Category Archives: Travel

My Top 10 Vegan Eats in Paris

Posted on November 14, 2012 by | 2 Comments

When I told people that my husband and I were traveling to Paris for vacation, their reaction after smiling was, “How are you going to eat vegan in Paris?” Everyone is under the assumption that Paris, the fromage capital, is not veg-friendly. Lucky for me, we were working on a travel feature on Paris at VegNews (you can find it in the September+October 2012 issue, along with our six amazing vegan cheese recipes!) and it was the perfect travel guide. And while you can’t just pop into any cafe and order a vegan dish, there are tons of great eats for a week’s worth of decadent delights. Here are my top 10 favorite vegan eats in Paris that were très bon!

1. Chocolate Croissant at Gentle Gourmet Cafe

A fantastic #vegan breakfast at @Gentle_Gourmet. Their pain de chocolat rocks. Crêpe was amazing too!

If heaven is a pastry, it’s the chocolate croissant at the all-vegan Gentle Gourmet. Go for breakfast when the flaky treat is warm and the chocolate inside is slightly melted. I highly recommend eating at The Gentle Gourmet Cafe. Excellent service, delicious dishes, and traditional French cooking with a vegan spin. If you want to drool over more Gentle Gourmet dishes, just look below.

2. The Vegan Burger & Yucca Fries at MOB

Amazing last day of #vegan eating in Paris at @mob_usa and @Gentle_Gourmet! Best eats of the trip. Deep-fried Vegusto cheese! Burger & fries! Mille-feuille (French dessert)! #paris

I’ve eaten a lot of veggie burgers and MOB’s special sauce-covered patty is one of my all-time favorite that I’ve ever eaten. Seriously. Now, the photo above is my meals at MOB and Gentle Gourmet just so you can see how amazing both of them are—and in one photo it makes you realize that you can eat vegan in Paris.

MOB is a tiny little eatery, but big on flavor. The cafe has a sister restaurant in Brooklyn, NY that is much larger, but really don’t miss this when you’re in Paris!

3. Vegusto cheese at Un Monde du Vegan

Our #vegan haul from Un Monde du Vegan: salami, two Vegusto hard cheeses, cheese slices, biscuits with chocolate, and Nutella!

On one of your first few days in Paris, head straight to Un Monde du Vegan and buy blocks of Vegusto, a European vegan cheese brand. They are hard and melty versions and they all taste like heaven. Other vegan goodies to stock up on: Italian  salami, chocolate-filled cookies, cheese slices, and vegan Nutella!

4. Baguettes!

I love bread. I am a card-carrying carb lover. Parisians buy baguettes often and eat them while walking through the streets. Brendan and I joined the Parisians and picked up fresh loafs every day from a boulangerie, which are on nearly every street corner. You won’t find this kind of quality crust and soft interior anywhere else.

5.  Chestnut Crème Brûlée at Le Potager du Marais

Très bien! #vegan cheshnut crème brûlée. I love Paris!

I think this photo pretty much says it all. Le Potager du Marais is entirely vegan and while small, it’s a great place to cozy up with this dessert and a hot chocolate.

6. The Fried Cheese Salad at Gentle Gourmet Cafe

In the photo for #2, you’ll see a little green salad surrounded by crisp, deep-fried Vegusto cheese balls. Yes, you read that right. I don’t even have the right words to express the joy of eating these warm, crunchy pieces of heaven. I’d rather save my breath for eating more of them.

7. Vegan cupcakes at Vegan Folies

A great day of cupcakes at Vegan Folies, crispy seitan with mushroom gravy, and the Effiel Tower. #paris

This tiny little bake shop, Vegan Folies, specializes in decadent, beautiful cupcakes with outrageous names like Austin Flower (Apricot and Lavendar) and Johnny Nutsville (chocolate and hazelnut). If there’s any cheesecake left, do yourself a favor and grab a slice.

8. Crispy Seitan with Mushroom Gravy at Saveurs Veget’halles

The formula menu (aka prix fixe menu) at Saveurs Veget’halles is worth every penny. While this won’t be the fanciest meal you ever eat, it will be solidly scrumptious. I loved the crispness of the seitan (pictured above). Brendan ordered the mushroom loaf covered in a blackberry and ginger sauce that was really good. It’s not entirely vegan, but plenty of vegan options.

9. Falafel at any Lebanese stand

You’ll find a lot of Lebanese stands open late, which offer up freshly made falafel and charred aubergine (eggplant). Nothing beats warm pita bread and falafel!

10. Vegan Burger & Fries at Eastside Burgers

This all-vegetarian burger joint just opened in October and it’s super cute. You’ll have to eat your burger sans formage but the friendly service and perfect fries make up for your cheeseless patty.

Believe it or not, there are even more vegan eats that we just didn’t get to go to during our week in Paris. (For more, pick up the September+October 2012 VegNews!)

5 non-food-related tips:

  • Pick up a museum pass. You can buy a 2-day, 4-day, or 6-day pass and you can literally go to a new museum every day. Sometimes we crammed in two! Plus, you can avoid long lines to buy tickets.
  • Rent an apartment with a kitchenette. We saved money by cooking for ourselves and eating a few meals at home. We used A Part of Paris to rent and they have great service and great prices.
  • Buy a 10-ticket Metro pass for getting around the city.
  • Learn some basic French phrases.
  • Take the train to and from the airport. The RER connects to the Metro and it’s much cheaper than a cab ride.

Have more questions? Ask away! Bon voyage!

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Why Every Writer Should Go to Portland, Oregon

Posted on October 14, 2010 by | 3 Comments


Recently my husband and I went to Portland, Oregon, for a four-day vacation. We both had been wanting to visit the city for awhile now and our trip was wonderful. We were lucky enough to be in town the same weekend as Wordstock, a book festival, with readings, theater nights, workshops, small press/book publishers, and books from Powell’s books. It was an incredible festival for two writers. If you’re a writer, you should make it priority #1 to go to Portland. Seriously. Here are my 3 reasons why:

1) Powell’s Books, Powell’s Books, Powell’s Books. Imagine a bookstore that is so huge, you need a map and color-coded rooms to find the books. (The picture to the left doesn’t do it justice.) They put out-of-print, used, and new editions of the same book organized by the author’s last name. It is simply put book heaven. I went to the young adult section and seriously it was 8-10 bookshelves of everything I have heard about and more. Brendan and I pulled so many books that we were wondering how we were going to stuff them in our suitcase. (They ship too.) If you can’t find what you’re looking for in Powell’s Books, it doesn’t exist.

2) Besides being the friendliest people on the planet, people in Portland love books. They read with interest and sincere love. I’ve been to hundreds of book readings in NYC and LA, and New Yorkers are among the most well-read people I know, but there was something special about the Portland crowd. The readings at Wordstock were packed (seating up to 500 people) and people asked thoughtful questions of the authors, and clearly loving what they read.

3) WORDSTOCK. On one Saturday, we got to hear Aimee Bender, Lan Samantha Chang, Jonathan Lethem, David Rakoff, and Patrick Ness read and discuss their books (and there were more authors than that!). The small book publishers that represented children’s books, poetry, historical nonfiction, and more showed a real passion for the books they were publishing. One Canadian children’s book publisher vendor, Simply Read Books, was bursting at the seams when we picked up a picture book and said we loved the illustrations. She gushed about the artist and told us about his woodblocking technique that he used to create his book. Brendan and I were amazed at the level of LOVE for books.

Some literary gems from these authors:
David Rakoff shared that he was a Japanese major in college and his teacher said that he would have to study 3 hours a day to master the language. The same is true for writing, he said. In his typical witty sense of humor, he declared that “writing is like pulling teeth out…of my dick.” (The audience erupted in laughter over this one.) His latest book, HALF-EMPTY, just got a nice writeup in New York magazine’s Approval Matrix (my favorite part of that magazine).

Aimee Bender agreed with me that Portland is Mecca for writers while she signed her new book, THE PARTICULAR SADNESS OF LEMON CAKE, for me. She also shared during the Q & A portion that the reason she doesn’t use quotation marks is because she doesn’t like how they visually look on the page.

Lan Samantha Chang gave an example of what it’s like teaching writing at the college level. One of her students’ work wasn’t received well in class and he came to talk to her one-on-one about it. She was trying to think of a way to keep encouraging him to continue writing. So she looked at the wooden tea set that was in her office for her 3-year-old daughter and offered him some imaginary tea. They drank imaginary tea and talked about his work. He left and continued working on the piece.

Jonathan Lethem, Brendan’s favorite author, talked about an image in his book CHRONIC CITY of birds resting on the top of a nearby church and how that was a metaphor for writing and how he felt about New York City. Brendan said that Lethem’s metaphor for writing was about birds circling – but never reaching – the spire on the top of a nearby church. It’s a recurring image in the book and apparently he got the inspiration from the view out of his writing office’s window. I stand corrected.

Besides the great food and friendly people, Portland, Oregon is a city that loves the written word. And Aimee Bender and I agree that it is the place that every writer should go. Visit TravelPortland.com for more info.

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London Calling

Posted on September 8, 2009 by | Leave a comment

I’m officially in London!  Brendan is here on business so I decided to tag along and enjoy the city while he works.  We just completed a whirlwind tour of the east.  NYC on Friday, NJ on Saturday, PA on Sunday and London on Monday.  It was great to see family and friends, eat at my favorite places, and see my cousin get married in a lovely outdoor ceremony and reception.

I haven’t been to London since 2000 when I studied abroad with Eastern Michigan University through Europe, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East.  It’s surreal to be here again.  It’s like a dream.  I love the British buildings, drinking Ribena again (Brendan calls it the fizzy lifting drink), the fun words (crisps!), and the fact that this is my first trip to Europe with my hubby.

But before I can wander around London, I need to finish my Every Day With Rachael Ray article about food aversions.  Luckily time is on my side, literally, since London is ahead of NY by 5 hours (8 hours ahead of LA) so I’ll still be able to turn it in the morning NY time!

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