VEGAN DONUTS in LA!!
fuck yes. LA has been in dire need of good vegan donuts, and finally the wait is over. starting now hedgehog coffee shop in echo park will be stocking limited quantities of twice baked vegan donuts on fridays and weekends starting at 9am in the following flavors: maple glazed with coconut bacon, maple glazed with crumb topping, and chocolate glazed with sprinkles. GO GET SOME. if the donuts sell well, they’ll become a regular fixture at hedgehog which would be good news for everyone!
if you haven’t heard of twice baked vegan, it’s a fantastic little local bakery that makes some of the most delicious and inventive treats i’ve ever tried. seriously, go go go get some donuts. i will race you to the maple bacon one. it’s miiiiine!
follow @twicebakedvegan on twitter to track their donut drop offs, and you may also want to call hedgehog for availability in case they sell out.
This is happening right now. vegan grilled cheese by the roxy in the sunset strip market beer garden. Get over here! Best grilled cheese ever: pepper jack, soyrizo, jalapeños and fresh salsa.
UPDATE 10/1/12: check out all the new menu items here. BTW, the bangkok curry bowl is staying!
UPDATE 9/24/12: this just in! new menu items will also include polenta cakes, quesadilla, pea soup, and french onion soup. supposedly it’s all phenomenal.
new native foods menu coming on october 2nd! the bad news is, the restaurant will be getting rid of pizza, the bangkok curry bowl, caesar salad, and both vanilla and cardamom rose cupcakes. the good news is, they’ll be adding a steak sandwich, pumpkin pie, and pumpkin cheesecake! can’t wait to try the new stuff.
beyond meat hits LA in the madeleine bistro box!!!
fuck yes. the long awaited vegan meat that tastes scarily (awesomely?) like the real thing is finally hitting LA. BEYOND MEAT. get it. food critics, news outlets, bloggers, omnivores, and herbivores alike all agree: it rules. we got a sneak peek several months ago and we are beyond excited that it’s finally available to the public.
while beyond meat is commonplace in norcal whole foods, the only place you can get in LA is in the bistro box! that’s the weekly home delivery service from our all time favorite restaurant, madeleine bistro. to check out this week’s menu (meatloaf, chicken chopped salad, fajitas and more!) plus get some killer discounts, peep the MB facebook page. trust me, you really can’t go wrong with the box or with beyond meat. this is a match made in heaven. happy nommin’!
i have a new favorite pizza place in los angeles and it’s called pizzanista. not only is their vegan pie unreal, but they regularly stock vegan slices! for toppings they’ve got good stuff like daiya cheese, and three different fake meats made by my favorite seitan company, upton’s naturals. CHECK IT. and hit up the little bear down the road for some beers beforehand. perfect night.
vegan soft serve at chicago o’hare airport. terminal 3, at a place called b-smooth (next to burrito beach!) (Taken with Instagram at Terminal 3)
vegan craft beer adventure at stone world bistro and gardens
when it comes to sipping on fine beer and dining on fresh vegan fare in a magnificently idyllic setting, you can’t go wrong with stone world bistro. stone is one of the biggest names in the craft beer business, but with its organic restaurant, impressive gardens and sustainable farm, its headquarters is so much more than a brewery. located in escondido just 100 miles south of LA, it makes for a quick and relaxing getaway or the perfect lunch stop on the way to san diego.
earlier this summer, i (along with some fellow bloggers and friends from golden road brewing) was lucky enough to be treated to a four course vegan meal made with ingredients sourced from stone’s local farm and masterfully prepared by chef alex carballo. pictured above going clockwise we have: broccoli pea soup; spinach salad with beets, sweet onions, and orange segments; braised greens with quinoa tabbouleh; and tofu yakisoba. all phenomenal. i’m happy to report that the yakisoba is a regular item on the stone menu, along with many other vegan options, and it happens to be one of my favorite noodle dishes of all time.
after our meal we grabbed a beer and strolled the beautiful stone gardens. so many little grassy secluded areas, a pond with a waterfall, and even a fire pit—-i’ve never been to a brewery so scenic and welcoming.
we concluded the evening with a tour of the tanks led by stone’s very own randy clemens (you may know him as the author of the sriracha cookbook), and boy was it impressive. i think my favorite part was being in a tiny chilled room containing $60,000 worth of hops—-the smell didn’t leave my nose for days!
if you’re a vegan beer lover and you haven’t been to stone, definitely add this place to your bucket list. there’s really nowhere else like it on on earth.
stoneworldbistro.com
feasting it up at karyn’s cooked in chicago! mac n cheese, soy buffalo wings, a reuben, vegan meatloaf with mushroom gravy, and tiramisu. i must admit, for comfort food, this stuff was refreshingly healthy tasting. the wings were baked, the meatloaf was relatively light, and the mac n cheese wasn’t greasy. i love chicago.
the chicago diner!! i can’t believe i’ve been a vegan for nearly a decade and i’m just now trying this place. the small bustling vegetarian joint has been serving up meat-free classic american cuisine in wrigleyville since 1983 (hey that’s older than me!), and on our five day trip we dined there twice and still left wanting more. check out the “best of” what we ate montage above: the titatnic burger, the chocolate chip cookie dough shake (made with temptation), a plate of potato skins, and the radical reuben with a side of mashed potatoes and gravy. people have been telling me for years that this is one of the best reubens in the country, and i wouldn’t argue with that. i’ve been to a lot of vegan or veganish fast food type places in my time, and this one rules them all. wish they’d open up a location in LA! …actually no i don’t. chicago diner has a nice small business feel, and i’d hate for it to get all chain restaurant corporate-y. when in chicago, don’t miss this place.
*one thing to note: the reuben normally comes with bell peppers (which is straight up disgusting), so if you have an aversion to them be sure to ask for it without.
vegan at lollapalooza day 3! on the last day of lolla, we mined the all access areas for vegan food and did pretty well—-especially considering it was all free! we started with a super pretzel at the snack shack in the lolla lounge VIP section. pretty stodgy compared to the amazing pretzels available in LA at golden road brewing, but it hit the spot. next we took advantage of the build your own taco bar in the lolla lounge. they had vegan refried beans, vegan rice with potatoes and peas, plus plenty of salsa and guacamole. lastly, dinner in the artists’ green room was very vegan-friendly today (unlike yesterday), as they offered a wild rice pilaf as well as a sautéed tofu dish with spinach and tomatoes that was absolutely lovely. a damn good festival food day if you ask me. can’t wait until next year!
vegan at lollapalooza! the options are a bit limited in the main chow town areas, but if you head to the farmers market section you can find some great stuff. on day one we ate portabella tamales and a vegan burger from river valley farms and some cold soy noodles from rock n roll noodle company. plus there was free unlimited sriracha. ROCK!
