How can you not be heroic with that mustache?!
Many of you out there have wondered whether a fictional character can be an Unvegan Hero and I am finally ready to answer that question with a resounding, “Yes!” But it isn’t easy – unless you’re Ron Swanson. Continue Reading»
Only half the story.
It isn’t too often that my buddy, Joel, repeatedly requests that I go to a restaurant with him, so when he does I try to listen. After asking me to go to Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop in Beverly Hills with him a couple times, I gave in and went. I’m not sure what I was expecting when I walked in, but the place kind of had the air of an upscale Subway. But aside from that and the general shape of the sandwiches they served, to compare this place to Subway would be a severe disservice. Continue Reading»
Chipotle
Although Thanksgiving is still a couple of days away, I’m already hungry for some Turkey. Luckily, Gayle’s BBQ sent me some of her BBQ sauces and a recipe for some turkey meatballs for free. Since I’m more of an eater than a cooker, I left my girlfriend to follow the recipe and make me some meatballs. Continue Reading»
No substitutions necessary.
While waiting for a tour of the Sam Adams brewery in the Jamaica Plain are of Boston, we took a short walk to Ula Cafe to grab lunch. Both the brewery and Ula Cafe are located in a strange complex that formerly housed some other, now-defunct brewery.
That brewery’s loss was my gain, for as I perused the menu on the wall of Ula Cafe, I came across a sandwich of dreams. No, this wasn’t some meat-filled cardiac-arresting behemoth, but it seemed to good to be true. The name was Roast Turkey, but that didn’t begin to tell the tale of what would lie beneath the slices of bread. This sandwich was composed of turkey, guacamole, bacon and provolone. Not a vegetable in sight. I had to ask the woman at the counter just to be sure that my eyes didn’t deceive me. She told me it came as noted on the menu, with nary a tomato or lettuce leaf thrown in. I ordered it immediately.
Then came the hard part.
These colors don't run.
Over at the Pico-Robertson area is Factor’s Deli, a Jewish-style deli with delivery! Sometimes I wonder why more restaurants don’t deliver, but luckily I don’t need to wonder about that for Factor’s.
For some reason, I wasn’t in the mood for pastrami, so it took some time to figure out what I wanted to order. Eventually, I found the multi-meaty sandwich to conquer my hunger. This was the combination sandwich entitled No. 1, featuring turkey, corned beef and swiss cheese to ensure that it is un-Kosher. It also had Russian dressing and was served on triple-layer rye bread. As a bonus, it also came with a choice of two sides, so I chose the unhealthiest of all, fries and homemade chips. Continue Reading»
Looks good enough to eat.
While visiting my grandparents in Rancho Mirage, they took me to a great little breakfast place called Palms Cafe in Palm Desert. Knowing my grandparents would never lead me astray, I was pretty excited.
We took a seat outside and perused the menu. As most cafes go, they had a pretty good collection of food, but I sought out my favorite breakfast food, the omelet. Since I don’t think I had ever seen turkey offered in an omelet before, I ordered one with turkey and cheese. I also got some bacon on the side.
It came out pretty quickly and was one of the most interesting omelets I’ve ever seen. Continue Reading»
That's some sneaky little lettuce under there...
On my way to Taco Bell one night, I saw a beacon of flourescence with the name “Teddy’s Cafe” on it. In a bold move, I decided I had to try the place out. On the outside it doesn’t look like much, and the inside is equally plain. Although it was around 9:00 on a Sunday night, the place was totally empty except for me and my eating companions.
A look at the menu showed a wide variety of products, all for an incredibly cheap price. Hoping to have an experience like I did at Mandy’s and possibly attempting to relive Thanksgiving, I ordered the Hot Turkey Sandwich, which came with mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce. Continue Reading»
For my final day of Turkish Food Week, I’d like to wrap up with a few more interesting dishes I encountered on my journey. We’ll return to my regular unvegan lifestyle next week!
Not as unhealthy as real cigarettes.
Cigarette bread is a mysterious food that was first served to me at the Ban Ban Cave Restaurant in Cappadocia. Considering how many cigarettes Turkish people smoke everyday, I wouldn’t have been surprised if someone told me cigarette bread was just a new way they found to ingest tobacco. For all I knew, it could have been bread wrapped around an actual cigarette. I bit in with immense curiosity and found it to just a thin shell of bread, wrapped around ricotta cheese and fried. This is probably only slightly healthier than actual cigarettes. It quickly became one of my favorite dishes in Turkey. Continue Reading»
Steak from Oriental in Cappadocia
In the frozen wasteland of Cappadocia, the man running my cave hotel recommended a restaurant close by, called Orient. It was a short trek, but froth with difficulties like ice and snow. After a few slips and close brushes with icy death, I made it inside.
I checked out the menu, remembering that the guy at my cave had recommended the steak. After a short glance, I found the “Minute Steak.” The name wasn’t terribly specific and I wondered what it could possibly mean. Did it take a minute to cook? A minute to eat? Maybe it was minute in the sense of being small? Perhaps it was Turkey’s version of Minute Maid? My curiosity got the best of me and I ordered. Continue Reading»
A fantastic-looking pile of Doy Doy meats.
Before I left for Turkey, a friend of mine told me I had to go to a restaurant called Doy Doy in Istanbul. Since he hadn’t been to Turkey in a couple years, I took him seriously. It’s not often that someone remembers the name of a restaurant they went to in a foreign country while traveling the world, even one with a name so memorable as Doy Doy.
I was told that I could find Doy Doy behind the Blue Mosque, which isn’t exactly a small building. In fact, it’s hard just to tell what the front of the mosque is, let alone the back. I encircled the building before I found a cobblestone street that I hoped would lead me to Doy Doy. I rounded a corner, and there in bright yellow stood a building with a sign reading Doy Doy. I finally made it, but would it live up to the expectations? Continue Reading»
Say cheese and eat!
We humans have a luxury of constantly trying to make ourselves happy. I say luxury, because we are pretty much the only species to do so. All those other suckers are busy trying to survive and reproduce. Fortunately, red meat is one of those things that makes us happy.
Continue Reading»
Fries of the world.
A couple of weeks ago, The Backyard Bite invited me to The Burger Culture Clash, sponsored by Stussy (which apparently still exists) and Plan Check. Plan Check, by the way, is a sort of new (since February) restaurant in West LA with Chef Ernesto Uchimura of Umami Burger fame. As my love of burgers, especially those of the umami variety, I jumped at the opportunity.
Although I arrived alone, I was not the only lone eater. Just next to where I was seated, I met e*star LA and we decided to share a meal called loneliness, because it’s better than eating alone. We made quick friends over our respective blogs and Midwestern roots, then got to work at dissecting the special menu, which Plan Check will be featuring for the next month if anything tickles your fancy.
Continue Reading»
