Do you know Puppets in South Park Slope? There's a lot to like about the place: a very vegan-friendly menu, full bar, back yard, late hours, and--most unusually for a veg restaurant--excellent music.

Seriously, live music at veggie restaurants tends to be pretty lousy, right? But Puppets puts the music first, while also providing real good eats. (And don't get me started on the chicken-finger-and-cobb-salad filled menus at typical jazz clubs!)

Anyways, Puppets is going through some tough economic times and they've declaring this weekend "Help Save Puppet's Jazz Bar Fundraiser." If you happen to see this post tonight and can make it over before 3am, go for it. Otherwise, head over on Saturday the 28th between 5pm and 3am (happy hour til 8! backyard til 11!) and have burger or hot dog or salad or guacamole (hell, read their whole menu yourself; it's short). And give them some money. They're waiving all cover charges during the fundraiser and instead just asking for you to give what you can.

Even if you're not a real jazzhead, I bet you'll have a good time. Let's do our part to keep this place open!

Puppets is located at 481 5th Avenue between 11th and 12th in Park Slope, Brooklyn.

I’ve been quite the happy camper with all the news coming from the Blossom camp as of late. The prospects of both vegan fast food and a brand new vegan bistro have made every NYC vegan’s future just that much more brilliant.

Word around the campfire: To celebrate their grand opening, Blossom Du Jour is holding a “Indulgence: Sandwich and Dessert” Recipe contest. The prize? How about a 75 dollar gift certificate to Blossom Du Jour?

Huzzah!

Peep the details by visiting the event page on Blossom Du Jour’s Facebook page.

The other day I went all Pointer Sisters about Blossom’s new venture Blossom Du Jour. Today, I’m David at the dentist because I’m getting woozy from all the good New York City vegan news. Word on the street: Blossom co-owner Ronen Seri is opening V-Note, an organic wine bar and vegan bistro on September 10th. Here’s the juicy vegan details:

V-Note will offer an elaborate organic vegan menu featuring tapas, organic wine and beer. The restaurant will seat 45 guests with both window and bar seating. It will be open for lunch, dinner and offer a late night menu. It will be open until midnight and offer delivery.

Late night vegan dining in a tranquil, warmly lit lounge-y setting? Count me in. Some of the deliciousness that will be offered on the Tapas menu: Seitan Empanadas, Filo Pastry Triangles with pesto mushroom filling, grilled “cheese” triangles and Roasted Potatoes with warm mustard sauce. Count me in!

V-Note will be located at 1522 First Avenue between 79th and 80th street.

Two vegan ice cream parlors call the East Village home. Lula’s Sweet Apothecary and Stogo. The vegans I know are split down the center as to who puts out the superior product. I have actually never been to Stogo; I’m a Lula’s loyalist through and through.

Rebecca Marx of the Village Voice put the two in a head to head battle to determine just who rules the East Village Vegan Ice Cream Scene. I encourage you to read the piece; it’s both in-depth and informative!

For those of you who can’t be bothered with reading a few paragraphs of text or (like me) have blog-brain, here’s the results:

[S]togo has its strong points -- that bananas foster really is a thing of beauty -- icy texture, slightly misleading flavor descriptions, and a cone moratorium left us cold. So although Lula's Drumstick was a bit disappointing, the texture and flavors of its ice cream, as well as its generous portions and the choice to order a cone, allowed Lula's to take victory in this battle.

Score one for the Lula’s loyalists!

I love me some Philadelphia!. (Shout out to Kingdom!) From Vegan Philly Cheesesteaks at Gianna’s to the gourmet gastro-indulgence of Horizons: vegans do alright in the city of Brotherly Love.

Well, the vegan prospects just got better. This Saturday, August 21st will see the grand opening of Grindcore House, a vegan coffee shop in South Philly. The café is located at 1515 S. Fourth St. in Pennsport and will feature a few of my favorite things! Metal! Coffee! Vegan Treats! Upton’s Naturals!

More Goodness: Grindcore House’s opening will coincide with PHL: Printers/Haters/Lovers a philly-inspired print and poster show.

For more information: Follow Grindcore House on Facebook and Twitter.

When news broke that Blossom was opening a Fast Food café in Chelsea, I couldn’t contain myself. I went from mild mannered and stoic to Tom Cruise on Oprah’s couch within a matter of minutes. When I found out that Blossom Restaurant and Cafe Blossom Co-founder Pamela Elizabeth’s aim was to pepper New York City with a slew vegan fast food cafes and kiosks, I went Double Rainbow. After all, Blossom is delicious!

Here’s the skinny straight from the press release:

The newest member of the Blossom family will be named Blossom Du Jour, and the mission statement is simple: to offer delicious, healthy, quality food to the masses at an affordable price. "Imagine seeing vegan fast food cafes all over like you see Chipotle or Hale and Hearty. Healthy food options are surprisingly limited, even here in New York City. There’s a need, and there’s definitely demand for food like this. We’d like to see if we can change the reputation of the phrase “fast food”,” says Elizabeth. “It's clearly time for a new day!”

Blossom Du Jour’s menu will include fresh juices, sandwiches, wraps, salads, raw, gluten- free and soy-free options, baked goods and soft serve ice cream. Delivery will be available from morning until evening, seven days a week.

Blossom Du Jour is set to open on September 22nd; the first location will be located in Chelsea at 174 Ninth Avenue (between W 20th and 21st street).

Situated on a bustling lower east side corner; nestled amidst the late night throng of clubs now overwrought with fist-pumping collar poppers, you’ll find a pizza joint that’s been a fixture in this hood since the 60’s: Rosario's Pizza.

It's here where you’ll find one of the best vegan pizza slices this side of the done-up-Daiya revolution.

It’s a simple slice. No cheese. About as old-school vegan as you can get. A perfectly thin-crusted vessel housing a flavorful sauce; bursting with bright tomato and herb; decently priced (2 bucks, playa!) and ready to meet the oven - I like my slice well done.

Rosario’s Pizza is located at 173 Orchard (@ Stanton Street). It’s open late. The slice you want to eat is called the Rossa slice; ask for it by name.

Know of something delicious and off the beaten path? Send me an email at brownbird (a) supervegan.com; I wanna eat it. Or write one yourself!

Zen Palate is back at Union Square! On Monday they opened in their new location, on 18th Street between Park Avenue South and Irving Place. They'll have a party and private room available for large groups and, for a limited time, they are offering a special grand opening menu available only for delivery and carry-out, with all menu items under $10.

In other restaurant opening news, vegan bakery Champs has been added to the SuperVegan directory, so start leaving your reviews. Current menu offerings include cakes, cupcakes, cookies, scones, whoopie pies, and mini-cookies, including gluten-free pignoli cookies. They will be open seven days a week from 8am to 10pm, but call ahead during the first few weeks as the hours may change.

P.S. Don't forget to bring a pocket full of cash–Champs is cash only.

We just received word via our Twitter feed, courtesy of Megan of Boneshakers AND (now) Champ's Family Bakery:

We just opened Champs! SOFTLY. Sort of like practice, except for real. Lots of cookies! Scones! Muffins! 176 Ainslie at corner of Leonard!

We'll add Champ's to our restaurant directory soon, but until we do, read our June 22nd post on Champ's for more information.

Not long after their Terri deal Groupon comes through with another deal for vegan eats in Chelsea! Today's deal is for $10 for $20 Worth of Vegan Chocolates, Café Treats, and Wine at Cocoa V. The limit is two-per-person, and while you only have the rest of today (Thursday, June 24) to buy yours, you get a whole year to use 'em. Yum yum yum for all us cheapskates.