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Posts tagged ‘dog-friendly’

Jun 7

Vegan Cookies_Peets Coffee

Eating, Hiking, Celebrity Sighting

I’d barely been in LA for 24 hours and already had a Native Foods Cafe Scorpion Burger on Sunday, and Veggie Grill Bali Bliss over Kale yesterday. Oh and I had to swing by Earth Bar at Equinox Westwood for a green detox smoothie yesterday morning! I’m 3 for 3.

Green Detox #1 Smoothie

Simon got to meet up with his girlfriend Lilly yesterday and nearly peed himself from excitement. Lilly’s Mom (a.k.a. RealityShowChick), Dad, and I got to catch up while the kids frolicked. If you love reality TV or just like to laugh, you have to check out her site – hysterical. Her stories as a Reality Show Casting Director will make you split (or s*it) your pants.   We went for a stroll through Larchmont and stopped at Peet’s coffee for a reboot. I was so surprised they had vegan cookies! Recharged from some seriously caffeinated espresso, we decided to go for a hike at Runyon. Of course, I wasn’t dressed for the occasion, sporting a sundress and flip-flops. (Thanks RSC for the loaner duds). I did manage to hike in flip-flops and not break my neck. As we started our leisurely hike, I spotted this guy with no shirt on and black shorts. I didn’t even notice his face because I was gawking at his chest – and not in a good way. One word, Ma-Tas. They were little and his chest was tan but they still stood out. Perhaps because he was running downhill? I digress…So, as he passes, my friends turn around all giddy and are like “OMG, Sebastian Bach!!!” Yes, of course it was. And I thought, oh yea that’s right, “I Remember You”.

Me & Simon, Sarah & Lilly at Runyon

And that’s the fun in day one! I basically hit all my fave places (and people) in the first 24 hours. Not bad. OH, and I forgot to mention my other stellar celeb sighting at the MTV Movie Awards. Ron Jeremy. I mean come on, really? I hope I didn’t catch anything airborne. Bleck.

Jan 17

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Vegan in LA: Naturewell smoothies & Bar Hayama Sushi

Day 15 – I’m at the halfway mark!!

Today I’m celebrating a mini-milestone. I’m halfway through my 30-day vegan challenge and can honestly say, I am proud. Thank you friends for all the support! Who knows this could become semi-permanent. OK, onto the good stuff…

I want to share a couple experiences so far in LA. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m obsessed with the Kale Coconut Smoothie at Naturewell (see my 1/10 post here). So it was the first stop on my hit list. I’ve already been there twice in two days and it’s just as good as I remembered. My husband who is not a huge green smoothie fan, even loves it. A guy who works there previously recommended the Orange, Ginger, Carrot juice (which isn’t on the menu). It’s fab and when I make it at home I find I don’t need a coffee because the ginger really wakes me up.

The menu below shows their unique assortment of both juices and smoothies. These don’t come cheap… we are pigs and supersize our smoothies so they’re a whopping $7 a pop but sooooo worth it.

And here she is… introducing the lovely, bright green, sweet and fresh, Kale Coconut smoothie I’ve been bragging about. Blog readers, meet Kale Coconut. Kale Coconut, meet blog readers.

It actually is sweet and you get more coconut/banana flavor than anything else, but the kale adds an herby/woodsiness that makes it taste so refreshing. Even if you think you’ll hate it, I’d encourage you to try it, you’d be surprised how delicious it is. You can definitely make this at home with kale, coconut water, young coconut meat, cinnamon, banana and agave nectar. I haven’t gone to the trouble of digging out young coconut meat from the shell yet, but I may have to because I can’t wait until my next LA trip to have this smoothie again.

We also took Simon (our pup) on a two-hour hike up Griffith. I always feel healthier in LA. Fresh air and sunshine makes Chelsea a happy girl.

Simon was exhausted post-hike and napped all afternoon.

Next up…dinner.

I had a sad revelation this weekend. I can add sushi to the “things I miss list”.  We usually hit Matsuhisa every trip to LA but to spend that kind of money on veggie rolls seemed like a waste. Besides, I dream about their baked crab hand roll and I couldn’t torture myself by going and not getting it. The W Hotel concierge recommended Bar Hayama. They have a huge outdoor fire pit and tons of outdoor heating lamps (not that it’s really necessary when it’s 60 degrees out, wussies).

The food was fine, nothing outstanding, but it satisfied my sushi craving. We worked up quite an appetite from the hike. I had sake, edamame, vegetable dumplings (server confirmed they were vegan), cucumber roll, vegetable roll, and natto hand cut roll. This was my first dinner out in LA so it was a nice way to slowly dip the toes into dining out as a vegan.

I would have more pics but I was starvin-marvin and didn’t realize I hadn’t taken any until it was too late (sorry). This was the only pic I managed… the veggie roll and cucumber roll. Clearly, I need to upgrade to the iPhone 4 with a flash.

The server at Bar Hayama was very sweet and didn’t roll her eyes or snarf when I told her I was vegan which I really appreciated. That’s it for now, more LA updates to follow!

Naturewell

3824 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026
Neighborhood: Silver Lake

(323) 664-5894

 

Bar Hayama
1803 Sawtelle Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025
Neighborhood: West Los Angeles

(310) 235-2000

Matsuhisa
129 N La Cienega Blvd
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Neighborhood: Beverly Hills

(310) 659-9639