SuperVegan: Vegan Blog and New York City Restaurant Guide

Celebrate Your Love Of Cute Plastic Shoes With Kaight and Melissa's Shoes This Thursday

brownbird@supervegan.com (Brownbird Rudy Relic) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:52:20 EST

["I think you have too many shoes."
"Shut Up!" ]

In my wobbly world, two things must be on point: My hair and my shoes. So, a greasy cupcake swirl top (sans the lanolin found in most pomade) and two-tone creepers (sans the cow’s skin) on the bottom is how I roll.

(And now, here’s the only slightly-related segue)

Tomorrow, the fashion forward Melissa’s Shoes (Plastic Pleasures!) from Brazil will be debuting a limited (six weeks only!) pop-up shop inside of Kaight on the Lower East Side.

To celebrate the super cute (and oh so ever eco-friendly) Kaight store will be having an opening party this Thursday, March 11th from 6 to 9pm. Vegan treats will be provided by Rabbit Mafia; cocktails will be done up by 44North.

Kaight is located at: 83 Orchard St. (between Broome & Grand)

One Word: Shoes.

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Want to write for SuperVegan? Apply here!

sam@supervegan.com (Samantha Cohen) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST

Hey y'all! SuperVegan (that's us!) is looking for bloggers, contributors, and vegan busybodies to write fascinating/entertaining/awesome/all of the above posts for our blog.

Here's what we need:

Staff Writers: excellent regular bloggers who are up on vegan news and can write one or two posts each week. Should be able to take assignments, come up with your own post ideas, edit yo-self, happily accept constructive criticism and editing, and provide original primary-source reporting and research. For example, we would looove to post interviews with vegans who are doing cool stuff.

Contributing Writers: Bloggers to write occasional posts on topics of interest to vegans (i.e., food, cooking, animal rights issues, vegan/veg events, vegan fashion, political initiatives, restaurant openings and closings, national/international vegan news, and whatever else you can think of!)

For ye staff writers: e-mail us with a blog post you would write for SuperVegan if you were on staff today, written in our style; keep in mind that if we like it we might post it! Also, supply us some links to your writing on a blog or website or whatever you've got, give us a sense of your blogging experience, and let us know why you want to join SV.

For contributors: tell us what you'd like to write about and also send us links to samples, if you've got 'em, and tell us about you! If we're intrigued we'll let you know!

Way unfortunately, we can't pay you (we all do it for the love!), but sometimes we get free books, yummy samples to review, and free admission to events, which are way more exciting than plain old greenbacks, I swear.

Questions? Comment!

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Velvet Teddy Bear Is A Vegan

brownbird@supervegan.com (Brownbird Rudy Relic) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:09:23 EST

I’m always a fan of veganism being presented as a sensible, attainable alternative to the Standard American Diet; as opposed to, y’know, a fringe set of eating rules developed by obsessive leftists looking to overthrow the status quo - as the media is often guilty of.

Season Two American Idol Winner Ruben Studdard does just that, talking veganism like it ain’t no thang.

In the video above, the “Velvet Teddy Bear” explains what veganism is; makes clear that even though his diet has changed, he still gets to eat the food he’s always loved and gives a hint about his favorite vegan restaurant (could he be talking SoulVeg?).

Now that’s what I call a “Superstar” (soy cheesy alert!).

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Correspondence from Antarctica: View from the Sea Shepherd Ship the Bob Barker, Part 6

tod@supervegan.com (Tod Emko) — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 16:17:13 EST

[(all photo credits: Glenn Lockitch / Sea Shepherd)]

An update on the current Antarctic campaign, from Sea Shepherd crew member Andrea Gordon.

This message was transmitted to New York from the Bob Barker vessel via satellite.

So lots went on here yesterday - everything has been a really intense emotional rollercoaster. In the morning, we were told the campaign was over and we had to go back to port. I took the news really hard. Every day we were with the Nisshin Maru, I was just so happy knowing the whales were protected and safe. We had such an amazing and successful campaign, but going back to port knowing the whalers were still down here with the whales isn't easy. I didn't have much time to dwell on it though, because 30 minutes after that, we saw the Yushin Maru #3 on the horizon. We hadn't seen that ship since it rammed us at the beginning of the month. Everyone jumped back into gear, we sent the small boat after the Yushin, packed with butyric acid, paint, and some angry Sea Shepherds ;) The small boat chased the Yushin through the ice at 15 knots, and the Yushin just slammed into a lot of the ice, risking damaging their ship to get away from our boat.

On the way to catch up with the Yushin, though, we had passed a set of five buoys together that was attached to a line. We speculated it was either a longline or from the whalers. We marked the GPS for the buoy location, and after showering the Yushin with butyric acid, we went back to the buoys. Ironically, this was the one day that we were able to take the time to pull in the illegal buoys and line since we had stopped chasing the Nisshin. They were going after Patagonian toothfish, aka Chilean sea bass. Turns out it wasn't a longline, though; it was an illegal gillnet - the net was five. miles long or so and about 1500 feet deep, set across three different sets of buoys, each two and a half miles apart. It took about six hours to pull in all the line and get all the buoys - and that didn't even include the net! And now we have a nice collection of buoys and about $3k worth of new line - something we hadn't been able to get in Africa before the campaign! I don't think the net had been out that long, but don't really know. The ship's name was Draco I. I don't know where it was from because they didn't have their port name on the side of the ship.

There was also some crazy orca/seal drama yesterday too. We passed a very scared seal on a small flat piece of ice with four adult orcas and one baby orca circling it and spyhopping - poking just their heads up to look at the seal. The seal's head was only about ten feet from the orcas. Then they started nudging the ice to knock the seal off. Apparently, the orcas had chased the seal underwater, and then the seal landed on an unfortunately small piece of ice. Then, after the ship passed, the seal tried to make a run for it and there was blood in the water, so I guess he didn't make it :( At least he was orca food and not people food!

It was a seriously long day. Luckily, Darius made his seriously awesome Antarctic Mac 'n Cheese to keep us going and was kind enough to share the recipe for future action packed animal saving days! Or just yummy comfort food ;)

1 lb of macaroni
1/4 cup minced garlic
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
8 teaspoons of yellow mustard
3 tablespoons lemon juice
8oz canned tomato sauce
3 teaspoons of salt
3 cups soy milk

In a saucepan, heat oil and saute garlic over medium to high heat for two minutes. Add flour, yeast, mustard, lemon juice, salt, tomato sauce and one cup soy milk. Mix thoroughly. When bubbles form, add one cup soy milk and continue stirring. When the sauce starts bubbling again, add the last cup of soy milk. Cook for an additional five minutes while stirring. After cooking the macaroni, drain and stir in sauce.

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PETA's BFF Pamela Anderson Uses Milk and Sex To Sell Domain Names In Australia

brownbird@supervegan.com (Brownbird Rudy Relic) — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 12:06:32 EST

In a new racy commercial banned from Australian television, ardent animal rights activist Pamela Anderson bathes herself in milk. Watch the commercial (with its underlying bukkake theme) here.

While Pam Anderson has never purported to be vegan; she has championed various animal rights causes and has stoically aligned herself with PETA. Is she being a hypocrite? And how does PETA feel?

(We know how they feel about milk and how they feel about using sex as a marketing tool)

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Vegan Drinks XXII: The Snowpocalypse

info@vegandrinks.org (Deborah Diamant) — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 11:01:43 EST

[Our DJ can kick your DJ's arse. (Photo of DJ Lil Ray by Matthew Mitchell.)]

Nothing comes between a vegan and her Vegan Drinks. Not even a snowpocalypse. Truth be told, Vegan Drinks on Thursday, February 25th, at Angels & Kings Bar was a bit more intimate than usual, but it was a good time as always. Plus, DJ Lil Ray played a set of get-you-warm-all-over Motown classics to beat the cold away.

The "Shout Outs" featured both the usual suspects and some new faces! David from Farm Sanctuary provided a quick run down of his organization's upcoming events. Sarah G. introduced us to Rescue Chocolate, which donates 100 percent of its net profits to animal rescue groups across the United States. (Try the Peanut Butter Pit Bull bar! It's officially my favorite chocolate combined with peanut butter sweet treat!) Sarah H. wowed the crowd with news of Terri, a new vegan and organic cafe in Manhattan's Flatiron District. (Try the Chickpea "Tuna" Melt!) Patrick from the Humane Society of the United States reminded folks about the upcoming March 24th New York State Humane Lobby Day in Albany. Wayne promoted the Veg Climate Alliance's work and Eileen made a similar plug for Vegan Outreach's activities in NYC. And, last but not least, Danny from The V-Spot spoke about his restaurant's upcoming food-related endeavors. (Thanks for the empanadas and spring rolls, Danny and Alex!)

If you would like to get in touch with any of the folks mentioned above, please email info@vegandrinks.org.

The next Vegan Drinks NYC is Thursday, March 25th, at Angels & Kings Bar from 7pm to 9pm. Get on our mailing list!

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The Vegan Week That Was: Vegan Sausage on HuffPo, Meatless Mondays in NYC, VegNews goes to India, and more

sam@supervegan.com (Samantha Cohen) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:36:20 EST

Because besides being delicious and super fun, eating out can be wasteful and unhealthy and a big bad guy, Huffington Post ate in this week, and on Wednesday they ate vegan. Laura Beck of crying-funny blog Vegansaurus championed eating vegan and shared a recipe for pasta with chard and Field Roast sausage. Mmmmm yes!
VegNews is going to India, and so can you! For the low, low price of $1295 plus the cost of airfare you can join their freakin' awesome 12-day vegan tour of the country with VegVoyages. Bon voyage, bitches!
If I said it once, I'll say it a bazillion times: Vaute Couture coats are gorgeous and somehow even cheaper than they were last week as part of an end-of-season sale. Check. It. Out. (Thanks, Dan!)
Slate weighs in on that ridiculous "is your SUV more environmentally-friendly than your dog???" wanna-be controversy and comes down on the feed-your-pet-vegetarian side. Excellent.
Manhattan borough president Scott Stringer proposes NYC schools adopt Meatless Mondays. Tastes like victoryyy!

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Terri vegan cafe opens in Flatiron

sam@supervegan.com (Samantha Cohen) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 21:55:00 EST

[Terri, 64 W. 23rd St. in Manhattan]

What area of Manhattan more desperately needed a vegan cafe than the Flatiron District? None, I say! Terri, which opened on February 15, fills a gaping hole in a sparsely veggie-fied nabe. The all-vegan (!) sandwich and juice joint offers classics -- like meatball parm, grilled cheese, a (chickpea-based) tuna melt, and a Thanksgiving leftovers sandwich -- done right, that is, vegan. With Daiya! Their creatively mixed juices are available bottled, and their cupcakes (and this is the only opinion I'll give here, promise!) rival those at 'sNice. I'm going to reserve the rest of my sentiments for the review section, and you should do the same. Terri, welcome!!

Top: Meatball sub (left) and chocolate cupcakes. Bottom: Tuna melt.

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If You Come to Vegan Drinks on Thursday, February 25, It Will Stop Raining. Promise.

info@vegandrinks.org (Deborah Diamant) — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 22:45:43 EST

This week's Vegan Drinks NYC takes place on Thursday, February 25, from 7:00pm to 9:00pm at Angels & Kings bar!

Our resident happy maker, DJ Lil Ray, will bring the music. A handful of lucky folks will leave with some new vegan reading material we'll be giving away.

As always, the drinks are kind to your wallet ($3 domestics, $4 imports and $1 off well drinks) and the crowd is a friendly, yet motley crew.

We'll turn down the music around 8:15pm and encourage people to promote themselves, their groups and/or causes for 30 seconds. If you represent a veg*n or animal rights group, come prepared with your (very short!) spiel and literature.

Check out our map of restaurants near Angels & Kings where you can grab a bite after the event. And if you haven't already, link up with Vegan Drinks on Facebook and MySpace.

Vegan Drinks is held from 7pm-9pm at Angels & Kings, 500 East 11th Street (btw Ave A & Ave B), New York, NY 10009.

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Correspondence from Antarctica: View from the Sea Shepherd Ship the Bob Barker, Part 5

tod@supervegan.com (Tod Emko) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:50:37 EST

An update on the current Antarctic campaign, from Sea Shepherd crew member Andrea Gordon.

This message was transmitted to New York from the Bob Barker vessel via satellite.

Hey Tod! �I never know if its Saturday or Tuesday down here! �No days off on Antarctic whale saving duty! �Its amazing that with a ship full of volunteers no one complains about not getting a day off or paid for over three months. �There's actually not that much to do on deck at the moment since the seas are still pretty big.

The Nisshin Maru seems to be sticking with the rough weather at the moment, headed east. �We're about 30 miles north of the ice shelf, and equidistant to Australia and Africa. �The days are certainly shorter than they were when we first got down here a couple of months ago. �At the end of December, the darkest it got was a few hours of twilight. �Now, there's over eight hours of darkness. �The rough seas and darkness make it really hard to see growlers - the smaller pieces of ice that have broken off from the icebergs. �They blend into the white-capped ocean and are quite dangerous because they can do a lot of damage to a ship. �So now we're keeping a deck person on night bridge watch to help look for the growlers. �I have the 4-8am tonight.

Anyway, just finished chores and a yummy lunch of tomato soup and potato wedges. �I got you the recipe from our awesome vegan chefs if you are feeling inspired to cook this weekend~

Spicy Potato Wedges

Wash potatoes (maybe eight for you and your dog Piggy? ;) ), leaving peel on. �Cut into thin wedges (one potato makes about 8 wedges. �In a separate bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of corn flour, 1/4 ts thyme, 1/2 ts hot chili powder, generous pinch of salt and 2 cloves of chopped garlic. �Mix that together with the potato wedges and put on a baking tray. �Mix in 1 cup of olive oil, or enough to fry it. �Oven should be at 180 degrees Celsius (not sure what that is in Farenheit). �Cook until a nice golden brown. Super delicious!

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California introduces animal abuse registry bill

sam@supervegan.com (Samantha Cohen) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 20:25:36 EST

State Senate majority leader Dean Florez introduced a bill today that would require California animal abusers to list themselves in a registry, as is currently done with sex offenders and arsonists. Yay, public shaming of horrible, deliberately perpetrated atrocities!

According to the Animal League Defense Fund, who is supporting the registry effort with its new campaign, www.ExposeAnimalAbusers.org, the bill would include "violence (torture, mutilation, intentional killings, etc.), sexual abuse, and animal fighting as well as neglect (such as hoarding)."

"We operate shelters in the hopes of giving abandoned pets a second chance at a loving home, not subjecting them to lives of continued abuse and neglect," Florez, a Democrat and chairman of the Food and Agriculture Committee, said in a press conference this morning. "A registry of abusers would help ensure animals are not being adopted out to convicted abusers, end the cycle of abuse and increase the likelihood of finding these pets the forever home they deserve."

You can sign the petition to ask that your state force animal abusers to register.

Read more in the New York Times and watch Florez's press conference announcement below.

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OrganicDirect Groupon Today!

sam@supervegan.com (Samantha Cohen) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 20:17:53 EST

[Organic veggies and things! Give 'em to me! ]

Only FOUR HOURS-ISH remain to get in on today's Groupon: $25 for $50 worth of OrganicDirect produce (one per household, good till 4/23). I sheepishly admit to having shopped at FreshDirect more than once, and hey, it's been fine, but BOXES EVERYWHERE. I've never used OrganicDirect, but they seem to have a bunch of vegan products, and I'm more OK with supporting a convenience food store with at least slightly above-average ethics, even if they seem to be a little more 'spensive. What's it like, experienced online food-shoppers? Do they come on time? Do they bring the right stuff? Do they use boxes like they grow on trees? (Are you just totally grossed out by the idea of online food-shopping/supermarket agriculture?) Tell me 'cause I need to know in the next 3 hours and 43 minutes! Please and thank you!

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Correspondence from Antarctica: View from the Sea Shepherd Ship the Bob Barker, Part 4

tod@supervegan.com (Tod Emko) — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 09:34:23 EST

[(Pete Bethune aboard the Shonan Maru #2)]

An update on the current Antarctic campaign, from Sea Shepherd crew member Andrea Gordon.

This message was transmitted to New York from the Bob Barker vessel via satellite.

Hey Tod! �I just watched the video of Pete Bethune entering the Shonan Maru #2. Very bold! �Boarding was the one thing he could do so that the Shonan wouldn't get away with the attempted murder of him and his crew. �He originally wanted to board when the New Zealand and Australian governments didn't do anything after the Shonan sunk the Ady Gil. �Pete went for one daylight boarding attempt from our small boat, but it was too dangerous in the small boat with the anti-boarding spikes. �But he's one intensely determined guy. He stayed on the Bob Barker until we met up with the Steve Irwin. �Then he went all the way back to Australia, only to leave the safety of home, his wife and kids, to come back to the Southern Ocean and do a dangerous nighttime boarding of the Shonan.

It was definitely dangerous. �He went on a jet ski with two other people - a driver and a camera person. �Then he had to balance on the jet ski, avoid the spikes, and cut the anti-boarding net - all in the dark at 14 knots! That's pretty fast. �Unfortunately, there's no video of the actual boarding. There was a camera person on the jet ski, but apparently it was too hard to get the shot in the dark while staying on the jet ski.

The video is of Pete entering the bridge of the Shonan Maru. �The funny part is that the Shonan didn't even know he was onboard, and had been for an hour and a half, until daybreak when Pete knocked on the bridge window! �The video shows him lightly knocking on the window next to the bridge door. �He
put his hands behind his head while waiting for someone to see him. �Then, one of the whalers opened the bridge door, came half-way out and Pete handed him a citizen's arrest letter and a $3M invoice for the Ady Gil! The whaler comically tried to shoo Pete away. �When Pete didn't move, the whaler looked around and over the side of the ship for a small boat. �There wasn't one! The Shonan was stuck with Pete Bethune, the captain who had just boarded their security ship, wanted to arrest them and get repaid $3M for the Ady Gil. �The whaler goes back inside the bridge and then Pete cautiously followed him in. �That's the last we've seen of Pete Bethune.

The Shonan is on their way back to Japan, leaving the Nisshin alone with the Sea Shepherd ships. �No sign of the kill ships. �We're in the middle of another strong storm, holding tight in massive seas up to 30 feet with 70 knot winds. �No one minds the weather though because its the 14th day no whales have died. �That's 140 whales saved and counting!

Anyway, I hope youre doing well - the albatrosses say hi! �So does the elephant seal that popped his head up next to the ship the other day!

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The Vegan Week That Was: Squirrel kicked off roller coaster, vegan creme eggs, kale chips, eco fashion week, Vaute Couture, and more!

sam@supervegan.com (Samantha Cohen) — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 12:46:32 EST

[I'M GONNA RIDE THIS BITCH TILL I DIE, Sonic said.]

A squirrel has been banned from riding a roller coaster at Alton Towers theme park in Staffordshire, England. How the hell will they enforce that? The Telegraph reports, "Alarms were installed that emit a warning noise inaudible to human ears but designed to ensure the squirrel, nicknamed Sonic, avoids the ride in future."
Park Slope Food Coop has blocks of Daiya for sale! RUN DON'T WALK.
Vaute Couture unveiled their (beautiful, gorgeous, so soft i'm going to wear one as pajamas now buy me one puh-leeeaase) 2010 vegan coat collection for ladies AND gents at The Green Shows this week. Check this shit out. It's fucking fantastic. The Discerning Brute has the men's photos and GirlieGirl Army rounds up the ladies' wear from Vaute, Cri de Coeur, Samantha Pleet, and others. Ow ow!
Vegan creme eggs I cannot see because this puritanical work filter blocks porn, even food porn. They totally know what I get off on, ugh!
Pssst! Speaking of Vaute Couture, ladies can still get the '09 styles -- for 30% off, bringing prices down from insane to unaffordable. SAD CAUSE I WANT ONE.
The New York Times has a crush on Angelica Kitchen's vegan brittle and everyone is talking about Amy Hamberry's vegan kale chips. Have you eaten them? Are they worth all this hubbub?

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Cinnamon Snail Vegan Food Truck Opens in Hoboken

(Melissa Bastian) — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 12:45:00 EST

[Vegan doughnuts = happy customers.]

Vegan, organic food truck The Cinnamon Snail opened Valentine's Sunday in Hoboken, N.J., to an eager crowd of two, my partner Jonathan and me. (Yes, we are that wacko couple who woke up at 7 on Valentine's Day to get from Queens to Jersey "on time," cause, hello, free opening day doughnuts!) Once we found the truck -- parked on Sinatra Drive, between 3rd and 4th streets -- co-owner and -operator Adam Sobel cracked open the serving window and handed each of us an apple cider doughnut covered in cinnamon-sugar. This is a day started right.

Placing the Snail's very first orders at 9 a.m., Jonathan requested the breakfast burrito and I ordered the grilled kale baguette. We split a heavenly cinnamon roll while waiting for our made-to-order morsels. The baguette was pretty fantastic for being basically bread with kale on it: sauteed kale on a soft, grilled baguette slathered in tofu cream cheese with capers. (I skipped the olives, but you don't have to.) The burrito justifies its $7-something price by being ridiculously enormous and delicious, crammed full of scrambled tofu, refried beans, and guacamole. The blue corn pancakes topped with fresh blueberries, a friend's order, blew out of the water similar dishes I've seen in veg restaurants around the city.

After shooting the breeze with other patrons and appreciating the view and downtown Hoboken neighborhood, we ordered from the Snail's more extensive lunch menu, served 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. We chose a mustard-marinated tempeh sandwich and a grilled creole tofu sandwich. Both turned out to be enormous and divine. I don't like tempeh, but I enjoyed the tempeh sandwich - go figure. The tofu sandwich had at least a third of a brick of tofu that was truly grilled, evidenced by those tasty little charred bits. Fresh greens and creole tomato sauce pulled it all together. The bread for both was appropriately soft, with just enough body and crust.

While waiting for our sandwiches we did a bit more sweets shopping from the truck's fully-stocked pastry case. First we each tried the spinach pie. Very tasty, to be sure, but at $2 per piece this is the only item I'd say fell into the overpriced category. We then each summarily devoured a two-bite peanut butter chocolate cheesecake -- who could resist? And to take home, we filled a small box with a chocolate ganache bundt cake, a Mississippi mud cupcake, and a maple raspberry cookie, which Adam affectionately referred to as a "really legit pop tart."

We have Joey, Adam's wife and business partner, to thank for the absolutely fabulous baked goods. Our take-home treats did not disappoint. Going forward both she and Adam will be doing the pastry baking, but Joey tells me there's no doubt that Adam is always the cook.

The truck did not draw hoards on Sunday, but there was an unwavering steady stream of customers. Many people came out specifically for opening day, while others simply happened by. Comments overheard from fellow patrons included such (paraphrased) sentiments as, "I'm so glad we finally have a real vegan option in Hoboken," and many versions of "OMG, this is the best ____ I've ever eaten!"

The truck has been about eight years in coming to fruition; Adam has wanted to bring extraordinary vegan food to the streets more or less since he became vegan when his first child was born. Nearing the end of the first day, he was optimistic about his new enterprise. "It's been so much fun. It's been a thousand times smoother than I could have ever hoped for. People have been very very sweet and accommodating."

For now the Snail is sticking to Hoboken, where Adam was quickly and easily able to obtain a license to vend vegan vittles from a vehicle. The truck's exact location is subject to where they can find parking each morning; as such, the best way to find them is through the miracle of the internet. They frequently update their Facebook and Twitter pages to let us know where they are and where they'll be next. Too bad for us weekend warriors, the truck's hours are Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Kings County permits have not been so easy to procure. Adam projects that it may be a year or more before his one-of-a-kind truck makes an appearance in Williamsburg or DUMBO. He didn't comment on how he'd split his time between the two locations, if and when he's able to wedge his way into the fine borough of Brooklyn. He simply described the Cinnamon Snail project as his "life's dream. I'm determined to make it work out."

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Correspondence from Antarctica: Valentine's Day on the Sea Shepherd Campaign in Antarctica

tod@supervegan.com (Tod Emko) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 14:48:33 EST

[(photo credit: Barbara Veiga / Sea Shepherd)]

An update on the current Antarctic campaign, from Sea Shepherd crew member Andrea Gordon.

This message was transmitted to New York from the Bob Barker vessel via satellite.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!

We had a spectacular Valentine's Day down here in the Southern Ocean. �The whales got love of love and the whalers got a new paint job, butyric acid!

This morning, the Steve Irwin sent their Delta boat after the Nisshin Maru. �Using a potato launcher and some very good driving, they dodged the NM's water cannons and shot butyric acid right onto the slipway and flensing deck of the death ship. �We could smell the stench all the way on the Bob Barker!

I went out in the small boat this afternoon/evening for an extended supply run. �We needed some important supplies from the Steve Irwin, so we used the small boat. �Fortunately, the whalers didn't get in the way or try to block the recovery of the small boat. The only ship with the Nisshin Maru right now is the Shonan Maru #2, and they stayed a few miles away all day. � �The water was a crystal clear so dark blue it was almost purple.

Then, after five hours in the small boat, we came back to a super yummy vegan spaghetti bolognese dinner, with ultra delicious chocolately brownies. �The Steve Irwin even gave us some fresh fruit! �Quite a treat now that we've been out at sea for two months. There's nothing that beats saving whales all day and then coming back to a delicious vegan dinner!

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The Vegan Week That Was: vegan vegetarian dog food, ice skater begrudgingly ditches fur, adopt orange tabbies!, debit card for animals, food fight! coupon, new Barnivore app

sam@supervegan.com (Samantha Cohen) — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 12:00:00 EST

[Murry, 10, is up for adoption at NYACC. ]

The Humane Society of the United States will sell organic ~~vegan~~ vegetarian dog food, called Humane Choice. Let's hope they kick Purina's ass to next Tuesday! Also, cat food next, pls!
The Superbowl happened; the underdog won; and Roberto Martin and Tal Ronnen prepared for Ellen yummy vegan nachos, pot pie, stew, and more. Rah, rah, rah!
Olympic ice skater Johnny Weir is going to don fake fur rather than real fur over his manitard because some muddling vegans tried to take the focus off his triple axel for a second to talk about his anally-electrocuted outfit, and he just CANNOT BE DISTRACTED FROM WHAT'S IMPORTANT. Weir gets what's wrong with fur, he told the AP, "but it's not something that's the number-one priority in my life. There are humans dying every day. ... Look at what just happened in Haiti." LOOK OVER THERE! LOOK OVER THERE!
You know things are bad when people are giving up their orange tabbies. Animal Care & Control of New York City is apparently full of them. If you have room for a furry one at home, maybe consider these guys?
How about this: a slice of your debit transaction fees could support animals instead of banks. In Defense of Animals launched a debit card that will direct a portion of transaction fees to IDA, which they will use to fund "our chimpanzee sanctuary in Cameroon, Africa; our veterinary clinics and ambulance service for the thousands of street animals of Mumbai, India; and for our investigative and sanctuary work in rural Mississippi," IDA founder and President Elliot M. Katz said. For use wherever Mastercard is accepted. No details yet on how to get one, but I'll update if I find out.
Food Fight! Vegan Grocery needs our $$ to help cover their taxes. They're offering a 5-percent discount with code "FUTAXES10" (heh) good through Monday, 2/15. Time to stock up on chocolates and Ricemellow, MMMMHMMM.
New iPhone app from the vegan boozemeisters at Barnivore. Search for "vegan is easy" in the iTunes store. Update (2/15): Per Jason Doucette's comment below, the app was not made by Barnivore, but it uses data from Barnivore.

Well, there you have it -- the week that was. Did we miss anything? Let us know!

Correction (2/16): HSUS's new dog food contains supplements that they say might come from animal sources. Drat.

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NYC Vegan Valentine's Day Specials, 2010 Edition

laura@supervegan.com (Laura Leslie) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 21:36:56 EST

[To-die-for chocolate tahini truffles from Sweet Compassion. Check out their website for more flavors and ordering info.]

Have you made reservations for Valentine's Day dinner? New York may be the best city in the world to be a vegan on the most romantic day of the year. Check out our fantastic options:

Blossom has a four-course prix fixe menu for $72. Highlight: a dessert called "Coffee and Donuts." (Just say the word "donut" in front of a vegan and watch her eyes light up--though, actually, these are beignets.)

Cafe Blossom and Cafe Blossom East are offering four courses for $55. Highlight: it's either a typo or culinary experimentation gone wild, but my curiosity wouldn't allow me to resist the Strawberry Spinach Risotto entree.

Candle 79's four-course prix fixe is $75. Highlight: can you think of a better Valentine's Day dessert than Chocolate Fondue for Two?

Candle Cafe gives you four courses for $52, plus a la carte options. Highlight: an entree of Ancho-Chocolate Seitan Tamales.

Cocoa V offers three courses for $47. Highlight: the Cheese Plate, featuring Dr. Cow's nut-based cheeses. And they also have a version of Chocolate Fondue for Two.

Counter's got a $65 four-course prix fixe, plus an optional $30 wine pairing or a cocktail and truffles for $25. Watch out, though; the cocktail contains honey, and Counter isn't all vegan, so be careful what you order. Highlight: definitely the wine pairings, which are a mix of sustainable, biodynamic, and organic (and usually a lot better than the food).

Gobo (Downtown and Uptown) has the most affordable choice: three courses and a drink for $35. Alas, watch out for the honey in the dessert. (Haven't these people ever heard of agave?) Highlight: the Shitake Caps are a classic.

Pure Food and Wine hasn't posted their menu, but they've got a four-course prix fixe set for $72. If you want raw food, this is the place to go.

If you haven't made a reservation by now, you're probably screwed, but it never hurts to call and beg. Or just cook at home (might I recommend the simple and delicious Spinach Linguine With Basil-Cilantro Pesto and Artichokes from Veganomicon?), then head to Lula's for the best vegan dessert in the city.

Please let us know in the comments what we're missing.

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Correspondence from Antarctica: View from the Sea Shepherd Ship the Bob Barker, Part 2

tod@supervegan.com (Tod Emko) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 21:24:00 EST

[(photo credit: Glenn Lockitch)]

An update on the current Antarctic campaign, from Sea Shepherd crew member Andrea Gordon.

This message was transmitted to New York from the Bob Barker vessel via satellite.

On the Bob Barker, right now it's Feb 11th and 1:26am. �I'm waiting for my 2am shift to start and just still so super happy that the whalers are still running - �five days and counting! Yesterday, we chased them north out of the JARPA 2 zone. �It's their self-appointed kill zone starting at 60 degrees latitude South. �In order to give them a proper Sea Shepherd send off, the Steve Irwin circled the Nisshin and hosed them down with their water cannon.

The sun came out for a little while this afternoon - it was the first time in over a week! �We used the opportunity to get an all crew photo on the ship. The Bob pulled up alongside the Nisshin and everyone went out to the helicopter deck. �Of course, the Nisshin didn't know what was going on, thought they were under attack, and blasted their side water cannons. �Then, the Shonan rushed to catch up with us from behind,with their water cannons blazing and gray smoke puffing out of their exhaust. �Meanwhile, we were all just out on the helicopter deck having a nice group photo in the sun ;) �It was almost comical, except for my ever-present thought that our mission is a matter of life and death for the whales.

The whalers just turned southwest though, as I write this. �It may be because we were about to hit another nasty storm with 20+ foot swells. �The harpoon boats, which turn unbelievably fast, don't actually do that well in rough seas. �Despite the whalers' repeated attempts to try to shake us by zigzagging, speeding up and then slamming on the brakes, our tough 60-year-old ship has been handling perfectly. �I sure love the Bob!

Ok, I gotta run to my shift, more soon mi amigo!

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Cinnamon Snail Organic Vegan Food Truck Opens in Hoboken This Weekend

(Abigail S. Bean) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 18:09:04 EST

It's the kind of Valentine we can all get down with: Adam Sobel, owner of New Jersey's only (as far as we can tell!) vegan catering service will debut The Cinnamon Snail, a vegan, organic food truck, on Valentine's Day in Hoboken, with service to Brooklyn in the works. I caught up with Adam to learn more about this anticipated automobile. Here's what he had to say.

Abigail S. Bean: What gave you the idea for The Cinnamon Snail?
Adam Sobel: The Cinnamon Snail has been my dream for years, and I am not sure anymore what sparked the concept. I used to be a little punk graffiti artist when I was a kid. I always liked the idea of forcing creativity and beauty back into the community, to the street, where everyone comes in contact with it.

Since I started preparing vegan food professionally, there have been few things that tickle me as much as hearing how something vegan and yummy helped someone change their life in a significant way. To see people take hold of their lives, to refuse the default violence of our civilization, to start living in harmony with nature -- if my food helps people in any way with that transformation, I am delighted!

AB: When did you decide to devote yourself to nourishing people through organic,�vegan (and sometimes raw)�food?
AS: I was about 16, wandering around a National Rainbow Gathering. At these gatherings, people set up free kitchens to feed people. ... I was blown away by the idea of food as a gift, the way people took pleasure in serving and nourishing one another, seeking nothing in return. I was inspired to learn how to cook so I could bring pleasure and strength to everyone in this world.

AB: Are you formally trained?
AS: I always preferred to learn by direct experience. I was fortunate to start out getting a job in one of Tom Valenti's restaurants. He was also self-taught, and was a big inspiration to me. His whole staff was formally trained, and I learned bits and pieces from all of them. I went on to work in a handful of vegetarian and vegan restaurants, picking up people's tricks along the way.

AB: Can we get a little menu preview?
AS: The menu is going to be seasonal, and expect it to evolve at our whim! Here are a couple of offerings to chew on:

Smokey portabello carpaccio on semolina fennel bread with kalamata olive tapenade, arugula and capers
Hempseed crusted tofu with spicy French mustard dressing over white truffle mashed potatoes, greens, and rosemary bread pudding
Creole grilled tofu sub on toasted baguette with caramelized onions, arugula, and grilled tomato

AB: Where else can people find your goodies?�
AS: We've done a really nice table for the Red Bank farmers market for the past two years. We bring a huge display of vegan doughnuts, cases of treats and sweets (cooked and raw), raw pizzas, nut milks, breakfast burritos, and more.

As soon as the farmers market was over this past summer, instead of taking the next weekend off, we were up early in the morning, testing new apple fritter and doughnnut recipes. We bring the doughnuts to Kaya's Kitchen, a vegetarian restaurant in Belmar, NJ, for them to serve at brunch during the summer. Year-round we deliver cakes and raw desserts almost every week to Kaya's and to The Eurasian Eatery in Red Bank, NJ.

The Cinnamon Snail opens its windows on Sunday, February 14 at 9 a.m. and closes at 3 p.m. Vegan doughnuts all day, and they're promising free (!) vegan doughnuts to the first 100 customers. Location is still tk; we'll update this post when we find out. Future hours will be weekdays, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. You can follow The Cinnamon Snail on Twitter and Facebook.

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