Manna, London - Nov. 16th, 2011

(See our Manna, London post from November 2009 here)
It was our 20th wedding anniversary and we spent it in London, and had our dinner at our favorite London restaurant, Manna.


Twenty years of marriage! (24 together.) Still happy.

This is the "ravioli" (£8=$12) "a crisped ravioli filled with wild mushroom & walnut pâté with fennel cream sauce, sundried tomato pesto & balsamic reduction" I think they should call this an "empanada" because it resembles an empenada more that a ravioli because it's not made out of pasta, but more of a pastry. Regardless, this the BEST thing ever. So good. If you go to Manna you are missing out if you don't try these babies.

This is the "Bangers and Mash" (£14=$21) "organic fennel and pumpkin seed sausages on a bed of parsnip & carrot mas h served with cavalo nero on a red wine, leek & thyme jus" This is their signature dish, and they nail it. I have had this before, and it's great every time.

Deanna got the "Pasta of the day" "cherry tomatoes, courgettes, some kind of soy cream sauce." (We can't remember very well!) She liked it, but we were trying to go a bit lighter since we had come a few days earlier and gorged ourselves to the point of pain.

Yeah, we have 3 photos of this dessert.


Deanna is gushing about this! "The best dessert of our trip!" She says. I must admit it was pretty incredible. Its the "Cranberry & orange cheesecake" (£8=$12) "served with ameretto brittle ice cream and butterscotch sauce." They hand make the ice cream, and the combination of that with the perfectly made cheesecake is bonkers.

If you are vegan and going to London, treat yourself to some fancy vegan food at Manna, you will not regret the choice.

Thanksgiving at Native Foods

Deanna and I decided that our Thanksgiving dinner would be at Native Foods this year.

I don't think either of us care too much about the meaning of this holiday. We grew up with it, and enjoy the food centered aspect of it, even after going vegan 20+ years ago. We are very thankful for what we have and like the thoughtfulness attitude of the day, but the traditional pilgrims and indians ideas are total BS. And of course today's turkey genocide centered theme is the worst.

So here is the food. Native's vegan Wellington, mashed potatoes & gravy, stuffing, polenta, cranberry sauce, green beans, and not shown: Green leaf salad and a very nice Waldorf Salad.

All of this is presented in an all you can eat buffet style. You can pile your plate up high just like you might at home.

We enjoyed our food very much. The food was great, the atmosphere was festive if not a bit impersonal (compared to being with family, or even having a regular waitress.) And we didn't have to cook! The dessert was not so hot. They had 3 pies, pumpkin, chocolate, and pumpkin cheesecake. The ones we had, cheesecake and chocolate were mushy, and not inspired.

Eating this food did spurn us to make Thanksgiving type food later in the week though.

I would do this again, the food was excellent, and the price is right. But it feels a little weird not being with family or friends, no matter how bad the food might be with them in comparison.

Hangawi Restaurant, New York City

On recommendation from our good friend Sweet Melissa we tried Hangawi in NYC, A Gourmet Korean restaurant that is also 100% vegan. Everything was super good, but it costs a pretty penny.

Ever wonder what a 15$ salad looks like? Ta-Da! We provide the answers to these pressing questions. This was the "organic mix green salad" (organic fresh herb salad with tomatoes and grapefruits in creamy almond dressing) The dressing was really good, and we loved the salad. It wasn't until we got the bill that we realized how much it was. Was it worth it? Hard to say. For the size it is overpriced. But if we went back here we would surely get it again.

These are the "kabocha pumpkin pancakes with mung beans." (pancakes with shredded kabocha pumpkin and mung beans) These were a hit. Deanna loved them. It comes with a dipping sauce that was very nice. They seemed to be made of potatoes with pumpkin and mung beans mixed in.

This is my sweet little lady Deanna, happy and enjoying our "high-roller" dinner.

Coming in at 25 big ones was this wonderful "organic zen bibimbap." (with organic vegetables, mushrooms and wild mountain greens, served with organic brown rice) What is a bibimbap you ask? It was my first one too, and now I'm hooked. (Well for vegan ones anyway.) Very good. It came with a miso-paste sauce and in a hot stone bowl which kept it sizzling the whole time.

Deanna had the "avocado stone bowl rice."(avocado with variety of vegetables and tofu over rice mixed with miso sauce in stone bowl) weighing in at 20 bucks, this one came with white rice and Deanna wishes she had substituted for brown rice. (Actually I think she just wanted my dish.) We really enjoyed the restaurant and atmosphere. You have to take your shoes off. Also it seems like you have to sit at very low tables and I was fretting because I can't even get into the Indian style position, and I would have had to lay sideways and Jabba the Hut my meal to be comfortable. But luckily there is a secret chamber under the table for your legs to go into. They banged a special gong before signing "Happy Birthday" to some customers. And when you leave your shoes are waiting for you on the steps like eager puppies. A charming, if pocketbook-scorching place for sure. Take someone special.

Gelaromy Gelateria, Rome, Italy

We visited Gelaromy Gelateria not too far from the Vatican City.

Fairly nondescript, we got the address from Happy Cow.


The word every vegan is searching for, "Soia."


Happy Campers. If you are visiting St. Peters Basilica, or the Vatican Museums, this Gelato shop is a nice walk through a very charming part of Rome. Map It.