Some not-so-recent birthday treats!

Well hellllooooo there!  It has been a while!  I’ll save the boring details behind my blogging absence and just sum it up by telling you I have a new job where pilot season (Feb-April) is absolute insanity.  The good news is that in the months of unemployment before I landed my new gig, I ventured out and tried a slew of new (to me) restaurants and cooked up a storm.  So let’s get down to brass tax and start off my return to blogging with my birthday food!

Now, my b-day was back in February, but I have been dreaming about the awesome food I had that day ever since!  On my actual birthday, I had only been working at my new job for fewer than 2 weeks.  I am not one to insist everyone I know make some huge deal out of my birthday, but it’s slightly depressing to be at a new place where no one even knows it’s your special day.  Add that to the fact that I always get depressed on my birthday anyway and you have one somber Liz.  But my mood picked right up after my two new bosses surprised me with…vegan cupcakes!  I barely knew these people at the time and they went out of their way to track down some cupcakes for me at Yummy Cupcakes.  It was an extremely tasty surprise.

The cupcakes were vanilla with chocolate frosting.  The cake part was a bit chewier than I am used to but the flavors and frosting were perfect.  I find a lot of vegan frostings to be too sweet but this stuff was light and fluffy and it let the chocolate shine through.  (By the way, I have since had one of Yummy Cupcakes’ cupcakes-in-a-jar and it was INCREDIBLE)

I knew exactly where I wanted to go for my birthday dinner–my newest obsession–Madeline Bistro.  However, there was no way I was gonna drive out to Tarzana at rush hour.  So I opted instead to hit the vegan Japanese joint Shojin for the first time.  I have been hearing the other vegan bloggers rave about Shojin for some time, but it was never at the top of my list to try, mostly because I didn’t think it would be that different from eating vegan options at a regular Japanese restaurant–you know, veggie rolls, noodle bowls, et cetera.  I can get those in my own neighborhood so why bother going farther for the same stuff?  Well, I am very happy I finally made it down to this hole-in-the-wall spot because the food was far above the fare you get at your standard sushi spot.

Shojin is located in the top floor of the Little Tokyo Shopping Center.  (Aside:  The quirky little mall will always hold a dear place in my heart, as soon after I first moved to L.A., Kirby Von Scrumptious and I went on a wild day-long adventure in search of the elusive Fingerstar machine in this shopping center.  Alas, much to our dismay, the machine was out of order.  Damn you Fingerstar!!!)  Shojin is a tiny little joint but unlike much of the rest of the mall is nicely decorated.  I was pretty sure I was gonna like this place as soon as I saw that they provide magic markers for you to draw on the paper tablecloths with!

The boyfriend and I started with the Dragon Roll which was described as shitake mushrooms, avocado, BBQ seitan and avocado with sweet soy sauce.  Now, I really don’t mind the various sorts of standard vegetable rolls one can get at your usual Japanese restaurant, but it was a total treat having this decadent roll!  It definitely brought me back to my days of eating giant spicy tuna rolls and the like.  I loved how thinly sliced the seitan was.

For my entree I ordered a noodle bowl, which doesn’t appear to be on the current incarnation of the Shojin menu.  It was basically a soup with soba noodles and mountain vegetables.  I don’t know how they do it, but the broth is so rich.  I think the only veggie broth I’ve had that comes as close to it in flavor is at Pho Cafe.  This was the perfect dish for a windy February night.  It was really big, so I took half of it home.

The boyfriend ordered a dish, which also no longer appears on the menu…fresh veggies in black pepper sauce.  He loved it and I liked it.  It was a little too much like something you would get at a typical Chinese restaurant, i.e. greasy and oversalted.  I did enjoy it, but I definitely think it is one of Shojin’s lesser dishes.

For dessert, we ordered the chocolate molten lava cake with raspberry-vanilla swirl ice cream.  Right before it came out all the lights went out in the restaurant  and we were like “oh sheesh, someone didn’t pay the electric bill.”  But then our server brought out our dessert with a candle in it and got the whole restaurant to sing me happy birthday!!!  It was awesome!  And as you can see below, the dessert was personalized.  Like I said, I’m not one to ask that people make a fuss about my b-day, but I have to tell you this was such a fun experience!

As for the dessert itself…awesomesauce!!!  The molten lava cake was perfect and incredibly moist.  I must say it was far superior to Madeleine Bistro’s chocolate souffle, which is really saying something because I luuurrv Madeleine.  The ice cream was super creamy and was a perfect compliment to the chocolate.

I can’t wait to go back to Shojin.  It is an awesome little spot with great food and is such a fun place to go for a special occasion!  Maybe now that pilot season is over, I will get a chance to go there again soon!

Yummy Cupcakes
2918 W. Magnolia Blvd
Burbank, CA  91505
818.558.1080

Shojin
333 S. Alameda St. Suite 310
Los Angeles, CA 90013
213.617.0305

Samosa Houses’s Unique Veggie Burger

Every time I find myself even remotely near Culver City, I make sure to swing by the best Indian restaurant in town–Samosa House.  Recently I had a meeting on the west side so I stopped in to try their veggie burger which has been making the rounds on the blogosphere lately.  Like most Samosa House patrons, I always opt for the combo platter and pay little attention to the other menu items.  I am so happy that Quarrygirl ventured off the beaten path to bring this little gem to our attention, because it is insanely delicious.

The burger tastes like an Indian version of a Big Mac–and I mean that in the best possible way.  It’s not a giant gourmet veggie burger like you might get at Flore or M Cafe.  It’s similar to a more pedestrian burger in size and texture.  The patty is made of potatoes and whole cashews and is slathered with a crunchy peanut concoction as well as onions, tomatoes, and spices.  There are so many layers of flavor.  I simply cannot recommend this burger enough.  If you are driving down Washington Boulevard anytime soon, you must stop in and pick one up.  And at $3.99 a pop, it shant break the bank!

Samosa House
11510 W. Washington Blvd.
Culver City, CA 90066
310.398.6766

Mama’s Hot Tamales Cafe dishes it up!

Kirby Von Scrumptious finally had some time off between her semesters as a full time teacher and a full time masters student (I don’t know how she does it!) so we decided to try out Mama’s Hot Tamales Cafe in Macarthur Park.  Mama’s is a restaurant with Mexican and South American cuisine that doubles as a non-profit that trains low-income people for careers in food.  The only tamale I’d had since going vegan was a really crappy one from Whole Foods, so I was overdue for a good one.  Mama’s tamales did not disappoint.

Mama’s has a variety of different combos you can order for lunch and every item that can be ordered vegan is clearly marked with a cute little ear of corn .  Kirby and I both opted for two tamales with a salad.  I ordered the two vegan tamales they were offering that day: black bean and herbs and the very unique kimchi tamale, made with rice instead of corn.  Both arrived quickly after we ordered with a tomatillo dipping sauce.

The masa in the black bean and herb tamale was downright creamy.  With some of the tomatillo sauce spread on top, this baby was a delight.

The kimchi tamale was out of this world.  The pillowy rice with the tangy kimchi as a perfect combo.  I could have easily eaten 3 or 4 more of these.

I chose Mama’s House Salad because the avocado-cilantro vinaigrette sounded so appealing.  The salad contents were pretty basic (greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, tortilla strips, and hold the queso fresco) but the dressing took it to another level.  It was cooling, creamy, and the cilantro was delightfully prominent.

In addition to the daily rotation of tamales, Mama’s also has different kinds of agua fresca every day.  On this particular day I was thrilled to hear they had horchata and that it was vegan.  To my great frustration, it is quite difficult to find vegan horchata in this town (which is extremely annoying as classic Mexican horchata is simply rice milk, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon–why do these places have to go and add milk to it?!)  I had high hopes but unfortunately, Mama’s horchata was way too sweet.  If they cut back on the sugar a bit it would have been perfect.  Of course I sucked the whole thing down anyway so I guess it wasn’t that big of a problem!

The restaurant itself is very pleasant with bright murals on the walls and a big window that overlooks the pond in the park.  The staff was very friendly and attentive and they were very knowledgeable about veganism.  I’d also like to add that I love the chairs and tables at Mama’s!  They are slightly wider than your average seating arrangement and I felt like a queen eating on her throne.  Ok, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but seriously, those tables were made for feasting.

I cannot wait to get back to this awesome spot and it will be easier now that they are open for dinner as well as lunch!  I am looking forward to trying their menu items with Daiya like the burrito and the Argentine empanadas.

Mama’s Hot Tamales Cafe
2122 West Seventh St.
Los Angeles, CA  90057
213.487.7474

Vinh Loi Tofu

Phew!  It was a super busy holiday season for me but I made it through alive.  Now it’s time to catch up on the bazillion blog posts I’ve been meaning to write.  Back before Christmas, I took a break in the insanity to meet up with the lovely Vegyogini of Hugger Food fame for lunch at Vinh Loi Tofu in Reseda.  Vinh Loi has long been on the list of vegan joints I want to check out and I was excited to finally get a chance to go there.

Vegyogini is a regular and knew exactly what she wanted, but it took me a while to browse through the extensive menu.  I finally decided on the Curry Chicken with Rice Noodles, but asked to sub tofu for the “chicken.”  Yes, those are quotes because awesomely, Vinh Loi is a totally veg establishment.  Even more awesomely, their tofu is made from scratch right there in the restaurant!  I couldn’t decide which flavor of tofu to get so they just gave me a melange.

The tofu was silky and delicious.  Mixed up with the curry sauce, peanuts, noodles, and greens it was an awesome lunch and so big that I had to bring some home.  I also had a bottle of kombucha to wash it all down.  It was my first ever kombucha experience and I was very worried after opening it and smelling the strong odor of straight-up apple cider vinegar…but it was great!

I had a wonderful meal at Vinh Loi with the only drawback being that its quite far from my house.  But it’s worth the trip to support such a friendly business that makes their own tofu and soy milk.

Vinh Loi Tofu
18625 Sherman Way #101
Reseda, CA  91335
818.996.9779

Flore Cafe morphs into The Meet Market

Flore Cafe, home to the beloved all-you-can-eat weekend buffets, is switching up their concept. Instead of being a full-fledged restaurant, they are morphing into a 100% vegan cafe/market hybrid. They now have a small menu of soup, salads, and sandwiches along with an array of vegan goodies including tasties like boxes of mac ‘n’ cheese, an array of non-dairy milks, and a few bulk bins filled with goods like gelatin-free gummy bears. I stopped in today to check it out.

To start off I ordered a juice, instructing the very friendly counter dude just to make his own concoction. He whipped up a perfect mixture of apple, celery, kale, ginger, and carrot that made a very refreshing drink with just a hint of zing that wasn’t at all overpowering.

I’m not a meat analog fan but the philly cheesesteak sounded appealing to me. I was feeling nostalgic for the summer during high school when one of my friend’s worked at Quizno’s and I ate more free cheesesteak subs than I care to admit. The sandwich came piping hot fresh off the grill and did not disappoint. There was shredded fake beef, lots of perfectly grilled onions, the best vegan mozzarella I’ve ever had, and an amazing red sauce that had a bit of spice. I don’t know if The Meet Market makes that sauce themselves but if they do they need to start selling me jars of it by the case! Could that mozzarella have been Follow Your Heart? Whatever brand it is, I need to know stat so I can go stock up on that too. This sandwich was heavenly and after finishing the whole thing I was super stuffed. Definitely plenty of bang for your buck.

In the refrigerated display case there is a small selection of cupcakes made by the owner herself. I think there was a carrot cake one and maybe a strawberry vanilla–I couldn’t really tell you because I stopped paying attention after I heard “peanut butter chocolate torte.” This baby was not so much a cupcake as a mini pie complete with a nutty peanut butter crust, a rich fudgey center, and peanut butter frosting on top. Holy. mother. If you don’t get your hands on one of these treats you will be missing out on what has just topped my list of favorite desserts in Los Angeles. Yes, it even surpasses Scoops, and I fucking LOVE ice cream, so that is really saying something. These tortes are very decadent so I’m saving my second half for tomorrow. At $2.75 a pop, these are really reasonably priced.

In fact, I am really impressed with all the prices at The Meet Market. Their sandwiches are beyond filling and they top out at 6 bucks. Their grocery goods are also affordable. I won’t name names, but I can think of at least a couple similar vegan/health stores that require me to be in a whole different tax bracket to shop there with any frequency.

The Meet Market maintains Flore Cafe’s good vibe and its sunny staff while switching it up a bit–with great results. The best part is that the all-you-can-eats aren’t going anywhere. Will I see anyone else for Southern Brunch on Saturday morning? I will definitely be there this weekend and probably again soon after that!

The Meet Market
3206 W. Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026
323.667.0116

*For more on The Meet Market, check out Quarrygirl’s take and the menu below