People in this town are convinced they are bagel experts. They know the best shop, the appropriate hour to stop in and what combination of toppings rounds it all out. What makes a NYC bagel better than the ones in other cities? It's not the water, it's the attitude.

The gluten-tolerant SuperVegan staff members want to help you locate the best bagels in the bagel capital of the world:

Deborah Diamant insists that Bergen Bagels (473 Bergen St., Brooklyn) toasts her whole wheat everything bagel before applying a liberal layer of scallion tofu.

Jason Das can be found eating a whole wheat sesame bagel with scallion tofu, cucumber and tomato at Bagel Bob's (51 University Pl., Manhattan).

Olivia Lane, who buys her bagels at Earthmatters (177 Ludlow St., Manhattan), thinks bagels are best nude, like all great things.

Patrick Kwan loves Bagels On the Square (7 Carmine St., Manhattan) where he orders a toasted sun-dried tomato bagel with sun-dried tomato tofu for an über tomato kick.

Tod Emko keeps it simple at Bagels & More (331 Lexington Ave., Manhattan) with plain tofu on a whole wheat bagel.

Our vegan accountant, Kim, is a fan of Terrace Bagels (224 Prospect Park West, Brooklyn) and thinks toasted plain bagels with sliced tomatoes is a tasty, economically sound meal.

What's your favorite bagel, Dear Reader?

This is one of Supervegan's posts for Vegan MoFo 2009.

A recent announcement on the Brooklynian message boards that a Franklin Avenue "holistic and organic" coffee shop would soon open sans cow's milk sent folks in a typing frenzy that the shop was destined to fail. Within two weeks, far in advance of the shop's opening, the owners posted on Brooklynian that they would offer organic cow's milk after all.

But, for a few days, I was able to bask in the thought of my corner coffee shop as a truly vegan-friendly establishment. I wasn't surprised to learn that cow's milk would be offered, and I'm still thrilled that such a wide variety of non-dairy milk and vegan pastries will be available. Franklin Avenue is experiencing a bit of a renaissance, so one more reoccupied storefront is a good thing. (I would be remiss not to acknowledge that gentrification is driving up prices in the few local grocery options, but there's not enough room here to do that type of unpacking.)

Before I moved to Crown Heights, I did not expect much in the way of vegan eating beyond the options available in the neighborhood's many fine West Indian restaurants. Since my arrival, I've amassed a diverse handful of go-to options when I need a quick vegan fix near my new home.

Am I crazy to think I can find a vegan roommate in New York City these days? How many of you live with other vegans? Did you try to have a vegan household and fail? How much of a priority is it for you? Me, I'm going a little bananas over the issue.

I've got a really nice place, for a reasonable price, in a nice part of Brooklyn. Just finding a roommate in general would not be that hard. But I've lived in a vegan house for many years now (longer than I've even been strictly vegan myself), and I've gotten pretty used to it. It really means a lot to me to live with another vegan. Not someone who is kind-of-sort-of willing to try to maybe be vegan in the house if that's the only way they can get the nice apartment. Believe me, Craigslist is hooking me up with plenty of such folks. And with even more who contact me without even mentioning the vegan thing (which is quite prominent in my listing). Does that mean they're so vegan they don't even think it's worth mentioning? Or does it mean they're too lazy or inconsiderate to even bother addressing the issue?

Obviously, not just any vegan will do; all the other stuff that makes a good match applies. They've got to tolerate my landgrabbing record collection, my curious cats, and my allergy to dirty dishes. But in exchange I'm willing to put up with all manner of idiosyncrasies from them, as long as we basically get along. That's what roommates is all about, right? (Well, and splitting the bills.) I'd settle for Felix and Oscar. I know we can't all be as tight as this odd couple:





So, what do you think? Should I give up? Do you have any encouraging or discouraging war stories to tell (either about the cutthroat NYC market or elsewhere)? And most importantly, do you know anyone who might be good for moving in with me? All the details are here.

Find these and more events in our calendar.

Monday, 6/1

Vegan Brunch release party: Celebrate the release of Isa Chandra Moskowitz's latest and brunchiest cookbook with vegan sausage and pink grapefruit mimosas made by the lovely lady herself. Free.
MooShoes, 7 p.m.
78 Orchard St., between Grand and Broome streets

Two vegan cookbooks released today: The Vegan Table, by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau, author of The Joy of Vegan Baking, and The Vegan Scoop, by Wheeler Del Toro of Wheeler's Black Label Vegan Ice Cream

Tuesday, 6/2

Brooklyn Botanic Garden free admission Tuesdays (recurring event)

Wednesday, 6/3

The New York City Bar offers a free program on puppy mills and puppy mill legislation in New York. Register before hopping over. Free.
6-9 p.m., New York City Bar
42 W. 44th St., between 5th and 6th avenues

The second episode of The Goode Family airs at 9 p.m. on ABC. I didn't find the first episode to be overwhelmingly hilarious, but as a friend of mine said, "Considering this is a Mike Judge cartoon, it will get better if it manages to survive, because it will stop laying on the obvious. King of the Hill, for example, was never meant to be a laughing-out-loud affair, and it eventually managed to amusingly reconcile certain aspects of that particular culture war."

Thursday, 6/4

Edible landscaping workshop at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Learn to grow things in your tiny Brooklyn apartment that you can eat! Free. Register in advance.
6-8 p.m., Brooklyn Botanic Garden
1000 Washington Ave.

Food, Inc. premiers in NYC at the Museum of the Moving Image
35th Avenue at 36th Street, Astoria

Saturday, 6/6

Rally for Worldwide Day of Protest Against Horse-Drawn Carriages at Columbus Circle with Friends of Animals, the Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages, HEART and mayoral candidate and current council member Tony Avella.
12 p.m., Columbus Circle

Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary's Spring benefit dinner for the NY Vegetarian Expo. $65.
5:30 p.m., The Women's Club of Albany
725 Madison Ave., Albany, NY

Catskill Animal Sanctuary's Shindig 2009 features six speakers, including Brian Shapiro of the Ulster County SPCA and Amie Hamlin of the New York Coalition for Healthy School Food. $10.
12-6 p.m., Catskill Animal Sanctuary
316 Old Stage Rd., Saugerties, NY

Dear Babycakes,

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

I love you at your Broome Street store, where I can stop in and get a lemon cupcake or a biscuit with jam anytime I’m feeling low. I love that I could get my fix after a meal at the V-Spot, and now you have an even more convenient outpost at Stogo. I love that I can now enjoy you at home, whenever I want, thanks to your new cookbook, Babycakes: Vegan, Gluten-Free, and (Mostly) Sugar-Free Recipes From New York’s Most Talked-About Bakery.

I was lazy, Babycakes, so I tested four fairly simple recipes from your new book. But as expected, you did not disappoint. First I made your Blueberry Muffins, they with the hint of lemon, and the omnivores in my office swooned. Next up were your savory Biscuits, and even though I did something wrong and they didn’t get flaky, they still tasted amazing. Your Brownies, which I baked to somewhere closer to the consistency of fudge, left everyone speechless, except for when they pleaded with me for the recipe. (This even though I substituted tapioca for the potato starch!) And then we washed it all down with your Agave Lemonade—sweet, liquid gold.

O Babycakes, I will never stop loving you! You give me no reason to. My one qualm is that your subtitle should read “(Mostly) Gluten-Free” or “Wheat-Free,” since so many of your recipes call for spelt. But no one’s perfect. And love means never having to say I’m sorry.

Until we meet again, my darling.

Love,
Me

Last night’s third birthday celebration was a big hit and the SuperVegan team was workin' the scene! Thanks to ’sNice, our perennial party-partner, we had a great venue (and great menu) filled with a gregarious crowd that mingled inside and out now that their outdoor seating area is open. Thank you to Kelso of Brooklyn for their delicious locally brewed keg of beer!

Jason and Olivia emceed the event while Laura and I were official cake cutters.

There were three birthday cakes all provided by our own Samantha Cohen: goody-good gluten free chocolate cake, satisfying strawberry shortcake and chewy chocolate peanut butter ice cream cake! YUM! There was just enough for everyone to have a piece with some left over too. Thanks, Samantha! (Go to Samanthasconfectionery.com for more cake information.)

When ’sNice closed, the remaining party goers went to the after-party at Lucky 13 Saloon. Famous for their edgy atmosphere and Vegan White Russians, it was a fitting end to a fun-filled night. Thanks Lucky 13!

Do you have photos of the party? Share them with us on our Flickr group! We sincerely appreciate all our readers, friends and fans that attended and thank you for your continued support!

We're celebrating our third birthday on Thursday, May 14, 2009 at 'sNice Brooklyn, from 6:30-10pm.

You can RSVP on Facebook (if you like that kind of thing).

There may be an afterparty. There may be giveaways. There may be a dunking booth. But for now what we know for sure is there will be a giant birthday cake and a keg of beer. Beer and cake will be free, but you can also buy other goodies from 'sNice's regular menu.

'sNice is located at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Third Street in Park Slope. Their yard is open now, so we can be outdoors as well as inside.

We hope all of our readers, friends, and fans will come celebrate with Team SuperVegan!

Update: The afterparty will be at vegan-owned bar Lucky 13, located on 13th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues (also in Park Slope). We'll head over there after 'sNice closes at 10pm.

Think we're insufferable online? Wait til you meet us in person! We'll be tabling at Pratt Institute's third Annual Green Week, tomorrow, Friday April 3, 2009, from 11am to 6pm. If you're in the neighborhood, stop by and say hello.

Pratt is in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn. Probably best to enter the campus at Dekalb and Hall Street. (The directions section of Pratt's website is an unlinkable abomination, sorry). It's a really nice campus with a bunch of great outdoor sculptures and classy buildings.

Unfortunately it will probably be too cold to bring our dunking booth to the fair. Patrick and Olivia are trying to talk me into us doing a kissing booth, but I'm not sure that's appropriate for our wholesome image. Pratt students are kinda hot, though...

Patrick will also be representing the Humane Society of the United States. Other groups/vendors tabling include Red Jacket Orchards, Siggi's Skyr (boo!), Chewonthis.org, Bobolink Farms Dairy (boo!), the Nutbox, and Rick's Picks.

Update: Yes, it's raining, so we won't be outside--the whole thing will be inside the Student Union.

• Want to see an end to dogs being sold in pet stores? Me too. Join the NYC Animal Advocacy Network for the kickoff of Best Friends Animal Society’s Puppy-Store-Free NYC campaign on Friday, Feb. 20, at 6:15pm.
• I was bummed when Pumpkin’s went under; I like giving my money to vegan places, and how often does a vegan market come along? On its heels, the V-Spot is having so much trouble staying afloat, they’ve closed for lunch and are three weeks overdue on the rent. Help add to their coffers by attending a “rent party” on Monday, Feb. 23, between 6 & 10pm, with full menu and $3 beers.
• Another worthy vendor: Above and Below Herbals creates handmade vegan (and often organic) body care free from synthetic materials and other unecessary crap. I’m allergic to pretty much everything, but my skin loves, loves, loves their Body Butter, Moisturizing Cream and Lip Balm. And there’s free shipping within the U.S.! Place your order now at info@aboveandbelowherbals.com.
• Unfortunately, I didn’t make it to the hearing on the carriage horse ban in January. But you can still help. Write to support Intro 658 and oppose Intros 652 and 653. And if you haven’t seen it yet, get to a screening or pick up a copy of Blinders.

Williamsburg vegan fast food joint Foodswings has reopened (no one even told us they'd closed). I haven't got much to say beyond what former owner Freedom just posted in our forum.

Foodswings is gonna reopen today. with it's new owners, new design & it's new bathroom! Go in & say hello. it's still vegan owned & operated & defiently worthy of your support. Thank you to everyone who supported me & my family ove the last 5 years!

Um, [sic]. So get on down to Foodswings and don't forget to leave a review on SuperVegan for the benefit of your fellow readers/eaters.

The rumor I heard was that the new owners are the same folks who own Park Slope vegan heavy metal bar Lucky 13.

Update, 1/5/2009: Official word has come through from new owner Melody (who also owns Park Slope vegan heavy metal bar Lucky 13): "I just wanted to share that Foodswings in Williamsburg, Brooklyn is under new ownership and has a customer bathroom now (!!), and you will also notice an improved staff attitude, new items on the menu, and improvement upon existing items and more consistency in the food. Please come by and check out the place now that we are new & improved."