DIG in the Park

DIG in the Park at Park Circle

Kids Menu decorated by my toddler

If you haven't checked out Park Circle in N. Charleston, you should.  It's a trendy little area.  Nice park, great local restaurants and cute shops. 

DIG is one I had been wanting to try because I hear they have good VEGETARIAN options.  

Right on the menu, they have veggie tacos, soups and salads.  And the best after a long day of running around; veggie burgers.  

Every burger they have on the menu can be made with a homemade black bean patty. 

The black bean patty was good.  Had beans, peppers, onions in it.  The only downfall was that it was very crumbly and messy to eat.  I always say this is a good thing.  My homemade ones can be crumbly so at least i know it's not frozen. 

So check out DIG in the Park.  Nice outdoor patio.  Good food and great area!

Black Bean patty with BBQ sauce and onion Straws!

Epic Burger

VEGAN ON THE ROAD- Chicago, IL

I had the most amazing Portobello Burger at Epic Burger in Chicago!

The whole restaurant was amazing.  They use great products and eco friendly cups, plates and napkins.  Check them out for an amazing and juicy VEGAN burger!

Portobello Burger in a compostable to go container

The Rarebit, Downtown Charleston

The Rarebit

The Rarebit on King Street is a sweet little fancy restaurant.

They have an amazing menu including. BREAKFAST all day!!!

I know a lot of people LOVE breakfast at all hours, so check out Rarebit.

Also on the menu is a VEGAN BURGER!!!!

This is a tasty little patty served on a bed of lettuce, tomatoes and sprouts.  It does come with a honey vinaigrette sauce.  It is a little bit however if you don't do honey, make sure you ask for no dressing.

This burger does not have a bun.  But it is very yummy, light and healthy.

Throw in a bowl of tomato soup and  you have a wholesome meal!

Enjoy The Rarebit.  Fancy downtown dining at an affordable price!

The Rarebit
474 King Street
Charleston

Local Marathon Training Health Nut

                                Hello Vegans and Vegetarians of the Lowcountry!

      Check out this blog of a local marathon runner!  Anyone can find inspiration out of this one blog.

Mothers

Runners

Juice Lovers 

Conscious eaters

Please read, follow and send positive vibes to this blogger!

Enjoy!

http://onemarathonboundmama.blogspot.com

One Marathon Bound Mama

Purée Organic Cafe

Vegan in Charleston is BACK!

UPDATE:  Sadly Puree Closed in 2013 

My little family and I moved away from Charleston for a bit, but we came racing back as soon as we could.  While I was away, a new organic cafe opened up.  All my friends were talking about the delicious vegan food they were serving and I was drooling from a far.  Also, they serve baby food, hence the name!  I make my 8 month old child's baby food and it's all organic and vegan, so I was very excited to order her food off the menu from a gourmet chef!

We made Puree Organic Cafe our first stop when we got back to Charleston.  We were not disappointed!

The cafe is in a cute little house in Mt Pleasant off of Chuck Dawley.  It is bright and adorable.  We were greeted by the owners and friendly staff.  My little "vegan in Charleston" had an adorable high chair to sit in and was comfy and ready for her gourmet baby food!

My daughter ordered the sweet potatoes with coconut milk and cinnamon.  It was a heaping amount and was fresh, organic and hand made.  Best yet, it was delicious and she gobbled it up!

I ordered the grilled chimichurry seitan wrap with herb citrus dressing and chipotle sauce.  It was stuffed with carrots, tomatoes, spinach, sprouts and more.  The sauce was amazing and spicy!  The seitan was cooked to perfection and seasoned so well.  It tasted great and was completely vegan! I hope my picture does it justice.  I think you should try it though!

What better to top off a great lunch then with a great desert.

Puree has amazing, fresh deserts daily.  Most are vegan.  Today I had a FRESH blueberry vegan cupcake.  The cake was moist and filled with whole blueberries.  The frosting was light and sweet.  Writing this makes me want another one to munch on!  mmmm...

It is very important what kind of food we put into our bodies.  If you have children, it's even more important.  So, you should take your kids and babies to Puree Organic Cafe.  It will make your day and theirs!

Enjoy!

Check out their facebook page for information.

VEGAN POTLUCK!

Looking for a great place to eat VEGAN food, hang out with AWESOME people AND listen to AMAZING music?

This Saturday night at the Jivamukti Yoga School in Mt. Pleasant, there will be a FREE Vegan potluck!!  There will be vegan food galore, ranging from main dishes, side dishes and DESERT!  All Vegan and all tasty!  Potlucks are a great time to sample other dishes and get new recipes from the people who made them.  They are wonderful if you are newly vegan or thinking about becoming vegan. 

The potlucks are generally waste free, meaning we use real dishes and utensils.  It is amazing to see that many people eating and not requiring paper products!  Inspiring! 

After the meal, there will be music by the kirtan band THE JAIS.  They will get you rockin' and lift your spirits.  It is a fun time to meet new, like minded people, eat good food and rock out! 

The Jivamukti Yoga School in Mt. Pleasant is Charleston's Mecca for great yoga and a one of a kind vegan community!

The community, or Satsang, are so welcoming, fun and inspiring that you will immediately feel like you belong.  Like you have come hOMe!

Jivamukti is owned by Andrea Boyd and Jeffrey Cohen.  They are our world renowned, awe inspiring teachers.  They both are joyful practicing vegans and amazing yogis! 

Come out and meet new friends!  Stay tuned on the Jivamukti Yoga website for future potlucks, free movies, free kirtan and chanting, great yoga classes at a great price and much, much more! 

www.jivamuktiyogasc.com



Taco Mamacita by Mia Chaveco

Guest Blog By: Mia Chaveco

Mia is a fellow Jivamukti Yogi and vegan.  She went vegan 2 1/2 years after reading the book Skinny Bitch. 

She actually quit cold turkey after discovering the truth of the meat and dairy industries!

She is married and has an 8 year old daughter, Autumn.  She grew up in New Jersey and lived there her whole life.  They have been in Mt. Pleasant for the past 5 years.  Mia is a RN.

Mia and her husband


Taco Mamacita by:  Mia Chaveco


After yoga class Thursday night, 13 of us met at Taco Mamacita (on beautiful Sullivan's Island) to try out their famous Vegan menu. It was a full house, and since we had a large group, we did have to wait for about 1 hr. But it was worth the wait.

This restaurant supplies a totally seperate menu for Vegans. This was definatly refreshing, since usually Vegans have to ask the kitchen to make modifications on existing dishes. The Vegan Menu featured 10 main dishes, and 4 side dishes.

Everything looked so delicious! At our table we ordered some appitizers: the "Salsa Sampler" features corn tortilla chips with mango jalepeno salsa( my favorite), Salsa verde, and roasted tomato salsa, and we also asked for the "Fresh Guacamole Now" with corn chips. Both were very tasty and fresh. The guac was as good as homemade, just the right flavor. 

After enjoying those, we had some choices to make. We enlisted the help of Ali (our server). She was so excited to serve us, and said that we were the first table of Vegans she had served since they opened, and it was nice because she is a Vegetarian. She suggested the Vegan Tortilla Soup. It was my favorite dish   of the night. A white bowl came out with fresh tomato, avocado, lime and cliantro in it. Next to it was a metal pitcher with the most delicious house made roasted tomato veggie based broth in it. Ali brought it out to our table, and poured the broth over the fresh ingredients. The presentation made my mouth water. On top she sprinkled corn tortilla strips. When I tasted the soup, I was in heaven. The flavors went so well together,especially the tangyness of the lime in the broth. I would come to this restaurant for this soup alone, I enjoyed it so much.

Next we ordered 3 Tacos and The Enchiladas. My daughter loved the "Freakin Vegan Taco". This delicious taco had cilantro spinich rice, petite red beans, crispy lettuce, pico de gallo, fresh escabeche ( a sort of slaw) , and guacamole in a flour tortilla. My husband and I also shared one and I thought it was delish too.  Next was the "Avocado Taco". This had fresh avocado, lettuce, pico de gallo, salsa verde and fresh escabeche wrapped in a flour tortilla.  This was tasty as well, but I mostly tasted the avocado, and not much of the other ingredients. My favorite taco was the "Vegan Jerk Taco". It has shreaded cabbage, mango salsa(so tasty), sauteed plantains tossed in homemade jerk sauce and petite red beans, wrapped in a flour tortilla. The jerk was very savory and flavorful, and I enjoyed the different textures, and tastes of the plaintains,salsa, cabbage and beans. It was like a smorgasborg of flavor. My absolute favorite besides the soup! The Enchiladas come 2 to a plate with a side dish of your choosing. This is the largest entree, since the tacos come ala carte style. The "Vegan Enchiladas" were corn tortillas filled with cilantro spinich rice, sweet roasted yellow corn, diced tomato, black beans, cilantro, and topped with homemade salsa verde. They were savory, but I couldn't help thinking that they would be even better with some Daiya Cheese melted on top. (I'll get back to that in a minute). These enchiladas tasted similar to the "Freakin Vegan Taco", I wouldn't order both the next time I go, since they had almost the same sort of flavors.  The sides that were available with the Enchiladas were : Cilantro-Spinich Rice, Sweet Potato Fries, or Black Bean and Corn Salad (made with white balsamic vinagrette dressing) We tried all three and they were all yummy. You can also order them ala carte.

The manager came out to speak to our table after we mentioned Daiya cheese to our server Ali. He said at the moment they don't have any vegan cheese option, but he asked us many questions about the cheese. All of us at the table liked Daiya the best so we explained how well it melts and how delicious it would be smothering the Vegan Enchiladas. He said that there could be a possibility in the future that they could order the Daiya cheese if there was enough of a market for it. (So get in there and ask them to get the cheese!!!) He also told us he would have no problem using it in a dish if we wanted to bring it with us. We could send it back to the kitchen and they would add it to whatever dish we wanted it on. This made me happy! They were very willing to please the Vegans!!

I am already planning a trip back to bring all my friends and family there. I am happy to patronize a restaurant that recognizes Vegan's needs! ENJOY!!

Thanks Mary for letting me describe my food experience in your blog!!!