Lulu in the Grove

Once a year my friends come in from out of town and we get together, all of us girls that haven’t seen each other in a while, and have a night out.  We chose Lulu after a coworker suggested it had the perfect atmosphere for a chill girls night out.

What a great place to hang out and we even got a round of drinks on the house (it helps to know people, that’s all I’m going to say).  Our waiter was very sweet but probably a little overwhelmed by our outspoken group.

As we were only supposed to be there for drinks, I ordered an appetizer of hummus and pita sticks that was the perfect snack.  My friend then ordered the Dulce de Leche that came with a beautiful strawberry flower on top.  There are quite a few options for vegetarians including the Brussel Sprouts appetizer that I heard is a favorite.  Veggie burgers, salads, etc. all are included in the menu.

If you’re looking for a nice romantic spot, a place to people watch or just to hang out with friends, this is definitely the place to go in Coconut Grove.

Thank you Lulu for such a great evening!
Lulu’s Facebook
Lulu’s Website

 

Where to Eat in Copenhagen? Govinda, Of Course!

When the usual dish in Denmark (for lunch) is usually cold meat sandwiches, what does a vegetarian eat?  Indian of course!

Mama Veg travels far and wide to bring you vegetarian options from all over the world.  This month, she traveled to Copenhagen with a friend and visited an Indian restaurant where you can almost always find vegetarian options.

What a quaint little restaurant!

 

The regular menu is mostly vegetarian but they do have some vegan options.  Their curry is delicious and has some pretty great reviews.  If you’re in Copenhagen, please check them out!

For more information (use google translate if you need to as their website is in Danish) go to Govinda Vegetarian Takeout .

 

Gabose & Gabose Pocha

Ashley and I checked out a Korean restaurant up in Lauderhill last night.  I should say, two Korean restaurants (with the same owners).  It’s also in the same shopping center: Gabose & Gabose Pocha.

Pocha is a little more modern and young feeling with Korean hip hop and dance music playing.  Thursday night is happy hour for shrubs, a fermented drink with soju and fruit that’s served in a bowl. We had two for one specials after trying a plain bottle of soju.  Ashley and I had the Ginger Shrub that tasted a little spicy, the Pineapple Rosemary that comes with a little jalapeno floating around in it, and the Pineapple Lemongrass.  My favorite was probably the lemongrass since it was really fresh-tasting and just a tad sweet.  All of them were worth travelling a little ways just to try- and the service was excellent.  We got there early and had personalized attention from a very knowledgeable waiter/bartender.

We were also served a complimentary Korean pancake with spicy ketchup and cheese and vegetables inside (it may sound a little odd but I had to hold myself back from eating it all).  I’m totally hooked on Korean food now.  They may have spoiled me though, this is not only one of the best Korean food places in town but all around just a great place to eat.  How will I ever go to another Korean restaurant?

After drinks and appetizers at Pocha, we wandered over to Gabose to have dinner.  We ordered the vegetable Bibimbap which is basically a very hot bowl with veggies, an uncooked egg, rice and hot sauce but it’s served so hot that you mix it all together when it gets to the table and it starts cooking the egg and the rice and makes it all nice and crispy on the sides.  They also bring about 5-6 little bowls of veggies to the table that are different side dishes.  The Bibimbap can also be served with tofu but we decided to just try the vegetable one.

Overall, a really great night out and two places I’ll be returning to when I want something adventurous and fun to eat!  Just be aware that Gabose can get very busy so call ahead or get there early.

You can find them at:

4933 N University Dr Lauderhill, FL 33351

 

4991 N University Dr, Lauderhill, FL 33351

 

Kelsey’s Super Kitchen Meal Delivery So. Flo.

Sending out a huge CONGRATULATIONS to my friend Kelsey, who has just recently launched her website and is expanding her business for healthy meal delivery in South Florida. You cannot beat the service, friendliness and freshness of this food delivery service.

Kelsey originally started a year or two ago, providing meal delivery for friends and family and has expanded into a booming local business.

If you’re looking for colorful foods, options like the “vegetarian plan” or just a great, healthy, tasty, inexpensive meal service; you have to check out her new site:
http://www.superkitchen.net/

Her weekly menu is up and includes incredible selections for not only those looking to lose weight but also those that are maintaining their beach bodies.

Her meal delivery is incredibly inexpensive and so worth the investment in your health.

Please check her out and tell her that Veg On The Run sent you!

If I haven’t already convinced you, here are some pics from my meals:

greenbar & Kitchen, Fort Lauderdale

 

I’ve driven this strip of Fort Lauderdale going towards A1A hundreds of times and didn’t realize that back inside one of the little strip malls, was a great Plant-based restaurant! I’ve never even heard of them till this past week!

They have this adorable little patio area that is draped in plants and greenery and kind of takes you out of feeling like you’re in the city.  Inside the restaurant it’s very hip and modern and fresh-feeling.  If you’re looking for a great place for just grabbing some lunch or actually want to take someone out for a casual date-night, it’s the place to go (hint hint-go take someone out this weekend).

I ordered the avocado toast because someone had recommended it somewhere and I didn’t want anything too heavy that night.  Four half-slices of toast with tons of avocado and yumminess piled on top.  My son ordered the nuggets of which he ate three and said he didn’t want anymore- no worries! Mommy saved room for that.  He’s a picky eater and has a hard time trying new things.   Literally, we eat three main items at home.  The nuggets weren’t my favorite but they were the typical vegetarian nugget- I expected the flavor, though it did have an interesting spice thrown in there.

He did however, devour that chocolate cupcake you see below and mommy had to slyly take a bite while he wasn’t looking.  Thank goodness they were offering tons of cupcake samples that night.

On top of the wonderful food options, we were able to listen to a little info session on locally grown foods.  Check them out if you want to learn more about growing your own farm here locally or if you’d like to purchase some of their veggies and plants (just note that growing season in Florida for their veggies is coming to an end for them so now is the time to go before it’s over).  They also sell their own coconut milk.

A great evening all around, so glad I could use this opportunity to check out a new place.  Please let us know if you’ve ever visited and what you had when you were there- inquiring minds want to know what else is good!

For info on greenbar, go to : gb&k
For info on Harpke Family Farm, go to: Harpke Family Farm

Trader Joe’s Soy Chorizo

Oh we went there and went back again.  The Soy Chorizo from Trader Joe’s is seriously out of this world.  I could eat the entire package in one sitting.  Put it on top of pasta or zoodles, on potatoes or inside of tacos.  There is no end to the versatility of this vegan sausage.

We heart it over and over again.  Please never stop making this!

Why Not “Try The World”

My mom is a world traveler and, as I was trying to figure out what to get her for Christmas, a little ad popped up on Facebook.  Try The World, buy three for $39 (promo no longer available).  So I bought it!  I was so excited waiting to see what we were going to get because of course, mom always shares.

The three boxes came a few days before Christmas so we opened them early in case anything was perishable (we could have waited honestly, we were just too excited to open the boxes).

She loved it, needless to say.  I was worried that it would be cheap and not worth the $39 but I think we were more than happy with the contents of these Tiffany-blue boxes!

Best Christmas present, they were full and beautifully packaged.  We even put some food out for our Christmas guests who gobbled them up.  These are things that you actually need in the kitchen too- like sea salt and olive oil and Dijon mustard but with different tastes than we’re used to here.

Such a great experience, we will be doing it again!

To get your own Try The World box and enjoy your trip around the world, go to http://www.trytheworld.com or Try The World $15 Off Here
They also have a limited time- free trial offer here: Free Trial Paris Box

When the Holidays Don’t Feel Like The Holidays

Two weeks ago, I lost my brother.  The one that, up until three weeks ago, called me on Facebook every night to talk to my son and hang out while he showed him his latest train or car.  My son loved talking to him so much that as soon as he heard my phone ringing, he knew exactly who it was.  “Uncle Chris, Uncle Chris, come on let me show you”.  His little toddler self thought Uncle Chris was the funniest person in the whole world.
Right after our rushed Thanksgiving meal, we had to get on a plane and fly out to Colorado to bury him.  It was sudden, though we knew he wasn’t doing well.  It was heartbreaking.
My point in posting this is to remind you that during the holidays, not everyone is surrounded by people they love.  Some people live alone or feel alone and the holidays are just one more reminder of that.
If you are reading this and feel alone, we’re sending out one giant hug to you.  Talk to us, tell us about your favorite memory, what your favorite holiday dessert is, something you are challenging yourself to do in the new year or how you hate holiday traffic.  Tell us anything!  If you comment, we’ll ask for your address and send out a Christmas Card (do it soon or you’ll get it for New Years instead ;).
To leave this on a positive note, let me brag about our amazing friends:  We had people offering to care for our kids, picking us up from the airport, booking discounted hotels, people sending us plants (if you ever decide to send flowers to someone’s family, plants are such a beautiful gift because it’s a reminder of life).  My best friends were there for me 100%, spending time with me, offering to pick us up at the airport at midnight or spending time with my husband.  I even had one that left her own husband and children for five days so she could help us in Colorado.
My mother had someone driving her from Iraq to Turkey on a 7 hour trip just to make it to the airport after the Iraqi/Kurdistan airport had closed down because of Russian planes in the area.
Please remember to tell your friends and family how much you care for them this holiday season.  Make sure that every single one of them feels loved because life is so fleeting and you never know when that last conversation will happen.  Make sure they know that they are in your thoughts.
And because this is a food blog, we will talk about food too.  Our favorite place was Adam’s Mountain Cafe.  Despite the Yelp reviews, we never had to wait long for our food.  It has this ski-lodge feel with tons of drink options and a very specific menu so you know they take time to develop the foods and make them absolutely perfect.  You can’t go wrong with any of their desserts either.   Good food is good for the soul.
http://www.adamsmountaincafe.com
http://www.heartofjerusalemcafe.com

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It’s Hello Fresh For Dinner…. Again

I’m a sucker for a good deal and every single time that Hello Fresh sends me their little coupons for 50% off, I jump on it (even full price, these meals are worth it!).  I received the package of 3 vegetarian meals on Thursday afternoon and have made the Tuscan Ribollita and Curried Thai Rice Bowl, both delicious!  These boxes make me feel like a fabulous chef and even though my husband doesn’t relish the taste of Thai food (in fact he refuses to eat Thai), he asked me to pack what was left for lunch.  Too late! I packed it for myself.

The Tuscan Ribollita was a suprise to me.  I thought I was going to hate it because it seemed there were too many veggies and not even spices but it was absolute perfection when paired with the ciabatta bread croutons.  The perfect combination of savory and fresh.  I honestly wish I could have these boxes delivered to me every week because it makes things so much simpler and I always have leftovers in our three person household.

As a reminder, you can check them out here:

http://www.hellofresh.com/raf-helloshare/?c=JHCQ2F (this code will give you $40 off your first box so eat up!)

Zinburger Wine & Burger Bar

Can I just say that I’m in love with my husband’s camera!  This (veggie) burger shot makes me hungry.

Sunday night we checked out Zinburger Wine & Burger Bar for a late dinner.  My husband’s coworker told him he absolutely HAD to try one of their burgers and of course the Cookie and I were hauled along for the ride.  My nasal congestion and this horrible sinus infection makes it difficult to be hungry for anything, I can’t smell anything and when you can’t smell, nothing tastes right!

Thank goodness it looked this good because I had no appetite and still finished over half the burger.  This veggie monster is made from scratch in-house! Can you believe that?  They don’t just throw a frozen patty on the grill, they actually take the time to craft a really well-made, flavor-packed, patty. The atmosphere is also very wine-bar-ish in the middle of Sawgrass Mall in Sunrise, FL.  I can definitely see coming here with some girlfriends or guy friends and having a nice glass of red while chatting for a few hours.

Check them out at www.zinburgereast.com or on Facebook.