Beyond Sushi

I arrived home yesterday from spending the last 11 days in New York, most of which was engaged attending the first-ever 800 hour training with my teacher, Yogi Sri Dharma Mittra. It was an indescribably amazing experience that I will forever be impacted by. At the end of the final day, I found myself on the streets in Manhattan looking for a simple, enjoyable dinner to treat myself to! The Happy Cow app informed me of the existence of Beyond Sushi, an all-vegan sushi restaurant right on my route (though all of the main food ingredients are vegan, it appeared that maybe two or three of their sauces are not vegan from the menu, I'm not totally sure).

I was greeted as soon as I walked in. The space is small, as are most NYC restaurants, with 3 4-person tables, a small food prep area behind the counter, and a take-out case. I made my choices: a Sweet Tree roll (6-grain rice with avocado, sweet potato, and sprouts, topped with a White Miso sauce - I subbed the white miso for the standard Toasted Cayenne, as I don't like much spice - and the standard ginger and wasabi on the plate) and a Nutty Buddy rice wrap (with buckwheat noodles, crushed peanuts, cilantro, jalapeño peanut butter, avocado, sesame oil, carrots, baked tofu and romaine and a Sweet Soy Mirin sauce - this was a little spicy, but not much). I also took one of the pre-made blueberry lemonades from the ready-case as the man working told me they were made with no sugar, just lemon and blueberries and made fresh that day. The wraps were made quickly as I finished paying and were ready to consume pretty much right away. I have to say, this food was DELICIOUS. Super fresh and not too heavy, though plenty filling (the wrap and roll ended up being slightly too much food for me). Every ingredient was perfectly chosen. I loved the White Miso sauce dabbed onto the top of each of the pieces of the roll. The buckwheat noodles in the wrap were the perfect hearty addition. The lemonade was not too sweet or too sour. And the service was really really excellent (as much as counter service can be). An overall great meal.

When looking Beyond Sushi up online, I also see from their website that the restaurant was created by a finalist from the tv show Hell's Kitchen, so if you're into that kind of stuff, an added bonus. It always makes me glad that high-profile people are diving into the world of great-tasting vegan food. This one is a winner. Definitely visit if you are in the area.

Bhakti Chai

As I never ever buy bottled iced teas or the like, I would have never known that Bhakti Chai existed (or that it was vegan), until my friend, Flo, picked one up at a Whole Foods in New Orleans. Bhakti Chai is deeeelicious! It's made with soy milk and just the right amount of ginger-y spice. They also make a less sweet version, which I love, and a decaf version, which I really really love. Bhakti Chai also is also socially-conscious company, donating 10% of their profits to "nonprofits that invest in women, girls, and the environment" - all awesome things to invest in! I love that the company mission is also based on actual Bhakti (not just co-opting the word for faux authenticity), or devotion through action, as practiced for thousands of years in India. The chai comes in a glass bottle, not plastic, which is something I've become more conscious of lately. This photo of delicious Decaf Bhakti Chai was taken in a rental car outside of Santa Monica's Co-Opportunity Natural Foods.

Mercy for Animals

Today's Vegan Thing I Like is one of the most inspiring, incredible forces in the world of veganism today: Mercy for Animals! Their work, vision, and reach is simply staggering to me. Mercy for Animals advocates for farmed animals on a variety of platforms, promoting veganism to individuals and businesses, as well as conducting undercover investigations that launch legal battles to improve the lives of farmed animals. While, ultimately, I believe the goal is that of liberation for all farmed animals, there are steps to be taken on the road to that destination in order for society as a whole to get on board and MFA is doing that work.

Last weekend, I had the great honor to attend a Mercy for Animals fundraiser in Hollywood where an award was presented to Emily Deschanel in recognition of her work for farmed animals. Emily was gracious and lovely and shared her platform with some of the animals' biggest heroes: MFA's founder, lead investigator, and general counsel. These people are part of something so big. MFAs founder, Nathan Runkle, founded MFA when he was 15 years old and, at age 28 he is now heading an organization that is fighting billion-dollar industries -- and, as he pointed out in his short speech, frequently winning. As he said, quoting from Mahatma Gandhi, "First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win." Right now, the animal agriculture industry is fighting Mercy for Animals hard, going as far as to influence lawmakers to introduce Ag-Gag laws - legislation that would make it illegal for Mercy for Animals to continue their work of exposing the worst abuses of farmed animals, some of the most vulnerable creatures on the planet, as well as uncovering major health and safety violations that affect humans and the environment. MFA continues to fight this kind of legislation, as well as to release new investigations which point out how vital is that they not be enacted. The American people deserve to know what is going on in their name (you buy it, you're funding it).

I can't say enough good things about this organization and I hope that you will support them and their important, amazing work in any way that you are able. Watch the video below for some information on what MFA does and keep an eye out for the work that they continue to do. These videos always ensure that I never leave an MFA fundraiser without crying. Some from the undercover footage shown, but more from how inspired and touched I am that this is all happening. In the future, will the struggle to liberate farmed animals be seen in the same light as the many human-rights movements of our past? I believe so, and that those in support of this work are on the right side of history.

Cafe Gratitude LA

I am currently in Southern California in order to attend Mercy for Animals' Justice for All party tonight in Hollywood. I love MFA and am so glad that we were able to help sponsor this party and I'm still floored that we're attending. Most of our travel involves visiting health food stores and VegFests, which I LOVE, but which does not involve a fancy dress. This is truly something new.

At any rate, we are staying at a guest house over someone's garage in the Hollywood Hills that I found on airbnb and about to start getting ready for party time. This morning, we woke up, lazed around (for the first time in a long time), and then headed over to Cafe Gratitude LA for some lunch. I had heard about this place extensively, but never eaten there. All of the menu items are named "I am..." followed by an attribute like grateful, thriving, pleasant, etc. When they deliver your food, they say "you are..." and the menu item you ordered. Kind of touchy-feely, but also pretty nice!

So, for my first visit to Cafe Gratitude, I was Fortified (Sauteed seasonal vegetables and kale, brown rice & quinoa, topped with sesame-ginger sauce and avocado) and Worthy (Kale, beet, celery, apple and ginger juice). The juice was good and reasonably priced and the bowl was amazing. So much food that I'm not sure how I finished it. It felt very fortifying, delicious, and energizing. Highly recommended!

This restaurant strongly suggests that people with nut allergies not eat there as they use nuts in so many menu items, but I just avoided ordering anything with nuts in it. I don't have an allergy that prohibits me from eating where nuts are present. It did prevent me from ordering any dessert however, but my partner was happily Awakening (Key lime torte). He was also Awesome (Herb-cornmeal crusted eggplant parmesan on toasted Panini with marinara sauce, cashew ricotta, sliced tomatoes, arugula and basil. Served with a side salad), but what's new? I've known that for years.

Blue Print Juice

Last week was an event for Whole Foods in the North Atlantic that featured a sea of Whole Foods vendors set up for two days outside of Boston. We were stationed at a long section of tables with other vendors with who we share a distributor. One of those vendors was Blue Print from New York. They make amazing fresh-pressed, unpasturized juices. I tried all of their flavors pictured, all of which were really delicious. Their distribution is limited at this point (they do deliver anywhere in the country if you're into that), but they have an pretty extensive where to buy list in New York. If you're ever in that area and interested in investing a great quality juice, this is one worth trying!

Bobo's Oat Bars

We're currently in Massachusetts and spent the last two days at the Whole Foods North Atlantic Region All Access show. This is a show exclusively for Whole Foods Market employees to come, check out products that are newer to the store, and eat eat eat! As a result, we ended up leaving with quite a few snacks of our own. One was this Original flavor Bobo's Oat Bar! Needing a quick, healthy breakfast this morning before we get on the road, I grabbed this and it was delicious! The first three ingredients are oats, brown rice syrup and Earth Balance. They are vegan, wheat free, and really tasty! Not too sweet, which is always a plus. This version is also nut and coconut free (my personal allergies). What a great snack!

Red Lentil

I am currently in Massachusetts, which is very exciting as I haven't been here in about a decade. It is also exciting because this is a work trip, which means that we've acquired business in Massachusetts (and the rest of New England). Love it!

Last night, after a long day of work, we headed to Red Lentil  in Watertown and had a wonderful dinner. As you may know, I LOVE any meal that can be described as a "macrobiotic plate" (or "bowl") and when I saw one on the menu at Red Lentil, I had to order it. The macro plate consisted of pinto beans with sea vegetables, brown rice, seasonal veggies, plum sauce, and your choice of seitan, tofu, or tempeh. I chose tempeh (Dan actually ordered the same thing) and loved this delicious plate of flavorful, healthy veggies and protein. The squashes, sweet potatoes, and carrots were grilled, which is something I hadn't expected, but really enjoyed. This was a great meal! I finished off with a banana, raspberry, mango smoothie for just enough sweetness (I also asked for some added cinnamon). If you are ever in Watertown, head over to Red Lentil for some super tasty, fresh food!