone else, unfortunately healthyca is closed evenings and weekends. oh well.

for more pix and reviews of healthyca, you should check out this category on foodeater’s blog toliveandeatinla.com. i think she has eaten practically everything vegan there is to try on the menu! so check it.

healthyca
4724 lankershim blvd
noho, ca 91602
monday-friday
11am-6pm

this week the meet market, a hybrid vegan sandwich and specialty grocery shop, has opened in silverlake in the spot that used to be flore cafe. they have a small but appetizing and reasonably priced hot menu, as well as some grocery shelving and a refrigeration unit full of goodies. i stopped by yesterday to have a look and a taste of what was going down, and i must say i was impressed!

roast beef and cheddar: "beef" strips with grilled onion, bbq sauce and "cheese" sauce. $5.95

i ordered the roast beef and cheddar sandwich, which is quite sizable and a total steal at under $6. the thing comes piled with strips of faux meat, grilled onions, and an amazing runny “cheese” sauce. the dude who took my order was super nice, and gave me a cup of water to sip as i looked around the shop and waited for my sandwich.

although the meet market doesn’t have a ton of groceries right now, they definitely have some good stuff. they have a shelf full of snacky things like tings, have’a corn chips, vegan gummy bears, and soy jerky. they also have a refrigeration case up front filled with staples like kombucha, silk nog, and the non-hydrogenated tofutti cream cheese.

i got my food to-go, and when i unwrapped it at home i just couldn’t believe the big beefy and cheesy hot mess staring back at me. it was great. since the vegan spot shut down, there just really hasn’t been a place where you can get fast, hearty comfort food…so this was a real treat.

over the next few weeks, the meet market will continue to grow and offer more and more products. for now though, just drop in and pick up a few of those vegan novelty items that are hard to find, and enjoy their sandwich and salad menu. for now, the meet market has pretty short opening hours (11am – 4pm on weekdays and 11am-8pm on weekends), but let’s hope those expand as well.

here is a peek at the menu, so you can decide what to order when you visit:

oh and BTW, the meet market will continue to do the all you can eat buffets on weekends that flore cafe was famous for. yay!

the meet market
3206 W Sunset Blvd (at Descanso)
Los Angeles, CA 90026

cafe flourish, an awesome little vegan restaurant in the miracle mile district of los angeles, has recently added some new stuff to their sandwiches menu. now in addition to their reuben (one of LA’s best), BLTA, and soy hot dogs, they also have a vegan burger and grilled cheese!

of course, i had to try both and these things did not disappoint.

flourish burger: our house-made southwest style veggie burger. slightly spicy, completely delicious! lettuce, tomato and a creamy "cheesy" sauce on a multi-grain bun. $9.75

first up, the flourish burger. it’s my belief that any restaurant worth its salt should offer a vegan burger. thankfully, now cafe flourish does… and it’s a damn good one. it’s thick and hearty, with a zesty homemade patty that’s packed with vegetables and covered in rich creamy vegan cheese. it’s pretty spicy and really flavorful, and with a side salad of your choice, it’s a good deal for under ten bucks.

next up is the cheese louise, cafe flourish’s take on a classic grilled cheese sandwich. this has been a special on flourish’s menu for awhile, but now it looks like it has earned a permanent spot.

cheese louise: our stuffed grilled cheese. incredibly melty and delicious daiya cheese, caramelized onions and guacamole on french white bread grilled to perfection. $9

this thing is stuffed with cheddar and italian daiya (the best vegan cheese ever), as well as caramelized onions and guacamole. i’ve never had guacamole in a grilled cheese sandwich, but wow, brilliant! the two flavors of daiya mixed with sweet onions and creamy avocado was definitely a winning combo. it comes with a side salad, and i got the quinoa which is incredible. i really loved this sandwich, but my only complaint is that $9 is a lot to pay for a grilled cheese. oh well.

so head over to cafe flourish and check out their new menu items ASAP. i love this restaurant more and more every time i go. yum time.

cafe flourish
5406 Wilshire Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 939-3932