Sunday, March 30, 2008

Vegan par-tay in San Pedro

I've been psyched for weeks about the PPK potluck in San Pedro and have been yammering about it nonstop. Even total strangers have heard about all the excellent vegan food there's going to be and how I'm going to make so many vegan friends ...

And then the day finally arrived. It was time to meet everyone.

I immediately turned into a shy, awkward version of myself. I barely even spoke to anyone.

My excuse is that I was too busy inhaling all the food to make friends. The wealth of vegan goodies was almost overwhelming. Tempeh bacon strips, pancakes and blueberry syrup, apple sage veggie sausages, a basket full of tofu wontons, enchiladas, deep dish pizza, oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, mimosas, fruit salad ...

And it was so nice to sample everything without asking, "Does that have chicken broth in it? Is that made with dairy?"

I'm a little pissed that I only took a few photos -- and they don't really showcase all the pretty vegans and their excellent food. Sorry.

Food

Vegan potluck

Desmond

I had never been to San Pedro before, but my friend Maria grew up there, so she played tour guide and showed off the peninsula

Maria and me

It's a charming and beautiful place, with crisp ocean wind, industrial grit and Dr. Seuss architecture, plus a ridiculous abundance of flowers and friendly people who throw their arms open wide as soon as they meet you.

Lazy Saturday in park

Windows

Sky cleared

Flowers

We also saw Bukowski's grave:

'Don't try'

Afterward we went to Hermosa Beach and ate at The Spot, L.A.'s oldest vegetarian restaurant and an old haunt for Paul and Linda McCartney.

My entree -- brown rice, pinto beans, mixed veggies, tofu, salsa and savory sauce -- was much tastier than it looks:

Mexirama

2 comments:

Veggie said...

Yes.It would be so nice to be able to go places and not have to ask those questions. I feel like i'm such a pain in the neck to everyone.

You are so lucky, i'd love to eat at that restaurant, where Paul & Linda used to go. I'm such a sucker for that kind of thing.

Jenni (aka Vegyogini) said...

I wish I could've been there to meet you. YVM and her family are 3 of my favorite people and the brunch I attended at her house in January was sensational. I can't believe you drove all the way up from the desert, but I'm sure it was 100% worth it!