Flore Vegan: diamond in the roughage
(Credit: Shane Redsar)
Navigating: spring veggie fever 
Greens to fill you with warm fuzzy feelings
By Jiyeon Yoo, Metromix and Katherine Spiers, Special to Metromix
March 19, 2008Ammo
1155 N. Highland Ave., Los Angeles323-871-2666
Food is love but also "fuel for thought" at this intimate, bohemian-chic restaurant that has attracted loyal customers over the years with its savory, yet health and environmentally-conscious menu. Favored by Hollywood production types and low-key celebs, Ammo is a comforting and restorative surprise on the Highland stretch to Hollywood. Go for lunch or a weekend brunch, when the prices are more reasonable.
Axe
1009 Abbot Kinney Blvd., Venice310-664-9787
Pronounced more like a sneeze than a weapon, "A-chay" refers to a Yoruba greeting that means to "go with the power of the gods and goddesses." Located in a serene minimalist space on Abbot Kinney, the restaurant aspires to divinity through buying organic seasonal produce from local farmers, serving organic wine and beer, using biodegradable soaps and post-consumer waste paper products, and recycling and composting the leftovers. The menu features simple but vibrant salads, sandwiches, soups, rice bowls, and entrees ranging from ribs to tofu. When they're in season, the figs from the tree behind the restaurant appear on the menu as a special dessert treat.
Bulan Thai Vegetarian Kitchen
7168 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles323-857-1882
Among the many popular vegetarian Thai establishments in L.A., Bulan stands out not only for quality healthful food, but also for its inviting bistro environment. The dining room is elegantly appointed with dark wood furnishing and sage-colored walls; the all-female management team obviously knows its way around Pier 1. On certain weekends, catch live jazz to go with your veggie chicken satay and mock duck curry.
Cru
1521 Griffith Park Blvd., Los Angeles323-667-1551
Raw foodism may be the new mother of invention. At Crü, the mozzarella in the caprese and the faux-chicken in the red curry is actually young coconut. The ravioli is made from thin slices of jicama or portobello mushroom, then stuffed with cashew cheese and served in a miso-coconut sauce. Still squeamish about going raw? Attempt the heavenly chocolate desserts.
Elf Café
2135 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles213-484-6829
Located a few doors down from an American Apparel store and run by members of local indie band Viva K, Elf would be too cool for school if it weren’t so cute and inviting. The tiny space boasts cocoa-colored walls, fresh flowers and beautiful locals. The vegetarian Mediterranean fare also gets high points for its attentive preparation—even the water is tripled-filtered and infused with cucumber.
Euphoria Loves Rawvolution
2301 Main St., Santa Monica310-392-9501
Euphoria Loves Rawvolution is one part health food store and one part organic market, sitting on a stretch of Main Street seemingly dedicated to healthy living. Offering 100% raw vegan food with quick counter service and outside seating, the restaurant has a relaxed, loft-like feel. Customers browse the vitamins and supplements while waiting for their orders.
Flore Vegan
3818 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles323-953-0611
This tiny Silverlaker is vegan and proud of it: You won’t find any sad attempts to pass off tempeh or soy as bacon. Instead, there’s plenty of grainy goodness, such as buckwheat pancakes, chopped salads, rice bowls and hearty sandwiches (both wrapped and traditional varieties). The impressive selection of desserts even sounds—dare we say?—tempting.
Green Leaves Vegan
1769 Hillhurst Ave., Los Angeles323-664-2345
While most of the menu is Thai-inflected, it’s the wheat-free pancakes—especially the tropical version with blueberries and bananas—that have made disciples at this Los Feliz vegetable mecca. Embrace the decorative collection of electric guitars (there’s even a Casio!) as an attempt to reclaim the ’80s. Hey, why not pretend you and your sweetie are in a John Hughes flick? Just don’t fight over who gets to be Molly Ringwald.
Inn of the Seventh Ray
128 Old Topanga Canyon Rd., Topanga310-455-1311
From its woodland environs and soothing New Age-y aura to the hippie-dippy menu, this destination restaurant in the Santa Monica Mountains is definitely one with nature. Along with sophisticated vegetarian dishes, the highly regarded kitchen also offers raw foods as well as three tasting menus to befit your lifestyle.
Jax Vegan Café
1783 Westwood Blvd., Los Angeles310-478-7420
The French doors look like they should open to a beachfront rather than one of the busiest intersections on the Westside. Luckily, this adorable little cafe is secreted behind a bank of stores, affording lovebirds the quiet to indulge in an array of faux compositions, such as a BBQ chicken sandwich, a Cobb salad made with tempeh bacon, and even a vegan Twinkie! The owners have killer taste in music and sometimes host live musicians.
Leaf Cuisine
11938 W. Washington Blvd., Los Angeles310-390-6005
The bright green facade is impossible to miss—it’s the one bit of color on an otherwise barren stretch of Washington Boulevard. Even the spare, modern interior offers an inviting point of entry for raw food noobs. The lengths of culinary creativity can be found on the extensive menu, which boasts raw transmutations of popular dishes like pad thai, pizza margherita topped with something called “rawmesan,” and a sandwich with an “unturkey” patty betwixt mango “bread.” Juicers and smoothie-making blenders are also on a constant whir.
M Cafe de Chaya
7119 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles323-525-0588
We know, we know—macrobiotic is not the same as vegan. But it’s easy to stay green in the global diversity of M Café’s menu. The salami in the Tuscano Panini is spicy seitan, the Korean-inspired bi bim bap is composed with tofu, and the Big Macro is a good old-fashioned brown rice and veggie burger. Just be sure to stay away from the sushi selection—that’s real fish in there.
Madeleine Bistro
18621 Ventura Blvd., Tarzana818-758-6971
Husband and wife David and Molly Anderson have major veg cred—he was sous chef at Inn of the Seventh Ray before helming the kitchen at Real Food Daily, where Molly was general manager. Innovative vegetable twists on comfort foods like beignets, mac ’n’ cheese, and tamales preach to more than the converted, while the white linens and soft lighting bring a touch of class that anyone can appreciate.
Mr. Wisdom
3526 W. Slauson Ave., Los Angeles323-295-1517
Vegan-friendly soul food and a fresh juice bar are served up deep in the heart of South L.A. at Mr. Wisdom, which grows and juices its own organic wheatgrass and stocks plenty of Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar. Be careful on the weekends when some serious Hare Krishna recruitment goes on.
Native Foods
1110 1/2 Gayley Ave., Los Angeles310-209-1055
The humorless cafeteria-like tables and crowd of coeds may make you feel like you’re back in the dorms, but that doesn’t have to be a bad thing. The tongue-in-cheek menu also offers plenty of conversation points; dig the kooky vegetarian-style foreplay of the BLTease, Mad Cowboy, Scorpion Burger, Latino Lover or Very Voluptuous Veggie Pizza.
Pure Luck
707 N. Heliotrope Dr. , Los Angeles323-660-5993
A dive bar gone granola: You’d think this watering hole was transplanted directly from Portland. The high-quality microbrews are a mere $4, atmosphere is laid back, and the menu offers vegan tapas. Yes, it blows our mind. Forget about the standard gastropub burger—here the jackfruit is boss hog. The exotic Southeast Asian fruit is the pork substitute in the carnitas tacos and BBQ sandwich.
Real Raw Live
5913 Franklin Ave., Los Angeles323-461-4545
This raw food, vegan store and smoothie shop sells more varieties of healthful smoothies than you ever dreamed possible. They are full of things like almond milk, agave and dandelions. Even the dessert-y smoothies, like the Chocolate Alchemist, can be made with an avocado if bananas would make the sugar count too high for you. There are also health bars, frozen yogurt, and various hippie products, as well as bottles of the infamous Master Cleanse.
Real Food Daily
414 N. La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles310-289-9910
The vegan way owes a lot to the celebrity hive that is Real Food Daily. Between the two locations in Santa Monica and West Hollywood, this pioneer has “fed” the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kirsten Dunst and Nicole Richie. But you don’t have to be unnaturally skinny and blonde to feast on nachos with cashew cheese and tofu sour cream, Salisbury seitan cutlets, or tempeh vegetable loaf.
Real Food Daily
514 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica310-451-7544
The vegan way owes a lot to the celebrity hive that is Real Food Daily. Between the two locations in Santa Monica and West Hollywood, this pioneer has “fed” the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kirsten Dunst and Nicole Richie. But you don’t have to be unnaturally skinny and blonde to feast on nachos with cashew cheese and tofu sour cream, Salisbury seitan cutlets, or tempeh vegetable loaf.
Scoops
712 N. Heliotrope Dr., Los Angeles323-906-2649
What could be more romantic or love-affirming than sharing a cone outside the city’s best scoop shop? Proprietor and sole tastemaker Tae Kim is considered a flavor wunderkind—with good reason. Along with decidedly non-vegan options (hello, foie gras and bacon!), there are plenty of creative vegan variations, such as strawberry-jasmine ice cream. Don’t be shy: Kim lets you sample to your heart’s desire.
Sunnin
1779 Westwood Blvd., Westwood310-477-2358
A taste of Lebanon can be found in Westwood thanks to Sunnin, which also has a branch in Long Beach. Locals love the kebabs galore and plenty of vegetarian options offered in a casual environment. Middle Eastern restaurants are a great option for veg-heads: you don’t have to look hard for vegetarian, or even vegan options.
Truly: A Vegan Restaurant
5907 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles323-466-7958
Truly Vegan is truly without dairy, whey or casein—so dive into your bacon cheeseburger with confidence that it’s absolutely animal-cruelty free. The pancakes are arguably the best wheat-free variety in town, and come with a generous dollop of vegan butter. The rest of the menu leans Asian and even offers vegan sushi and shabu-shabu. Now that’s pretty-pretty impressive.
Vegan Glory
8393 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles323-653-4900
OK, so the strip mall setting is drab and the parking situation frustrating—the lot is so tiny, you still have to hand your car over to a valet—but the food is, well, simply glorious. Vegan interpretations of Thai cuisine deliver the intensity of spice and flavor without bringing any bone-chilling flesh into the mix—soy meat alternatives and seitan are offered for all you faux-lovers.
The Vegan Joint
10438 National Blvd., Los Angeles310-559-1357
Here you can graze on wheat-free pancakes for breakfast, lentil burgers for lunch and tofu chop suey for dinner. If you're not that hungry, opt for a $3 smoothie. The fact that you can order breakfast all day makes the Vegan Joint the Denny's for green eaters.
