The Unvegan

Featured Reviews

Merging Cultures at Chino Bandido
Back to Asia with Taiwan Food Express
A Big Ass Burger at Roaring Fork
Damn Near Perfection at Tokyo Fried Chicken

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5/22/2009 Los Angeles

Experiencing Cuba at Versailles

Two half-chickens in one week...
Two half-chickens in one week…

Having annihilated half of a chicken a few days earlier at Medieval Times, my insatiable desire for meat drew me towards another half-chicken. This time it was at Versailles, a Cuban restaurant in Palms. (I really have no idea how a Cuban place is named after a French Palace…)

The menu at Versailles is an unvegan dream. Sure, there is a “Vegetarian Plates” section, but it seems to be placed as an afterthought, just to appease the poor vegetarian crowd. Otherwise, Versailles is essentially all meat, all the time. Because of this, it took me a really long time to decide what I wanted. In the end, I went with what seemed the safest and had the most catchy name, Versailles Famous Garlic Chicken. This is an entire half-chicken, with fried plantains and my choice of rice and beans or moro (a combination of rice and beans that makes me wonder why the distinction exists).

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5/21/2009 Los Angeles

A Very Happy Hour at Islands

People just seem to think carrots and celery belong with wings...
People just seem to think carrots and celery belong with wings…

The never-ending search for a great happy hour in LA led me to Islands, a burger chain out in the west that reminds me a bit of Applebees with an island theme (what island that is, I cannot tell).

For their happy hour, they offer a great discount on drinks, as well as half-priced apps. They had some good-looking unvegan apps like Tiki (Chicken) Tenders and Cheddar Fries, but when places offer half apps, there’s really only one food I have in mind: Buffalo Wings!

With the knowledge that the wings came with carrots and celery, I made a great personal sacrifice and allowed the dish to come with them so my girlfriend could eat them. I know that makes me look soft, but at least I had spicy wings and beer.

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5/20/2009 Manhattan Beach

A Trusty Sandwich from Manhattan Bread & Bagel

Loaded with the good kind of green.
Loaded with the good kind of green.

Down in Manhattan Beach is a reliable little bakery called Manhattan Bread & Bagel. It’s a great place to stop by for some lunch, and although the sandwiches don’t get incredibly creative, they can always be counted on.

Just as with almost every sandwich place, most of their choices came with a bunch of vegetables. Last time, I ordered the Grilled Pesto Chicken Breast, which comes with tomato, red onion, lettuce and pesto on a French baguette. As always, I ordered it without the tomato, red onion or lettuce, then I noticed that there was a total lack of cheese. To remedy the situation, I ordered some Havarti cheese on it.

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5/19/2009 Buena Park

An Epic Tale of Medieval Times

Lo, it be chicken.
Lo, it be chicken.

‘Twas the anniversary of my cohort’s birth and we set sail for the village of Buena Park on a vessel froth with libations. The night was clear and boded well for our journey. Two score and five minutes after our departure, many of us hath imbibed a hearty helping of spirits and longed for the journey’s end. Just when all seemed lost and starvation had begun to rear its ugly head, hark, we sighted our destination, Medieval Times.

We stormed the fair castle and made our way to the alehouse. The beer wenches welcomed us and our gold with open arms as we waited to partake in the festive occasion.

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5/18/2009 Los Angeles

Attacked by Lettuce at Don Antonio’s

There is an overwhelming amount of green on that plate.
There is an overwhelming amount of green on that plate.

By recommendation, I went to Don Antonio’s in West LA for some nicer Mexican food. Of the possible unvegan burritos, I decided on the Chimichanga, which was simply beans cheese and my choice of meat. I went with beef. To make sure there wouldn’t be any vegetables inside, I asked the waiter, who told me there weren’t, but that there was guacamole and sour cream on the side. While waiting, I snacked on their chips and salsa, which were really good and boded well for my forthcoming meal.

When my food came, he was right and there weren’t any vegetables in my chimichanga, instead, I was dealt something almost as bad. It arrived on a bed of lettuce, which not only intermingled with my guacamole, but also stuck to the crusty shell of my chimichanga.

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5/15/2009 Anaheim

Unwinding at the House of Blues

How did that celery get there?
How did that celery get there?

After a long day of lines, rides and shows at Disneyland, it’s a great idea to relax before making the long drive back up to Los Angeles. Enter Downtown Disney. While this area spans a huge tract of land, there’s really a surprisingly limited number of restaurant options.

Last time I went, we walked up and down the downtown for what seemed like hours before we decided on the House of Blues. They had a nice outdoor area and the weather was perfect for some outside dining. My friend’s Disney discount also applied here, and even though the prices were pretty reasonable, it made ordering all the more sweet.

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5/14/2009 Anaheim

Redd Rockett’s Pizza Port at Disneyland

Disnified pasta!
Disnified pasta!

Eating at Disneyland is never an easy matter. There are quite a few options, but they all seem to be painfully overpriced. Luckily, when I go to Disneyland, I do so with an employee of Disney and get to piggy pack on his discount.

Out of the convenience of its proximity to Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters, we decided to eat at Redd Rockett’s Pizza Port, Disney’s version of Italian. Despite the name of the place, the pizza looked like the worst they had to offer. The cheese looked like plastic and the pepperonis weren’t shaped like Mickey ears (serious disappointment). Also, it was about $7 a slice. Luckily, since Disneyland is made for children (and I have taste buds similar to an eight-year old) there were almost no vegetables to be found.

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5/13/2009 Los Angeles

Screwing the Recession at The Yard (CLOSED)

The recession never looked so good.
The recession never looked so good.

Drink, Eat, Play has been spearheading a “Screw the Recession” effort by finding restaurants to offer 50% promotions while our nation suffers. In other words, if you still have your job, you can get some pretty awesome deals.

Recently, The Yard in Santa Monica was chosen for the 50% promo. I made some reservations and headed there for a semi-early dinner, hoping to take advantage of both happy hour and the promo. Unfortunately, upon arrival I was told that people doing the promo couldn’t partake in happy hour. What the hell? Nonetheless, I stayed the course and chose a couple dishes to split with my girlfriend.

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5/11/2009 San Gabriel

The Genuine Chinese Experience at Wang Jia

Xiao long bao...Small dragon dumplings?
Xiao long bao…Small dragon dumplings?

Although LA has a pretty cool Chinatown, it’s not really the center of Chinese culture in the area. To got the real experience, you have to take a long ride northeast of the city to the San Gabriel Valley. For some reason, Chinese chose this land to create much more than just a little Chinatown. Driving into it, it almost feels like you teleported to China, as all the signs are written in Chinese and the people almost seem to have made no effort to learn English.

Since I had spent a year living in Shanghai and always missed real Chinese food, one night my friend’s family (they are Chinese) took me out to San Gabriel. We went to a Shanghainese restaurant called Wang Jia (yes, there is more than one kind of Chinese restaurant). The place was packed with Chinese people, which is always a good sign. If the waiter spoke any English, he made no note of it.

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5/7/2009 Santa Monica

The Authentic Experience at the Original Tommy’s (CLOSED)

What part of this could be unhealthy?
What part of this could be unhealthy?

NOTE: While this location may be closed, this review unquestionably applies to all other Tommy’s

When I first moved to LA, a friend of mine told me a story about Tommy’s Burgers. Apparently the success of the original Tommy’s spawned a multitude of strange chili cheeseburger places with various spellings of the word Tom or Tommy. In all this confusion, I didn’t know where to find the place that started it all, until my friend enlightened me to the location of an Original Tommy’s in Santa Monica. Now, even though it is called Original Tommy’s, the true Original Tommy’s is on LA’s east side. Confused? I was too. At least until I got to Tommy’s.

Once I got there, everything became clear to me. Having just finished a game of tennis, I found the way to reproduce all the calories I had incidentally burned, the Mega Combo. This combo featured a triple chili cheese burger and chili cheese fries, with a drink bigger than my office’s water cooler. This Mega Combo is not just a meal, it’s a gamble that you’ll survive eating it long enough to look back on it with pride, like storming the beaches of Normandy. I had to make it mine.

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