Forks Over Knives Screening

Who: VN columnist Gena Hamshaw
What: A special, pre-release screening of Forks Over Knives
Where: AMC Loews on Broadway, New York, NY
When: December 6, 2010

The Scoop: On Monday night, animal lovers, environmentalists, health enthusiasts, and foodies gathered together for a screening of filmmaker Brian Wendel’s Forks Over Knives. The documentary, which will be released nationwide on March 11, 2011, examines the profound claim that most, if not all, of the so-called “diseases of affluence” can be controlled or reversed by adopting a whole-foods, plant-based diet. Told through the lives and work of Dr. T. Colin Campbell and Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn—who have championed the power of plant-based foods throughout their careers in medicine—the film also documents the remarkable healing stories of their patients.

Notable supporters of Farm Sanctuary and of the film—including vegan authors John Joseph and Victoria Moran—gathered for a pre-party reception, where they sampled cuisine from New York culinary institution, Candle 79. The owners of Candle 79, Bart Potenza and Joy Pierson, were hard at work in the kitchen, churning out plate after plate of piping hot seitan chimichurris, bowls of tangy guacamole, and platters of an irresistibly flavorful hummus and quinoa terrine.

Candle 79's signature seitan chimichurris

Meanwhile, veteran vegan pastry chef Fran Costigan astonished partygoers with her desserts. (I had to fight a few other guests for the last PB&J chocolate cup parfait, but it was worth it.) Farm Sanctuary co-founder Gene Baur shared a few salutary words. “Most people are basically compassionate,” he said. But he added that we need films like Forks Over Knives to inspire positive change.

Fran Costigan in a free moment

After the film, audience members were given a chance to ask questions and chat with the filmmakers and participants. On the panel discussion after the film were Baur, Brian Wendel, and Rip Esselstyn, author of the bestselling The Engine 2 Diet, who is profiled in the documentary. Before leaving, I approached Brian Wendel, whose own life was changed by reading The China Study in 2008, to congratulate him. His face lit up when I mentioned that I was there on behalf of VegNews. “They have been so supportive,” he said. “We’re all very excited.”

VegNews Eats New York (1st course)

Who: VN Publisher Joseph Connelly and VN Associate Publisher Colleen Holland
What: First of Two Weeks in Veg Heaven
Where: The Big (Vegan) Apple: New York, NY
When: April 11–17, 2010
Why: Yo, we gots some business to take care of...

The Scoop: After the PCRM 25th Anniversary Gala, Colleen and Joe jetted off to NYC for a two-week jaunt filled with business meetings, eating, visits to our favorite restaurants, eating, gathering with contributors, eating, taking lots of photographs, and did I mention eating?

Rather than bore you with the gritty details of why we had a secret meeting in New Jersey or whether it was the F-train of the #6 Line that shared its platform with various rodents larger than our office mascots Khane and Cal, I’ll present instead a Top 10 photo montage from each of our NYC weeks. Do check back tomorrow for Course Two of VegNews Eats NYC, and leave a comment if you'd like to see and hear more, 'K?

Week One Highlights:

10. Co-owner Craig Cochran (second from right) and the staff of the newly opened Terri Restaurant (60 W. 23rd Street).

9. Just a few of the vegan cookies at LifeThyme Natural Market (410 Avenue of the Americas).

8. After a delicious dinner at Vegetarian Dim Sum House (24 Pell Street). That’s HSUS’ Patrick Kwan and his partner Seth Carlson with Colleen.

7. Tuesday is the day Bethlehem, Penn.'s Vegan Treats delivers to Atlas Café & Bakery (73 Second Avenue). We were there. It's our job.

6. Sweet and savory at Candle 79 (154 E. 79th Street), where we enjoyed a fab vegan meal with Joe’s aunt and uncle. Check out those cannolis!

5. Yes, that is a vegan egg cream from Lula’s Sweet Apothecary (516 East 6th Street)

4. Just around the block from our apartment was Pinisi Bakery & Café (124 East 4th Street), which always had a few vegan options, such as these.

3. Oh yeah, we hit the world famous Dosa Hut in Washington Square Park! (West 4th Street at Sullivan)

2. At the end of the week we enjoyed what may be New York’s worst kept vegan secret: The 5-star, 3-course Friday Night Dinner at the Natural Gourmet Institute (48 West 21st Street).Vegan Important Persons Chef Fran Costigan (left) and Photographer Linda Long joined us.

1. After a Saturday stroll on the East River Bikeway, we brunched at Caravan of Dreams (405 East 6th Street), where Joe chose the “special of the day”: spelt pancakes with tempeh.

Let's recap. This was just our first week in NYC, and the next week was even busier (can you believe?). Don't miss the second course... follow VegNews on Twitter and we'll keep you in the loop.

PCRM Celebrates 25 Years

Who: VN Publisher Joseph Connelly and VN Associate Publisher Colleen Holland
What: The Art of Compassion: PCRM's 25th Anniversary Gala
Where: The Lot, West Hollywood, Calif.
When: April 10, 2010
Why: Celebrating a quarter-century of PCRM’s extraordinary accomplishments

The Scoop: If you picture the folks at the Physician’s Committee for Responsible donning white lab coats rather than party gowns, it’s safe to say you weren’t in Hollywood last month. The organization known for advancing preventative medicine and ethical research let its hair down for a glorious and star-studded celebration for nearly 500 friends and supporters at The Lot—the former home of Warner Hollywood Studios, United Artists Studios, and the Samuel Goldwyn Studios—a venue which proved as fitting as the dresses and tuxes for the who’s-who of compassion that paraded and pranced around the stages where the classic films Robin Hood and West Side Story were filmed.

Event Chairs Tom and Kathy Freston kicked it all off with heartfelt words on why they are supporters of PCRM, including Tom’s admission that he never expected to end up vegan. Following the Freston’s were four-time NBA champ John Salley, the actors and actresses Marilu Henner, Jennifer Landon, Cloris Leachman, Melissa Rivers, Larry Sullivan, Mariana Tosca, and Persia White, and CNN's Jane Velez Mitchell. The evening’s entertainment included a rousing musical performance by Leona Lewis and a short yet hilarious stand-up routine by comedienne Carol Leifer. PCRM founder and president, the ageless Neal Barnard, MD, closed the ceremony with a recap of the lengthy accomplishments his organization and vision have ushered to fruition over the last quarter-century.

PCRM President Neal Barnard, MD, with VN's Colleen Holland

The gala wouldn’t have been complete without it’s quartet of awards. The Benjamin Spock Award for Compassion in Medicine was given to Baxter Montgomery, MD, a Houston cardiologist who developed a “nutritional boot camp” to assist his patients in breaking unhealthy habits; The Henry Heimlich Award honored Gilman Veith, PhD, founder of the QSAR Foundation to Reduce Animal Testing, which uses computer models to predict the toxicity of chemicals without using animals; and The Art of Compassion Award, bestowed upon Robert “Skip” Trimble, the legislative chair of the Texas Humane Legislation Network, which promotes the humane treatment of animals through advocacy, education, and legislation. Lastly, two Voice of Compassion Awards were given to Ellen DeGeneres and Marilu Henner, which honors those who, “by word or example, have communicated caring, compassion, and the highest ethical principles.”

VN Publisher Joseph Connelly and Dr. Henry Heimlich share their maneuvers.

The delicious vegan dinner, coordinated by Tal Ronnen, was an all-star line-up of dishes from the nation’s best veg restaurants and chefs: hors d’oeuvres by Millennium, salad by Candle 79, soup and entrée from The Conscious Cook, and desserts from Seed Kitchen, Sublime, and The Veggie Grill.

Congratulations to everyone at PCRM for all the organization has done in making the world a healthy, safer place as well as for inviting us to your party. All of us at VegNews look forward to working with you over the next 25 years.

Chef Tal at Candle 79

Who: VEGdaily Co-founder and Ecorazzi Senior Editor Michael Parrish DuDell

What: Four-course meal prepared by The Conscious Cook author Tal Ronnen.
Where: Candle 79, New York, NY
When: January 7, 2009
Why: Because the combination of Tal Ronnen’s food and Candle 79’s atmosphere are what dreams are made of!

The Scoop: It’s official: no one is ever allowed to call vegetarian food “boring” again! Last night I had the honor of spending the evening at Candle 79—an upscale vegan restaurant on the Upper East Side of Manhattan—and sampling the many culinary talents of celebrated chef Tal Ronnen.

Ronnen's expertly planned menu

For those who aren’t familiar with Ronnen’s work, he is the man responsible for helping Oprah go vegan for 21 days and the mastermind behind VegNews' 2009 "Book of the Year" and New York Times bestseller, The Conscious Cook. In his book, Ronnen says that after becoming vegetarian, he “became obsessed with the idea of creating vegan food that was just as mouth-watering and delicious as anything I’d ever had as a meat-eater.”

A sneak peek into the Candle 79 kitchen

Well, all of that obsession certainly paid off! The meal was out of control with such offerings as celery root soup, quinoa with Belgium endive and oranges, and a mouth-watering banana cheesecake.

Quinoa with Belgium endive and oranges—absolutely delicious!

However, the star of the evening was the third course: a scaloppini dish made with scrumptious Gardein chick’n. As my dinner guests and I took a bite of this perfectly prepared entrée, we all agreed that Gardein is going to forever change the vegetarian culinary world. All in all, this inspired meal proved just how dynamic and artful plant-based cuisine really can be and left each of us assured that, without a doubt, vegan food will take over the world. (Insert evil laughter here.)

Mad Hatter Vegan Tea Party

Who: VN Publisher Joseph Connelly
What: Mad Hatter Vegan Tea Party
When: Sunday, August 23, 2009
Where: Secret Tea Garden House, San Francisco
Why: Fun Fund-raiser for SFVS’ World Veg Festival Weekend

The Scoop: Carmen Miranda didn’t show, though she would have been darn proud that much of her sisterhood was in attendance at yesterday’s Mad Hatter Vegan Tea Party, a unique fund-raiser thrown by the San Francisco Vegetarian Society to support its 10^th Annual World Veg Festival Weekend, coming up Oct. 3–4.

Maybe 40 or so guests squeezed into the adorable teeny-tiny Garden Room of the Secret Garden Tea House, mostly women, and almost all of them sporting fancy hats, stylish hats, silly hats—even a deep purple Dr. Seuss-style Cat-in-the-Hat hat (well, the cat wasn’t there. It must have been his human’s day to wear it).

The festive afternoon included a special menu prepared by Secret Garden with tea and vegan delights, such as scrumptious sandwiches (marinated cuke with dill; pesto and tomatoes; banana and walnut), salient savories (rice roll with basil; mini chili-lime corn-stuffed red and green peppers; curry-quinoa filled baby pitas), and smack-lipping sweets (sour-cherry-pear tart; vegan cranberry and blueberry scones; and choc-chip and sugar cookies donated by Violet Sweet Shoppe. More on them in a bit). The fare was as delicious as it sounds, which quite pleased me, since I'd just come from a social engagement where the only vegan items were the fruit salad and dry diner rolls. Thankfully, I held off until the tea party.

The Secret Tea Garden House goes vegan for a day!

Dixie Mahy, the Grande Dame of the San Francisco veg scene, recruited me to judge the Mad Hatter contest. I quickly convinced Millennium Restaurant owner Larry Wheat to be my sidekick, and Larry found the lone woman in the audience sans head-wear as the third judge, “to break the tie.” This was serious stuff. Our assignment was to pick the Most Unusual Hat, the Funniest Hat, and the Prettiest Hat. Nancy Loewen, SFVS’ vice president and a former VegNews intern (no judging bias here) was awarded the Prettiest for this over-the-top topper:

Prettiest hat winner Nancy Loewen, left, with SFVS' one-and-only Dixie Mahy

Next up was the silent auction (this was a fun(d)-raiser, recall). Shoehorned into one corner were about 20 items up for the bidding, including a two-night visit to Mendocino’s The Stanford Inn; gift certificates to such favorite restaurants as Candle 79, Herbivore, and Millennium; and an Almond Milk Chocolate Cake from San Francisco’s own Violet Sweet Shoppe. I’m happy to report that yours truly was the high bidder of this last item—surprise, surprise—which we will enjoy at today’s staff lunch. You can taste the cake along with us at our award-winning blog Café VegNews.

Vegan yums: The Violet Sweet Shoppe Almond Milk Chocolate Cake

Festive festival foodie fundraising. Is there a better way to spend a Sunday summer afternoon?

October/November Marathon Surprise, Part 6

Who: VN Publisher/Editor in Chief Joseph Connelly
What: The New York City Marathon + Dinner at Candle 79
Where: New York City, NY
When: November 2, 2008
Why: To support one of my favorite running buddies and one of my favorite restaurants

The Scoop: With the Boston Vegetarian Food Festival in the books, I hightailed the stolen minivan back to New York in preparation of one more trip into The Big Apple. The bookends of this trip have been the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC, and today’s New York City Marathon in … well … see if you can figure that out for yourself.

Marathon runners are addicts, something that cannot be explained, only experienced. My friend, colleague, fellow publisher, Lantern Books co-founder, and VegNews' Spiritual Advisor Martin Rowe, was entered in today’s NYC Marathon. I felt obliged to show him some support, much the same way Noelle had for me a week earlier. Yes, Noelle is also an experienced marathoner, so we are all cut from the same vegan cloth.

Taking the train to my birth borough of Brooklyn, I had Martin’s game plan tattooed on me, and my fingers crossed that he would be where he said he would be at certain times. He’s precise like that. Well, Martin must have been under the influence when he sent out his guidelines, since he proposed we meet him on 5th Avenue when the race was being run down 4th. Runner's high, perhaps? Nevertheless, adjustments were made and positions staked out. With nearly 40,000 people entered in the race, and millions of spectators lining the course, finding someone in this sea of humanity would be about as easy as getting Sarah Palin to eat a veggie burger. Ah, try we must.

I knew other members of Martin’s inner circle were supposed to be at this same point, yet I could not find them. Still, with his schedule running on time, there’s Martin a few yards up finding a friend among the spectators and giving her a big hug. I snapped a few photos before he saw me, and when he did a large smile flashed across his face. Next, he proclaims, in his proper Brit accent, “Where is my wife? Why can’t she ever … ” before Mia materialized from the sidelines, just a few feet away, video camera rolling. Martin does a quick change of shirts—the photos of which I promise not to post—M & M hug, and off he goes. But you can see for yourself by watching Mia’s home movie, should you desire.

A little explanation might be offered here regarding Martin’s outburst. You see, he was running the race for the second year in a Rowe, and last time Mia wasn’t at the appointed places at the appropriate times. Or if she was, she was on the wrong side of the road. You get the picture. In the 2007 race they didn’t once connect. So this year things were already off to a much better start. And so was Martin.

While riding the subway to rendezvous point #2, I had one of those experiences that could only happen in New York. I met a gentleman from Holland, supporting his son, and a pair from Arizona, supporting his wife/her sister. They needed help navigating the NYC subway system, so we all hopped the train together and I got them to where they needed to be. By the time we arrived at First Avenue in Manhattan some 45 minutes later we were all old friends. My old friend Martin, on the other hand, was having a great race on a picture-perfect running day and I soon concluded that he must have been ahead of schedule. Time to hightail it to Central Park.

The next meeting point on Martin’s schedule was the east entrance to the park, on 93nd Street, 24 miles into the marathon. While I didn’t see him, I did see two other friends, A/R lawyer Amy Trakinski and her companion dog Snowman. She had just seen Martin whiz by—yes, Amy has marathon experience as well—so off we went to the steps of the American Museum of Natural History on Central Park West to meet up with the athlete post-race.

Before I forget, Martin was running the marathon as a fundraiser for three charities, the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary; a secondary school in Juba, the southern capital of Sudan; and the Small Planet Fund. To read Martin’s blog, learn more about what these charities mean to him, and make a donation to one or all three of them, click here. Or watch the video of Martin's post-race pimping.

The race now over, Martin found us at the museum, where shortly thereafter Mia arrived. Martin ran a very respectable 3:37:45, taking 21 minutes off his 2007 time. Congratulations, Mr. Rowe!

VegNews Publisher Joseph Connelly and Satya Magazine/Lantern Books
co-founder Martin Rowe show off their marathon hardware

Before departing, Amy and Snow walked us to Café Blossom, where M & M refueled. I had a cup of tea then headed off to dinner at the amazing Candle 79, meeting up with my friends Florine and Saul Morrison from London, Ontario, and their daughter Florine Jr., who would be starting an internship at Candle the next day.

As always, the food at 79 was over-the-top delicious. If you aren't hungry, you will be after I indulge you in our indulgences. For starts, how about Grilled Seitan Chimichurri, Onion Rings with Chipolté Aioli, some Cornmeal Crusted Eggplant Napoleon, or the Special Jerusalem Artichoke Salad? Our main courses included Live Zucchini Enchiladas, Grilled Pomegranate Tempeh, and the Porcini Crusted Tofu. Saul was into side dishes: Grilled Oyster Mushrooms, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Maple Roasted Squash, and a huge portion of Polenta Fries (nobody could eat all of one). Yes, we then stuffed ourselves silly with the Key Lime Pie Tart and the Chocolate Brownies Sundae before management decided to treat us to a trio of House Made Sorbets and Ice Cream: Strawberry, Cinnamon, and White Peach.

Candle 79's Grilled Pomegranate Tempeh

In case you are wondering, any weight I might have lost when I ran my marathon on October 26 (remember that posting?) was quickly been put back on during this week. And yes, the food at Candle 79 is as good, nay better, than the above paragraph sounds. There aren’t enough adjectives in my dictionary to do justice to the final supper of my October Marathon Surprise.

Hyperdrive Big Apple Weekend

Who: VN Editorial Director Aurelia d'Andrea + VN Senior Editor Jennifer Pickens

What: A whirlwind weekend in sunny NYC

Where: The Right Coast, baby!

When: July 11–14

Why: Because someone *aurelia*cough* had never visited the vegan epicenter of the universe that is NYC, and really needed to

The Scoop: New York City in the middle of summer? When it’s like, 98 degrees and 100-percent humidity? You bet! According to Aurelia and Jen’s logic, this is the magic time to visit the Big Apple, since half the city is in the Hamptons or at lake houses upstate or maybe just cooling down in their air-conditioned apartments. In other words, the city would be all ours. Well, sort of. But never mind that. Between social engagements, sightseeing jaunts, and stuffing our faces with amazing food, crowds were the least of our concerns.

After checking into our hotel on Day 1, the two of us meandered about the East Village, serendipitously stumbling upon veg restaurant after veg restaurant, including Kate’s Joint, Viva Herbal Pizzeria, and Lan Café. Wanting to hold out for the special meal we were to eat later that night, we skipped those guys in favor of a light snack at Whole Earth Bakery & Kitchen, where, in spite of all the vegan cheesecakes, cheeseless calzones, and egg-free quiches staring at us from behind the glass counter, Aurelia decided on a simple shot of wheatgrass juice and Jen opted for a cooling cup of gazpacho.

Later that night, we cabbed it up to 79th and Lexington for a memorable meal at elegant veg institution Candle 79. Benay Vyenerib, a friend of a good friend, works at Candle and went the extra mile to hook us up with the best table in the house. Hurray! After a glass of wine and shared appetizers that included the to-die-for stuffed squash blossoms, we moved on to our main courses: Seitan Piccata (Aurelia), and Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Cake (Jen). Let’s just say that it was so delicious and so filling that these two chocolate-and-peanut-butter-loving girls couldn’t even look at the words “Chocolate Peanut Butter Bliss” on the menu. Ouch. But in a good way. During our meal, we had three surprise visitors to our table:  HSUS’s man about town Patrick Kwan, vegan marshmallow diva Sara Sohn of Sweet and Sara, and VN’s very own contributing photographer Danielle Ricciardi. Talk about a small world! The chance encounters gave us an excuse to make plans with Patrick for the following day. Our rendezvous destination? Chinatown.


from left: Benay Vyenerib, Aurelia d'Andrea, Danielle Ricciardi, and Jennifer Pickens

On Day 2, we woke early and grabbed our respective morning pick-me-up elixirs and made our way in a leisurely fashion to the southern tip of Chinatown for some dim sum with Patrick at his favorite local spot, Buddha Bodai. After slurping cups of green tea and feasting on turnip cakes, tofu-skin rolls, steamed buns and other assorted goodies, we wiggled around the neighborhood, making stops at Animal Haven and May Wah Vegetarian Food before hopping on the L train toward Williamsburg, Brooklyn. And oh what fun we were about to have! Just so happens that Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary was throwing a tag sale that day, and if there’s one thing we love, it’s a tag sale to benefit animals. There we bumped into Mr. and Mrs. Hotstuff, Dan Piraro and Ashley Lou Smith—definitely two of the nicest folks we've ever met. We also ran into new friend Cat Clyne, formerly of Satya magazine, and the lovely Jenny Brown, who heads up the Woodstock Sanctuary. Oh, wait! We also met former VN Vegan Wedding couple Tom O’Hagan and Sara Kubersky of Mooshoes, along with their super-cute baby boy. Phew!

Lest your eyeballs begin to shrivel like two organic raisins, phase two of our Brooklyn/Manhattan sojourn to follow in another post.

Special Report: VegNews in NYC (Day 3)

Who: VN Publisher Joseph Connelly + VN Associate Publisher Colleen Holland
What: Day three of a five-day business trip
Where: New York City
When: May 16, 2008
Why: Farm Sanctuary Gala + Veggie Pride Parade + meetings galore with colleagues, friends, and magazine partners

The Scoop: May is one of the best times to visit New York City, but we seemed to have hit a bout of bad weather. With our fully loaded schedule, we had to persevere and keep moving on our food-foraging adventure through Manhattan.

The city's trendy Chelsea neighborhood welcomed a new vegetarian restaurant in 2006 called Blossom. Owners Pamela and Ronen have recently opened the doors to a second location, the more casual Café Blossom on the Upper West Side (just a block from Central Park). While the original location boasts a two-story townhouse complete with a fireplace and cozy banquettes, this new space was sleek, modern, and very cool. With the drizzle outside, we took it slow and enjoyed a wonderful lunch with one of our NY colleagues. Our table shared the Autumn Sweet Potato Rolls (raw shavings of sweet potato filled with coconut noodles, jicama, carrots, and red pepper with a ginger dipping sauce). Given our Candle 79 meal the night before, we opted for salad entrées to keep things light. We had the Rocket Arugula (organic arugula tossed with green apples, marinated tofu, cherry tomatoes, and plantain chips with a lemon-tahini dressing), the Grilled Tofu Salad (grilled sesame tofu over mixed greens, arame seaweed, and sprouts in a carrot-miso dressing), and the Caesar Salad (fresh greens with herbed croutons tossed in a creamy dijon caesar dressing). All were delicious and very fresh. Lingering longer than we should have over steamy mugs of soy hot chocolate, we shared a slice of lemon cake and biscotti. On a gray day, there was no place we would have rather been.

But the day had to go on! We hopped on the subway and headed down to the Lower East Side to one of our favorite stores, MooShoes. An absolute must-visit on any veggie’s NYC itinerary, we ducked into its über-swanky new storefront on Orchard Street. The studio-like interior showcases gobs of vegan footwear—from sexy leatherette heels to summer espadrilles to casual sandals. They also sell handbags (love the Matt & Nat line) and a hand-picked selection of veggie cookbooks. Oh, and VegNews. That makes us happy. After catching up with co-owner Erica Kubersky (who, along with her sister Sarah, started MooShoes in 2001), we walked out with two new pairs of shoes. We just couldn’t help ourselves, and how could we not support this fabulous veg business? In the same neighborhood, one can also visit Bluestockings anarchist bookstore, Tiengarden Chinese restaurant, and Babycakes NYC vegan bakery, making it a great destination for visiting vegetarians.

Later that evening, we headed back uptown for another meal at—you guessed it—the award-winning Candle 79. We just can’t get enough! Meeting a business associate, we attempted to order conservatively so that we could make it through the weekend. We won’t go on and on about meal #2, but standouts included the housemade ginger soda, cornmeal-crusted oyster mushrooms, the live zucchini enchiladas, and the Chocolate Brownie Sundae (served in a martini glass). The restaurant was packed solid, and sitting nearby were VegNews columnists Dan Piraro and Rory Freedman (along with some of their friends, including our July+August 2007 cover gal, actress Emily Deschanel). Even in this city of eight million, you still bump into people you know everywhere you go.

Special Report: VegNews in NYC (Day 2)

Who: VN Publisher Joseph Connelly + VN Associate Publisher Colleen Holland
What: Day two of a five-day business trip
Where: New York City
When: May 15, 2008
Why: Farm Sanctuary Gala + Veggie Pride Parade + meetings galore with colleagues, friends, and magazine partners

The Scoop: It’s true what they say—New York City never sleeps. While we were blessed with our Midtown accommodations, it took a few nights to acclimate to the all-night acoustics (read: blaring sirens and street noise). With no time to spare, we jump started the day with smoothies before heading over to visit Farm Sanctuary’s NY office. Located in a gorgeous old building near Union Square, the FS team was busy with final preparations for Saturday’s night gala. Former Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich had just confirmed, so last-minute changes were being made to the program, along with a thousand other tasks. Kudos to Development Director Samantha Ragsdale and her amazing team!

Next, we headed uptown for a lunch date which we were greatly anticipating. If you haven’t heard of Zen Burger, you soon will. Started by the owners of Zen Palate (a NY veg institution), Zen Burger is a vegetarian fast-food chain about to go national (see photo above). The restaurant across from Grand Central Station is its first, and a second location is scheduled to open this September in West Hollywood. On a block littered with every major fast-food chain, the façade has the look of a traditional establishment but with a cleaner, more modern feel. With a goal to match the flavor, price point, and convenience of the real deal, the place was teeming with business. Customers can order burgers, hot dogs, fish sandwiches, nuggets, breakfast items, soups, fries, salads, shakes, and sundaes. We, of course, opted for the vegan options—the ZenHarvest Burger (complete with ZenBurger’s “special sauce,” a zesty blend made with Vegenaise), a steamy cup of curried lentil soup, French fries, a chocolate shake, and a soft-serve sundae (the restaurant’s ice cream is provided by our friends at Chicago Soy Dairy). Our lunch date, and one of ZenBurger’s partners, Chad Carpenter, tells us that more vegan options are coming soon, including a scrumptious barbecue chicken sandwich).

Early that evening, we hit a fundraiser at a private home on the Upper East Side for Wellness in the Schools, a sister organization to the New York Coalition for Healthy School Foods, an organization working to get plant-based foods in the school system. If you have children, this is a wonderful, highly effective group with which to get involved. Healthy food for our kids results in higher productivity, fewer illnesses, and greater self-confidence. That’s a good thing.

Finally, we head off for what we know will be a sumptuous supper at Candle 79 with owners Joy Pierson and Bart Potenza (see photo below with Bart, Joy, Colleen, and Joe). We tuck into an upstairs banquette for what turns out to be a four-hour dinner. The meal was nothing short of magnificent—we start with an amuse-bouche of fresh cornbread with avocado butter; a watercress salad with strawberries, wild asparagus, and toasted pistachios in a lime dressing; a stuffed manicotti appetizer filled with sautéed mushrooms, tofu-basil cheese, and cashew parmesan drizzled with roasted tomato sauce and pine nut pesto; and grilled artichokes, served with blue-cornmeal battered onion rings, grilled asparagus, arugula pesto, and red pepper coulis. Oh, and we’re just getting started. Our table shares three entrées—a Moroccan-spiced chickpea cake with spring vegetables, red pepper-coconut curry, and apricot-date chutney; chipotle grilled seitan with potatoes, leeks, spring peas, and avocado salsa; and a wild mushroom fricassee with broccoli rabe, fiddlehead ferns, fava beans, and truffled polenta). I think it’s becoming clear as to why this dinner lasted four hours. For the meal’s finale, we dip into the housemade sorbet sampler along with my favorite, the Chocolate-Peanut Butter Bliss, a whipped peanut butter mousse encased in a chocolate shell with a berry coulis. Let’s just say that we walked the nearly 60 blocks back to the hotel to ensure proper digestion, and, well, make certain we were ready for our next veg-fabulous meal the following day. Bon nuit!

New York, New York!

Who: VN Senior Editor Elizabeth Castoria
What: Dinner on the town
Where: Candle 79, New York City
When: February 8, 2008
Why: Fun!

The Scoop: Probably the most amazing dinner I've ever eaten. Correction: probably the most amazing dinner anyone has ever eaten. This evening was an absolutely perfect storm of setting, company, and cuisine. Candle 79's classy, dimly lit interior made an elegant space for our group. VN columnist and professional funny guy Dan Piraro and Ashley Lou Smith, Ben Adams and his awesome wife Anne-Taylor, yours truly, my permanent date T.J. Kirkpatrick, and the amazing playwright Bekah Brunstetter shared a meal that should be noted in the history of great meals. It started with grilled seitan chimichurris and quickly became an all-out smorgasbord of young coconut pad thai, pumpkin seed and sage crusted tempeh, the chef's special pasta of gorgeous gnocchi in a tomato and cashew cream sauce, and, of course, the seitan piccata. Everything that went into our mouths was incredible, and if there weren't photos to prove it, I might not be able to believe that such a lovely evening took place.