As I said in my last post, I have a really fantastic support system that keeps me going despite setbacks.  My #1 cheerleader these days is my fantastic boyfriend and best friend, Mex.  He hardly ever let’s things get him down, is always up for anything, and can make the most of any situation.  Take our date nights, for instance.

Being on a very limited budget and living in Los Angeles, it can be a real challenge to go out for a date without blowing all of your rent money.  It takes a bit of creativity, but we’ve found ways to have a good time without spending tons of money.  One of my favorite tricks to being able to afford eating out in such an expensive city is by using coupons.  Sites like Groupon and Living Social are always offering 50% (or more) off coupons.  Snagging one of those deals also means you can try out new restaurants without it being so much of a gamble.  Doesn’t it stink when you spend a bunch of money to eat at a new place and the food is awful?? Nothing bugs me more.

In the case of our date last night, I made use of a buy one get one free Chipotle coupon I got from facebook.  If you haven’t tried Chipotle before, I encourage you to give it a go.  The concept is super simple: it’s a super fresh, nearly fast-food in speed, mexican restaurant.  They offer tacos, burritos, burrito bowls, and salads with your choice of fillings.  You first pick your medium (which is always a large portion), then pick your meat or veggies, then your toppings.  Helpful hint: the guacamole is to die for, and it’s included in the price of the vegetarian option (extra if you get something else).  It’s all made right in front of you to your specs.  I like that I can customize my meal to just how I like it without having to order off a menu and ask if I can make substitutions.  The other great thing is that Chipotle is a great company, focused on using local and sustainable ingredients whenever possible.

Love this super mild hot sauce!

Oh, and it will only set you back around $6 for your entree, another $1 if you want chips.  I usually just ask for a water cup (they have fresh lemon slices on the condiment bar which makes my water feel a bit more special), but they have a range of soft drinks, juices, and beers as well. So if you’ve been keeping track, with our coupon we both got dinner for a grand total of $7 and change!  That’s cheaper than if we both got fast food. It was also much more delicious and healthy.  The Chipotle location we went to on Ventura Blvd in  Studio City has a great atmosphere inside.

Chipotle: Studio City

Oh, and even though I’m supposed to be super cool and not care about celebrity sightings now that I live in LA, Mex and I held the door open for Lori Beth Denberg, remember her from All That on Nickelodeon?!, when we left.  We both got a kick out of it since that was one of our favorite childhood shows

After stuffing ourselves silly at Chipotle and still bringing home 1/2 of my burrito, we stopped at Menchie’s for froyo.  Self-serve frozen yogurt stores are really popular out here, and I really love them.  You grab a cup and then you can choose whatever flavors you want, in whatever combination and quantity you want, with whatever toppings you want.  You don’t pay per flavor or topping, you pay by weight.  It’s so much fun!

Mix, weigh, pay!

At $0.39/oz, Menchie’s is a bit more expensive than the other popular self-serve froyo place I like, Yogurtland, which charges $0.30/oz, but it’s still cheaper than other places.  The flavors are awesome too.  I went for a chocolatey combo last night, and Mex got his favorite pomegranate sorbet with blackberries.  Our treats set us back a total of $6.

So all together, we had a great night out and only spent about $13!

Chipotle
12175 Ventura Blvd.
Studio City, CA 91604

Menchie’s
13369 Ventura Blvd.
Sherman Oaks, CA 91423
(818) 788-9900
Sun – Thurs: 11am-11pm
Fri – Sat: 11am-Midnight

Los Angeles is certainly not lacking in vegan restaurants.  I was driving around today and noticed 3 different restaurants I had never heard of that prominently displayed the word ‘vegan’ in the title.  LA is definitely a good city for eating in general, but eating vegan here is just a pleasure.

That being said, I live just outside LA in Van Nuys.  The Valley.  It’s not a vegan mecca.  It is a taqueria mecca.

Meaty tacos.

The beans cooked in lard.

Authentic style.

Sigh.

BUT!  There is also Hummus King.  It’s close to my house, it’s kosher, vegetarian, and inexpensive. Winner winner tofu dinner.

And they are the King of Hummus.  5 flavors of it.

I found out about Hummus King from a post on Quarry Girl and with a review like that, I knew I needed to go.  I did as instructed and ordered the falafel platter which is a whopping $10 but feeds 2-3 people.  It comes with a large order of falafel, a couple of sides, hummus, pita bread, and a drink.

The falafel are so delicious.  Crispy and nutty without being greasy.  The “fire” falafel balls are indeed spicy, but I loved them.

But the stars of the show here are the hummus and the vegetarian shwarama.

(Mex and I took our falafel platter to the beach.  The reason I don’t have pictures of the falafel is because we ate them all in the car on the way.  They were just so delicious we couldn’t resist.)

So on to the hummus.  The first thing that will happen when you walk in Hummus King is a nice man will offer you a tasting of all the different types of hummus they offer.  We liked them all, but decided on the Jerusalem hummus for our meal.  It was lemony and light.  Perfect for mopping up with their fluffy pita bread.

The vegetarian shawarma was really awesome.  I wasn’t sure what to expect but it’s really tasty seitan with yummy spices on it.  I can’t really describe it other than that, but it was “meaty” tasting.  Mex is an omnivore and he really liked it.  I slathered some of the hummus in the pita bread and piled the shawarma inside and was in heaven.

You should go here.

Hummus King

12422 Burbank Blvd
North Hollywood, CA 91607

Sesame Bagel with Tofu Cream Cheese

I recently spent a weekend visiting a college friend in Brooklyn.  I’m a pretty big fan of New York City in general, but after visiting Dan a few times, I’ve decided Brooklyn is where it’s at.  I’ll take you on a bit of a food tour of the things I ate while I was visiting.

First, of course, is a sesame bagel with tofu cream cheese from La Bagel Delight.  You can’t come to the city and not eat a bagel.  The ones from here are pretty excellent, but my favorite part is the tofu cream cheese.  I have no idea what’s in it, but it’s heavenly.

Red Bamboo is sadly no longer in Brooklyn (BOO!) so we trekked over my favorite bridge to Manhattan to get our fill.

Brooklyn Bridge

Walking the Brooklyn Bridge is the best.  It’s even better at sunset, though.

The Red Bamboo space itself is not nearly as nice as the Brooklyn location.  The tables are super close together and the outside doesn’t look very welcoming. But go inside and sit ridiculously close to people you don’t know, your taste buds will thank you.

Dan is decidedly NOT a vegetarian, but when I first visited him and asked if we could go to Red Bamboo he was interested in trying some vegan eats, if a bit cautious.  Well, the Barbecue Buffalo Wings totally won him over on that first visit, and after I left he would send me the meanest messages saying he had ordered them for delivery.

Barbecue Buffalo Wings. We didn't eat the BlackBerry.

We weren’t super hungry when we sat down, so we decided to split a few appetizers. Obviously we had the Barbecue Buffalo Wings.

From the menu: “Soy buffalo wings marinated in a spicy citrus barbecue sauce served with vegan sesame garlic dressing and celery sticks”

There is something about the texture of these things that is really amazing.  The outside is super crispy and the inside is chewy without being rubbery like a lot of seitan wings you can buy.  The sauce is spicy, tomatoey, and just plain delicious.  The dipping sauce isn’t anything special, but is essential when you’re eating wings in my opinion.

Almond Coconut Chicken

This Almond Coconut Chicken was pretty good, but also quite greasy.  The coating was interesting though, and we gobbled them up pretty quickly dipped in the sauce.

From the menu: “Crispy golden soy chicken encrusted with toasted almonds and shaved coconut. Served with a sweet chili dipping sauce”

We also had the spring rolls, which weren’t great but were still consumed.

Original Sin Hard Cider

This is a really great cider from Puck Fair.  I’m not a fan of super sweet ciders, and this Original Sin Hard Cider was perfect.  It reminded me a lot of the ciders I had when I went to Europe a few years ago.  Dan used to work in the beer business and told me that this cider uses champagne yeast, meaning that it looks flat but really has a nice carbonation.  I might have had 2 pints.

House Salad at 67 burger

For dinner we went to 67 Burger.  I wasn’t very hungry after our heavy lunch and a veggie burger didn’t sound all that great (especially when I saw the note that they were cooked on the same grill as the meat) so I went with the “Small House Salad on a Plate.” (What else would they serve it on?)  Anyway, there was nothing small about this salad.  It was really filling and quite delicious.  Also pretty cheap at less than $5.

From the menu:  “mixed greens, fresh tomatoes, black olives, crispy garbanzo beans, kidney beans”

And the next morning, to hold off hunger before meeting up with some girlfriends for brunch in Manhattan, I picked up some Pirates Booty from the bagel shop and an Iced Coffee with soymilk at The Greene Grape which is right down the street from Dan’s apartment.  This place alone would make me bankrupt if I lived in Brooklyn.  It’s a gourmet market and it’s heaven.  I spotted this guy there right before I left:

(Source)

He was buying tomatoes for a salad.  Vinny Chase (aka Adrian Grenier) eats salads.  Swoon.

That New York Pizza flavored Pirates Booty was pretty disappointing.  It tasted like a less delicious version of pizza Pringles.

My getaway in Florida ended with a short trip to Orlando to spend some time with my sister and my aunt.  Our first night there, we decided to finally try out the restaurant where my sister works:  Wolfgang Pucks Grand Cafe in Downtown Disney.  We heard such great things from my sister Jen about the food, so we couldn’t wait to dive in for the special menu that the chefs had made for us.

We sat in The Cafe which is the downstairs restaurant in the building.  The next time I go I would love to visit The Dining Room upstairs because the view is awesome!  Thankfully, even though we sat downstairs, we got to try food off both menus! The whole staff was very warm and inviting, and really made us feel special for the whole meal. I have no doubt they went above and beyond because we are Jen’s family, but I’m sure any dining experience here would be the same- Fantastic!

My entree was not on the menu, and when I was told I was having Egg Foo Young I have to say that I was not at all excited about it.  All I could think about was something heavy, greasy  and full of salt.  Good thing I let Chef Alex talk me into giving it a go, because it was absolutely delicious.  It was really light, full of fresh vegetables, and just a bit crisp.  The dish was also very spicy, which always makes me happy.  The sauce on the plate was a bit sweet too, which was a nice balance.

We also tried the Four Cheese Pizza which was my least favorite dish of the evening, but was still good.  It was just a bit heavy on the cheese for my taste (but it’s a 4 cheese pizza, so that’s my bad).  We took most of this home and it made for a great lunch before we hit the parks!

This next dish was Creamy Roquefort Gnocchi.  This was pretty sinful, super creamy, cheesy, and crispy on top.  Really strong roquefort flavor, which is fine by me because I love the stuff, but I only managed a few bites of this one so I could save myself for the rest of the [gigantic] meal.

This is the best thing I have ever consumed.  Pumpkin Ravioli sounds pretty ordinary but this was far from it.  The pasta was soft, the filling was pumpkiny-sweet without being dessert, and the pine nuts, crispy sage (I think?) and balsamic reduction were an outrageous combination.  There was a lot of butter in this dish, which was fine by me because it was HEAVEN!  Order this, and send some to me.  Nom.

So after we thought our meal was over, we were served ENORMOUS plates of sushi!  Jen had been raving about the sushi for quite some time now, so I was anxious to try it.  However, I was insanely full at this point, even though I only ate a few bites of each dish.  I loved that the sushi chef made me a plate of all vegetable sushi, and that his creations were far from the standard avocado-cucumber rolls I’m used to.  (Not that there is anything wrong with them!)  The carrot sushi was so pretty, if a bit difficult to eat.  The shitakke mushroom was my favorite though, not anything I had ever tried before.

Look at those green bean bundles of tasty hiding in the back there.  Yum!  I brought 95% of this plate home with me.  Woo hoo for vegetable sushi!

As if we hadn’t stuffed ourselves enough, we were served a huge dessert tray.  I guess I failed to take a photo of the entire plate, which included Baked Alaska, but these Banana Beniets were all I ate anyway.  After seeing The Princess and the Frog (which you should all go see- it was so good!) all I wanted to eat were these delicious fried balls of heaven, and I was beyond rewarded.  They were like bananas foster doughnuts straight from the stove.  Amazing.

Thanks so much for the incredible dinner Jen!  I know she makes the staff read this blog so thanks again to the awesome people who stopped by to say hi, and our really friendly and sweet server and the chefs.  I hope to see you soon!