Vegan in Sacramento, Farm Sanctuary's Walk for Farm Animals, & Austin bound!

Please head over to my new blog at TheUrbanHousewife.com, where you'll find this post & more!

A few weeks ago I found myself in Sacramento, once again informing people about circus cruelty, & took the chance to check out some local vegan dining options!

An inexpensive & tasty option is Mati's Indian Express in Natomas. Mati's has a great selection of vegan options that are clearly marked, including the elusive vegan Naan! I opted to share two combo platters with friends, which contain your any choice of two items with rice & naan, for only $5. We had the Channa Masala, Mix Veggie Curry, Aloo Gobhi, & Eggplant Curry, which all hit the spot. While it's not the most epic Indian food I've had, I would totally grab a bite here again if I was in the area.

After hearing about Sunflower Natural Restaurant, the vegetarian drive in that's been around since 1978, I had to check it out. People warned me it was far off the beaten path in Fair Oaks, but I ignored them & pressed on. With the very awesome Honor by my side, we rolled up to this little stand & ordered the classic Nutburger. Dang, not bad! A flavorful patty in a whole wheat bun smothered in creamy sauce with lots of veggies is likely not what you would expect from a natural foods joint, but it is certainly what I got! In addition to the tasty food, there's chickens hanging out while you eat! Apparently, they live in the neighborhood & come over to eat people's scraps. After my meal, I headed over to the park where they hang out & even made a friend when I saw kids harrassing a little chicken & brought her back to hang with her chicken homies. Too cute!

It was a sweltering 105 when I was in Sacramento, so I was thrilled to find Here's The Scoop! has a fair amount of vegan options. They serve up 4 flavors of Soy Cream by Double Rainbow, one of my favorite vegan ice creams out there, as well as soy bon bons & Gunther's Fruit Freezes. With Soy Cream being readily available in my area, I opted for a Fruit Freeze with Strawberry Banana & Orange flavors. Oh MAN, I could eat these everyday! Made from fruit juice, they totally quench your thirst & quell your ice cream cravings at the same time. I hope I get a chance to have them again soon!

While there are a fair amount of vegan options in Sacramento, I was happy with what I opted for & would recommend these places to others!

The Farm Sanctuary Walk for Farm Animals is coming to a town near you! This event is a great way to raise money for the animals, but it's also an opportunity to inform the public about animal cruelty. San Francisco's Walk is on October 24th, which I'll sadly be out of town for, but Megan & Kelly from The Sisters Vegan will be there walking & Sugar Beat Sweets has donated a prize, so I I suppose I'll be there in spirit. Participants get a rad shirt, designed by Herbivore Clothing! If you can't walk, consider making a donation to someone walking! (maybe Megan & Kelly?!)

I'll be in Austin in ONE WEEK! I'm excited to check out the local vegan scene, nervous it's going to be hotter than Hades, & ready to stuff myself silly! Crystal & Chris from Vegan Explosion are kind enough to be putting me up & we'll be having a potluck, so PLEASE get in touch if you want to meet up!

Fresno Vegan Options, Strummer's Labor Day, & Vegans on TV!

Please head over to my new blog at TheUrbanHousewife.com, where you'll find this post & more!

Here I go again, missing my weekly blog post! I almost missed this one as well, but I thought I'd throw in a mini update, until I have time to make a proper post next week.

Last week, I was in the Fresno area, hence the missing post. Now, Fresno isn't exactly on the list of vegan destinations, but I'm happy to say I found a decent little spot with vegan cupcakes & food options! Charlotte's Bakery serves up rotating vegan cupcake options daily. We tried 5 flavors when we were there; Red Velvet, Coconut, Raspberry, & Chocolate. While they weren't the best cupcakes I've had, I have to hand to them for serving up cruelty free confections! We also snagged a couple vegan paninis with eggplant, mushroom, red bell pepper, & pesto that were tasty & were told some of the grain salads are vegan as well. If you're in the area, I would recommend checking them out!

Over Labor Day weekend, I attended a potluck picnic in Dolores Park with a large group of PPKers. Despite having made giant, gooey cinnamon rolls & having my camera, I managed to forget to take food pictures! We had a pretty amazing food spread from pies & baklava to BBQ black eyed peas & tempeh sliders, yet I managed to miss it all. Instead, I was overjoyed that Strummer made a new friend & dare I say, love connection with a 3lb male chihuahua named Mango. They were friendly, to say the least & the photo says a bit more! I'm just thrilled that Strummer could finally frolic in the grass with someone close to her size & hope that there will be many future doggy dates.

This afternoon, I went to a taping of local TV show, View From The Bay to support Colleen Patrick Goudreau, author of The Joy of Vegan Baking & The Vegan Table. Colleen was doing a cooking segment on the show & made her Better Than Tuna Salad & No Queso Quesadillas. I managed to sneak a taste, they were delicious! We were stuck in the back row, so none of us appeared on screen, but regardless, you can check out the segment HERE!

I hope everyone had a great Labor Day Weekend! Until next time!