Sunday, April 11, 2010

Dining Out

We just returned from a conference in Los Angeles. When Roland asked the concierge at our fancy hotel in Hollywood if there were any vegan friendly restaurants nearby, Roland was informed that in Los Angeles all restaurants, of any standing, are vegan friendly.

And so they are.

We found that politely asking what vegan options were available opened an entirely new, unprinted, menu to us. The most memorable meal was a Risotto with mushroom, cauliflower, and beets. It was delicious and not on the meat filled menu. My sister took me to a fun restaurant in Redondo beach called, Happy Veggie, where we dined on spring rolls, "chicken" curry, and a big salad - delicious. One night we ordered delivery of a scrumptious meal consisting of: vegetarian chili, potato corn chowder, kale salad (my favorite: barely steamed kale, quinoa, purple cabbage [diced] green onion, pecans...), and an African country vegetable dish that had wonderful flavor.

My experience is that the vegan options are not only healthier, they seem fresher and taste better too! And it feels indulgent to order something that isn't on the menu. When we ate at The Getty the chef delivered our food rather than the waiter. La tee da.

Here we are at The Getty. Compare this to the picture in the side bar, looks like the carb face is going away. 

5 comments:

Kelly Ovard said...

Cool! Your own personal menu! Mike is contemplating this seriously... I would have to do it with him. I'm sure I'll call for support!

Emily said...

Oh! I'm so jealous! Of all of it, getting away with your husband (even if for work) hanging out with Sally, going to the Getty, eating awesome vegan food, etc. You look very happy! :)

daveanddebbie said...

You guys look great! Just the mention of Redondo Beach and the Getty is making me homesick for L.A.! Glad you got to have some fun!

Sally said...

The before and current pics are really different. You look beautiful in both, but you look so totally healthy in the current picture!

We were at a very fancy pants restaurant this weekend. When we made the reservation they mentioned that they had 3 tasting menus. One was vegetarian. When we got there, they only gave us 2 tasting menus, and when I asked about the vegetarian one, the waiter went and got it specially for me. It looked AWESOME. I ended up getting items from the Veg and other menus to make my own 5-course meal...delicious.

I have been craving that salad I had from veggie grill. I think it will be for dinner later this week.

Linda Austin Hart said...

You're both looking good and eating great.