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

‘West LA’

12/2/2009 Los Angeles

Missing Something at the California Chicken Cafe

Did something fall out of this box?
Did something fall out of this box?

As a pleasant surprise, my girlfriend decided to pick me up some dinner from the California Chicken Cafe. They were supposed to have some great rotisserie chicken, so before she picked up, I took a look at the menu to figure out what to order. Since just about everything on the menu began with the word “chicken,” I was pretty happy. I decided to go with the 1/4 chicken (breast and wing) plus one side. Picking out a side was probably the easiest thing I’ve done since graduating elementary school. Of the 12 sides, only two were unvegan-friendly. These were the mashed potatoes and the fresh fruit salad. Feeling in a strongly savory mood, I decided on the mashed potatoes.

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7/17/2009 Los Angeles

A Late-Night Mess at Norm’s Diner

Which part of the Mignon is this filet from?
Which part of the Mignon is this filet from?

A long night of drinking compelled me to head to Norm’s Diner in West LA. Of course, this decision wasn’t the best I’ve ever made, but my decision of what to eat at Norm’s was a far worse one.

When I walked in the door, their specialty of the night/morning was on display and even a long look at their long menu couldn’t take my mind off of it. The special was a Filet Mignon, with eggs, hash browns and pancakes. Yes, pancakes. Whoever thought of this one was clearly on something that made him happy and delirious. Best of all, it was a whopping 10 bucks.

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7/14/2009 Los Angeles

Happy Hour Meats at Gyu-Kaku

A beautiful display of meats.
A beautiful display of meats.

In my never-ending quest for the perfect happy hour in LA, I wound up at Gyu-Kaku in West LA for Japanese BBQ. With five minutes left in their Happy Hour, we arrived and were told there was a ten minute wait. Discouraged, we still decided to make the best of it and took our seats after the wait. Our zealous waiter checked his watch as he arrived at the table and disappointedly reminded us that we had just missed happy hour. We told him that we knew, but we had tried to arrive on time and had to wait. Quickly thinking, he told us he was actually a manager and he would give us happy hour prices for our first round of ordering. Score!

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6/12/2009 Los Angeles

The Road Less Traveled at Teddy’s Cafe

That's some sneaky little lettuce under there...
That’s some sneaky little lettuce under there…

On my way to Taco Bell one night, I saw a beacon of fluorescence 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.

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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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5/18/2009 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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4/29/2009 Los Angeles

Getting in Touch with Brazil at Bossa Nova

Mmm steak.
Mmm steak.

Going to Bossa Nova is not the easiest dining experience around. This is nothing of their fault. I’ve never had any trouble getting a table or getting good service. Rather, it is the difficulty in deciding what to get from their textbook of a menu.

The possibilities are almost limitless, ranging from sandwiches to pizza to pasta to steak. And somehow this is a Brazilian restaurant. With so many options, they manage to have a good amount of unvegan food.

Since I was at a Brazilian restaurant, I decided to get the Picanha Steak. It is a special Brazilian cut that has never let me down. It comes from the “Hot from Bossa Nova Grill” section, meaning I also get plantains, rice, beans, yucca flour and salsa. Not bad for $15.99.

When my plate came, it looked almost perfect.

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1/9/2009 Los Angeles

Hop Li

It's always fun removing vegetables with chopsticks.
It’s fun removing vegetables with chopsticks.

When the world shuts down on Christmas, there is only one kind of restaurant that can be counted on to stay open, the Chinese kind. With this in mind, I ventured out to West LA, to a restaurant called Hop Li. The name sounded good, since I couldn’t think of any way to make fun of it. After a decent wait (a good sign!), I was seated and leafed through the vast menu, finally settling on the Mango Chicken.

In a momentary unvegan brain fart, I completely forgot to ask the waiter to hold the vegetables.

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12/26/2008 Los Angeles

Hide Sushi

Check out those pieces with just fish. Yeah. Those are mine.
Check out those pieces with just fish. Yeah. Those are mine.

As a warning, I am not one of those people who gets crazy cravings for sushi or thinks of sushi as some amazing dish that has to be eaten weekly. In fact, I am still waiting for the “sushi fad” to fade away like Pogs, skateboarding and the pet rock did years ago.

Despite this, I found myself in need of an afternoon snack in that crazy Japanese strip of West LA. My friend recommended Hide Sushi, and I complied. My unvegan diet doesn’t leave too much room for sushi, especially if you consider seaweed a vegetable, so I avoided the rolls and ordered the basic yellowtail over rice from the menu.

Sushi doesn’t take too long to make, so I didn’t have to wait too long to fill my mid-afternoon void. I filled my little bowl with soy sauce and a healthy dose of wasabi before dipping my sushi in. 

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12/22/2008 Los Angeles

The Apple Pan

This is what a hamburger looks like when it comes from an apple pan.
This is what a hamburger looks like when it comes from an apple pan.

Although few and far between, old-fashioned hamburger joints still exist in LA. One of these is the Apple Pan, which opened in 1947, so you know it’s good.

When I walked in, the place was packed and every seat at the boardroom meeting-style counter was taken. There was no waiting list, so we had to find a couple diners to stand behind in the hopes that they would leave soon.

Our gamble paid off and we were soon able to take our seats. The menu is a pretty basic one, and my friend suggested the hickoryburger, which sounded good, if not mildly 19th-century presidential.

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