To Live and Eat in L.A. – A Vegan Food Photo Blog

The folks over at SunPower Natural Cafe, the lovely raw restaurant in Studio City, wanted me to pass along this info about their Valentines Day specials. Here’s the lowdown:

Enjoy a 6 Course romantic Valentine’s Dinner at SunPower Cafe in our newly remodeled dining room!

Sunday February 14th 5-9pm
With Live Entertainment!

Both Raw and Cooked versions available for each course:
Appetizers: Raw Cabbage Tacos with Nacho Cheese / Vegan Tofu Cabbage Wraps
Soup: Raw Tomato Basil / Vegan Butternut Squash
Salad: Mango Spinach Salad with Candied Pecans and cranberries with Raspberry Dressing
Entree: Heart Shaped Pizza
Entree: Raw or Vegan Lasagna
Dessert: Chocolate Cup with Rum Cherry Custard / Additional raw layered dessert to be announced!

Whether as a couple or with friends, feel special with a unique dinner at SunPower Cafe! Price: $45 per person (paid by Feb. 13th), $55 per person (day of event). Seating 5pm to 9pm.
Reservations Essential: 818-308-7420 or ronald@sunpowernatural.com

Sounds delicious. SunPower manages to make raw food taste decadent. I’ve been back there since my last post about them so this is probably a good time to show you some of the good stuff we got to try.

To start, Bruschetta. “Zesty tomatoes and garlic on crunchy toast.” When my plate arrived it was so much more action packed than that simple description.

Read the rest of this entry »

The San Fernando Valley is no longer the dreaded no-mans land that it used to be, and while those of us who live here in the SFV are used to the derision, snide remarks and upturned noses of those who live over the hill, the tables have begun turning as the Valley fills up with delicious restaurants that have both the east and westsiders hopping over the Cahuenga Pass or Laurel Canyon and pouring into our humble basin… the same folks who previously would have never dared venture into the realm of the (818) area code are now streaming in at record numbers in order to have some of what we’ve got. What’s bringing them here isn’t the oppressive heat or the medical marijuana dispensaries on every corner… no, it’s the excellent vegan food.

One such Valley treasure we’ve recently gained out here is SunPower Natural Cafe. SunPower serves up healthy organic vegan and mostly raw dishes, though a few of their items are cooked. They’re located on Cahuenga Blvd, right where Ventura Blvd. and Cahuenga do their little dance and turn into one. This makes it a prime location for serving not only most of the Valley but also anyone right up the street over in Hollywood and beyond. It’s also conveniently located right off the Lankershim Blvd. exit from the 101 freeway.

What I really like about SunPower is that they aren’t like most of the other raw places in town. Those restaurants either tend to be on the fancier side (Cru for example), too expensive and far away for my blood (the various places in Santa Monica), or to put it bluntly, not good (I’m talking to you Leaf Cuisine). SunPower is nothing like any of those- not only is the staff genuinely friendly (and vegan themselves) but the food is also bona fide delicious without being pretentious. I’ve had the pleasure of trying a number of items off of their menu and so far I’ve enjoyed everything.

Because I love all things barbecue, the BBQ Burger naturally seemed like the first thing for me to try. “Sunflower seed patty smothered in raw BBQ sauce. Topped with marinated onions, mushrooms, chopped lettuce and ranch dressing. Served on choice of bun”. For your bun options you can pick from a sprouted sesame bun, fluffy wheat bun or a raw green bun. I’m a bread loving kinda gal, so I went with wheat. Even though you can’t see it in the photo I also got some extra avocado added on. You also get a side so I went with the kale salad (you can see it with the salad pictured up at the top of this post).

This was really good. The sauce tasted sweet & savory at the same time while the patty was meaty and full of flavor. I didn’t taste like a bunch of mushed up sunflower seeds, it tasted like a hearty, healthy and action packed burger. And when I say healthy I don’t mean bland… both the patty and the sauce were very well seasoned and quite tasty. I could totally feed this to my meat-loving dad and I don’t think he’d complain that he was eating bird food.
Read the rest of this entry »