quarrygirl

urbano pizza bar: a must visit

if you are a vegan living in los angeles, you should make it a priority to eat at urbano pizza bar downtown. trust me. the establishment just changed chefmanship, and under the supervision of exec chef bruce kalman, there’s a newfound focus on fresh vegetables and vegan options. most of the ingredients are handpicked at a local farmers market, and it really comes through in the taste. in fact, i’d venture to say that even though urbano is new to the vegan pizza game, they already make the best pie in town. here’s what we ate:

vegan farmers market pizza special of the night: daiya cheese, truffle oil, hedgehog mushrooms, spring onions, green garlic, leeks and pea tendrils. $14

(we sat at the chef’s counter, which has a great view of the kitchen!)

roasted sweet garlic, warm bread. $4

LOOK AT THAT GARLIC!

garlic oil in a medicine dropper? yes!

leafy broccoli, garlic, chilies, meyer lemon, balsamic. $7

antipasti: locally grown farmers market vegetables and grains. $6

on this night it was mushrooms, roasted asparagus, fennel, leeks, faro, and more. they left off the carrots because they were cooked in honey. props to urbano for knowing honey isn’t vegan.

heirloom fingerling potatoes and herbs. (no dip!) $6

roasted artichokes sans aioli.

great interior at urbano too—-long sleek tables and dim lighting.

i really can’t speak highly enough of this place. we loved the food, the atmosphere, the wine…everything. plus, there’s $5 parking at the library tower. just be sure to get validated. 

thanks for looking out for the vegans, urbano!

pitfire pizza: get it together!

let me start by saying: i think pitfire pizza is awesome and delicious. they have several locations in LA and serve some pretty tasty “artisan” (what does that word REALLY mean?!) pizzas with daiya cheese as an option. i raved about them previously here. 

however after eating several screwed WTF? meals at the north hollywood location, i need to voice my frustration! for the most part, i love it. i love ordering at the counter, i love the crisp toppings, the craft beer selection, the sunlit dining area. however, my last 4 pitfire experiences have included vegan orders that accidentally/negligently included animal products. fucked up! here’s the latest:

hit up pitfire today with a group of vegan homies. we scheduled our break from work accordingly—-at noon, before the lunch rush. here’s what went wrong:

-sublime was playing when we arrived, only to be followed by the red hot chili peppers. awful vs terrible.

-after braving the long line, we were told pitfire was out of vegan cheese. our crew had to roll cheeseless. that’s fine, but not so great when you’re getting a bunch of vegans together to have a special lunch.

-my pal’s pizza came out covered in the correct toppings…plus arugula. she mentioned it was wrong, and the staff apologized but didn’t immediately offer her a new pizza. she decided to just eat it, only to find out after one slice that it had random REAL CHEESE shreds streaked across it. 

-to be fair, pitfire offered up a gift card, but the damage had been done.

such a weird, uncomfortable dining experience. right? previous to this, i’ve had the following fuck ups: real cheese in my vegan salad (twice), real cheese AND daiya on my parents’ vegan pizza. WHO PUTS REAL CHEESE AND VEGAN CHEESE ON A VEGAN PIZZA?

glad that’s off my chest. i encourage you all to eat at pitfire. it’s great. but if you eat at the valley location, inspect the fuck outta your food!

city o’ city: too good for words.

words can’t adequately describe how much i love city o’ city in denver. it’s an entirely vegetarian bar/pizza place where everything can be made vegan—-and they’ve recently doubled the size of the menu and even added breakfast options. here’s what a table full of friends and i ate last time i was there (during the 2011 GABF):

buffalo seitan wings with “ranch” and celery.

fork & knife sandwich: meatless loaf with gravy and fries on a pretzel served with sautéed greens.

fried pickles drizzled with malt vinegar gastrique. 

florentine pizza with olive oil, tomatoes, spinach, mushrooms, homemade vegan cheese and rosemary.

the wings and the fork & knife sandwich were especially memorable. i’d say if you’re ever anywhere near denver, it’s worth making a special trip to city o’ city. wish we had a place like this in LA.

LAVBF3 meeting

today i met up with the team from the roxy and the folks from tony’s darts away at mohawk bend to discuss the next LA vegan beer fest. it’s happening this spring, and we’ll announce the dates soon, so lookout! until then, feast your eyes on all the amazing food we ate at mohawk:

broccoli soup

a v is for vegan burger and a salad daze pizza

vegan buffalo wings made from cauliflower (my new favorite!)

the flash gordon salad (this was incredible. trust me, order it!)

and of course, beer.

can’t wait to fill you in on the latest LA vegan beer fest deets! this year is gonna be epic.

pizza port!

pizza port rules. i mean, their slogan is “tasty grub and grog”…my 2 favorite things.

fresh beer

vegan cheese-less pizza with loads of toppings

vegetables with hummus

beer buddies (no cheese)

not all beers are vegan, so check with the staff about which ones are.

800 degrees carries daiya

a super trendy pizzeria just opened up in westwood this week called 800 degrees, and as of today they carry daiya cheese to make vegan pizzas. the crust and sauce are vegan too, so knock yourself out. supposedly they make pizzas in 60 seconds OR LESS. i have no idea how that’s even possible, but people have been raving about this place. 

here’s the menu. 

have at it!