Your Vegan Mom

A Pirate and an Astronaut Walk Into a Bar: the four-year-old's review of Mohawk Bend

Me: So, Desmond, what did you think of Mohawk Bend?

Desmond: I like it.

Me: What was the best part?

D: Coming to the hiking path.

(This interview was conducted after dinner on our way to the Silver Lake Reservoir for some after dinner running around.)

Me: Okay, but dinner - what was the best part of dinner at the big new restaurant we just went to?  How was the pizza?

D: I liked it.  I liked that pizza.

(He had the kids meal.  It comes with a really good little pizza, vegan or dairy - be sure you specify!  It was cut into 6 tiny slices so it was perfect for our two under-fives to share.)

Me: Your pizza came with a salad - did you like it?  

D: Yeah.  I liked the salad.

(It was simple and crunchy and perfect for a kid with any level of salad tolerance.)

Me: What else did the kids meal come with?

D: Did it come with those little...with the spicy things...with the fried vegetables?

Me: No, that was Mommy's dinner.  I had the squash and chips, which was actually tempura vegetables.  (In that picture up there it was already half eaten.  It was madness at our table.  Everything was gobbled up in a swarm of legos that I had brought to keep the boys entertained in case of any sort of waiting.  As it turned out, we ordered an artichoke approximately the second we sat down and that kept the boys occupied until dinner arrived even with a couple ordering snafus.  So as I cleaned up all the legos the boys devoured everything on the table.  I quickly photographed and ate what was left in their wake.) You liked that, huh?  Was the sauce good?

D: (Nods enthusiastically.)

(The spicy things the boy referred to were the two tempura-battered chiles.  They were delicious.  I didn't have to share those.)  

Me: Yours came with fries and fruit.  

D: I liked the fries because they were little.  I never had little fries before.

Me: How about the burger?  Did you like the burger that Daddy ordered?

D: No.  Nah.

(I did.  It's a big fat quinoa - lentil patty served on good bread smeared with avocado and dressed with a little pile of ume pickled onions that I loved and wished were a bit more copious.  There's a nice little wedge of homemade-tasting sweet pickle on the side and a little bowl of exceedingly dull coleslaw.  I grudgingly gave him two tiny bites of my half of the burger, so he's not really one to judge.  But to be fair to the burger, he did ask for a second bite and it is comprised mostly of quinoa - which the boy avowedly hates.  It was good...though just a touch under dressed.)

Me: What else should we talk about?  Wasn't the place cool?

D: (Nodding.)

(We sat on the patio in front that is mostly shielded from Sunset Boulevard.  But if you have a runner, well then you're probably not going out to eat, but still I think the best option for families might be the pleasant atrium in the back that doesn't open onto a busy street.  And to deal with more practical matters for families - they have highchairs, but no changing table in the bathroom.  Though there there is a sink with a short counter in the large stall that could serve in a pinch.)  

Me: Should we go there again? 

D: (More nodding.)

Me: Is that restaurant good for kids?

(More enthusiastic nodding.)

Me: I think so too, Buddy.

 

Both of us: Cheers!

(Oh also, if you're looking for a kid's drink, they do serve more than beer.  There's a nice little citrus spritzer of fresh squeezed juice and sparkling water that the boys I think mostly spilled but also enjoyed.  I never got around to asking for a cup with a lid - so I'm not sure if they have them.  And of course, the beer list is excellent and Paul and I want to go back without the kids and sample the entire thoughtful cocktail list - everything just sounds perfect.  Actually, the whole place just about lives up to my restaurant fairy tale expectations.)

Green Earth Vegan Cuisine

 

 

Me: We just had lunch at Green Earth Vegan Cuisine.  What was your favorite part?

Desmond: Guacamole on the chip.

Me: So you liked the nachos?

D: I like the guacamole on the chip with no cheese on it.

Me:  Got it.  How come?  Wait, did you try the cheese?

D: mmhm.

Me: Really!?  I think mommy and daddy hogged all the cheese.

D: Hogged?  What does hogged mean?  There's a hog in the screen.  It looks like... (And he veers off into the fantasy world of the almost four-year-old.)

 

Me: Ok, what about the stuffed shells?

D: Yeah, I do like the stuffed shells.

Me: What did you like about them?

D: I loved them 'cause it had pasta sauce in it and it's made of pasta.

 

Me: How about the eggplant, pumpkin, and tofu dish that they call three flavors?

D: Yeah.  I love that too.

Me: How come?

D: 'Cause I love the punkin.  And I love the tofu.

Banana Spring Rolls with Vanilla Ice Cream

Me: What did we have for dessert?

D: Banana Ice Cream.

Baby was also a fan of the pumpkin and eggplant and tofu, and really, everything we ate here.  The seasonings were very mild.  Though the space was a bit more chic and upholstered than I'm comfortable with in his company.  

Me: Was there anything you didn't like?

D: I didn't like the pepper I had.  (Apparently the boy doesn't like bell peppers.)

Me: Thank you for trying it.  Anything else?  Is there anything else you think someone should know before they come to this restaurant?

D: I didn't like the pepper I had.

Me: Got it.  Thanks for your review, Buddy.

Green Earth Vegan Cuisine
37 South Fair Oaks Avenue
Pasadena, CA 91105

Hours:
Monday - Thursday, Sunday 11AM - 9PM
Friday, Saturday 11AM - 10PM

My Hot Saturday Night: the vegan drive-thru experience

*On second thought, I probably shouldn't have even brought this place up.  Their suppliers seem to be inconsistent so there is little way to tell if their products are completely vegan.  Read the comments for gross stories.*

Since we now live something like three miles from Orean, I thought it was time I give the old drive-thru another try.  I reasoned that without the cross city trek building up my expectations maybe it wouldn't be such a disappointing experience.  

This time around I knew enough not to order anything with the African salsa (I just don't like it.  Others do.  Please don't let me dissuade you.)  Or cheese (it's soy-based, but not vegan).  Or the breakfast sandwich (I can't remember when you're allowed to order it.  Rules, man.)

On a beautiful Saturday evening when we weren't quite ready to be home or cook dinner, Paul and Desmond and I settled into a red picnic table nestled into the 70's era fast food hut just next to the drive-through lane.  In between keeping a toddler from hopping into traffic, we took bites of sandwiches and fries.  

Paul's chicken burger with all the fixings was pretty satisfying - a breaded chickeny sort of patty on a soft wheat bun with barbecue sauce and vegenaise and lettuce and tomato and pickles and onions.  My filet-o-soul tofu burger was an inch-thick slab of mildly seasoned defrosted tofu with tartar sauce replacing the barbecue.  I won't be ordering it again.     

The air fries were mostly crisp, much better than the week before when they were thick and starchy and tasted like beef.  Consistency is not Orean's strong suit.    

And then there was the soft serve.  We strolled away with perfect drippy, creamy cones, somehow diverted Desmond's attention from the McDonald's Playland across the street, and appreciated Orean for what it is: decent fast food for Pasadena vegetarians.   

Also, where else in the city (let alone 3 miles from my house) can I get a vegan root beer float while my toddler, none the wiser, sleeps contentedly in the back seat?  (That's not a rhetorical question.  If you know, please tell me.) 

Orean Health Express
817 N. Lake Blvd.
Pasadena, CA 91104
(626) 794 -0861

9:30 - 9:00

PuPu Platter: where I pile a lot of different topics on the plate

My dad, at my dining table last Sunday, reading aloud from the March issue of Vegetarian Times magazine: "Hot Chick of the Month: Your Vegan Mom!"

Me, yelling from the kitchen: "Hot Click, Dad!  Click.  Like website."

Did you see it?  I figure since March is almost over, I ought to mention it real quick.  I was very grateful that they edited out all the stupid things I said in our brief interview and wrote a sweet little paragraph about this blog.  Thanks. 

If you haven't read it yet, it's on page 22.  I'll wait.

Also, 

• Did you notice that Silk no longer exclusively uses organic soy beans?  To be honest, I was always pleasantly surprised that such a big company did, but now they've pulled this sly switcheroo that just leaves me kind of icked out.  They have a separate new organic line, but I'll stick to Wildwood or Trader Joe's organic from now on, thanks.  Or ideally, homemade, but that just doesn't always happen these days.
• Have you visited C'est La Vegan?  It's a beautiful new blog written by the popular baker behind the vegan cupcakes at Leda's and photographed by her husband.  Also, you'll find a link there to her on-line bakery.  I can tell you that her oatmeal cookies are perfect, and I bet the pecan bars and almond loaves are too.  Quarrygirl just did a nice write-up about her as well.  
• And for your next vegan baked goods smack down, maybe you should get some treats from Vegan Bake Sale to put head to head with C'est La Vegan's wares.  And invite me over, please. Vegan Bake Sale was officially launched yesterday by the lovely baker that pens Cute and Delicious - which, by the way, totally lives up to its name.  These people make me feel so lucky to live in Los Angeles.  
• I think these lipbalms would make great easter basket stuffers.    
• Whole Foods has extended their vegan pizza offerings and Desmond and I have since had lunch there almost everyday.  Also, at the Pasadena Whole Foods yesterday there was a vegan calzone on offer.  My dream has come true.  
• Shojin is celebrating their one year anniversary all month (as in for the next 5 days, sorry) with nightly dinner specials and a blow out on Sunday involving a vegan sushi chef. 
• Happy Weekend!  

Vegan San Diego: Ocean Beach

I would like to live in Ocean Beach so that I can buy my groceries at the People's Co-op.  This little grocery store is completely vegetarian, has gorgeous produce and tons of bulk bins, is reasonably priced, and has a mostly vegan deli and bakery.  Seriously, is that not reason enough to just pick up and move?

On Sunday, with the sun out after a night of rain, Paul and I headed here with the goal of a a muffin and the newspaper, and wound up with heaped plates of breakfast. There was scrambled tofu and biscuits and mushroom gravy and house-made tempeh sausage and breakfast potatoes all decked out in a nice swirl of mango hot sauce and accompanied by a cup of really good coffee.  It turns out that this was actually a wise bit of overindulgence, because though we didn't know it at the time, we were NOT about to have brunch at Spread. (They apparently no longer serve brunch, although they are still proud enough of having been voted best brunch two years ago to leave that little banner up on their website, which is insidiously misleading, and mean.  Oh, and they were also closed on Saturday night for a private party.  So I can now definitively say that they are NOT the greatest vegan restaurant west of the Mississippi, no matter how great their mythical food is.  (The space is cute though, and the people were at least somewhat nice about sending us back out into the rain on Saturday night.))  

Staggering out into the sun under the weight of our breakfast, we exposed our citified pallor to a gorgeous crisp blue San Diego morning (Man, do I love southern California after a rain).  We strolled down Newport past Roots Kind Food where we made a mental note to eat next time. We walked along the beach where couples and kids and old dudes sat with their morning beverages watching the pounding surf that the storm left behind.  We headed out onto the half-mile-long fishing pier where we watched the waves form and the morning sun twinkle on the town in the distance.  

We walked past the beach volleyball nets where we marveled at the commitment to hair removal that this sporty pastime requires, and past tiny beach cottages, and dogs, and more people sitting on stoops and sipping coffee.  We said hello to everyone we passed and quietly pretended that that house on the corner whose backyard was mostly beach was the one that we lived in.  As the sun got higher and we were forced to strip down to undershirts and yearn for a bit of shade, we happened upon Stephanie's Bakery.

I giddily narrowed the staggering selection of vegan baked goods down to 5 slices of strudel: cherry/cheese, prune/poppy seed, mushroom, spinach and cheese, and apricot, and two cookies: peanut butter and chocolate mint to take back to the hotel with us for some unforeseeable future in which we were hungry again.

I love this bakery.  I was skeptical of the strudel concept before, but I was wrong to doubt.  This is genius.  You can put anything in a strudel.  If,however, you're just not in the mood for a generous slice of flaky pastry enrobing any number of thoughtfully chosen fillings, well then why not a cookie? 

If the local vegetarian grocery store is not reason enough to move to Ocean Beach, then surely Stephanie's peanut butter cookie is.  It's big and doughy and chewy, and  the very cookie that I have been craving for months.  After we got home on Monday, upon discovering that we were out of cookie, I actually found myself, for a moment, thinking about the week ahead, calculating when Desmond and I could find a few hours to drive down for cookies.  

This is one quality establishment, oh and there's a cute duplex for rent next door.  I call dibs.