chef Ashley James with his vegan creations at Windows Lounge
I have a soft spot for The Four Seasons - about 5 years ago my family started a tradition to go to their Boston location for dinner every Christmas Eve. Since we've become regulars, the staff quickly learned about my vegan diet and now has an option for me each time I'm there - what started as a plate full of vegetables has turned into delicious dishes like creamy risotto, which you can see in this video. Thus, I was thrilled when a friend of mine told me that The Four Seasons Los Angeles was adding vegan items to their restaurants' menus - I knew I was in for a special experience but boy were my expectations exceeded.
In this video, follow along with me as I try every healthy vegan dish (most of which were organic and/or gluten-free) at The Four Seasons LA's Windows Lounge and Culina restaurants, get an organic massage at their spa and try out their new green hotel room features:
I'm one of those people who loves Las Vegas, aside from the environmental disaster it is. Fortunately, the vegan options are growing - since my first time there in 2006, several great places have opened and others have expanded their menus to accommodate the plant-based diet. In 2007 and 2008 my vegetarian sister and I made a few videos documenting our dining experiences, which I've finally edited. I've changed a lot since then, in appearance and eating habits, but want to share with you some of the delicious food the city has to offer (vegan donuts anyone?)
I get a lot of questions about and requests for me to do videos on cheap and fast vegan meals - so here it is! I was pretty shocked myself when I compared prices at Kroger, Trader Joes, and Whole Foods and found that you can make many meals for $2 or less and spend 15 minutes max preparing it. And that's in San Francisco, which is likely more expensive than most areas of the country/world. Prices depend on whether the ingredients are local, in season or are organic, but you'd be surprised how cheap food can be even if all of the above.
Check out the video for 13 meal ideas under $2 that take less than 15 minutes to make. I give options for breakfast, lunch and dinner, then mention some cheap foods you can have for dessert and snacks. Most of them are gluten and soy-free and are low in oil, salt, and sugar, or can easily be adapted to fit any dietary preference.
Yet another video has finally come out of the Eco-Vegan Gal vault! Just over a year ago I tried out Paleta's meal delivery service, which offers vegan and gluten-free options that are organic and locally sourced.
It's so nice to be catching up on all my old videos! Like my last review on 118 Degrees, this piece on Pure Food and Wine has been on my mind since I tapped it last year. In fact, my sister has been bugging me about it because she thinks it's one of the best meals she's ever had with me, and I agree. Watching the footage again reminded me of how incredible the food is there (and how nice NYC is in the summer!).
When I was invited to try Rosti's vegan options I was really hesitant because the first thing I saw on their website was chicken. I figured they just had a few boring items on the menu that they could make vegan. However, when I walked in the door I received a great welcome from the owner and immediately felt comfortable in the beautiful restaurant. Most importantly, I was soon stuffed full with over 10 of their fantastic vegan options.
I was really impressed with Rosti and I'm drooling as I write this re-cap. The food was really fresh and flavorful. This isn't the typical vegan experience at an Italian restaurant (i.e.: "can you make this vegan?" "um, sure..."). In fact, most of the options are just a step away from being a vegan - just ask for them sans cheese or meat. When I arrived the owner had a really long list of his vegan offerings (over 30!) and was proud to present them to me, so I felt like he really cared about my dietary restrictions. Not to mention, it was all really delicious and authentic.
I enjoyed:
Minestrone Soup
Lentil Soup
Fagioli Soup
Butternut Squash Soup
Insalata Rustica
Tuscan Hummus Dip
Spinach, Pine Nuts & Fresh Basil Salad
Penne All'Arrabbiata
Whole Wheat Spaghetti
Arugula & Fig Salad
Rigatoni & Peppers
Fire Roasted Artichoke
To top it all off, most of their ingredients are organic (though not certified) and from local farms. And, they are pretty eco-friendly: their used grease/oil is turned into biodiesel, and they use biodegradable containers in their Santa Monica location.
Taste: 9/10
Unique menu & flavors: not sure about unique, but what they have is hard to find
Organic: mostly
Local: yes
Healthy: pretty healthy in that they use light oil and quality ingredients
Eco-Friendly: semi - grease turned into biodiesel, biodegradable containers
Customer service: excellent
Atmosphere: reminiscent of Italy, bright, relaxing
Location: Encino - close to highways; Santa Monica - on Montana Ave
Parking: Encino - free underground; Santa Monica - street
Price: very affordable
Portion Sizes: medium/large
Rosti has 2 locations: Santa Monica & Encino. They just moved to a new space in Encino, and to celebrate that they're offering:
25% off your entire meal on your first visit in the Encino restaurant
People often ask me what my favorite restaurant is, or my favorite meal, and that's always hard to answer. To me, eating is all about the energy - who you're dining with, how the staff treats you, the strangers in the restaurant, and how you feel during and after consuming the food.
My experience at Carousel hit all the marks - the energy was great, the atmosphere was beautiful, and the food was outstanding. And it definitely helped that I had some great company - I went as a guest of Sam Khalaf from Cruzer Pizza, as he's a big fan of their food. While I won't call this my favorite restaurant, this was definitely one of the best meals I've had in L.A., and I've been raving about it ever since I left.
Coincidentally, that very day the owner (Mike Tcholakian) of the restaurant was working on the vegan menu, so he brought us out a ton of food to try. While the lentils were my favorite, everything was very fresh and flavorful. The falafel was the best I've ever had - crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. The Mousaaka (eggplant) was also fantastic. It was extremely authentic Middle Eastern food - Sam said it reminds him of what his family makes.
Our feast included:
Hammos
Tabbuleh
Mutabbal (Baba Rannuj)
Sarma (grape leaves)
Fattoush Salad
Lentil soup
Falafel
Spinach Fatayer (pies)
Mousaaka (eggplant)
Kebbeh Aadas (red lentils)
Coffee
Taste: 10/10
Unique menu & flavors: yes
Favorite dish: Kebbeh Aadas
Organic: yes
Healthy: yes
Customer service: excellent
Atmosphere: beautiful,
Location: central part of Glendale, and there's also a location in Hollywood
Just about a year ago my sister visited me from Massachusetts, and we decided to start doing video reviews of the restaurants I took her to (that was the beginning of my video series!). She was only here for a week, but we managed to go to about 15 places! Though we recorded each one, I haven't finished them all, even a year later!
So here's an oldie, but a goodie - my first time at Shojin. You may notice that my style has changed a little since then, especially that I started using a better mic!
Shojin is about to have their 2nd birthday on March 5th, so I hope I inspire you to go! You may have seen the video of my second time to Shojin because I edited that much faster - if not, please click to view.
A new vegetarian cafe opened in Venice a few weeks ago called Vardo. I felt like I was eating in someone's home and the environment was very blissful. This is the perfect place to go after a yoga class.
Believe it or not, the amazing Italian Roll at Bay Cities Italian Deli in Santa Monica is vegan! They have an incredible "Veggies Only" sandwich, and somehow it tastes better than I anything I could make at home with the same ingredients.
Last night, Julio at Whole Foods Venice convinced me to try their new Vegan Tuna Ceviche. I took it home and decided to give it a try for lunch today. I wasn't expecting much - especially since it's a day old and became kind of runny and soggy (the corn tortilla) - but I gave it a shot. I am so glad I did. It is DELICIOUS! I don't know if I ever had ceviche in my non-vegan years, but I definitely have never had a vegan version. Whole Foods did it right - it is packed with flavor and has a texture almost too similar to tuna. I can't imagine how good it would taste if it were completely fresh. This meal is quite a treat because it's a new flavor for me, it's filling, and I don't feel weighed down. I give it too thumbs up.
*Note: the meal is a little spicy, so watch out if you're sensitive to that.
A few weeks ago I went to Cru for the first time and had an incredible feast there, thus deciding it's my new favorite vegan restaurant! This is a bold statement to make, since I love a lot of places. I can at least say Cru is my favorite on the east side of Los Angeles (so I can still say Seed Kitchen is my favorite on the Westside). Of course I love Real Food Daily and Golden Mean and Flore and Madeleine's Bistro...so many choices! Well, let's just saw Cru is #1 on my top 5 (or 10) list. ; )
