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

‘California’

8/13/2009 Los Angeles

Food for the Soul at Roscoe’s House of Chicken and Waffles

A morning delight.
A morning delight.

I’d been waiting for a very long time to finally make my trip to Roscoe’s House of Chicken and Waffles. It took the right combination of alcohol and lack of sleep from the night before to finally propel me to the location in Mid City.

My buddy and I walked in around noon and there was a short wait before we took our seats. The menu was loaded with so many varieties of chicken and waffles, without a vegetable to be found, that I really couldn’t figure out what to order. I decided to wait until the waitress arrived to make sure I ordered the right thing. Unfortunately, service wasn’t exactly the strong suit of Roscoe’s. I didn’t mind though, I wasn’t there for service, just for chicken and waffles. Finally the waitress came and told us to get combo #1, which was 1/4 fried chicken and two waffles. We happily complied.

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8/11/2009 El Segundo

A Lunch Deal at Z Pizza

Love the paper.
Love the paper.

A coworker of mine was raving about the amazing-ness of Z Pizza in El Segundo, so I went to check it out with another coworker of mine.

The first thing I wondered was how they came up with the name “Z Pizza.” When I heard it the first time, I imagined a group of German immigrants sitting around a dingy New York pizza joint. One of the immigrants is clearly in charge, albeit with a strong accent, and asks the rest of the table, “Vhat vould you like on zi pizza?” Thus, a restaurant name is born.

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8/10/2009 Los Angeles

Finally, Some Indian Food at Gate of India

This vindaloo is making me thirsty.
This vindaloo is making me thirsty.

Ok, yes I know I sort of reviewed some Indian food last week from Tara’s, but that was really Himalayan. So when I went to Gate of India in Hollywood, it was essentially my first time getting some full-on Indian food since moving to LA.

A buddy of mine took me to the place because it was the best Indian he had yet found in LA. Although he is Jewish, I took his work for it. Gate of India isn’t exactly what you would imagine for a place in Hollywood. It’s in a nondescript little row of shops on a street corner. The interior conveys a sense of a banquet hall more than an ethnic restaurant, but fortunately the prices weren’t so painful, with just about everything on the menu coming in under 10 bucks.

According to my research, somewhere between 20-40% of the population of India are vegetarian. This would be enough to frighten away many meat eaters from Indian restaurants, but not me. That means the majority is still of the meat-eating persuasion. The menu at Gate of India reflected this, because while a majority of the food was meat-laden, there was still a pretty extensive vegetarian section.

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8/7/2009 South Lake Tahoe

Simply Good Burgers at Big Daddy’s Burgers

It's just too pretty.
It’s just so simply right.

Sometimes it’s best to keep things simple. As Henry David Thoreau once said, “Simplify, Simplify, Simplify.” Quite often, restaurants fail to recognize this necessity by throwing in vegetable garnishings or trying to turn a burger into a gourmet meal. Big Daddy’s Burgers in Lake Tahoe, however, wouldn’t dream of crossing this line. They only make burgers, hot dogs and fries. It’s a menu so simple that it makes In-N-Out Burger’s menu look like a novel.

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8/6/2009 South Lake Tahoe

Exercise Food at McP’s Irish Pub & Grill

A veggie-free sensation.
A veggie-free sensation.

After a long day of hiking, there’s nothing better for an unvegan than beer and greasy food. Luckily, just a few steps from my hotel in Lake Tahoe, there was a nifty little joint called McP’s Irish Pub & Grill.

We took our seats in the upstairs and outdoors dining area, just outside the doors of a small performance. As we looked at our menus, there was a small child dancing like a crazy person to the sound of the music from within. This was infinitely more entertaining than the menu, but food had to be ordered. There was plenty of good-looking food on the menu, and eventually I decided to get the BBQ Beef Sandwich.

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8/5/2009 South Lake Tahoe

A Grand Breakfast at IHOP

If only they could slip a little meat in there...
If only they could slip a little meat in there…

I’m not usually a “go out to breakfast” type of guy, but recently when I was in Lake Tahoe, going out to breakfast was really my only option. Rather than take my chances with a place I had never heard of, IHOP started calling my name, and I answered.

The wait was kind of long, but I knew it would be worth it to get a hearty meal before spending the day hiking. IHOP was having a special called Hawaiian Pancakes at the time, so my eyes immediately started checking them out. This wasn’t simply an order of pancakes though, the special also included bacon, hash browns and eggs. Amazingly, this special cost less than if I had just ordered eggs, hash browns and bacon (without the pancakes) so I knew it had to be mine. Of all the Hawaiian flavors, I decided to get the Strawberry Passion Fruit. The picture of it on the menu looked delicious, especially with the strange yellowish cream spilling out from between the two pancakes.

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6/18/2009 Rancho Mirage

Two for One at The Right Bank

Ewww orange veggies.
Ewww orange veggies.

For my last meal in Rancho Mirage, I headed to The Right Bank. Why it isn’t called the Left Bank boggles my mind, but at least it isn’t called the West Bank.

As I sat down and looked at the menu, I couldn’t get over how expensive the place was, but then my grandparents revealed to me that just about ever night they offer buy one get one free for entrees. This was a pretty good deal, so I didn’t feel so terrible about ordering something decent.

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6/17/2009 Palm Desert

The Appropriately Named Thai Smile (RELOCATED)

It would look much better if it weren't for those vegetables.
It would look much better if it weren’t for those vegetables.

One of the nights that I was visiting my grandparents in Rancho Mirage, we went to a restaurant called Thai Smile. There was a 20 minute wait, but I was assured that it would be worth it. Besides, I really had nothing better to do.

While waiting, we checked out the menu so we could order as soon as we got our table. It really took me a long time to decide what to order because the Chicken Spicy Peanut Sauce looked great except that it had green beans and peppers, while I could just create my own dish, but none of the customizable items looked as good as the chicken dish.

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6/16/2009 Palm Desert

A Wholesome Breakfast at Palms Cafe

Looks good enough to eat.
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.

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4/8/2009 San Francisco

Almost Getting What I Want at The Grind Cafe

Those two just look so good together.
Those two just look so good together.

On my last day in San Francisco, I headed to The Grind Cafe before hitting the road.

The menu looked pretty good. Despite a lot of the dishes having vegetables, the combinations with the vegetables removed looked like they would have been pretty enjoyable. One dish in particular looked extra good to me, though, the Corned Beef Hash. I have always found that dish to have quite the name and a nice little mix of ingredients. I went to the counter to order, only to be told that they were all out of it. Disappointed, I checked the menu again and ordered the Breakfast Burrito, which came with eggs, bacon, cheddar, avocado, salsa and sour cream. It was too early and I had too many hours on the road to be eating sour cream, so I ordered it without. It also came with hash browns on the side.

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