Local vegan “fast food” / My first NaBloPoMo month concludes

As much as I enjoy Sunday mornings in the kitchen prepping bulk food for the week, sometimes I’m just plain lazy. I want someone else to do the cooking.  Fortunately there are a few local places where I can get quick, delicious vegan eats.  While Jolo’s Kitchen is my go-to joint for quick, “home-cooked” vegan dining, there are a couple of other gems in the area.

Andy’s Pure Food
I learned about Andy’s from my nutrition counselor.  The first time I walked into Andy’s I was equally delighted and overwhelmed. Vegan soups, salads, entrees! Vegan baked goods!  You can eat in or take away — I usually opt for take-away.

A few weeks ago, realizing I had a busy weekend ahead of me, I stopped by Andy’s on a Friday night to pick up some eats to nosh on for a few days.

Beans, lentil load, quinoa salad and artichoke salad from Andy's

Andy’s also offers smoothies and juices (and a juice fast — you can pick up a day’s worth of fresh juices in the morning).  Andy’s is the perfect place to pop in for a prepared dish for a potluck, too!

Mrs. Green’s Natural Market
I think many of us have “our” store. The one that has all the bulk grains and beans we love. The best selection of nutritional yeast.  An Asian section that makes any macro-wannabe-gal swoon.

And a super vegan-friendly deli.

A plate of living food salads from Mrs Green's: raw spaghetti with vegan pesto, fennel salad and mango and coconut ceviche

It so happens that the weekend I stopped at Andy’s I also grabbed a few deli items at Mrs. Green’s the next morning.  Between errands and social events over the weekend I had quick, fresh, gorgeous dishes for snacks or fast meals– and lots of leftovers to pack for lunch at work.  I’m all for home cooking — I love it — and I’m all for turning to local faves every now and then for a break from the kitchen. 

How about you? Do you have local spots that treat a vegan right and give you a break from food prep?

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Well, I did it! I blogged every day in June as a participant in NaBloPoMo! It was a great opportunity to write more frequently, to share more “in the moment” types of posts. And, it turns out, this is fairly consistent with how I normally blog, just a little less frequently.  I share recipes that I create and share my attempts at making recipes created by others; I write reviews — of restaurants, products and more; I share my adventures in cooking classes; I write about my quest for “moderate” fitness and my desire to Stop Chasing Skinny; I invite others to share and write about their experience and expertise (via the Vegan 101 series and, most recently, in the Multisport 101 series).  I enjoy sharing and writing about these things and I most certainly hope you enjoy reading about them.

Will I be posting daily in July? Nope! I’m on vacation for ten days (woot!) and have accepted a new position at the college. which I will assume mid-July. It will be very a busy month but you can count on lots of blogging! Thanks for reading, friends.

Tagged as: NaBloPoMo, restaurant, review