African Diaspora Vegan Dinner

Posted on February 12, 2016 by Gigi in Dining Comments Off

Gigi and Chef Cynthia

Our friends Chef Ian Martin and Chef Cynthia Chea Pean were the featured chefs in an incredible dining experience put on by Pare. Pare is a unique communal dining concept where chefs prepare and serve a meal, paired with unique wines, for 30 guests that all come together from all over to partake in a culinary extravaganza. Part of the $250 per person fee is donated to a charity, proceeds from the African diaspora dinner went to The Gangsta Gardener, Ron Finley. Check this video out to learn more about Ron.

Reggie and I went not knowing what to expect. We knew we were going to a private residence, but we had no clue it would be a 12.5 million dollar home, (btw it is on the market check it out here). It was a perfect warm California evening, the table was set along side the pool, with a beautiful view of the city lights.

The Table

view of the home

I need a closet like this…

Good conversations, spectacular environment, some of the best vegan food I have ever had, (and I have had my share of the best) it was a nice kick off for our Valentine’s weekend. I can’t tell you exactly what we had, but what I can tell you is that everything was fresh from the garden, and crafted with so many complex flavors, but still connected to the carribbean, New Orleans, Africa, Central America and soul food- all mixed together- just exquisite.

Africa Diaspora dinner and wine flight

What are your plans for this Valentine’s weekend? Is it a 3 day one for you as well? My advice is to celebrate love- with self, or a lover, your family- all the above.

Xoxo,

Gigi

CROSSROADS–VEGGIE DELIGHT

Posted on November 11, 2013 by Gigi in Dining Comments Off

crossroads

Reggie and I have been on our vegan journey for the past four years. We have explored raw vegan, vegan and vegetarian diets, and have settled into to a vegan/raw vegan combo that serves our lifestyle well. We love good food and are happy with the influx of vegan restaurants around the southland. Tonight we decided to try Chef Tal Ronnen’s Crossroads restaurant, a plant based fine dining eatery located on Melrose, surrounded by trendy designer boutiques, a perfect location for a girls lunch. Tal Ronnen author of The Conscious Cook has a large celebrity following including Oprah among others. Crossroads opened this past March, the space is beautiful, and sophisticated, not your 70’s style “hippie” joint.

dining room

Our server Chloe was wonderful, she quickly told us about the menu and made excellent suggestions for us since this was our first visit. Before our vegan days we were fishetarians, we had cut out chicken about 15 years ago, so I must say there are a lot of seafood favorites that we missed, so I was happy to order the vegan crab cakes and the artichoke oysters. I love the seacakes at Real Food Daily, but I must say these “crab cakes” were delicious as well and the presentation was just like “real crabcakes”, now the artichoke oysters were fan-ta-bu-lous, I can’t even imagine how they came up with that recipe–so good.

artichoke oysters

crab cakes

Reggie being a bread person ordered the fall squash puree flatbread, which was sort of like a light pizza topped with mustard greens. Chloe also recommended a scaloppini parmesan which reminded me of eggplant parmesan which was also good. We also ordered the beet salad which was fresh and delightful. We ordered a total of 5 small plates and we were satisfied, not stuffed. We finished with a pumpkin tiramisu which was a gluten free pumpkin cake finished with a pumpkin creamy topping-yummy.

flat bread

beet salad

pumpkin tiramisu

Fresh Artisian cocktails as well as a nice wine list are also availible. I will be going back very soon.

Crossroads Kitchen 8284 Melrose avenue Los Angeles for reservations 323 782 9245

Gigi

Xoxo,

Gigi

Post & Beam– And– A Film Screening

Posted on September 26, 2013 by Gigi in Dining, Movies Comments Off

I love films especially independent films. Some where deep inside of me is a story waiting to be transformed for the big screen. I’m already taking baby steps toward making a little short reel for my photography bus, so of course I was excited to go to a screening of our friend, Fred Hawthorne’s film Inner City Champions this evening. Prior to going to the screening however, we made a quick pit stop to Govind Armstrong‘s restaurant Post & Beam, long overdue on my list, I have eaten at Willie Jane his Venice place, but I had not tried Post & Beam. Brad Johnson of (Georgia) one of my favs back in the day, is co-owner of this upscale eatery located outside of the Crenshaw mall.

Post & Beam

Considering we did not have a reservation, I was delighted that we were able to walk right in and get a table. The ambience is dim and sexy, perfect place if you were undercover with someone you should not be with, another reminder that I need the flashlight app on my phone so I can read the menu. Being vegan Reggie and I are well versed at surveying a menu and quickly coming up with a few options at most places. We did not have much time, so our friendly server, made a few suggestions (pizza with sweet potato, mozzarella and kale), no thank, so we settled on a market salad which was delicious, black eyed peas sans the bacon, my husband’s fav succotash, heirloom tomato composed salad and corn bread. The portions were regular size perfect for sharing, presentation was nice, and overall good food. It was so dark I could not capture any pics. The menu has lots of interpretations of soul food dishes, wines by the glass and bottle and specialty cocktail menu. I will go back again when I can take my time and savior my meal.

Post & Beam Open daily for lunch and dinner and Sunday brunch 323 299-5599 3767 Santa Rosalia Drive Los Angeles

We arrived at Fred’s home just in time to grab a seat and watch the film. To my surprise, right before the screening a woman greeted me and told me that we were FB friends, she was here via Chicago, just moved here a few months ago. It is always nice when that happens and you meet someone who was a cyber friend.

Gigi & Robin

Considering I am by no means a basketball historian, I found the story of these 2 players very interesting. The film chronicles the lives of Freeman Williams and Dwayne Polee , both from LA, attended Manuel Arts High School and had phenomenal basketball careers, but unfortunately due to various circumstances their NBA careers were very short. I realized that for every Magic, Kobe and Michael, there are millions of young men who never make it in the world of “ballers”.

I left the screening motivated, video is so powerful…I jazzed at the thought of my little “reel”.

Xoxo,

Gigi

MENU Baco Mercat

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Gigi in Dining 2 Comments

baco-mercat

Although Reggie and I prefer a vegan diet, we love eating at all kinds of restaurants. We can always make a meal by ordering salads and sides from the menu. Our friends Al and Denise are true foodies, they keep track of who’s who in the culinary world, so I knew we were in for a treat going to Baco Mercat. Tucked away in the old downtown LA bank district with a convenient parking lot right next door, it was a breeze getting there. It is a charming space, rustic and funky combined for a relaxed atmosphere, it was packed not a free table and we were there on a Wednesday night.

Baco Mercat

The menu has a large assortment of veggie dishes-and not the typical potatoes, broccoli, grilled veggie variety, but really unusual combinations of farm fresh produce. I had the best Cauliflower which was caramelized with pine nuts, mint garlic and lebni, out of this world good. Chef Josef Centeno has mastered the shared plate concept which I love, it makes the dining experience so intimate, as if you were at home passing the dishes around. The food is a combination of spanish, moroccan, mediterranean fusion style which all translates to delicious. We had the asparagus and king mushroom which was prepared with tarragon, red endive and snap peas, brussels sprouts prepared “caesar” style, beet salad, sugar snap & pear salad. Reggie and Al had a “baco” which is a sandwich that Jose created out of homemade flatbread, and a bunch of other flavorful stuff tucked inside- all good. He also makes these flatbread pizzas with different toppings that are so light. As far as drinks, they craft all kinds of unique cocktails, homemade sodas and of course wine and beer.

I can’t wait to go again…reservations a must, I don’t think you can just show up and get a table. Check it out soon. http://bacomercat.com/

XOXO,

GIGI

Hours

Monday-Thursday 11:30-2:30 5:30-11:00

Friday & Saturday 11:30-3:00 5:30-Midnight

Sunday 11:30-3:00 5:00-10:00

408 South Main Street LA 213 687 8808

Reggie, Gigi, Al & Denise

Erica’s Picks: Baco Mercat

FEED BODY & SOUL

Posted on March 18, 2013 by Gigi in Dining Comments Off

FEED BODY & SOUL

I’m always on the lookout for a vegan/vegan friendly restaurants. So I was happy to venture over to Venice and check out Feed Body & Soul which opened in Jaunuary. 7 for All Mankind founder, Dee Anna Staats opened the restaurant with executive chef Matthew Dickson (Malo, Rockenwagner & Grace). The concept is to provide “sustainable, organic, locally sourced product that promotes the health and well being of our guests.” The space is really nice, you can tell someone put some thought in the design. Valet parking is available or you may get lucky and find a spot on the street.

FEED BODY & SOUL

The hours are 7AM to 11PM, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. We went Saturday for an early dinner, the menu is a combination of vegan items and rotisserie entrees. We started with a few items off the small plates section, a variety of the handmade pickled farmer market vegetables, of which the carrots were the stand out, the cauliflower, turnips, and beets were just okay. We also opted for a selection of daily spreads, sweet potato, cauliflower and artichoke, although very fresh something seemed as if it was missing.

SPREADS

Next we had the Raw Kale and Cucumber salad, it was nice but I have had better kale salads. The soup of the day was a spicy butternut squash, it was very smoky and spicy which was perfect for a chilly afternoon. My son did not like it at all, he said it tasted like bar be que sauce. My husband ordered the roasted cauliflower sandwich, which was weird. The description did not appeal to me-bread and cauliflower in a sandwich…He ate half of it, but would not order it again. The drink menu consists of seasonal juice blends, seasonal smoothies, shots, teas, coffees, and a bar with crafted cocktails, beer and wine. We did not order dessert, which was a selection of vegan cookies.

SQUASH SOUP

I would certainly go back again in a few months when some of the kinks are worked out. There are so many interesting shops on Abbot Kinney that I would like to check out so I would take an afternoon and allow time to stroll the Blvd..

XOXO,

GIGI

GIGI FEED BODY & SOUL

SIGN

FEED BODY & SOUL 1239 Abbot Kinney Blvd. Venice CA 90291 310 450 5550 feedbodyandsoul.com

TO EAT OR NOT TO EAT…

Posted on January 7, 2013 by Gigi in Dining, My Life, Well-Being Comments Off

I’ve always been a foodie, I loooooove decadent, flavorful, preferably ethnic vegan food. Growing up, my earliest memories are of both my parents in the kitchen cooking. We never had convenience food, which at the time would have been something like frozen TV dinners. At that time I had no dietary restrictions, I ate everything, meat, chicken, seafood etc.. As time passed and I became a young adult, I denounced all red meat and existed on seafood and chicken. My husband was raised vegetarian, but he too had converted to the seafood/ chicken plan. Shortly after my son was born, I gave up chicken and became a “fishatarion” , sushi, salmon, crab, shrimp, and my favorite ahi tuna became the mainstay of my diet. I ate so much seafood that four years ago, I was diagnosed with mercury poisoning. So I gave up seafood overnight and became a vegetarian/vegan. At the time I had a friend who was a raw vegan and she shared with me the benefits of a raw vegan lifestyle and helped me make the transition. I felt great and enjoyed learning about and making gourmet raw vegan food. Currently my diet consists of lots of raw vegan food and some cooked vegan food. I find that adding some vegan food works for our lifestyle, especially when traveling. I love all the raw vegan restaurants in my area, Au Luc, Cafe Gratitude, M.A.K.E., and Planet Raw to name a few but I did not want to restrict my dining options to a few spots. So I have become a master at tweaking menus at main stream restaurants to fit my needs. I’m amazed at how chefs are happy to come up with interesting vegan alternatives other than green salads. This past weekend we went to the Lazy Ox, the name alone made me think this was going to be problematic. What a surprise!

Husband & I At Lazy Ox

Our Delicious Dinner

We had grits with curry oil, mushrooms and kale,- blistered shishito peppers & lime, -caramelized cauliflower, chili flakes and toasted almonds,- beet salad with white balsamic & hazelnuts,- Black tuscan kale salad with preserved lemons and apples, and not pictured a green salad and a mushroom risotto, everything was delicious and full of amazing flavors.

What type of diet do you follow?

Xoxo,

Gigi

Lazy Ox Canteen, 241 South San Pedro Street, Los Angeles, 213 626 5299 Reservations a Must (it’s a tiny place only seats about 50)

Muse Costume Ball at LACMA Stanley Kubrick Exhibit

Posted on November 1, 2012 by Gigi in Art, Dining, Party 5 Comments

Gigi

What an incredible evening! This was our first adult Halloween party since our “dating period” and that my friends was a looooong time ago. Our Halloween was always spent trick or treating in the neighborhood and or giving out treats. This year however we were treated to tickets to the 9th annual Muse Costume Ball at LACMA which included a sneak peek at the upcoming Stanley Kubrick exhibition. We started our evening with dinner at Ray’s, which was featuring a wicked halloween menu. This was my second time dining there and I love that the menu has a nice selection of farm-to table seasonal fare.

Servers at Ray’s

These two were our servers, dressed as the twins from The Shining.

Gigi & Her Pet Hubby

With only hours to come up with a costume for the ball I decided on my version of a “dominatrix Goddess”. I borrowed a long black cape from my friend Denise, used my black lace full body suit for my base, got a pair of black sequined shorts from TJ Maxx, black corset from my “pole dancing class”, black lace gloves, over the knees black platform boots, a sassy “Rihanna” red wig, and my black fascinator completed the look.

Silverware compartment

Love this. The tables have silverware storage compartment drawers.

Pumpkin Soup

Wickedly delicious apple pumpkin soup.

Ray’s At LACMA

Ray’s perfect for lunch or dinner.

Gigi

Everyone was in costume. I was amazed with the things people came up with. These are just a few.

Sluttest Toddler

Monkey Girl

Orange Lady

Gigi and Friends-Red Rooster Harlem

Posted on October 23, 2012 by Gigi in Dining, My Life 4 Comments

Friday night I met up with my ski bunny friend Starla. She was a fabulous host and we had a memorable evening at Marcus Samuelsson‘s restaurant Red Rooster in Harlem. Amani and I started our trek deciding how to get from SoHo to the upper west side, of course she wanted to take the train and I wanted to take a cab. I still have not figured out how to get around with heels on etc. We were meeting Starla at 6:30 and of course everyone in New York must of been going somewhere, cabs were all taken. We were finally picked up by a renegade cab that negotiated a fee which was way to much according to Amani.

Red Rooster

Starla & Gigi at Red Rooster

I have always been a fan of Chef Marcus Samuelsson, one of my favorite cookbooks is The soul of a new cuisine: A discovery of the foods and flavors of Africa. I ordered the coconut rice & curry peas which was delightful. Most of the menu is an interesting take of traditional soul food with the Samuelsson touch. Every table was taken. I wore a red Prada dress I picked up last summer at the outlet. After dinner a couple of Starla’s friends joined us and we went downstairs to Ginny’s for drinks, dancing and good company.

“Cat” , Gigi, Starla & Judith aka “Fashion Crone”

“Cat” and fellow blogger Judith joined us for drinks and dancing downstairs at Ginny’s. Judith has a fabulous blog called Style Crone, she was in NYC for a fashion show, read more about it here. When she walked in with that pink hat on, I knew I found a new friend. After our evening was over our transportation back to Starla’s was graciously assisted by “Cat” . BTW way the fellow that joined our picture, I have no clue who he is…

Gigi & Starla

Starla and I met at Jackson Hole last ski season and have become fast friends, already planning our 2013 ski trip to Aspen.

Gigi

Xoxo,

Gigi

Marcus Samuelsson’s 6 Best Things to Do in Harlem

Raw Vegan Foodies-Dream Comes True-Matthew Kenney’s New Restaurant M.A.K.E.

Posted on October 3, 2012 by Gigi in Dining 2 Comments

M.A.K.E. Lasagna

My friend Teresa aka “Raw T” turned me on to raw vegan food many years ago. My concept back then of raw vegan food was a bunch of different salads with a variety of dressings, fruits and veggie juices. Pretty boring, I thought to myself. Of course that was so far from the truth, raw vegan cuisine is quite complex, full of flavor, and most of all so good for you. My first experience tasting gourmet raw vegan food was in New York at Pure Food + Wine, the first raw vegan upscale restaurant, co-owned by award winning chef and author Matthew Kenney. The food was delicious and beautiful. I picked up a cookbook from Pure Food + Wine and started preparing some of the recipes. My collection of Matthew cookbooks grew and became my go to for raw vegan recipes, so when I found out that Matthew was opening a new restaurant and culinary school in Santa Monica I was thrilled. Teresa and my friend Juliana are studying at Matthew’s school, so of course they informed me of a special “soft” opening, which I was fortunate to attend. It was a delightful evening filled with delectable tastes. M.A.K.E. dishes use only the freshest produce and never anything processed, which really makes a difference. Every bite of the lasagna was a burst of flavor–you cannot duplicate this with tomatoes from Ralphs.

Rainbow Carrots, Cashew Yogurt, Cumin Crisp

M.A.K.E. restaurant and Culinary School is located in the Market area on the top level of Santa Monica Place. I love the combo of retail therapy combined with fine dining. 395 Santa Monica Place, Santa Monica reservations 310 394-7046 open 12-9 Monday thru Sunday plenty of parking in the structure www.matthewkenneycuisine.com I will certainly be a regular at M.A.K.E. hope to see you there–Gigi

Santa Monica Place

Gigi, Matthew and Teresa

: Open Kitchen

Culinary School

I am Gracious, Grounded, Passionate, and Cool-Cafe Gratitude

Posted on June 29, 2012 by Gigi in Dining Comments Off

Each day I am reminded that a vegan lifestyle is becoming more mainstream. My local Starbucks now carries green juice, not a sugary imposter, but pure cold pressed juice made from identifiable veggies.

Evolution Green Juice

Green Juice

Many restaurants are now offering a large variety of vegetarian options, no longer regulated to a cardboard processed frozen veggie burger. I am amazed at the selection and surprised at how accommodating chefs are with their vegetarian diners, some are even offering vegan, gluten free, and raw vegan items.

Cafe Gratitude

Cafe Gratitude is one of my favorite vegan restaurants. They hail from the bay area, and have made their mark in the city of vegan angels. No matter when I go, there is always a long line of LA peeps waiting for a table or a spot at the communal table. This past week I had the great fortune of dining there twice, each time equally delicious. Cafe Gratitude is 100% organic vegan, specializing in gourmet raw and cooked vegan dishes. The entrees are named for various validations, such as “I am Gracious, I am Grounded, I am Passionate, I am Cool etc., so when you order, it immediately starts the dining experience in a positive light. I am in love with “I am Passionate” a raw living soup made with heirloom tomatoes and strawberries, it sounds like an odd combination, but oh so good.

Cafe Gratitude

Parking is crazy, there are a few spots in their lot, and the rest is street meter parking with ticket hungry officers lurking waiting to give you a $53.00 parking ticket (I got one because I was not perfectly parked within the lines). Go when you have time to relax, this is not an in and out dining experience. Leave room for desserts, they are incredible. I had “I am awakening key lime pie” which was so light and creamy, full of flavor, you wonder how are these desserts are so decadent, the “real thing” wishes it was this good.

Cafe Gratitude

639 North Larchmont Blvd.

Los Angeles 90014

323 580-6383

Open daily 10-10

Go do your body a favor and stop by Cafe Gratitude. Venice location opening very soon.

xoxo,

Gigi

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