Picnic Party

The Chef: Lyndsay, with the help of Jennifer and Frankie

The Menu: Frankie's homemade ribs, with a side of roasted potatoes and beets (per Jennifer), and Abby's Biscuits, which I had the pleasure of baking this morning.

The Goods: So it's officially summer in San Francisco—at least for the time being—and when I say summer, I mean hot! San Franciscans are actually not used to this type of heat, and even though it may be a little much for me, most of the VN staff are enjoying it. We received some of Frankie's fantastic vegan ribs earlier last week, and we couldn't wait to bust them out. VegNews Associate Editor Jennifer Chen had the wonderful idea of doing a picnic, so we all pitched in with the goods, and made our way to Dolores Park to eat, and to enjoy the sun for at least a little while. We finished our lunch with some cold, fresh-fruit popsicles from Power of Fruit, and they definitely helped to stave off the heat. We're looking forward to a gorgeous week!

Pizza and Quinoa Salad

The Chef: Lyndsay

The Menu: Homemade pizza topped with green pepper, jalapeño, Tofurky sausage,  and Daiya cheese, and a quinoa salad on the side from La Cascada.

The Goods: The VN staff were lucky enough to score a ton of Daiya at Natural Products Expo West last March, and I was fortunate to be able to take a whole 5-pound bag of the mozzarella home. Sadly, this pizza has the last of my supply on top of it, but it's one good pizza. Although, I felt like I needed something a little more. Fortunately, I was already making a quick trip to Rainbow Grocery to purchase some henna hair dye, so I also picked up this delicious-looking salad to pair with my pizza. It was a good choice, I must say. Before I close, I want to remind you guys of the recently announced VegNews Street Team, which I will be managing. We are now accepting applications, and would love to see yours!

Falafel and Tomatoes

The Chef: Lyndsay and Le Petit Marchet

The Menu: A falafel wrap with hummus and tabouli, with a side of chopped tomato.

The Goods: When I'm feeling a bit lazy, and don't feel like cooking, my go-to is GrubHub.com. Sure, it's not always economical, but sometimes you do what you gotta do. I ordered this falafel from one of the many restaurants on the site, and I'm never disappointed. It's also one of the cheaper places to order from, so win win. I hope everyone's having a good start to the week!

Cereal and Emergen-C

The Chef: Lyndsay

The Menu: Shredded wheat with soymilk, and a glass of Emergen-C on the side.

The Goods: It's a gorgeous week (finally!) in the SF Bay area, but unfortunately, I've been sick for the past several days, which is a real bummer. So I am working from home. However, my cupboards are also bare, so this is my "Feel better" lunch. You may be asking, "Where's the soup?" Well, in my opinion, it's just too hot for soup, so I decided on a cold bowl of shredded wheat and some Emergen-C—I'm hoping the boost of vitamin C will help me feel at least a little better. So yes, I will be going grocery shopping once I'm done being sick, and I'm hoping my next meal is bit more exciting than this one. Speaking of exciting, don't forget about the Matt & Nat giveaway being featured on VegNews.com!

Lemongrass Tofu and More

The Chef: Lyndsay and Sunflower

The Menu: A gigantic lunch for cheap, including lemon grass tofu, hot and sour soup, an imperial spring roll, salad, and brown rice.

The Goods: I haven't been to Sunflower since last year (too much Gracias Madre, I suppose), and boy did I miss it! So I begged editorial assistant Alexandra Chang and VN volunteer Robin Webb to go with me today. The dishes are full of flavor and totally satisfying, and do you see how much food is on that plate? This vegetarian lunch special is only $7.95! I don't know about you, but I'm impressed—and full, with leftover food to spare. I'll stop gushing about this great restaurant now, but speaking of cheap, check out some great decorating tips over at Savvy Vegan. Decorating on a budget is always a good thing.

Butternut-Squash Quesadillas

The Chefs: Lyndsay and Gracias Madre

The Menu: The Quesadillas de Calabaza, topped with cashew nacho cheese and pumpkin seed salsa, and a side of black beans.

The Goods: Yes, this is the second time you're seeing Gracias Madre this week, but what can we say? We love it. I, for one, have not been to the restaurant in nearly a month, so I decided to join VN volunteer superstar Robin Cole to this fabulous place for some yummy food. We were not disappointed, and returned to the office stuffed, but satisfied—no leftovers for us! Lucky for us, it's been a beautiful week in the neighborhood, unlike most other places in the US. So to cheer the rest of you up during this cold winter, we have a great Vegan Sugar Cookie Mix giveaway going on at VegNews.com. Be sure to enter, and be ready to bake your winter blues away!

New Year's Lunch

The Chefs: Lyndsay and Herbivore

The Menu: The grilled "Chicken" sandwich with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and pickles, with garlic-lemon sauce, plus a green salad and seasoned potatoes on the side.

The Goods: The whole VN editorial crew went out to lunch today, in order to celebrate the arrival of our two new Editorial Assistants, Anna and Alexandra. There were six of us, but only three menu items were ordered—one Raw Red Beet and Spinach Salad, two grilled "Chicken" sandwiches, and three Southwestern Scrambled Tofus (as shown below). I guess you can say we have the same tastes. We're excited to come back to the VNHQ for the start of 2011, and look forward to eating some great lunches—like this one—too!

We Be Lovin' Sushi

The Chef: Lyndsay and We Be Sushi

The Menu: A sushi feast, including seaweed and spinach salads, inari, avocado and cucumber rolls, shiitake mushroom rolls, eggplant rolls, and delicious veggie tempura rolls to top it off.

The Goods: Yes, this may seem like a lot of food, but it was shared between Editorial Assistant Gabrielle Pope and myself. Plus, it was super cheap, which always wins me over. We Be Sushi actually has two locations on Valencia Street, and this was our first time at the second location, and we found it to be more veg-friendly, and it was just downright cute inside. We at the VNHQ are back from a wonderful four-day weekend due to the holiday, and we're getting ready for one of the busiest months of the year—December! One of the many things happening is our 2011 Vegan Wedding Application deadline this coming Wednesday. If you've had a vegan wedding this past year, be sure to apply before it's too late!

Soup and Spring Rolls

The Chef: Lyndsay

The Menu: An impromptu lunch of tomato basil soup and two tofu spring rolls with peanut dipping sauce.

The Goods: I did not have lunch planned today, but I did have an errand to run—I needed some dry red wine for a special dinner that I am making tonight. So I was off to Whole Foods, and I just figured I'd pick up something there. I landed at the sushi hub, and I picked up a delicious tofu spring roll, and even though I wanted more, my money had already run out. Luckily, I had a can of this flavorful tomato soup at my desk which completed my meal. Simple, yet satisfying. Thanksgiving is fast-approaching, and there's a great new feature over at VegNews.com about the wonderful animal known as the turkey, and where you can visit one (or two) at farm sanctuaries near you!

Picnic in the Park

The Chef: Lyndsay and Gabrielle

The Menu: Just your classic picnic with leftovers from the past week, including Paper Masala Dosa from Udupi Palace, cheeseless takeout pizza, and some raw goodies from Lydia's Kitchen.

The Goods: It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood, so Editorial Assistant Gabrielle Pope and I decided to take our bikes to nearby Dolores Park. With the sun shining, and the park having just enough people and lovable puppies running around, we were in paradise, which is just what we needed. It's been quite busy at the VNHQ with the holidays fast-approaching, and we just can't get enough of our VegNews Holiday Cookbook. If you haven't purchased this insanely good e-book yet, get to it! You really don't want to miss what's inside.

Chicago Deep Dish Pizza

The Chef: Lyndsay and Patxi's Chicago Pizza

The Menu: A humongous slice of leftover Patxi's Chicago deep dish pizza with Daiya cheese, mushrooms, and jalapeños. I accompanied this with a side of a spring mix salad, topped with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette.

The Goods: It was a rainy weekend in the SF Bay Area, and I just didn't feel like cooking last night. My solution of course was to order this delicious pizza pie, and I'm using pie in the literal sense, because this baby is huge—one slice will fill you up, and if it doesn't, you're super-human. We here at the VNHQ wish you a happy last week of October, and to kick it off, we have the ultimate vegan guide to Halloween candy over at VegNews.com. Enjoy!

Vegan Cheesesteak Sandwiches

The Chef: Lyndsay and Jay's Cheesesteak

The Menu: A vegan cheesesteak, with seitan, sweet and hot peppers, and Vegenaise. Yes, I ate the entire thing.

The Goods: I know this isn't the prettiest picture, but that's a cheesesteak sandwich for you. What this sandwich lacked in cleanliness, it definitely made up in tastiness! It's Monday, and I was craving a delicious sandwich, so I treated myself and editorial assistant Gabrielle Pope to Jay's, which is probably becoming my favorite sandwich in the city, and it's not because my boyfriend's name is Jay. It's going to be a busy week at the VNHQ, and just to let you know, there's a giveaway this week for Manic Panic's new Creature of the Night make-up line. Be sure to enter!

Shawarma and Salad

The Chef: Lyndsay and Herbivore

The Menu: A delicious shawarma wrap with soy chicken, seasoned onions, tomatoes, hummus, pickles, tahini, avocado, and a small salad on the side

The Goods: So yes, this shawarma is half-eaten, and the only excuse I can make is that I forgot the camera when leaving for lunch. Editorial Assistant Gabrielle Pope and I went to Herbivore this afternoon with gift certificates in hand—let's just say that we were on the winning team at the World Vegetarian Festival Weekend for selling the most subscriptions. And let me tell you, working so hard definitely paid off with this delicious wrap, which came highly recommended from other VN staffers.

Top Chef, SF Edition

The Chef: Philip Gelb

The Menu: When a popular vegan chef/caterer offers to treat your staff to a lovingly prepared gourmet lunch feast, there's only one response in the world that's appropriate: Yes, please! Philip Gelb—a creative multitasker who juggles music and food—shuttled over from Oakland to our Outer Sunset offices and brought with him an amazingly delectable spread. We began with homemade seitan in a velvety molé sauce served with quinoa pilaf loaded with fresh herbs and veggies, then moved on to a colorful, perfectly sweet corn salad before tucking into bright green rappini paired with black olives. You might find this hard to believe, but each of us licked our plates clean. REALLY clean. For dessert, Phil dazzled our taste buds with heavenly scoops of homemade blueberry-cashew ice "cream." One of us—and I'm not saying it was our publisher, but it might've been—had four servings. It was that good.

The Goods: In addition to having established himself as a top-tier caterer in the San Francisco Bay Area, Philip is also known for hosting a popular series of dinner-concert events at different locations throughout the East Bay. Invite is by word-of-mouth only, and guests are always treated to a sensory feast, from the food to the live music to the great company. Look for a piece on him in an upcoming edition of Oakland Magazine, and of course, VegNews!