October/November Marathon Surprise, Part 5

Who: VN Publisher/Editor in Chief Joseph Connelly, VN Distribution Manager Katie Paul, + VN Volunteer Extraordinaire Alexandra “Alex” Santilli
What: 13th Annual Boston Vegetarian Food Festival
Where: Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center, Boston, Mass.
When: November 1, 2008
Why: To promote VegNews at the largest one-day veg event in the land

The Scoop: This marathon of a trip has lasted so long it has now spilled over into a new month. With two days left in my campaign I feel like Obama and McCain, sprinting to the finish with a jam-packed schedule to close-out this adventure before returning to good ol’ San Francisco.

For the eighth consecutive year, VN has been on hand at the Boston Vegetarian Food Festival, the overly impressive undertaking of BVS, the Boston Vegetarian Society. As running has been a main theme of these reports, it’s most certainly apropos that the event is held at—and in—the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center, dontcha think?

There are two main components of the BVFF: The exhibitor hall and the speaker room. The event is free, offering many who might never venture to a veg fest the opportunity to see what we’re all about, without risk. And venture they most certainly did, filling both the hall and the speaker room to spill-over capacity at each lecture.

Alexandra Santilli and Katie Paul

With Katie and Alex staffing the table, I ventured up one floor to capture the impressive speaker line-up that consisted of Vegan a Go-Go author Sarah Kramer, whom you might remember from the little bash we threw in her honor back in October; Get It Ripe author Jae Steele, a fresh and energetic force whom I had not yet met; the venerable Dr. T. Colin Campbell, returning to the Festival for the first time since the publication of The China Study, VegNews’ 2005 Book of the Year; Karen Dawn, Thanking the Monkey author, who has, officially, attended every conference and event this year; Michael Greger, MD, whose lectures on up-to-the-minute vegan nutrition are always informative and never fail to tickle the funny bone; and 2008’s newest sensation, Hannah Kaminsky, the overachiever who had the nerve to publish her first comprehensive vegan dessert cookbook, My Sweet Vegan, at the youthful age of 19. Kids today. Anyone would have to agree that the roster put together by the BVS is first-rate all the way, and the 1,000 or so folks who filled every chair and inch of floor space in the speaker room would certainly agree.

Vegan authors Jae Steele and Sarah Kramer

Downstairs, the exhibit hall was no-less crowded, from the moment the doors opened until late in the afternoon. A walk through the large room, which was nearly impossible to actually walk around, felt like a veritable who’s-who of the veg community. There’s Josh of Herbivore, clothing and publishing magnet; Ryan and Dan of Chicago Soydairy, VN’s 2008 Company of the Year; Our friends Liz, Dan, and Andy from Liz Lovely, whose cookies which redefine the concept; the gals from Café Indigo, frantically cutting up their carrot cake while proudly displaying a framed sign from VN proclaiming it the Best. Carrot. Cake. Ever; Eileen of Simple Food, a company that makes five flavors of soynut butter that might just give peanut butter a run for the money; Jeanine of Snooty Jewelry, making certain everyone has their vegan bling; Mercy for Animals’ Nathan, representing the non-profit side of our movement; Leigh and Ken, owners of Georgia's Cosmo’s Vegan Shoppe; and even Derek and Megan, he of Veganica.com and she of Oh Sweet Mama’s Vegan Bakery, walking around recording bits and bobs for their Vegan Radio program. If I didn’t mention you or your company, don’t fret—there's always next year.

Yes, BVS president Evelyn Kimber and her all-volunteer committee really know how to put on a show. Congratulations on another resoundingly successful festival. Will VegNews be back in 2009? We can’t wait.

As for my trip, tomorrow it’s back to NYC for another marathon (could it be?) and a bunch of Candles. Maybe 79.

Vegan à Go-Go! Book Bash

Who: The whole VN staff, legendary cookbook author Sarah Kramer, and 75 perky party-goers
What: The much-anticipated Vegan à Go-Go! Book Bash
Where: GingerRubio Salon, San Francisco, Calif.
When: October 3, 2008
Why: To launch Vegan à Go-Go! in high style

The Scoop: It's not every day that one of the world's best-selling vegan cookbook authors makes her return to the world of publishing—and you know how we like an excuse to throw a party. In celebration of Sarah Kramer's latest work, we held a little shindig at GingerRubio, an absolutely gorgeous salon tucked away on a side street in San Francisco's Mission District. The festivities got started right around 6pm when the guest of honor arrived. Sarah immediately got busy greeting guests as they arrived and chatting with her dedicated fans. Mini root-beer floats and Pink Lady cocktails whetted everyone's appetite for actual eats, and gave the party a fun, frivolous feeling. Friendly servers bearing trays of food—provided by Google chef Justin Lucke—swirled around the room offering guests such mid-century classics as Rocket Dogs (fancy Pigs-in-a-Blanket), Knuckle Sandwiches (open-faced no-egg-salad sandwiches on sliced baguette), and Doo Wop Dip (a classic onion dip, complete with crunchy onions on top), and Doris Day Mushroom Paté, which was served with the requisite crackers: Triscuits.

Upstairs, DJ Jazzy Aurelia kept the evening lively with '50s-era tunes, and our diligent tattoo artists, Abby and Lyndsay, made sure that everyone was as colorful as possible. While it was difficult to choose between various tattoo options—including one bearing the likeness of the guest of honor—most people elected to be adorned with the simple "vegan" tatt. We even saw one gracing a guest's neck! Speaking of the guests, we were in no short supply of cool company. In addition to Sarah, we got to mingle with Erin Williams—who's in California for the final push for Yes! on Prop. 2 before election day—Erica Meier and Noelle Callahan of Compassion Over Killing, Ann and Larry Wheat of Millennium, Ursula Calderon of Oakland's Micio Mambo boutique, fabulous vegan esthetician Jocelyn Clarin Richards, and about 75 other enthusiastic party-goers.

About halfway through the evening we gave out a few fabulous door prizes, including tubs of Sjaak's incredibly yummy chocolates and one very swanky Matt & Nat bag. Sarah entertained the crowd and answered questions, though she might not have wanted to admit that she'd never been to Millennium! After offering advice on how to get your stuff back from your ex, and letting us know which is her favorite recipe in Vegan à Go-Go!—Nanaimo bars, in case you were wondering—Sarah got to work signing books. To make sure no one died of starvation while waiting to get their book autographed, servers made the rounds with Tollhouse-style Chocolate Chip cookies, which were extra gooey and delicious, and Betty Crocker Coconut Islands (pictured below). After the munching, mingling, and merriment, please consider Vegan à Go-Go! officially launched.

Fun up the Waziema!

Who: VN's Editorial Director Aurelia d'Andrea + Editorial Assistant Lisa Mickleborough
What: Dinner and dancing
Where: Club Waziema and The Transfer in San Francisco
When: August 8, 2008
Why: Well, because it's fun

The Scoop: Having already been on an exciting not-for-tourists tour of San Francisco, when Aurelia suggested we head to her neighborhood and try an Ethiopian restaurant/dive bar known to locals for its all-you-can-eat vegan special, I was in. Now, I have to be honest—my past experiences with injera, the traditional Ethiopian flat bread, have bordered on traumatic, but with the promise of East African beer, a Midwestern-American jukebox, and Aurelia’s good company, I took a gamble knowing the night would have to be at least twice as fun as it was … traumatic.

Sitting deep in Club Wazeima’s unlikely dark, musty, wood-paneled bar setting, we waited for our food long enough to get a couple drinks in, thus inhibiting my squeamishness. We tore into the pizza-sized flat bread laden with homemade split lentils and peas, savory vegetable stew, rich mushrooms, collard greens and—coulda been the beer—but I swear there wasn’t a hint of the wet, too-tangy, deflated whoopie-cushion experience I recalled. Instead, this injera was soft, fluffy and mild—the perfect vehicle for the somehow-buttery, robust sauces. Whether or not we actually had room for seconds, we happily obliged as the chef came around with ladles of lentils.

From the NoPa neighborhood, it’s just a quick jaunt to the The Transfer nightclub in lower Castro where we met up with Aurelia's DJ friends including Anthony Lymon. The co-owner of Ginger Rubio Salon by day, I was pumped to meet him since his veg-friendly business space is the site of the upcoming VegNews-hosted Vegan A-Go-G0 Book Bash (Sarah Kramer's new cookbook). Anthony turned out to be very sweet and fun, and while dancing to new wave mixes sipping I-can't-believe-it's-vegan mixed drinks like Tanqueray tonics, twisted vodka sodas, and Malibu orange-crans, we came up with very original dance moves. (See below for one highly technical example, which I've dubbed, "Oh no, it's the cops!")