Real Food, Real Fun

Who: VN Editorial Assistant Charlotte Gordon + VN Office Manager Lyndsay Orwig
What: A delicious meal at Real Food Daily
When: Sunday, July 19, 2009
Where: Los Angeles, Calif.
Why: Because you need real food, daily.

The Scoop: It was the last night of AR 2009 in Los Angeles, and Charlotte and I were feeling a little cabin feverish in the conference’s hotel. So what did we decide to do? Go out on the town, of course! Lucky for us, Charlotte’s brother, Jon, lives in Southern California, so we were able to hitch a ride into the city where we decided to dine at the posh Real Food Daily, a vegan restaurant located in West Hollywood and known to be frequented by a number of celebrities—veg or otherwise.

After cramming five people into a very small car, we arrived in 15 minutes flat and stepped into the stylish restaurant, where we found out that we had to wait an extra 15 minutes—bummer. I wasn’t too upset because it gave me more time to scope out the scene, and being the movie guru that I am, I quickly spotted a familiar face—Bill Nighy from such classics as Love Actually and Shaun of the Dead. And sitting right beside him was none other than vegan superstar Alicia Silverstone! I know that not everyone experiences the same star struck-feeling that I do, but being a recent West Coast transplant, the celebrity sighting honestly made my night.

But enough of the celebs and back to the most important thing of the night, which of course was the food. The winning entrée of the night was the Salisbury Seitan due to the fact that it was ordered by three of the five people at our table, and it definitely lived up to its popularity with mashed potatoes, yummy gravy, and Caesar salad on the side. The TV Dinner and Total Reuben were also ordered at our table, and Charlotte and I were lucky enough to get a taste of both before they were quickly devoured.

Reigning champion of the night

We were stuffed after this satisfying main course, but we were not going to pass up on dessert—no way, no how! Charlotte and I shared the Chocolate Blackout Cake, which was über rich and delicious. As should be expected with food this good, the plate was clean within five minutes.

Lyndsay and the Chocolate Blackout Cake

So, it was back to the hotel for Charlotte and me, with our new cure for a case of cabin fever: great atmosphere, (vegan) celeb sightings, and good food.

Charlotte and friend Brenna