The Unvegan

Recent Posts

10 Years of Unvegan
A Quick Bite at Burrito Express
Serendipity at Northern Waters Smokehaus
Twerks and Burritos at Casa Amigos

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2/2/2009 Los Angeles

Gaby’s Mediterranean

Green-free schwarma.
Green-free schwarma.

A friend of mine recommended Gaby’s Mediterranean in Palms, so I thought I would check it out. They have a great outdoor seating area, so I was sure to grab one of those tables to enjoy the unseasonably warm weather we’ve been having in LA.

When I arrived and took a look at the menu, I was a little taken aback. Despite having many countries along its coast, I have always associate Mediterranean food with being predominantly Greek. Of course, Mediterranean could cover anything from Spanish to Egyptian, and in this case, I found the food to be quite Lebanese. I was surprised because I typically consider Lebanese food to be Middle-Eastern, but I was also happy because I’ve always liked Lebanese food. Did I say Lebanese enough in the last few sentences?

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1/21/2009 Los Angeles

Cafe Brasil

My steak has been buried under onions...
My steak has been buried under onions…

Cafe Brasil is one of those restaurants that has always been elusive to me. I have driven or walked past it in Palms countless times, but never gotten up the courage to step inside.

Never more.

I finally took the plunge and stepped into the Cafe. At first I was confused by the place. There are three different seating areas. One is inside, one is semi-outside, and one is for real outside. I found a table in the semi-outside, but then realized I had to order at a counter. Ordering at a counter always puts a lot of pressure on the consumer, especially if they don’t know what they are going to order. Under this deep pressure, I went with every unvegan’s default choice, steak.

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12/11/2008 Los Angeles

Papa John’s

A pair of glorious meatsa pizzas.
A pair of glorious meatsa pizzas.

In just a few years, Papa John’s has gone from a second-tier pizza chain to the top level, joining Domino’s and Pizza Hut. It even has branches in China.

The Papa John’s on National Boulevard in LA offers a fantastic $6.99 carry-out special for a large, one-topping pizza. Last time I went, I ordered pepperoni and sausage, the two greatest meats to ever find themselves atop a pizza.

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11/20/2008 Los Angeles

Gloria’s Cafe

Note the pico has been scraped off.
Note the pico has been scraped off.

Tonight I ate dinner at Gloria’s Cafe in the Palms neighborhood of Los Angeles. Gloria’s specializes in Mexican and Salvadoran food and was recommended by a friend of mine. When I walked in, I saw someone had a bowl of soup with entire crab legs hanging out of it. I knew this was my kind of place. I was told that this was the Sopa de 7 Mares. Aside from that, they have quite an impressive menu with your typical Mexican fare of tacos quesadillas and such, enhanced with Salvadoran Pupusas. Speaking of which, have you ever noticed that a Latin American restaurant can never be just simply Peruvian or Salvadoran, etc…? There always has to be Mexican involved in some way. It’s similar with Asian restaurants. You can never seem to find a Cambodian or Vietnamese restaurant unless it also has Thai, Chinese or Japanese food.

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