Vegan eats and the latest beats*!~

Been hunting vegan style lately. I went out to the woods and for a long walk after the chain of stressful days...got tons of dandelion greens and some berries. The greens are beyond bitter, my mom made a Korea tofu bean soup with them, never having tried dandelion greens before...to say the least, the soup was choked down with tons of rice. I didn't dare try it, the look on my mothers face was enough to scare me off.

To apologize first, I left my camera at home for both restaurants..I will remember next time )O:

Anyways, been going out to some local eateries with fellow vegan Bobby! His real name is Robbie, but our united love of King of the Hill has granted us both the nicknames of Bobby Hill and I, Lu Ann. Bobby just got off the plane from LA and after weeks of not kicking it, we needed to catch up. I wanted to hear of CA adventures, and hell I just finished college, catching up, exchanging stories, and celebrations were in order.
We went to Angkor I have never had Cambodian food before and I've always been curious about it [Thank you Anthony Bourdain.] We arrived to the restaurant around 8:30 pm, they didn't close until ten, so we both figured it wouldn't be too much of a hassle to take us on. The menu isn't very large but offers a lot of vegetarian and vegan friendly options. All of their dishes have a tofu and veggie option, but for omnivores, there is a seafood, or other type of meat option. Prices are pretty reasonable also, appetizers are around $6 and entrees average $10. There is a $15 minimum credit card charge though, so be aware. Bobby and I didn't order soup, so I can't say whether or not the soups are vegan friendly, though I do wish I has asked. Bobby ordered the rice mitapheap with tofu and vegetables. This dish is served with garlic rice, garnished with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and pickle salad, along with a "special' sauce. I ordered the bee boong, a dish of steamed rice noodles, fresh bean sprouts, sliced cucumbers, lettuce, basil, tofu, and vegetables, it also comes with two vegetable spring rolls and a peanut sauce. The server said that what Bobby and I chose were favorites and very tasty. While waiting for our food I scanned the menu some more, there is bubble tea, but I think it is prpeared with cow milk,so vegetarians are lucky. There are several options for the bubble tea, strawberry, banana, coconut, mango, melon, jackfruit, almond, pineapple, taro, papaya, jasmine green tea, and coffee flavoring.

Our food came to us rather quickly, and Bobby's looked very attractive, my bee bong did...from a distance. It was cute and served in a nice white bowl, but the lettuce was browning and the noddles overcooked, they were clumpy! The bean sprouts were not fresh and the tofu was so dry. None of the flavors of the broth or sauce soaked into the tofu, it was inedible. I was really looking forward to this dish and ended up being very disappointed. I put aside all of the noddles and tofu and ate only the green lettuce, cucumber, and carrots. The sauce was also not very flavorful, I asked for hot sauce to enhance some flavor. bobby said his food was good, he ate all of it, though he agreed that the tofu was very dry and unflavored. I am going to blame the time that we went, I really want to like this restaurant, we did go on a Friday night, it was late-ish...I am planning on going again, during the day. Hopefully I will have a better experience with Cambodian cuisine. Anthony, don't let me down, my hopes were all high and everything.

Angkor Restauant

(401) 383-2227

333 Wickenden Street
Providence, RI 02903~~


A couple days later, my parents decided they wanted to go out, so we went to the Golden Abacus. We know the family that owns the place, and I remember that when I was a kid we all used to go there often, and get severely spoiled by the cooks. This time it was just my parents and I. The lunch menu is quite small, and offers only two vegan/vegetarian options. Though the prices are very reasonable, about $6. The lunch special comes with rice (pork fried or white), a soup (egg drop, wonton, or hot and sour) and one appetizer, all of which are not vegan or vegetarian. I got the kung pao tofu with steamed broccoli as opposed to rice, and the soup and appetizer was given to my parents. My tofu was very flavorful, very fresh, and just enough sauce. It wasn't too salty or fatty, and the tofu and vegetables were not lost in the sauce. Everything was very balanced. The sauce was a perfect balance of sweet and spicy, and just enough kick to leave you wanting more. This place was just as good as I remember it, though I recommend going for dinner, the menu becomes MASSIVE and there are so many more vegetarian and vegan options. Expect to pay $7-12 for entrees during dinner, but it's worth it.

Golden Abacus
(781)762-8114
1275 Providence Highway/ Route 1
Norwood MA, 02062


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With beats, I've been listening to the latest Wilco album [Wilco (The Album)], Jeff Tweedy really does have a lot to offer. This album is a great album to just sit and listen to, to think to, to relax to. It's not overwhelming, or too busy, it's pleasurable. This album took about two years to make after their last album, and I feel explores all sorts of emotions. It plays with depression, acceptance, happiness, love, all that jazz really; Wilco was experimental with this one, trying different beats and going a little against their usual norm. It is more upbeat compared to their other albums and it's catchy. Not annoyingly and vapidly so, it's a great album, and Wilco really is awesome. I saw Jeff Tweedy with Spy and it was more than a pleasurable experience. Tweedy is sarcastic, honest, and truly talented, a natural performer. Check out their site, and their work...And for all you Feist fans...they do work together in the song "you and I."
 http://www.wilcoworld.net/