The Unvegan

Make Way for Cafe Rio

June 28th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

The pearly gates of Utah.

I have a coworker who has a problem. The problem is she is a vegetarian. Gross, right? But not by choice. You see she is lacking the enzyme that breaks down meat in her body, so the simple act of eating meat makes her violently ill. It’s really the only acceptable form of vegetarianism, yet there is one place she will always eat meat, stomach be damned. That place is Cafe Rio. It’s a seemingly generic Mexican place that I have driven past many times in Manhattan Beach and brushed off. But little did I realize that Cafe Rio is huge in Utah. Like real huge. And it’s about to get even huger. There are currently 40-something locations, but they are planning an expansion on the scale of 100 restaurants. So when one opens across the street from you, remember you read about Cafe Rio on The Unvegan first. With my coworker in mind, we finally stopped at Cafe Rio to what all the meat fuss was about. Continue Reading»

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Burritos, Cafe Rio, Chains, Chipotle, Fast Food, Los Angeles, Manhattan Beach, Mexican, utah, West Coast Chains

Halo Burger: The In-N-Out of Flint

June 8th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

A sign of good times.

With two of my parents hailing from the once mighty city of Flint, Michigan, I spent much of my upbringing in Flint and hearing about the mighty Halo Burger. My step-dad even celebrated his 60th at Halo Burger (although I was out of the country at the time). Yet, until my return home to Michigan last weekend, I had never once set foot into one of these fabled local fast food joints. But enter I finally did and was impressed by what I found. Continue Reading»

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Bill Thomas, Burgers, Chains, Fast Food, flint, halo burger, hamburgers, meat, michigan, Travel

Surfing and Turfing at Roy’s

May 27th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

"Get your damn asparagus off of me," said the steak.

A steak is not an everyday meal. And even rarer than a steak is a little something called surf and turf. It is only eaten on the rarest and most special of occasions. Or when you have a gift card to Roy’s. Roy’s is a Hawaiian Fusion restaurant that I once discovered in the desert of Scottsdale, but that was long before unvegan came to be. This time, I went to the Roy’s in downtown LA with my lovely girlfriend to pay a visit to my friends, Surf and Turf. Continue Reading»

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Chains, hawaiian, lobster, meat, restaurants, roy's, Seafood, steak, surf and turf

Der Decent at Wienerschnitzel

May 24th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Just look at those colors.

Wienerschnitzel and the concept of a hot dog chain restaurant has always intrigued me. Since I was a little kid, I have loved me some hot dogs, and finally I got the opportunity to check out Wienerschnitzel when the bright yellow and red a-frame restaurant in Valley Village called my name loud enough. I had some strange expectations for this place, because it’s really hard to mess up a hot dog, but they can be messed up and it doesn’t matter what ingredients you toss on top if the dogs can’t hold their own. Continue Reading»

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Burgers, Chains, Fast Food, hamburgers, Hot Dogs, Los Angeles, meat, restaurants, wienerschnitzel

A First Time for Olive Garden

May 4th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Mmm airy breadsticks.

Yes, you read that right: A First Time for Olive Garden. Somehow this Italian chain restaurant, which finds itself in every big or small city in the country, has evaded me for my whole life. But on Friday that all changed. I found myself at Olive Garden for the first time and I was eager to find out what all the fuss was about. It all started with bread sticks. Continue Reading»

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Chains, Cypress, Italian, olive garden, orange county, pasta, restaurants, Travel

Quesoing at Qdoba

April 22nd, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

The Q stands for queso.

On the fringes of the Mexican fast food world lies a restaurant chain called Qdoba, which I’m pretty sure is pronounced queue-doh-ba. Qdoba functions in an assembly-line vein similar to Chipotle and the food itself tastes pretty similar except for one special thing: queso. For those who understand the language Spanish, queso simply means cheese and it would be no surprise to you that cheese is on the menu of a Mexican restaurant. But, for those of you who are well-versed in the language of Qdoba, queso means so much more. Continue Reading»

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Burritos, Chains, Hawthorne, Los Angeles, Mexican, qdoba, restaurants

A Quickie Dinner at Daily Grill

February 28th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

More like Multi-Daily Grill

On our way out of town via the Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, we were in need of a convenient place for a bite to eat. Across the street from the airport, we found the Daily Grill, an mid-level restaurant chain for American food that can found throughout California and a little beyond. As we needed to catch a flight, there was little time to dilly dally and I quickly scanned the menu and found their Penne Pasta with Chicken. Continue Reading»

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American, Burbank, Chains, Chicken, Daily Grill, Los Angeles, pasta, restaurants

A Different Kind of Sharky’s

December 20th, 2010 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Looks like a tasty burrito.

When I found out we were heading out to Sharky’s in Burbank for lunch, I was first a little confused. You see, for me, “Sharkeez” is the name of a college-style bar down in the South Bay, and they aren’t known for their food so much as they are for their happy hours. Little did I realize the difference in spelling, but as soon as we arrived, I knew we weren’t in for some drinking. Instead, I found myself at a counter with a bunch of different Mexican food to order. Sharky’s calls itself a Woodfired Mexican Grill, which is kind of strange to me because I really only think of pizza as being woodfired. But hey, if it can work for pizza, I’m sure it can work for Mexican. In addition to the wood fires, they also attempt to distance themselves from other Mexican food chains by claiming completely natural meats, non-GMO veggies and everything else you can think of that is associated with good old-fashioned food. Continue Reading»

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Burbank, Burritos, Chains, Los Angeles, Mexican, restaurants, sharky's woodfired mexican grill

Pass Me Some Taro Pie

November 8th, 2010 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

This is how McDonald's does taro.

To some, the thought of eating McDonald’s in a foreign country seems just plain wrong. After all, when you’re in a different country, you should be experiencing their culture in all aspects, especially food. And what’s more American than McDonald’s? Yet, it’s hard to deny how much of this American fast food has become a part of other cultures. In Japan and China, a big bucket of KFC is now a Christmas tradition and all over the world you can find Burger King, Subway, McDonald’s and Pizza Hut. And these companies have not simply forced American food down people’s throats. Instead, they have adapted, and few have adapted as well as McDonald’s.

Step into a McDonald’s outside the US and you will see foods you never knew existed. In Canada, you can find Poutine, in Israel there are Kosher McDonalds’ that don’t offer cheese on their burgers. In Japan, the Teriyaki McBurger is like a regular burger, but with a teriyaki twist. These international options almost make McDonald’s a destination, rather than a place to avoid on vacation. Continue Reading»

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Chains, China, Fast Food, mcdonald's, shanghai, taro, taro pie, Travel

Currying Favor at Ajisen Ramen

October 26th, 2010 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Curry in a hurry.

Not too long ago (at least in my head), Ajisen Ramen opened its doors at the Century City food court. I’m not sure where else this Japanese ramen chain exists in the US, but I do know it is a pretty popular and slightly upscale chain in the land of Asia. I decided to check it out to see how it held up against its Asian brethren and found that the menu was pretty similar to what I remembered from Asia. It had a variety of ramen options and some tasty-looking Japanese appetizers. Continue Reading»

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Century City, Chains, Curry, food courts, Japanese, Los Angeles, meat, ramen, restaurants

Rants and Raves

Trouble Sleeping? Try Meat.

January 29th, 2010

This obligate carnivore has no trouble sleeping.

Do you have trouble sleeping? If so, it may be time to re-evaluate your diet. A study published in Medical News Online revealed that carnivores sleep more than omnivores and herbivores. This doesn’t exactly surprise an unvegan who still regularly sleeps for 12 hours on the weekends, but may come as a surprise to someone who struggles with sleeping.

Beer Me Some Breckenridge Agave Wheat

The taste of skiing?

Colorado is definitely a beer state, and not just because Coors comes from the Rocky Mountain State. No, it is also home to New Belgium (of Fat Tire fame) and seemingly countless other micro and craft breweries. While in Breckenridge for a ski weekend, I decided I had to at least try one of these, and because it turned out to be the only one available at dinner, my choice happened to come from the creatively named Breckenridge Brewery. The brewery, by the way, is actually no longer in Breckenridge, having expanded and moved to Denver in 1992.

‘Chains’

Make Way for Cafe Rio

Halo Burger: The In-N-Out of Flint

Surfing and Turfing at Roy’s

Der Decent at Wienerschnitzel

A First Time for Olive Garden

Quesoing at Qdoba

A Quickie Dinner at Daily Grill

A Different Kind of Sharky’s

Pass Me Some Taro Pie

Currying Favor at Ajisen Ramen

Rants and Raves

Trouble Sleeping? Try Meat.

Beer Me Some Breckenridge Agave Wheat

What is this?»

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