The first annual SoCal Veg Fest happened this month on World Vegan Day – November 1.  It was a beautiful day at Orange Coast College and I thought this event went very smoothly.  I applaud the organizers not only because I personally know how super-cool they are, but because this was the first time a first annual vegan event didn’t turn out to be a total cluster fuck.  The location was large enough for the crowd, it was free to attend, free parking was provided, there was enough shade, there were many speakers and cooking demos to fill your time, and the lines at the food vendors weren’t absurdly long.  I look forward to attending this event next year.

SoCal Veg Fest

Quite a few food vendors were out giving free samples of their vegan products.  I know this was a big part of what the day was about.  A popular flea market was happening nearby, and I know the organizers wanted any of those attendees curious enough about a veg fest to have the opportunity to try some delicious vegan food.  Good idea indeed.  I got some of those samples – but also paid to get some more food.  First stop was a group serving up food from Vegi Wokery.  I bet the Combo Plate would be delicious in the restaurant, but it was not so amazing when being served out of a tent.  I’ll have to hit up the actual restaurant one day.

Vegi Wokery Menu

Vegi Wokery Combo Plate

After chatting with some friends, I decided to try Plant Food for People.  I think I’ve tried them before – maybe when they were first starting out? Everyone says they love them and they were, in fact, delightful.  The the Torta (#5) was nice, but way too much bread (or maybe just not enough filling?).  The Quesadilla (#7) was not what I was expecting. It was two small hard tortillas sandwiching a small portion of filling. I would have enjoyed it a lot more if it was the grilled soft flour tortilla quesadilla I thought I was getting.

Plant Food for People Menu

Plant Food for People Torta and Quesadilla

Donut Friend is such a friend to the vegan community.  They always seem to come out to every vegan event.  Even though I live in LA and it wouldn’t be too hard for me to make the trek from west of the 405 to Highland Park, I never seem to get to their store.  I really should go more often – their donuts are amazing.  I got the Fritter Seems Forever (the best!), Husker Blu (yum!), Pumpkin Piebald (pumpkin deliciousness!), and X-Ray Speculoos (love speculoos, but ruined by the sea salt topping). I really could have gotten them all, but I must set some boundaries.

Donut Friend Menu

Donut Friend

While waiting in line for my donuts, the woman in front of me was eating something that I thought I must have.  Turns out, it was a Pumpkin Cheesecake from Mother’s Market.  This. Was. Good.  I wish Mother’s Market came to LA.

Mother’s Market Pumpkin Cheesecake

And lastly, I just wanted to show you some of the awesome cupcakes from their cupcake competition. It was a wonderful addition to the event and many winners went home with fun gift bags after three judges tasted every single cupcake (where can I sign up for that job?!).

Cupcake Competition

Thank you so much to all the people who worked so hard finding the space, vendors, speakers, and everything else to make this event a huge success!