Vendors include:

• Alchemy Creamery – Cool down with a sampling of gourmet ice creams like Dark Chocolate Chai, Coconut Green Tea, & Cranberry White Grape! (gluten free)

• Heirloom Eatery - Get snacky with homemade classics like Meatball Heroes, Steak Sandwiches, Kale Chips, and Sriracha Cupcakes!

• Treeline Cheese - These sell like hot cakes, so buy early! Outstanding aged Cashew Cheese Wheels in Smoke or Pepper, and silky Scallion Cream Cheese! (gluten & soy free)

• Lael Cakes – Find your sweet tooth through beautiful Coconut Rum Cake w/ Passion Fruit Icing, Lemon Poppy Cake w/ Lavender Rosemary Icing, and Mint Chocolate Chunk Cookies! (gluten, soy & nut free)

• Heat Sweets - Try the brand new sweet ‘n’ spicy Jalapeno Mango Carrot Fruit Leather! Plus pick up specially priced gift sets of mini hot jellies and relishes!

• Monks Meats – You won’t go hungry after Mushroom Pepper Steak Sandwiches, the ultimate Lasagna, and Stewed Pot Roast Hot Pockets! Not to mention all 4 flavors of seitan sold in half pound containers.

• Gone Pie – Get stocked up on the best of the best like Vanilla Macaroons, Chocolate Almond Tarts, Choc-Covered Tahini Cookies, Carrot Cake w/ Caramashew Cream Cheese Frosting, Brownies, and more! (gluten free)

• Vegan Bodega – Check out their new products like Jerky from Morels The Vegan Butcher and Coconut Bacon from Phoney Baloney’s!

• Green Pirate Juice Truck - Not only can you score the most amazing, healthful drinks around like Walk The Plank(a superfood green juice) and Monkey Vibes(banana berry coco choco smoothie), but you’re gifted 15% off any 3 or 5 day Juice Cleanse Package when you sign up this Saturday!! Not to be missed!

And that’s just a wink of the findings you’ll see this Saturday! Let’s not forget Donuts from Cinnamon Snail Food Truck, Fresh Juice Ice Pops from Monster Haus, Ethiopian Brunch by Bunna Cafe, and Raw Cookie Confections by Sweet.!

Why yes, I WILL stop, thanks.

• Every time I need a taxi, it started raining five minutes ago.
• All the ATMs become Gaps again.
• Every day is trash day.
• Every street is like Broadway in Soho during the holidays.
• Every other street is like Canal Street.
• The 2nd Avenue subway line takes another 100 years to build.
• For every one cockroach or mouse or rat I see, I see the other hundred I don’t.
• I have to talk to every single person who approaches me with a branded windbreaker and a clipboard  (the British call them”Chuggers”– charity muggers) asking me if I “have a minute” or “like comedy.”
• Every time I try to walk through Union Square there’s a farmer’s market AND a holiday mart AND a protest of something AND a drum circle.
• Sleep below tap dancers and above a food-serving establishment whose smell permeates everything.
• Every street I try to cross has a giant lake of still water surrounding it that is too big to jump across.
• Get caught in the middle of a West Side Story like gang war between the hipsters of Williamsburg and the hipsters of Park Slope set to math rock beats.
• Be forced to shop at Whole Foods during peak hours only. Ditto Trader Joe’s.
• Every time I reach the subway platform I realize I have JUST missed the train.
• Your turn! What would you rather have happen than have a Lula-less city? Leave a comment.

So please go support Lula’s for me, while you still can!

Vegan Valentine’s Shop-Up
Saturday, February 9th
12- 5pm
Pine Box Rock Shop
12 Grattan St.
Bushwick, Brooklyn
FREE!

We have a full list of lusty and talented vendors, both new and old! Visions of heart shaped cookies, glittering bon bons, sweet scented gift boxes, and charm filled chocolates will deck out Pine Box Rock Shop on Saturday, Feb. 9th, from 12-5p. Don’t forget, it’s also happy hour!

Handspun yarns + gourmet nut cheeses + tea blends + grooming products + seitan + yogurt + specialty cinnamon rolls + eco-clothing + cake truffles + kombucha + gluten-free goods = YOUR BEST DAY EVER.

Come on out for a day of celebrating, munching, sipping, hanging, nuzzling, winking, snacking, sweethearting, and just plain fun having. Thanks for <3 ‘ing us enough to be around this long. This year we’re trying something new and bringing you a Shop-Up EVERY MONTH!”

Because Valen-times may evil, but seitan is delicious!

And did you see that at the end about the Vegan Shop-Ups happening every month?!

The First Vegan Bake-Off is happening at The Bell House Sunday, February 10th at 3pm!

“The event is open to 15-20 everyday bakers who’ve got the baked goods to compete for the title of The Bestest, as voted for by judges and attendees. From cookies and mini-cupcakes, to pastries, tarts, brownies, fudges and bars, the Vegan Bake-Off is sure to be a sweet, sweet sugar high.

To help crown the earthy crunchiest of them all — and to award prizes — judges Chef Adam Sobel (owner of the insanely-popular Cinnamon Snail Food Truck and Certified Orgasmic), Sarah Gross, organizer of the annual NYC Vegetarian Food Festival and owner of Rescue Chocolate, and whip-smart comedian Myq Kaplan will happily indulge in the day’s delicious vegan spread.”

Get your tickets HERE.

Compete! Eat! Wear waist-less clothing!

Ethiopian food is awesome, and it’s one of the more inherently vegan-friendly traditional cuisines out there. But it’s very rare to find a place specifically focussed on the v*gan side of Ethiopian food. Bunna Café does that and much more, with their pop-up events showcasing music, dancing, coffee ceremonies, and booze, as well as good eats. They’ve mostly focussed on North Brooklyn to date, but events elsewhere are certainly a possibility.

Upcoming Bunna Café events include dinners at Tradesman (222 Bushwick Ave, off the Montrose L) on August 26 (this weekend!!), at Alaska Bar (35 Ingraham St, off the Morgan L) on September 2, and at The West (379 Union Ave, off the Lorimer L) on September 8.

The only non-vegan thing they serve is the honey-based Tej wine. But they will be more than happy to hook us up with alternate drinks.

I asked Bunna Café’s Sam Saverance a bunch of questions, and he was good enough to answer them:

SuperVegan: Who’s behind Bunna Café and how did you get started? How long has Bunna Café been going? How long have you been cooking Ethiopian food and/or cooking professionally? Are you Ethiopian yourself?

Sam Saverance: 
Bunna Café is a three-person team composed of myself, a Texan, and two Ethiopians—Chuny Ali and a third partner who must remain nameless for now because he still has a competing restaurant day job. I am by profession a graphic designer and marketing/branding specialist. For the past four years I have diverged more from production work to branding and promoting African-based companies in order for them to be more successful in the global marketplace.

I spent some time in Ethiopia back in 2008 and immediately fell in love with the cuisine, visuals, and culture, especially in the way that food is considered an integral part of everyday life. My “nameless” partner hails from the Lalibela region, has spent many years managing restaurants and as a tour guide, and studies architecture at school here in NYC. He is extremely knowledgeable and effective in managing an event, and also has excellent taste in creating a memorable experience. We both met randomly a year ago and after chatting soon discovered that we had the same vision of creating a tasteful venue that reflected Ethiopia in a positive, effective way. Chuny joined us earlier this year. She is our master chef – the food she cooks is mind-blowingly tasty. Even the Ethiopians are mesmerized by the flavors she creates. She manages the kitchen and is incredibly efficient at it.

All in all the three of us complement each other to a tee. I work on branding, promoting, and event planning, nameless dude works on the managing of events and service, and Chuny manages the kitchen.

Tell us about your events. What’s a vegan gonna get that they can’t get by going to any old Ethiopian restaurant?


We decided to do vegan Ethiopian for a variety of reasons. First, it is extraordinarily tasty to the point that even a carnivore will forget that there is no meat involved (spoken from the mouths of true unabashed carnivores). Second, vegan Ethiopian is “naturally” vegan, in that you don’t have to substitute any animal product for a vegan option. You are eating a vegan dish that has been crafted and fine-tuned for centuries and is a very sophisticated meal palette-wise. The vegans I have spoken to are very appreciative of this. Thirdly, without meat the whole cooking process is much cleaner in the kitchen and on the shelf.

Other Ethiopian restaurants serve vegan Ethiopian food, but they mostly emphasize the meat dishes and therefore don’t place the same effort to make the vegan dishes palatable. Ours is tastier, heartier, healthier, and extremely colorful (we make a point of this).

Chuny is herself vegetarian so she knows very well how to make the dishes shine through.

Ethiopian cuisine is pretty vegan-friendly in general, right? Am I right that as long as we avoid the honey, everything that seems vegetarian is safe?


Ethiopian cuisine goes two ways—either very meaty or vegan. But yes, in general the veggie dishes are also vegan. Also, it is very close to being gluten-free. We are currently working on an injera recipe that does not use any wheat or other gluten product. The honey is mainly found in Tej—Ethiopian honey wine—so we are careful to point this out to those that consider honey to be non-vegan.

Are there many vegetarians or vegans in Ethiopia?

No. Not especially. Ethiopians love their Tibs (roasted beef). However for religious and lifestyle reasons meat is eaten sparingly. Most Ethiopians avoid pork completely and eat meat only on special occasions. All-in-all the Ethiopian palate is very nutritious.

I love coffee. And I especially love Ethiopian coffee. Coffee seems to be an important part of what you do. Tell us about that, please!

We consider coffee to be part of the aesthetic of our events, so we present it not as a product to sell but a part of the overall entertainment. Wherever we can, we perform the traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony. The roasting of the beans and the entire brewing process adds tremendously to the overall experience. And the final coffee (called “Bunna”) is delicious and has an amazingly intense yet sustaining effect.

What do other Ethiopian restaurants get right and get wrong? (Not asking you to name names, just curious what you do better!)


There are a few Ethiopian restaurants in NYC that I absolutely love. Good food, good atmosphere, savvy owners. But we feel like we are doing something completely different and catering to a different crowd. As a designer and marketer, my focus is to create something that will build a strong brand identity for us and also for Ethiopia and Africa. By doing so we can leverage our brand identity to promote other Ethiopian/African products and create more long-term prosperity for the continent.

We feel the best way to promote ourselves is to use the Ethiopian cuisine and culture in ways that pull it out of the typecast “kitschy” cultural experience and make it just a good experience in a variety of genres and facets. We are working with musicians from a variety of genres to do collaborative events. So far in our dinner parties we’ve had funk, blues, Sudanese acoustic music, and we’ve been talking with bands that range from klezmer to noise rock. Being a “travelling café”, we also gladly leave town. Bottom line is we want to show that Ethiopian cuisine works in a variety of traditional and non-traditional settings.


How close are you to opening a permanent restaurant, and where will it be?

We will definitely be opening a permanent venue, but probably not until early next year. We are looking for a spot in the East Williamsburg/Bushwick area. Until then we will undoubtedly be a presence. We are lining up events for as many weekends as we can muster and will continue to do off-site, travelling events when we have a permanent spot. We have a mailing list that people can get on by emailing me at sam@bunnaethiopia.net, and we also promote through Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr.

(all photos courtesy Bunna Café)

Bryant Terry

The first New York Food Book Fair is this weekend in, where else, Williamsburg. Come get your fill of panel discussions, lectures, and book and zine browsing celebrating a diversity of food writing and activism.

I suspect there will be a fair amount of “hip” discussions of raising backyard beasts and broiling their innards. The good news is it won’t all be about that and you can purchase tickets for individual panel events for $15. I’m looking forward to the Food + Cooking + Change panel discussion because Bryant Terry will be included. In addition to being wickedly handsome and a food justice activist, Terry is author of Vegan Soul Kitchen and, most recently, The Inspired Vegan.

Also exciting: Dr. Marion Nestle, food politics writer and Paulette Goddard Professor in the Department of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health and Professor of Sociology at NYU, will open the fair on Friday with a keynote lecture, Why Food? Why Now?.

Food Book Fair, May 4-6, Wythe Hotel, 80 Wythe Ave.(at North 11th St), Williamsburg, Brooklyn. More info: www.foodbookfair.com

1-2-3 Go!

Thank YOU for supporting “Our Planet. Theirs Too.” with us at Vegan Drinks NYC on April 26th. We were expertly hosted by the fabulous Heather and Jeff at Pine Box Rock Shop in Brooklyn. Thank you, Pine Box!

And, special thanks to those organizations and individuals who made Shout Outs:

• “Our Planet. Theirs Too.”
• Sea Shepherd
• GooseWatch NYC
• Vegan Outreach
• NYC Walk for Animals
• Veggie Prom – May 18th at Fontana’s – benefits Mercy For Animals!
• OWS Animal Issues Working Group – May 13th conference – location TBA
• Darwin Animal Doctors
• Chicago Vegan Foods
• Dun-Well Doughnuts
• Andreas Turanski – join his vegan Rugged Maniac team
• Ross Minanti
• Jeff LaPadula
• Emily Graves
• Andrea
• And, the greatest DJ in all the land, DJ Grand Format

May 31st marks the next Vegan Drinks NYC. We’ll be at Fontana’s, 105 Eldridge Street in Manhattan. This will be our first time at Fontana’s and we promise a fantastic evening as we celebrate Vegan Drinks NYC’s fourth birthday! The DJ Grand Format will be back in the DJ booth!

Get on our mailing list!

Join us THIS Thursday, April 26, from 7:00pm to 10:00pm for Vegan Drinks NYC! We’ll be at our favorite bar ever, Pine Box Rock Shop, located at 12 Grattan Street in Bushwick, Brooklyn. It’s just around the corner from the L train at Morgan Avenue. There are also bus stops nearby and plenty of space to park your bike. (And, yes, if you haven’t heard, our home of nearly four years, Angels & Kings Bar, recently closed its doors. We’ll miss you, old buddy!)

This month any money you throw in the donation jar will benefit the not-for-profit “Our Planet. Theirs Too.“, sponsors of National Animal Rights Day and other projects dedicated to the vision in which human and non-human animals share this planet in peace and harmony.

Win a great raffle prize while supporting “Our Planet. Theirs Too.” The Regal Vegan has donated a tote bag filled with its Faux Gras and Basillicotta. And, don’t worry if your luck runs short and you don’t win the raffle because there will be free samples of truffles courtesy of ChocAlive! to help you forget.

Happy hour ends at 8pm! Get to Pine Box Rock Shop EARLY! And, the earlier you get there, the better your chance to purchase from the bar a V-Spot Philly Cheesesteak empanada before I polish them off.

Have you read the new and improved Vegan Drinks FAQ? Please read it, even if you’re a regular at our event. (Really, please read it. All of it.)

We’ll turn down the music around 8:30pm and encourage people to promote themselves, their groups and/or causes for 30 seconds. If you represent a veg*n or animal rights group, come prepared with your (very short!) spiel and literature.

If you’re not already following our every move, connect with Vegan Drinks on Facebook, follow us on Twitter (@vegandrinks), and join our e-mail list.

Vegan Drinks NYC is usually held the last Thursday of the month from 7:00pm to 10:00pm. We’ll head back to Manhattan for the May Vegan Drinks. The exciting details will be shared soon!!!!

Did you know we have a NYC Vegan events calendar here on SuperVegan? Well, we do. Here’s a list of some exciting happenings coming up this week.

• See US Premier of “Cages of Shame”, a film documenting Animals Asia’s rescue of 10 bears from a bile farm in China. Q & A to follow. (Sat 4/14, 6-8pm. Rubin Museum of Art, 150 W. 17th Street, West Village.)
• Stretch your compassion at Yoga for Bears, a yoga class, lunch, and fundraiser for Animals Asia. (Sun 4/14, 12-3:30. Jivamukti Yoga School NYC, 841 Broadway, 2nd Floor, Union Square.)
• Visit Vegan Shop Up to buy ethical edibles and other goodies from local artisans. (Sun 4/15, 12-5pm. Pine Box Rock Shop, 12 Grattan St., Bushwick, Brooklyn.)
• Drop in on Vegan Book Swap 3.0 to snatch up some vegan cookbooks or AR reads and support Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary. (Mon 4/16, 6:30-8:30pm. Sustainable NYC, 139 Ave A, East Village)
• Be heard at 2012 NYS Humane Lobby Day. Chartered buses and carpools make it easy for you to get your rear to Albany and encourage your elected representatives to put animals on the agenda. (Wed 4/18, 11am-4pm. Empire State Plaza Convention Center, Albany, NY)

I finally joined a gym with locations near my office and my home to ensure I’d make it there on a regular basis because, holy heck, THERE’S A VEGAN BAKERY OPENING CLOSE TO MY APARTMENT! Clementine Bakery on Greene Avenue (at the corner of Classon) is opening its doors THIS Sunday, March 4th, at 8:00 a.m. That’s just a hop, skip and a jump from the Classon G station. (Thank you, Clementine co-owners, Michelle Barton and Michael Glen, for remembering not all vegans live along the L train!)

Among the crazy that is preparing for your first NYC retail venture’s 0th birthday, Michelle Barton found a few spare seconds to take a breather and answer our probing questions.

Deborah Diamant: How did you settle on Classon and Greene as the spot to open your bakery?
Michelle Barton: Both Michael and I live close by in the neighborhood, and we saw there was a need for vegan food and an opportunity for us to be part of the local community.

DD: Where did you get your baking start?
MB: While I was managing at Terri in Flatiron, I was recruited by Lifethyme Bakery while also working at Champs for a hot minute before being promoted to head baker at Lifethyme.

DD: What do you think will become your signature item(s)?
MB: We’ve been working hard to develop an intriguing menu but our favorites thus far are strawberry and blueberry apricot glazed hand pies, and fresh dill and mozzarella biscuits.

DD: How will Clementine Bakery stand out from the other brick & mortar vegan bakeries already open or expecting to open in the coming months (e.g., Champs, Dun-Well, Blossom, etc.)?
MB: We plan to make our mark through our attention to craft. Using high quality organic ingredients and preparing essences and extracts in house, we want our customers to get a sense of the enjoyment and curiosity we have in combining different flavors and textures.

DD: You’ve already got a cookbook available — does this mean all of your secrets have been given away in advance of your opening?
MB: We think everyone should be able to bake tasty vegan treats. There’s no secrets with us. The more people who understand that vegan baking is just as good or better works for us.

DD: Is the bakery set up to accommodate the laptop-toting daytime crowd, or is it more a dash-in-and-dash-out kinda place?
MB: Our shop feels more livingroom than office, but we welcome people who want to stop by for a quick fix

DD: What brand of coffee will you be serving?
MB: We’re serving locally roasted Kitten Coffee using the Japanese Hario pour over method and also French press. Our coffee bar features our own custom made creamers.

DD: What percentage of your ingredients will be organic and fair trade?
MB: We use 100 percent fair trade ingredients and 90 percent organic. We hope to get that up to 100 percent organic ingredients if we can find the right suppliers.

DD: Tell us about the grand opening festivities!
MB: It’s our birthday, so there’ll be cake for everyone, balloon animals and a piñata!

DD: And, for the most important questions: Vegan chocolate covered malt balls? Do you think it’ll ever happen in the United States and will you finally be the bakery to make them for me?
MB: I sure can give it a whirl! We could be that bakery to make it happen.

Clementine Bakery, 299 Greene Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, is opening this Sunday, March 4th at 8:00 a.m.! Regular hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Bike, walk or take the G to Classon.

Photo courtesy of Leanne, by Melissa Schwartz of scwartzstudios.

Remember how we mentioned that the very first Vaute Couture store, Vaute Here, is opening on Sunday in Williamsburg?! YEAH ya do! If you’re half as psyched as I am, you’ll want to read all about owner Leanne Mai-ly Hilgart’s adventure in opening her first shop — how she chose the space, what she learned about creating a store, and what you’ll find in the shop when it opens (it’s more than coats! Yay!). Read on for a little Q-and-A between Leanne and me.

Leanne Mai-ly Hilgart is the founder and owner of the New York-based vegan clothing company Vaute Couture. She’s been featured on Oprah.com, has an MBA, and is a model. (To quote a movie, she’s “so hot it’s like looking through a shimmering jet engine.”)

Samantha Cohen: What has it been like to set up your first shop?
Leanne Mai-ly Hilgart: This has been one of the most fun things I’ve ever done. Unlike what most people probably think, my (or any other designer’s) life is usually full of logistical and operational details and processes, with design being about 2 percent of what I normally get to do. As a bootstrapped, self-funded venture, I’ve been working nearly all by myself, besides the occasional intern or amazing confidante to help during the craziest times, for the past three and a half years. That’s operations, production management, marketing, sales, customer service, design, finances, and product development.

This past fall I barely made it out alive, working from morning until past midnight, nothing but work, to keep up with this insane third season. (Not that I’m complaining–I’m very, very grateful to do what I love and have the best customers in the world, that is for sure. I just want to give an idea of why building the store was so wonderful for me.) After I took my first vacation in two years this January, I started hiring my first team to help with operations and customer service, while building the space.

So, getting to create and design so much for the store has been like being 5 again! I was always the artist in the class growing up, but I never thought I’d get to do art again in my life, especially after I went to school to become a school principal. So these past two months, I was giddy; so many creative projects, so much fun to be had! I loved watching the space take shape, and create its own personality.

I loved discovering salvaged pieces that no one wanted and giving them a new life, watching them come together in a new space to add up to something that had all my favorite things at once. I found that I had to abandon ideas I previously had for the store (name, colors), to make way for the colors and the name that the store grew to have. I realized that when you give up preconceived ideas, better ones are waiting. Things speak to you, and you just have to let them become what they are supposed to become. I sound like such a hippie! But it’s true. (SC: Take the briefest glance at Leanne’s coats and you will see she is a refined lady, not a hippie.)

SC: Best/worst parts of putting the store together?
LMH: Hm, I think I’ve already mentioned some of the best parts… worst parts were of course how much it costs! Whew! Besides rent, the renovations and materials (while salvaged) were quite a lot, especially for this self-funded venture. But, of course every risk I’ve taken has been no risk at all because there was a momentum here that I couldn’t ignore. And when life takes you somewhere, the only thing you can do is let go and trust yourself and that no matter what you’ll make it happen.

(Cliche incoming!) The biggest risk of all is not taking any, but I really mean that. I find that when you put your all into something because you know it just has to be created, it just has to be put out there into the world, and when you do this without any guarantees or expected outcomes, that so many other beautiful things come that you never could have dreamed. The harder you work, the more the stars align. (And this is a gazillion times truer when the work you do is for others.) Okay, I’m on a hippie, sappy tangent, clearly, sorry!

SC: What will customers find in the shop when it opens on Sunday?
LMH: A custom-made photobooth (an actual vegan one! Most aren’t vegan, with gelatin in the instant photo processing), a starry lightbox fitting room, all the casuals stacked in salvaged lockers (complete with farm animal pinups and love notes in the doors), and a weekly VOTE, where we get your input on new designs, colors, etc.

Oh, you mean clothes? We’ve got our coats and casuals, and winter accessories, too. And the new spring line (printed dresses, jumpers, overalls, tunics), plus a bunch of new things like HSUS and Sea Shepherd jewelry pieces, new charm necklaces, totes, knits, and art soon to come. (SC: OVERALLS!)

SC: How did you choose the location?
LMH: I was stressed out of my mind overworking on Thanksgiving weekend, and I thought, “What can I do that would be productive but good stress relief?” And I decided to look on Craigslist for a spot in Williamsburg that I could daydream about opening my first store at. Two days later I was making appointments to just start my research, when one store, located on the same street as THREE of my favorite Wburg restaurants (Food Swings, M Shanghai, Caracas) told me they had to give their landlord notice by that Thursday. It was Tuesday. There was no way that the first spot I ever looked at could be THE store, let alone could I decide this in two days!

But I went, that rainy night, to take a peek with my guy James. We stepped up to what I thought was the space, when I noticed the store next door and said “Wow…what’s that? Awesome neighbors.” Just then, the leasor came out of THAT store and said, “Leanne, THIS is what I’m renting out.” I walked in, and it was just better than I could have wanted. The leasor told me she’d hold off her landlord for one extra day so I could look at other places for comparison.

That Friday I looked at other stores until I told one about this space. The agent stopped, shook my hand, and said “Congratulations. WHAT are you doing here?” I walked back to the space, and signed it then and there, the first spot I’d seen, less than a week after I had found it on Craigslist. I felt like it had been handed to me. And I absolutely love it. It’s my safe haven, my bliss. This space is the ultimate comfort for me.

image courtesy of Vaute Couture

Vaute Couture, Leanne Mai-ly Hilgart’s all vegan, all locally made coat line, will open its first store at 234 Grand Street in Williamsburg on Sunday, March 4 (that’s just ten days away — February is short!) with a sample sale and a preview of the spring collection. This is exciting because those coats are expensive. (And so is making them!) So coats from previous collections are up to 70 percent off for six hours starting at noon on Sunday, during which we will wreck each other while we grab for coats like there’s a sale at Kleinfeld’s and it’s all our weddings.

And! Leanne told me in an email that VC is “also launching a spring collection of printed dresses, overalls, and jumpers, out soon made of organic cotton, recycled materials, and hemp denim.” I LOVE OVERALLS. This is my secret shame, actually. I hope no one who respects me is reading this. Also, dresses. Leanne’s coats are so gorgeous, form-fitting, and well-made. I’m absolutely thrilled to know she’s bringing her sensibility to clothing.

As for the store: “Nearly everything in the store is created of salvaged materials, like our photobooth made from decades-old doors from BuildItGreen, a mantle from Lady Gaga’s Barney’s Exhibit that became our cash wrap, a hand-etched Starry Lightbox for a dressing room, and all our mannequins from Abercrombie & Fitch,” Leanne said. “Even the paint is leftover, used gallons.” Beautiful clothing and an eco-conscious store to boot!

If you can’t make it Sunday (there will be free sweets! and hugs, Leanne says!), visit later; the store will obviously be open forever because it’s going to be fantastic. LEANNE CAN DO NO WRONG. What? I’m serious.

Vaute Couture Grand Opening
Sunday, March 4, 12 p.m.
234 Grand Street, Williamsburg (L to Bedford, G to Lorimer)

Happy, attractive people flock to the Vegan Shop-Up! (Photo courtesy of VeganShopUp.com)

We’re excitedly counting down the days until we can shop with abandon at the February 12th Vegan Shop-Up at Pine Box Rock Shop in Brooklyn! To take our minds off how to balance being in our favorite bar in such close proximity to sweets, savories, wearables, washables and other assorted odds and ends, we sent Sarah Peltier, the founder of Vegan Shop-Up, our ten most pressing questions! In turn, Sarah sent us her ten best answers! Feel free to read out loud to your loved one(s).

Deborah Diamant: You’re a year old! How does a vegan pop-up shop celebrate this achievement?
Sarah Peltier: We plan to celebrate our first birthday with lots of freebies for everyone! Some of the best vegan-friendly companies around have donated treats: VegNews, Babycakes, Terri, MooShoes, Foodswings, and Babeland.

DD: Why do you think pop-up shops have gotten so popular the last year or so?
SP: They’re the perfect low-risk venue for companies without a regular location to reach the public. They’re an enticing shopping experience and a great way for smaller businesses to get noticed.

DD: How many vendors were at your first shop-up, and how many do you expect this weekend?
SP: We had a whopping five vendors at the very first Shop-Up last February, and now we are at 32! It grows more and more each time around.

DD: The rumor is that you keep Pine Box Rock Shop really packed during your event. Do you have plans to move to a bigger space?
SP: Perhaps if the right space came along we’d consider it. But, of course, we’d hate to leave Pine Box Rock Shop, which we really love and appreciate. It’s a possibility we could span the event over two days next time, too. Our eyes and ears are open!

DD: Are vendors vetted in any way? What do you require from your vendors? Have you had to turn any vendors away?
SP: Vendors have to be local and produce quality vegan products. We shy away from having too many of one thing and love variety. We’ve been turning vendors away from a lack of space! The next Shop-Up is in April and we will have a better approach to accommodating all of our vendors.

DD: Do you yourself operate as a vendor during the Shop-Up? What’s your business?
SP: I have been selling for my own business as well, though it’s getting harder and harder each time as there is just more to do at the events now. I’ve had Woodside Bakehouse since 2009, and this Sunday we will be selling handmade organic vanilla extract and Peanutella, plus our signature El Conejo granola bars.

DD: Are there any success stories from the Shop-Up? Like, has anyone been able to quit their soul-sucking graphic design day job yet?
SP: Hmm, not that I’ve heard of, but I’m excited to see the day! There are a few vendors that sold with us early on but now are just too busy with their rocketing business to take part anymore. Sprout Skincare and Barry’s Tempeh are a few!

DD: Can you gauge what percentage of the items for sale are fair trade, organic and/or recycled?
SP: I’d say a good 70 percent are – it’s definitely a majority!

DD: I know you’re gonna tell me you don’t play favorites, but what vendors are you most excited for this weekend?
SP: YES, no favorites. Very important. Each and every vendor is worthy of your time and money, that’s why it’s so great! On that note: CakeBites (gluten-free cake truffles), Scintilla Microconfections (homemade sprinkles, etc.), Fresh to Death (nut mylk blends), Kitty Jones (handmade catnip mice), Clementine Bakery (soon to open vegan Bed-Stuy bakery)…

DD: Let’s close with a really hard question: What’s your favorite cocktail on the Pine Box Rock Shop menu?
SP: Spicy Virgin Mary! [Ed. note: We can't get enough of the "Sam in a Sweater" ourselves.]

Vegan Shop-Up is happening this Sunday, February 12th from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at Pine Box Rock Shop, 12 Grattan Street, Bushwick, Brooklyn.

And, oh, right — the game! Sunday’s Super Bowl will be on four screens at Pine Box Rock Shop, but who can focus on a game when there’s vegan chili to be eaten? Pine Box will be serving complimentary chili all night, which you can enjoy with beer from the home states of both teams: “Brooklyn Blast, Blue Point Oatmeal Stout, Southern Tier Oak-Aged Pumking and Sixpoint Sweet Action go head-to-head with Massachusetts-based Clown Shoes Lubrication, Cisco Whale’s Tale, Fisherman’s Brew and Pretty Things Jack D’or,” according to the bar’s Facebook event.

Pine Box Rock Shop Super Bowl Party
12 Grattan Street, Brooklyn
Sunday, February 5, 5 p.m. to 12 a.m.

Image credit: Vegan Shop-Up

If you haven’t been before (I haven’t! Maybe my Valentine will go with me!), this first-birthday/Valentine’s edition of Vegan Shop-Up may be the most vendor-packed, shop-up yet, with more than 30 sellers. The market’s bloggers promise birthday surprises to be revealed at the event (Oooh, mystery! Intrigue! You’ve got me, Vegan Shop-Up.), a Valentine’s theme, and the reliable libations of vegan bar Pine Box Rock Shop.

Vegan Shop-Up
February 12, 12 to 6 p.m.
Pine Box Rock Shop
12 Grattan St., Brooklyn

Vegan Drinks = A Safe Space for Vegan Straightedge Lawyers (and their vegan, non-straightedge, non-lawyer friends)!

Thank YOU for supporting the Civil Liberties Defense Center (CLDC) with us at Vegan Drinks NYC on January 26th. Extra big hug and thanks to our DJ for the evening, the inimitable DJ Grand Format. He’ll definitely be back!

Special thanks to those organizations and individuals who made Shout Outs:

• Mercy For Animals
• Sea Shepherd – Whalentines Day Bake Sale at Moo Shoes on Feb. 12th
• The Humane League
• Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary
• Intermix: Please Stop Selling Fur Campaign
• Animal Freedom International
• Goose Watch
• Vegan Outreach
• Clementine Bakery – opening March 2012
• Vegan Shop-Up – Feb. 12th at Pine Box Rock Shop
• Baked Better
• Blossom Bakery – opening soon
• NYC Vegetarian Food Festival – March 3rd and 4th
• Melisser and Jac need a home! Rent them an apartment, rent them rooms, donate a couch! If you only have room for one of them, no problem! Contact info at vegandrinks dot org and we’ll get you in touch with our awesome vegan friends.

The next Vegan Drinks NYC at Angels & Kings Bar is February 23, 2012.

Get on our mailing list!

Chef Emma Jane Gonzalez with a curry chickpea and apple salad

A few months back, I heard there was a newish bar in Gowanus, Brooklyn that had a vegan night. That bar is Halyards, at 3rd Avenue and 6th street. I still haven’t been myself, because I am extraordinaly lazy busy, but I did ask host/organizer/chef Emma Jane Gonzalez a bunch of questions over e-mail. And I promise I will go soon, because it sounds totally great!

The only bad thing is that once a month it overlaps with Vegan Drinks (but not this month, thanks to holiday schedules). This Thursday (December 15) will be the last Halyards Vegan Thursday until the New Year. So go tomorrow, then go back starting January 5.

Now here’s what I asked Emma:

Is every Thursday at Halyards a Vegan Thursday?

I’m there, serving vegan food almost every Thursday from 7pm, usually till midnight or a little after. This Thursday is the last one before the holidays. But it will be a good one! Holiday-themed food. And starting in January, there will be trivia every Thursday, to accompany the food. (It’s totally fun and not obnoxious or fratty!)

If I show up at Halyards some time other than Vegan Night, is there vegan food to be had?

Other nights, you won’t find vegan food (other than potato chips), so save your Thursdays for us.

What food do you serve? Is it the same menu every time? Is it good for a meal, or just snacks? Is there savory food and dessert?

I change the menu every week. There are always 4 items, usually 2 of which are gluten-free. Small plates, that you can totally make a meal of. Here are a few things I’ve made in recent weeks, to give you an idea: Cashew-based Welsh Rarebit, Smokey Grits with Black Eyed Peas and Crispy Onions, Baked Chickpea and Cauliflower Croquettes, Spicy Peanut Butter and Dark Chocolate pressed sandwich, Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Agave-Mustard Sauce, Corn Taco with Kale, Tofu, Roasted Sweet Potato, and BBQ Sauce…I focus on savory foods, but often include a hint of sweetness.

Side note: If you come in one week, and give me a request, I will try my darndest to incorporate it into next week’s menu (as long as the request isn’t something gross).

Are there any special vegan beverages (alcoholic or otherwise) to go along with the food?

You know, specialty vegan-drinks are a great idea! I will absolutely bring that up with the Halyards team.

How long have you been doing Vegan Night at Halyards? How did it start?

I started cooking at Halyards over the summer- June, I believe. I typically (and continue to) work as a personal chef, but Halyards owner Edward Colley was interested in starting a vegan night. My pal Mickey Guagno, an amazing bartender (at Halyards) recommended me for the gig, and it’s been going really well!

What’s the crowd and atmosphere like? Is it more rowdy or mellow? Do people come alone, with friends, with dates? Is it mostly people there specifically for the veganity, or people who’d be there regardless?

Halyards is a relaxed neighborhood-y bar. It’s a big space, lots of seating, board games, nice dim lighting (the most flattering kind!). And I find the crowd to be really cool- a ton of musicians and artists have studios/ practice spaces in the area, so there are plenty of tattoos and glasses : ). Singles, couples, big groups, sports lovers, seniors- we get all kinds. People like it because it’s friendly and cool, but not cramped or divey like a lot of bars. It’s a nice place to bring people- both vegans and omnivores!

Do the non-vegans make fun of you?

I do occasionally overhear newcomers asking the bartender if there’s any “like…non-vegan food”, but I generally win them over! They have the rest of the week to order grilled cheese and pulled-pork. Thursday nights are animal-free!

I don’t know about you, but I was all set to break out the Tofurky this Thanksgiving. In the end, though, my cousin invited me over for an intimate vegan gathering, and for a change, a fake roast was not the centerpiece. She said I didn’t have to bring anything, that I should consider myself a guest, but my mother would roll over in her grave if I went to someone’s house and didn’t bring something, no matter what I’d been told.

Dinner started a little late because the Butternut Squash Risotto didn’t seem to want to cook (man, it’s hard to find a recipe without Parmesan cheese!). But that was fine because I’d made an appetizer: the Artichoke Puffs from Carol Adams’ Living Among Meat Eaters, tasty, flaky little treats filled with artichoke hearts, mushrooms, roasted red pepper, scallions and garlic. Everyone was surprised I’d made them because I’m not a mushroom fan; in fact, they’re way more mushroomy than artichokey. But these small bites are incredibly savory and flavorful, so if mushrooms are your thing, you’ll definitely want to pull Carol’s book off the shelf and flip to the recipe section. There aren’t many recipes in the book, but the ones that are there were well-chosen, and I’ve never been disappointed.

Carol Adams’ Artichoke Puffs should really be called Mushroom Puffs. These tasty bites were almost gone before I got a chance to take a picture!

When the risotto was finally ready, we sat down to eat. And this is how the meal played out: apple and cabbage salad with sesame-tamari dressing; Portuguese kale soup with red beans and Field Roast Mexican Sausages; Candle 79′s Cornmeal-Crusted Tempeh, marinated in garlic and ginger (she never got around to encrusting it, but it was still delish!); a mash of parsnip, potato and celery root; and, of course, the risotto. Everything was amazing—I would make the tempeh any day of the year, and the soup was incredibly flavorful, even if the sausages were way too spicy for my wimpy palate. That said, I would have preferred the risotto seasoned more traditionally; cumin and tarragon just don’t do it for me. But overall the meal was stellar, as was the company.

Then it was time for dessert. My cousin made the best Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake I’ve ever tasted (she used the classic filling from the spelt crust recipe). Okay, so she bought a premade crust, but she used fresh pumpkin from her CSA share instead of puree from a can—how’s that for ambitious? She also made a cashew cream to go on top, but it was incredibly rich, so I opted for a dollop of vanilla ice cream instead. What can I say, I’m a purist.

Of course, I’d made a dessert, too. Though delicious, the cookies were a departure from the route I normally would have taken: Chocolate, my ingredient of choice, gives my cousin migraines, and her husband can’t digest tofu. So as you can see, my options were limited. Leave it to Hannah Kaminsky to save the day! Her Maple Pistachio Cremes, from My Sweet Vegan, were pure genius: a sandwich of simple cookies, sweetened with maple syrup, and filled with a thick, rich pistachio paste. The dough was so delicious, I didn’t think there’d be any left to make the cookies with. And the cream was just the right balance of rich and sweet. I’m always amazed when recipes with very few ingredients pack such a flavor punch, and these treats definitely fall into that category.

Hannah Kaminsky’s Maple Pistachio Cremes are simple and sweet yet rich, the perfect holidy treat for anyone who can’t have chocolate or soy (I used hemp rather than soymilk).

So yet again, we vegans prove that being animal-free doesn’t mean being deprived, and that we can stuff ourselves with the best of them. How was your holiday? Did you use any of our reader-submitted recipes? Let us know how your Thanksgiving meal turned out. And start thinking about what you’ll be serving for Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa!

Now’s your chance to read all those vegan/AR books you’ve been hearing about!

• Still need to come up with another Thanksgiving side dish? How about our latest reader submission: Sweet Potatoes Caribbean.
• And Turtle Mountain has launched two brand-new holiday drinks: Coconut Nog and Mint Chocolate.
• Holiday fare often leads to excess weight gain (if you’re doing it right). Need to lose those extra pounds? Check in with Dr. Frank Sabatino for some plant-based weight loss ideas.
• Speaking of eating, if sandcastle cookies, fried pickles and kale chips spell holiday spirit to you, you won’t want to miss the Vegan Holiday Shop-Up, on Sunday, Dec. 4 from 12-5pm, at the Pine Box Rock Shop.
• Then on Dec. 10, join our very own Livi Lane in the County of Kings for Vegan/Animal Rights Book Swap for Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary 2.0. Stock up on all the tomes you’ve been dying to read, and grab some issue-oriented stocking stuffers!
• Speaking of Woodstock FAS, the Guesthouse is open for business! Well, almost. Make your reservations now: Rooms are available starting Jan. 6. I got a sneak peek during Thanksliving, and let me tell you, it’s a sweet place to stay!
• Thanksgiving is followed by Black Friday, which means holiday shopping is upon us. Want to be sure all your gifts come from cruelty-free sources? The Veg Blog just launched a series of vegan-business profiles, the first of which features Herbivore Clothing Company, and the second, jewelry maker McFarland Designs.
• Still haven’t made much of a dent in that list? On Dec. 11, head over to the Green Holiday Festival, an eco-friendly, cruelty-free shopping event. It’s $20 to get in, but part of that benefits For the Animals Sanctuary.
• For more information about these and other happenings in the NYC area, check out our Events Calendar.

I’ve been to a lot of 4-Course Vegan dinners over the years, and each one is better than the last. If you’ve never been, you don’t know what you’re missing! Chef Matteo is a vegan artisan, crafting gourmet delights from organic, seasonal ingredients, and compassion runs through everything he does.




Matteo shops, preps, cooks, serves, busses and cleans throughout each dinner, all by himself. It’s a lot of work, but the pace lends itself to a leisurely experience. And yes, that’s an avocado on his forearm.

After 9 years, however, 4-Course Vegan will close its doors in January, when Matteo and his trusty sidekick, Winston, pack up and move to the West Coast, where they’ll serve his specialties from their very own kitchen, right in the middle of wine country. (Road trip!)




The fair Winston usually greets visitors at the door and barks orders at Matteo throughout the night, but this past Friday he had a bum leg, so he observed calmly from the comfort of his cushion.

Until then, Matteo will be serving up dinner as usual on Saturday nights in his Williamsburg pad: a spare yet cozy space with several hammock chairs up front (with which a friend of mine is obsessed). Because seats are going so fast, though, Matteo will serve up his deliciousness on the occasional Friday night, too. In the past I’ve waited for the menu to come out on Monday before making a reservation for the following Saturday (you can sign up for the newsletter by emailing here), but if you don’t reserve a spot now, you might not get in at all.




The menu speaks for itself.




I went this past weekend, my first time on a Friday, and instead of the usual four tables seating about 40 people, there was one table for 12. Matteo’s dinners are always intimate (and BYOB), but this was especially nice—it was actually possible to talk to everyone there. That’s the other nice thing about Matteo’s dinners: They’re not just for vegans. Everyone from vegetarians to curious omnis to plain-old foodies go, and with good reason: The food is exquisite.




The conversation ran the gamut from vegan weddings to New York transplants to the best new shows on HBO.




The meal started off with Matteo’s infamous Cashew Cheese Ravioli With Basil Puree—a freebie, as it were, making his 4-course dinners 5 courses in actuality. The starter is light yet delectable, slightly rich but fresh at the same time, and Matteo makes and ferments the cashew cheese himself—thank the gods for people who can cook like this!




Course 0: Cashew Cheese Ravioli With Basil Puree.




Our first official course was something that had immediately gotten my attention when I saw the menu: Chestnut Soup With Salsify and Cranberry Relish. Anything with chestnuts is okay by me, and this soup was thick and delicious, and the garnish added just a hint of sweetness and tartness.




I need Matteo’s recipe for Chestnut Soup With Salsify and Cranberry Relish.




Next up was the Roasted Beet Salad With Micro Greens and Pine Nut Butter. I love beets, too—it was super cold out that night, so it was perfect weather for all these hearty root vegetables—and their earthiness was balanced perfectly by the crunch and tang of the greens and the slight richness of the pine nut butter.




Roasted Beet Salad With Micro Greens and Pine Nut Butter is the perfect salad for a cold winter’s night.




The main event was the Spiced-Sunflower Croquette With Sage Polenta and Shiitake Gravy. Could this meal get any better?! On a beautifully arranged plate complete with edible flowers, the croquette disc sat, so inviting, atop the polenta square, in a sea of mushroom gravy and topped with spiced popcorn. (If you ever want to see Winston roll over, show him popcorn. Even an injured leg couldn’t stop him from log-rolling for his favorite treat Friday night.)




Where to begin? Spiced-Sunflower Croquette With Sage Polenta and Shiitake Gravy.




Then came dessert: Pumpkin Cheesecake Tart With Lemon Verbena and Vanilla Sour Cream. Wowee!!! I’m not a sour cream fan, but the tartness of the topping was a nice counterpoint to the creaminess of the pumpkin—this was the most delicate, elegant pumpkin pie I’ve ever tasted—and the flaky, slightly crunchy crust.




Matteo’s Pumpkin Cheesecake Tart With Lemon Verbena and Vanilla Sour Cream will knock your socks off.




So 4-Course Vegan will soon come to an end, and it’s our loss. Pick a date now (there’s no time to wait for the menu) and RSVP, lest you miss the boat entirely. Dinner is $40 per person, and reservations can be made by email or by calling 718-599-5913.




The banner says it all.




Check back soon for my Q&A with Matteo, when he’ll talk about shutting his doors after almost a decade, cooking vegan for African warriors, and what’s next for him and the wonder pup.

• A screening of Forks Over Knives convinced Ozzy Osbourne to go vegan in an effort to stay healthy. Maybe he can take cooking classes with this guy.
• Same thing happened to Russell Brand after seeing the film. Meanwhile, over at Smith, students were in an uproar over rumors that the school was going completely vegetarian and locavore. Like that’s a bad thing?
• Famous veggie Paul McCartney released his first vegetarian cookbook this week, The Meat-Free Monday Cookbook. And on the other side of the Channel, the French government has said Non! to vegetarian meals in schools. What the foudre?
• Chrissie Hynde’s Akron restaurant, VegiTerranean, might be closing, but the singer is set to open up a new vegan eatery in LA with Ellen and Portia.
• Don’t throw meatballs at vegan actress Lea Michele if you don’t want to get kicked off the set of Glee. Well, unless they’re these.
• I don’t know about you, but I don’t get out to Jersey much. Which is why I’m thrilled the Cinnamon Snail Truck is heading to Manhattan and Brooklyn starting in mid-November.

This is one of Supervegan’s posts for Vegan MoFo 2011.

I’m home sick with a sinus infection, but that doesn’t mean you have to stay in and miss all the fun (like Saturday’s Smorgasburg, which for the first time featured items from the Vegan Bodega). But thankfully Smorgasburg happens every Saturday, so you’ll have another chance to go next week, and the week after that.

Two other very cool events are happening Sunday, 10/23:

• Farm Sanctuary’s Walk for Farm Animals, which starts at 11am in Central Park. If you can’t walk, be sure to donate!
• The Vegan Fall Shop-Up, taking place at the Pine Box Rock Shop, from 12-5pm. Check out the artisanal tempeh, kale chips, hummus made in Brooklyn, farm-fresh veggies, stationery, soy candles, and more. The Vegan Bodega is making an appearance at the Shop-Up, too, so be sure to check them out!

Someone bring me a doggie bag!

• Paul McCartney just got married, again, and had a vegan wedding. Yay! But what exactly does it mean when they say that one cake was chocolate and the other one was vegan?!
• Champs Bakery had its own location, then it shared space with Kingsland Sandwich Shop. Now it’s a vegetarian diner. I was excited to try their grub and see how it compares with Chicago Diner’s—best diner food ever!—but now I’m left wondering why they bill themselves as vegan when they serve dairy cheese in addition to Daiya? Thanks to an intrepid SuperVegan reader for the tip, which I confirmed with a call to Champs.
• I’m not a sandwich person, so Subway isn’t really on my radar. But it’s pretty major when a national chain tweets about Vegetarian Awareness Month and asks for food feedback, isn’t it?
• There’s a new mock meat in town, about to make its debut at Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary’s ThanksLiving feast this weekend. It’s apparently gluten-free and pretty damned delicious. Look for my full report on Monday!
• Okay, this isn’t explicitly about food, but how much do I love Tobey Maguire for sending back a free car because it had leather seats? That’s what I call a true superhero!

This is one of Supervegan’s posts for Vegan MoFo 2011.

Dun-Well’s founders Christopher Hollowell and Dan Dunbar posted a fund-raising project to IndieGoGo Thursday night. The $15,000 they aim to raise will help make the secret bat cave storefront “customer-ready,” according to their project page. “In addition to floors, ceiling, walls, chairs, tables, counters, and lights, we are going to need the money to invest in display racks, a cash register, coffee equipment, a refrigeration unit, and an ice-cream bar (yes, we’ll have ice-cream! delicious, vegan ice-cream!)”

Project funding began yesterday and will end on November 15. That’s 60 days to contribute in exchange for some sweet incentives like doughnut coupons, T-shirts, tiles in the store bearing your name, doughnut parties (!), and lots of other stuff I’ll leave you the joy of finding out about for yourself.

IndieGoGo is similar to Kickstarter, which enables dreamers to post a web page about their projects and set a fund-raising goal that they must meet by a certain date. Generous random people donate to the project at different funding levels that may come with perks the project master offers. (For example, if you give $500 to Sam’s hypothetical abortion project, you get to name the fetus! ) With IndieGoGo, unlike Kickstarter, you get the money your friends and admirers donated whether you reach your goal or not, and you have access to the funds as they’re contributed, rather than waiting until reaching the project end date.

So, uh, let’s fund some doughnuts, right?! And if you have any doubt about how doughnuts help animals, (DUH, IT’S SO OBVIOUS), here’s from the guys: “Please share this link with anyone who cares about animals and the potential great vegan food can carry as a gateway to getting people to open themselves up to the idea that animals matter!”