vegansaurus!

The Vegansaurus store on Ethical Ocean!  »

We have our own storefront on Ethical Ocean now! We picked out a bunch of cute vegan things to show you! And if you click the link above to Ethical Ocean (or our forthcoming banner), we get a percentage of anything you buy. We will use the money to do Vegansaurus-y things! OH AND there’s a special Meatless Monday Unicorn cartoon on our storefront, brand new! He’s such a wisenheimer. 

I’m pretty excited about this. Ethical Ocean is really cool. They don’t just have vegan things; you can also search for things that are environmentally friendly or sweatshop-free—or all three! I will prob buy my holiday presents from them. It’s nice to buy people stuff that also makes you feel good because the company is all conscious and whatnot. Happy shopping!

NYC may get a vegan grocery store! Help make it a reality!  »

As you may have heard, New York City is mighty close to having its very own vegan convenience store. The brainchild of Eric Hopf, Vegan Bodega is currently in its early stages of development, with an IndieGoGo page up for community fundraising and awareness. Vegan Bodega plans to carry everything a vegan could need—healthy food items, vegan junk food, household products, vegan condoms, baby food, beer—imagine not having to read a label! Finally, a real one-stop-shopping experience right here in the Big Apple.

I talked to Eric about the project and how we can help bring it to life!

Vegansaurus: Tell us about Vegan Bodega. What inspired the idea?
Eric Hopf: Like many other vegans, I traveled to the Pacific Northwest with my partner Gita and we saw Food Fight Grocery and Sidecar For Pigs Peace. I remember thinking, “This is fantastic, we should have something like this in NYC.” Once I returned home, I went back to working in photography and didn’t think about it again until a year ago. The arrival of my daughter was close at hand and I was well overdue for a visit to Orlando, Fla., to see my family; I went down for a long weekend, and that was where the idea came from, that this all-vegan convenience store could be something real. There is a small shop near downtown Orlando that I happened upon [called] Artichoke Red, it’s all-vegan and it’s succeeding. The owner was nice enough to talk with me and answer some of my questions. Again I asked myself: Why doesn’t New York City have something like this? Once I arrived home I started thinking about an all-vegan grocery store and shared my idea with Gita. It was going to be a huge undertaking and very expensive. We scaled back the concept. The name came naturally, as there is nowhere in NYC I can think of without a corner store or “bodega,” as we have all become used to calling them. So the inspiration came partially from other business and from my family who support this dream.

How long have you been vegan? Is your family vegan as well?
Actually I don’t keep track of the length of time, but I know I have been vegan for at least six years now, and both Gita and our daughter are vegan.

Tell us about your IndieGoGo project.
After seeing a few vegan projects make their goals on IndieGoGo and Kickstarter, we thought that it would be an excellent way to raise a portion of the funds we need for opening the business. Crowd-sourcing would also get the vegan community involved with launching a store that so many have told us they have been wishing for. Our goal is to raise $15,000, but we are less than a week and a half from the deadline and are only around 23 percent of the way there. Any contribution is helpful and we are very thankful for anything we get. There are a variety of incentives for donations of $5 and up. The money will be used to secure the location, buy used shelves, a commercial freezer and fridge, the computer setup for handling sales/inventory, and some stock for the soft opening. The store will have a slicer and deli display, but we may need to introduce those after the opening.

Where do you think Vegan Bodega will be located?
We are going to open in Manhattan, most likely on the Lower East Side, as we really like the feel there, [and it’s] close to other vegan spots and lots of public transportation. We are willing to reconsider the location if we find a fantastic space.

What products and/or services will you offer at Vegan Bodega? Will you deliver? What about online ordering?
The plan for Vegan Bodega is to carry a broad spectrum of products, from healthy items to vegan junk food. [We want] to support other local vegan businesses by offering them a space to sell their goods, a focused vegan and vegetarian customer base, and a chance to connect with customers by doing in-store samplings. We are also contacting Community-Supported Agriculture farmers about being a drop-off point. Delivery is something we are looking into and how best we can offer it. Online ordering may be offered in the future, but it is dependent on the demand for it.

What is your planned opening date, and are you organizing an event for the big day?
We do not have one set yet. Currently our focus is on securing a space and locking down all the funding we need. In the meantime, you may soon find us at a weekend food market, as a prelude to what will be available in the store, but that has yet to be finalized. We intend to do a soft opening and get settled in, then have a grand opening party that will also double as a fundraiser for a to-be-determined animal welfare group. Vegan Bodega would also like to support different nonprofits by allocating a portion of the sales once a month.

We’re pretty excited about this project! If you want to help Vegan Bodega reach their fundraising goal, you only have FOUR MORE DAYS to pitch in at their IndieGoGo page. If you don’t have cash to spare, spread the word and show your love by contacting the Vegan Bodega family. The anticipation is killing us!

New Yorkers! Vegan Shop-Up on Sunday, Apr. 17!  »

Now here is the event for me: Vegan shopping at a bar. Those are my two favorite things! Description from Sarah:

Cure that Spring fever with an afternoon at the all vegan, all local pop-up market, Vegan Shop-Up!

Spring is upon us, budding blooms, rainy days, picnic lust. We’re celebrating by bringing together NYC’s best animal-friendly products in one rad place, on Sunday, Apr. 17, from 2 to 5 p.m. Even bigger and better than the last one! The all vegan Pine Box Rock Shop is our gracious host, and it’s their happy hour with $3 wells and $1 off all drafts. PLUS, an outstanding bloody mary menu that will crush any Sunday night blues.

Now for the goods! Here’s just a smattering of the Shop-Up bliss in store for you:

• Puffy glazed doughnuts from Dun-Well Doughnuts!

• The Regal Vegan’s top-notch Faux Gras! (gluten-free too!)*

• Meow Meow Tweet, with their masterfully crafted organic bar and liquid soaps, and vegan bug repellent too!

• Pretty Monsters has made a special all-vegan product line just for us with matcha lavender lip balms, soy candles in new Summer scents, AND tattoo balm!

Not to mention chocolate bars, kombucha, caramel corn, face scrub, bitters, and MORE! See the full vendor rundown here.

PLUS freebees from Babeland AND Babycakes!!

See veganshopup.com for more information.

Boy, Sarah knows what she’s doing! I don’t have to write jack. I can just sit back and do a little musing now. You know, I’ve been totally wanting to go to Pine Box Rock Shop—it’s a vegan bar! I’ve never been to a vegan bar. Who wants to go with me! Come on, it’ll be awesome! First bloody mary is on me. Except that will be the only one I buy because I think bloody marys are ick; I’m a mimosa-type girl! Boy am I a mimosa girl.

In conclusion, save the date! Sunday, Apr. 17: you, me, booze, shopping, happiness.

*Read my review of Faux Gras here!

Screw everyone on your list, you need this bag!  »

Big-handbag ladies, you know who you are. *We* know who you are. Laura and I both have purses containing all of our material belongings, and possibly a dead body or two. Seriously, it takes us 20 minutes to retrieve anything out of said bags. But as big-handbag ladies know, this is the price we pay for being prepared! God forbid we should leave the house without something we may need while out in the world, like a two-year-old Olive Garden receipt. 

Anyway, peep this handbag: the Margarite from Brooklyn Industries:

This totally vegan hotness is curvy, silky smooth, and fits all your junk in the trunk. I love the sheen on the (nylon) fabric, and I love the durability and carrying capacity. 15” MacBook Pro? Sure, toss it in there with school books, notebooks, library books, multiple sets of keys, pairs of glasses, and an extra sweater. No, seriously. You can pack your entire life in this bag and move to Las Vegas to live off the grid. Except you will get many compliments on your bag, which might blow your cover. 

Anyway, Brooklyn Industries makes great quality bags, and this one is extra good-looking and all man-made.  Highly recommend picking one up asap (online for you SF suckas, but BI has stores in NYC, Chicago, Portland, and maybe some other places.)

CHEAP vegan Filipino food this Thursday at Tiangge sa SoMa!  »

There’s gonna be tons of CHEAP vegan Filipino food this Thursday, December 2nd, at Bayanihan Community Center (1010 Mission St. at 6th Street) as part of ‘Tiangge sa SoMa’, a community-organized crafts fair/mini holiday bazaar featuring Pinoy and Pinay artisans! Delightful. The menu isn’t finalized yet, but they’re planning on Lugaw (Filipino congee), Pancit Palabok (Rice noodles with julienned vegetables, thick annatto sauce, and crunchy “chicharon” topping), Kalderata (Stewed seitan with carrots, potatoes, bell peppers in a spicy tomato-based sauce), Mongo (Stewed mung beans with spinach, okra, and squash), and Black Gulaman (Sweet drink with agar gelatin). YUM! It goes from 6 to 9 p.m. so be there! Or be shit out of luck in your quest for delicious cheap food!

BONUS: There’s also gonna be holiday shopping, festive music, and raffled giveaways on selected items throughout the night! I WILL SEE YOUR HOT ASSES THERE!

Guest review: Sway Noe Valley!  »

Sway opened this summer in Noe Valley. It’s a boutique with a selection of affordable clothing chosen by a vegan buyer with great taste. Sway is part of a local chain—there are stores in Alameda, Berkeley, Concord, and Oakland—that reminds me of a less-expensive, less-trendy LF or Urban Outfitters: boho-chic styles like skinny jeans, flowered shirts, dresses, and jumpers, the store caters to the same teen-to-30-something demographic. But what struck me was the variety of vegan fashions for sale.

“We definitely offer a large array of animal-friendly shoes and belts that are fashion-forward,” says buyer Michelle Halprin. “A lot of my vegan friends—especially those coming from out of town—stock up on our non-leather shoes and bags because we are able to get the looks that are often only available in leather.”

Michelle says for as long as she can remember Sway never carried leather or any other animal products. Some of the jackets are wool and the occasional shoes leather due to costumer demand, but she buys vegan fashion whenever possible. Even Sway’s owner is vegetarian.

Not all items at Sway carry Vegan Action’s relatively new “Certified Vegan” label, outside of the purses they carry from Urban Expressions. She hopes more lines will carry the label in the future. For now, Sway’s non-leather brands include Pink Duchess, Miss Me, Soda, Qupid, Dreams, and Breckelles. Purses include sleek, buttery soft ones by Ebisu, Super Trader, Urban Expressions, and Let Them Eat Cake. This fall, find more non-leather purses by Flying Tomato and cool non-leather jackets.

Sway is located at 3979 24th St. at Noe Street. You can also follow the store on Twitter.

This is Vera Churilov’s from Nourish the Spirit’s first post at Vegansaurus. Thanks, Vera!

Take a break, ogle some shoes  »

I know, you are up in arms about Monsanto and school lunches and my computer, and the weather is gloomy and nothing will ever be good again. I KNOW. It sounds like you could use some cheering up, my babies. So how about we look at some pretty, pretty shoes that are on super-duper sale?

Cri de Cœur is an all-vegan, eco-friendly company that makes pretty, pretty shoes, and Billion Dollar Babes is having a massive sale on some of their styles for the next 24 hours. Billion Dollar Babes is one of those members-only “HUGE DEALS ON DESIGNER STYLES” sites, but you don’t even need a recommendation from a current member to join; just put in your name and email and you’re in. If you’re interested in Cri de Cœur shoes I would recommend joining, as they seem to be significantly cheaper than usual.

Of course we’d all prefer to buy from a local retailer, but according to the Cri de Cœur website, the only two places you can buy them in California are in Santa Monica or Laguna Beach, to which we in Northern California say, Boo, we may eat like hippies but we dress like grown-ups, dang it. I mean they sell them in Brighton, which as I understand it is the English equivalent of San Francisco, so let’s get on it, people. I don’t see why a pretty pretty dress store like Ambiance couldn’t carry a few styles. They have enough Michael Stars “one size fits most” shirt/dress/whatever garments to clothe a little army, anyway.