more SAD SAD SAD news as yet another vegan restaurant closes its doors.
smac-n-cheese: gluten-free rice elbow pasta with a creamy cheesy sauce. i will miss you 
our beloved cafe flourish will be going out of business early next month. it started a few weeks ago when they shortened their business hours, and now it looks as though they’ve declared defeat. hear it in their own words:
so sad to see yet another vegan business go under. leaf organics has already closed its sherman oaks location, and plans to shut down its culver city restaurant on february 13th at 9pm. their packaged foods will also cease to be available at local retailers.
the good news is, you still have 9 days to get over to leaf and take advantage of the discounts they’ll be offering before they close.
raw food by leaf cuisine
photo from leaf’s website.
while i’ve never been to leaf, i have enjoyed some of their ready made meals from whole foods. i definitely hope to get over to the culver city location before it’s gone for good.
here is an email forwarded to me by a reader, that leaf sent out to their newsletter subscribers:
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.
sorry to start this weekend on a bummer note, but i just learned that the all vegan restaurant casa de tree in west LA will close its doors with no plans to re-open.
we have reviewed casa de tree a couple times, and my only regret is that i didn’t eat there way more often. they have a good mix of heavy and healthy food, an extensive menu, and even a pay by weight salad bar. all beautiful and animal-free.
katsu sandwich: homemade organic seitan katsu, cabbage, mustard and italian miso sauce. served with salad and side dish. $8.95
their website states that they will be closed as of tomorrow saturday january 16th…but i called the restaurant and they said they will be open tomorrow from 10am to 9pm. you should seriously get over there and try their food before it’s all gone. just be sure to call ahead and double check the hours, since there seems to be some conflicting info.
SO SAD TO SEE YET ANOTHER VEGAN BUSINESS CLOSE! we will miss ya, casa de tree!
casa de tree
3741 motor ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90034
310.784.0455
i’ve got some kinda sad news in the vegan-friendly restaurant department: it appears that friedel caribbean cuisine in studio city has closed down.
i only got a chance to try them out once, and while the service was extremely slow, the food was decent and the menu had a good amount of vegan options. plus, in may they even had a booth at wordfest, serving up all kinds of meatless cuisine.
we drove by friedel today, and they seemed to have been replaced by a mexican restaurant. i didn’t have my camera on me (bad blogger!), but their signage was gone and everything. plus their phone number is disconnected, and their website is down.
so long friedel! sad to see a vegan-friendly establishment disappear.
here is their old info:
friedel caribbean cuisine
11320 Ventura Blvd, Studio City, CA 91604
(818) 763-8100
www.friedelcaribbean.com
lemme know if you know anything else about the situation!
sadly, one of my favorite vegetarian restaurants in the world has closed its doors. the time has come to say goodbye to eat and two veg in london.
i have written about eat and two veg before, when i posted on their vegan english breakfast. it’s still the best vegan english breakfast i’ve ever eaten, and it will be sorely missed. this all vegetarian restaurant had tons of vegan options, and it is the only eatery i made it a point to visit on every single trip to london. here is the last meal i ever ate there. oh so sad:
crispy aromatic luck: crispy vegetable protein served with pancakes, hoi sin & plum sauce, spring onion, cucumber & coriander. ₤6.50
we started out with an appetizer and a bottle of red organic wine to share. eat and two veg was a kind of swanky joint with a relaxing vibe and good drinks. i think the last time we were there, we stretched out and settled in for upwards of two hours. our starter was a vegan version of crispy duck, complete with hoi sin plum sauce and thin tortillas to wrap it in. simply delicious.
eatv burger: blend of vegetable protein, herbs and spices on a sesame bun with lettuce, caramelised onions, tomatoes & mayo. served with a mixed leaf salad, coleslaw & fries. ₤9.75
as a main course, we had a couple of eatv burgers and fries. these vegan burgers were thick and hearty, packed with flavor and nicely seasoned. the fries were thin and crispy, american-style, which is super hard to find in london. oh man, this food was so lovely and the wine was so good. i am getting sad just typing this.
anyways, despite a fully functioning website, eat and two veg is now closed. a commenter left the bad news on my old blog post, and sure enough it’s true. according to propertyweek.com, “The two floor unit totaling 3,800 sq ft will be refurbished to re-open as a modern European brasserie in May 2010.” what a fucking shame.
go out and support your local vegetarian/vegan restaurant. they may not be around someday. let’s hope eat and two veg, and doomies, and the vegan spot, and a taste of life all re-open soon….and for now i hope they are at least all playing together up in restaurant heaven.
the decimation of los angeles (okay, well orange county) vegan dining options continues with this week’s closure of that’s amore in cerritos. that’s right, our favorite vegetarian italian eatery has been hit hard by the recession and is being forced to close its doors on wednesday night. come thursday, one of the pioneering restaurants of vegan pizza in southern california, and the only place i know where you can get a vegan cannoli, will be closed for good. no more that’s amore.
decadent vegan cannoli at that's amore
that’s amore came to us at a time when there was practically NO OTHER vegan pizza option in LA/OC, and it is so sad to see them go out like this…especially since they are a vegetarian business. if you don’t have plans over the next few days (or even if you do, you should break them!), head over to that’s amore and get one last slice of amazing vegan pizza plus some authentic italian vegan dessert.
special thanks to the email tipster who sent me this info (which, sadly was confirmed by that’s amore).
that’s amore
13349 Artesia Blvd. Cerritos CA. 90703
Monday thru Saturday 11:00 am to 9:00 pm
(562) 926-2112
it with much regret that i bring you the bad news that one of our favorite restaurants in los angeles , a taste of life, has closed down its storefront. the entirely vegan soul food restaurant has been a staple of LA meatless cuisine, serving up the best milk-free mac and cheese in town, southern black eyed peas, sweet bbq tofu, and amazingly flavorful greens. plus loads of other items such as burgers, sandwiches, lasagna and “secret” off-the-menu delights like fried pot roast and gyro meat. the portions were huge, the prices were decent, and the food was amazing. i know that hundreds of vegans agree with me when i say a taste of life will be sorely missed.
the good news is…you can still get a taste of life’s amazing food in the pre-packaged section at several stores around town, and many of their hot menu items (see the combo pictured above) are available every sunday from their booth at the hollywood farmers market.
before officially announcing all this on the blog, i did get a few emails, comments, and friends telling me that a taste of life had closed down its storefront. hoping it wasn’t true, i contacted a taste of life, and received this statement from the restaurant:
Quarrygirl, what’s up? Long time. Well, I got bad news and good news…Bad news first–sadly the rumor is true. We have closed the restaurant. It just got really slow and of course the area it was in didn’t help. Good news–we are still providing our foods in several ways: Retail, catering, meal plans (coming in November), holiday catering (for the holiday season), personal chef services. Vegetarian/ Vegan consumer trends suggest that people are leaning more towards chilled and frozen prepared foods so we decided to move towards the trend. The economy is tricky. So yes, you can still have your beloved mac and cheese…We still cook out of the kitchen. Thanks for reaching out! Oh, we’re doing cooking classes too starting in November. I’m sure you’ll spread the word. Thanks dear!
they also sent me this handy flyer, with a list of where you can still find a taste of life’s delicious food.
so there you have it. it’s a sad day in the los angeles vegan world, and we are hoping a taste of life finds a way to re-open. until then, don’t miss your chance to get their soul food combo at the hollywood farmers market, and buy their prepared foods (mac and cheese!!!) at your local store. also, if any of you crazy kids plan on getting married, i hear they are great at catering weddings!
a taste of life vegan soul food combo. with some of the best mac and cheese i've EVER tasted.
according to their myspace blog, doomie’s home cookin’ has officially closed for business in its current location. we reported on their temporary closure yesterday, and today it’s looking a lot more permanent.
on a hopeful note, they state that doomie’s is planning to open again in a new location by the end of the year.
unfortunately, on the first day of february, the end of the year is a long, long way away.
i don’t know what to say, i am completely and utterly shocked and saddened by this news. they were one of my favorite spots in los angeles, no doubt.
as the blog says, DOOMIE’S IS STILL AVAILABLE FOR CATERING. if anyone is interested in pitching in ten bucks and having an awesome, vegan mac ‘n cheese throw down, please contact me. let’s give doomie’s some catering business whenever we can.
vegan los angeles is definitely changed now that doomie’s has closed its doors; i will miss the awesome food, great service, and all around unhealthy-tasting and delicious home-cookin’.
philly cheesesteak: strips of beef smothered in cheese piled with grilled onions and mushrooms. $8.75
i hope doomie’s comes back. i mean, WTF…they had the best vegan junk food i’ve ever tasted. not fair i tell ya, fucking not fair.
to keep track of doomie’s and what they are up to, friend them on myspace. they deserve all the support they can get from our vegan community!
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