In NYC I was able to sample the wares of Babycakes.
This past week I also saw four of the coolest ladies in Southern California, rode the subway in LA for the first time (despite having lived in SoCal for 4 years) and whooped it up at the Library Bar.
My omnivore parents were actually bigger fans of Babycakes products than I was (we purchased brownies, a lemon cupcake, a slice of lemon poppy loaf, and cornbread). I eat gluten so I am not familiar with spelt products and I have to say I wasn't a fan of the result in cupcakes. I did enjoy the frosting though. I think the breakdown with vegan products that mimic nonvegan foods is that it is hard to appreciate the taste without comparison.
I loved Zen Bakery - for the simplicity, price, and abundant fiber. I purchased a banana nut muffin, two peanut butter carob cookies, and two raspberry blueberry muffins. The menu says dairy free (makes no mention of eggs) but the website and clerk at the counter confirmed that the items were vegan. Here I didn't suffer from the pains of comparing products - Zen Bakery makes and markets muffins that are "good" for you. I don't know of any butter, milk, egg and sugar "healthy" muffin that could compete. I expected healthy and got healthy. Best of all the muffins were $1.10. Can you believe that??? I got all of the above mentioned products for $6.55. That reason alone will have me going there every time I visit LA. I did heat up the muffin and top it with some coconut milk for a divine treat.
Having spent the past year in Washington DC - and a good portion of it living off of Georgia Avenue - I became very familiar with Soul Vegetarian Cafe. The experience in LA was something else all together. The location is beautiful and the atmosphere is relaxing - which is surprising given the silver paint and disco ball. And the waitress (Carmen) was so much friendlier then anyone I ever encountered in DC. I eagerly ordered grits, a biscuit, sausage patties, and scramble. I was most eager for the biscuit which came out looking like a flat greasy lump and tasted like heaven. Just goes to show - looks can be deceiving. I wasn't overly impressed with the grits, but I did grow up with a grandmother from Alabama who made some wicked grits.
This past week I also saw four of the coolest ladies in Southern California, rode the subway in LA for the first time (despite having lived in SoCal for 4 years) and whooped it up at the Library Bar.
I have lots of pics of people and not so many of the food. I read the chapter on the Secrets of Restaurant Reviewing from "Will Write for Food". It was very informative and got me interested in doing some formal restaurant reviewing. Given the parameters set out in that chapter I can't authentically review any of the above mentioned places. I only ate one time at each location and didn't do any required research. I will give my informal uninformed first impressions though.
My omnivore parents were actually bigger fans of Babycakes products than I was (we purchased brownies, a lemon cupcake, a slice of lemon poppy loaf, and cornbread). I eat gluten so I am not familiar with spelt products and I have to say I wasn't a fan of the result in cupcakes. I did enjoy the frosting though. I think the breakdown with vegan products that mimic nonvegan foods is that it is hard to appreciate the taste without comparison.
I loved Zen Bakery - for the simplicity, price, and abundant fiber. I purchased a banana nut muffin, two peanut butter carob cookies, and two raspberry blueberry muffins. The menu says dairy free (makes no mention of eggs) but the website and clerk at the counter confirmed that the items were vegan. Here I didn't suffer from the pains of comparing products - Zen Bakery makes and markets muffins that are "good" for you. I don't know of any butter, milk, egg and sugar "healthy" muffin that could compete. I expected healthy and got healthy. Best of all the muffins were $1.10. Can you believe that??? I got all of the above mentioned products for $6.55. That reason alone will have me going there every time I visit LA. I did heat up the muffin and top it with some coconut milk for a divine treat.
Having spent the past year in Washington DC - and a good portion of it living off of Georgia Avenue - I became very familiar with Soul Vegetarian Cafe. The experience in LA was something else all together. The location is beautiful and the atmosphere is relaxing - which is surprising given the silver paint and disco ball. And the waitress (Carmen) was so much friendlier then anyone I ever encountered in DC. I eagerly ordered grits, a biscuit, sausage patties, and scramble. I was most eager for the biscuit which came out looking like a flat greasy lump and tasted like heaven. Just goes to show - looks can be deceiving. I wasn't overly impressed with the grits, but I did grow up with a grandmother from Alabama who made some wicked grits.Before I took off from LA I made sure to sample some food from Rahel's Ethiopian Veggie Cuisine. I had Ethiopian for the first time when I moved to DC, just over a year ago. I really can't comment intelligently on the quality of what I eat - I have very little understanding of what "good" Ethiopian food should taste like. All I know is that I love most of what and where I have eaten. I didn't notice a difference between DC and LA Ethiopian. Little Ethiopia in LA is chock full of restaurants, and while my friends went to Nyala, I felt compelled to spend my money at a vegan establishment. I didn't take pics of course (how do all those vegan bloggers remember to snap photos before eating the yummy food?). I ordered the veggie combo which came with three large pieces of injera and loads of split-pea and split-lentil stew. I think the atmosphere in Rahel's was much more pleasant than at Nyala's. And of course I think eating vegan food is much better then meat. Teehee.
Overall I had a great time in LA and while many people may not get a chance to visit some of these places I think it is important to seek out local eateries. Whether you eat veg food or not I think we can all benefit from staying away from chains!
A parting shot of the coolest friends a gal could ask for...
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