June 23, 2020
No more pencils, no more books… oh wait! We haven’t used either since March! Though I have enjoyed seeing my students’ ceilings in our Google Meets, the school year is ending on a rather anti-climactic fashion. A trip to my school to pick up some curriculum planning stuff for summer Read more…
May 6, 2020
Here are the latest highlights from the Quarantine cafe! First in the bakery, my failed sourdough starter. It was bubbling nice and fine, but I accidentally killed it. I’m starting another tomorrow, because… persistence. Next a stop at the bar before I’m seated at the best seat in the house. Read more…
March 14, 2020
With this year’s Pi ฯ Day not falling on a school day, this middle school math teacher was not motivated to make a pie, my least favorite sweet treat to eat. It also took an alarm and early morning door bust to manage to grab one of the last things Read more…
February 21, 2020
When I do my official Los Angeles Fried Chicken Battle… and I will… I know that Lettuce Feast will likely kick butt. You see, it’s likely the best I’ve ever had. And I have been sampling vegan fried chicken here on the East Coast for many months. Yes, I said Read more…
February 4, 2020
What a nice and random treat to see this sign on my way back south on the Palisades Parkway! After a long day of exploration, a quick and no-hassle vegan bite right off the parkway is just what I needed. The Sunoco Palisade South in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey boast Read more…
January 9, 2020
It is here! The end of my Vegan Fried Chicken Battle! Having started this showdown in June of 2019, I am so pleased to have finally arrived at this final battle with the true best of the bests facing off. From the start, these two contenders have been consistently impressive. Read more…
December 28, 2019
So delighted to have a chance to bask in the positive vibes inside Next Stop Vegan‘s space in the Parkchester section of the Bronx. I had previously tried their food at the Bronx Night Market in 2018, so I was hoping to try something new on their menu. But getting Read more…
December 21, 2019
I am pleased to present to you Battle 10! And to its victor–an enthusiastic welcome to the Championship Round, the last Battle of The Vegan Victuals Fried Chicken Showdown. It has been a spectacular run. Reviewing the brackets, I am confident that the final battle has two of the bests Read more…
December 10, 2019
Here it is! The battle that decides which tofu-based vegan fried chicken would move into the Finals. The Finals!! I’ve said a lot about both Superiority Burger and Chickpea & Olive in previous posts, so I’m going to jump right in and let them go at it. Superiority Burger, East Read more…
November 27, 2019
With this Battle 8, the semi-finals are officially set! Are you as excited as I am? I feel really great about the state of these brackets, but I don’t look forward having to ultimately eliminate 3 of the 4 semi-finalist fried chicken sandwiches. But let me slow my roll. Battle Read more…
November 18, 2019
My vegan fried chicken battle is raging on in the East Village! This battle determines who would be up against tofu masters Chickpea & Olive… and I like the direction of the semi-finals thus far. Perhaps the championship round will be a seitan vs. tofu battle! ….But I am getting Read more…
November 8, 2019
With an ever-growing field of vegan fried chicken at my fingertips, I made an addition to my brackets. I had to. After hearing the vegan fried chicken sandwich at Bushwick’s new all-vegan bar and event space Gradient was house made, I told my friend to meet me there… because unless Read more…
November 3, 2019
Moving swiftly towards a vegan fried chicken crown, I give you Battle 6! The formidable Chickpea and Olive faces off versus new jack Petisco Vegano, a new lower east side all-vegan spot who, like Honeybee’s, were placed in Round 2 without a previous win, yes (like Hartbreakers), but also without Read more…
October 30, 2019
With a trip to Los Angeles soonish, it’ll be a mini-battle of vegan fried chicken in the city of vegan angels. Yes, the very vegan-friendly city is home to so many options for this mini-battle. But many are packaged or frozen texturized soy protein cutlets breaded and fried… not meeting Read more…
October 27, 2019
Since I began this competition, vegan fried chicken is definitely having its moment. With the โfirstโ vegan chicken shop now open in Los Angeles (says VegNews, to which I say: Hartbreakers), vegan chicken debuting at Kentucky Fried Chicken, and vegan fried chicken on Shark Tank, seems itโs the new โitโ Read more…
October 10, 2019
Of course if I have to be on the road, I’m going to find vegan eats! Having some unfinished business in Buffalo, I made a strategic layover in Rochester, New York. Leaving Brooklyn after a long day of professional development but not before a long commute to pick up a Read more…
October 1, 2019
I spent some time in Ontario, Canada on my trip to Buffalo because… it’s whole new country… well, a whole new Province in a whole new country! And the current USD to CAD exchange rate is a nice perk. With my reporting on 49 of the 50 United States, I Read more…
September 29, 2019
A quick trip to Western New York would of course mean a scouring of vegan options. As is the nowadays, there was so much to try. Veganism is thriving everywhere these days. Not only at my destination, but on stops along the way. Like at 96 Lives Vegan Bakery & Read more…
September 26, 2019
Urban Vegan Kitchen, West VillageChick-un & Waffles I remember the first time I went to Urban Vegan Kitchen very crisply though it was in January 2017. I fled opportunistically from a teacher professional development class at the The Met because it was a disorganized shit show. It felt good to Read more…
September 12, 2019
Renegades of Sunset have a new Wednesday special that is off the charts. The last time I ate this sandwich I called it The Best Vegan Fried Chicken Sandwich. Now I am going to call it the Best Vegan Sandwich, in general. You just think on that while you look Read more…
August 22, 2019
Ah, a day of rest. Having settled into West Palm Beach, all that was on the itinerary was some food and some rest. We stayed local, sampling some of her new neighborhood’s eats. A light lunch at Celis Produce: Here is the TATA: tempeh, avocado, tomato, arugula with sunflower seeds Read more…
August 20, 2019
A shelling excursion on a remote island only accessible by boat? Just: Yes. A quick drive to Marco Island would have me within the most beautiful hues of green and blue… and more shells. But also dolphins and an abandoned dome-shaped home. First I had some errands at the campsite. Read more…
August 19, 2019
Animals, Arts & Crafts, Beautiful Places Far Away, Bucket List, Eating Out, Nature, Photography, Wanderlust
Real quick: I photographed the gosh darned Milky Way ๐ last night. I needed to say that first as it would not have happened if the earlier parts of the day played out differently. So the 2-hour traffic delay on the I-75, the extended shelling expedition at Bowman’s Beach, losing track Read more…
July 27, 2019
When vegan fried chicken opportunity arises, you take a bite. This was the case with Battle 3. Facing off would be an elusive pop-up with inconsistent social media posts and an inconsistent sandwich shop special. So when Clean Meals Brooklyn showed up at the Atlantic City Vegan Food Festival, I Read more…
July 7, 2019
I’ve appreciated the burger wizardry of Chickpea & Olive for many years… and was excited to try Sol Sips, an all-vegan eatery in Bushwick owned by a 23 year old that has a lot of buzz. But this is a vegan victuals food battle! It’s the food that does the Read more…
June 4, 2019
Superiority Burger, East VillageT.F.T. (Tofu-Fried Tofu) Sandwich Superiority Burger is a tiny space in the East Village with some amazing vegetarian offerings masterminded by Chef Brooks Headley. Don’t expect frills like French fries, a bathroom, an open seat, personal space, etc in this 300 square feet. Just great food. Food Read more…