Sunday, April 3, 2011

The Veg Food Festival that wasn't.... April 3rd

Ok, so before I explain the title of this post, let me start out by apologizing for my absence (again). But I have a lot of catching up to do after this weekend!

So yesterday my friend Melissa and I tried out a new brunch spot in Astoria called Omonia Cafe. I had walked by this place the previous weekend and was intrigued when I saw their brunch menu. You get SO much for your money, which is always a bonus! So this weekend we checked it out and here's what I got (all for $12.95, their pre-fixe brunch rate):

Choice of beverage (I chose orange juice).


Choice of alcoholic beverage (I got a screwdriver which was very watered down, as was Melissa's mimosa).


Choice of entree (I got the "strapatsada" which is scrambled eggs with tomatoes, feta cheese, and oregano, served with pita bread).

(Melissa got this as well and we both thought it was delicious!)

And finally, choice of dessert (I got the strawberry shortcake, which was as good as it looks!).


So overall we really liked it and would definitely go back... their desserts alone are reason enough!

Now, on to today's fiasco... I have been looking forward to NYC's first ever Vegetarian Food Festival for weeks (as I blogged about last time) and had planned to meet up with some friends (and fellow bloggers) there. I was the first of my friends to arrive a little after 11:30 this morning, and I saw a line bigger than anything I had ever seen in my life! You can imagine my shock and horror when I realized that THIS was the line just to get in the food festival!!!!! (So much for our ecomony being on an up-swing! It reminded me of a great depression bread line, albeit slightly more cheery than that). No one could have EVER predicted this kind of turn-out for a vegetarian food festival, which is why admission was free and there were no tickets (note to whoever runs this event, MAKE PEOPLE BUY TICKETS NEXT YEAR!!!!!!!). I mean literally everyone and their brother was there, to the point where it looked like an American Idol audition or something!

So, I used some quick thinking and high-tailed it out of there down to Sacred Chow! I KNEW it would be empty, since every vegetarian in the city was standing outside the food festival, and I was SO RIGHT! Sacred Chow was literally EMPTY, which is unheard of on a Sunday. It was great because I had the restaurant all to myself, got my food right away, and it was nice and quiet! Luckily I was able to warn some of my friends away from the food festival (if they didn't want to stand on a 2 or 3 HOUR line and wait all day to eat!!).

So I got my usual tofu scramble....

And after all that aggravation, no plate of food ever looked so beautiful in my entire life! I left completely happy and satisfied, and the waitress thanked me profusely for coming! :)

Btw, I knew that Sacred Chow was going to be AT the food festival, which is one of the reasons I wanted to go, but luckily I still got their amazing food and I didn't have to stand in an enormous line for it either!

As for Peanut, here are some pictures from his day to day life in the new apartment... and as you can see, he's got it rough! lol





I really do look forward to hearing how the food festival WAS from any of the brave souls that stood on that horrendous line! So please come forward and let me know. Maybe they'll handle it better next year... one can only hope!

But, every cloud has a silver lining, right? And you know what, in retrospect that huge line makes me very happy. Why? Because that means there are a LOT more veggies out there like me than I even realized! And even if all those people weren't vegetarians, I'm certain that some of them are close to "converting" or are definitely open to the idea! And that is ALWAYS a good thing. :)

5 comments:

Missy said...

CRazy about that long line! So happy I didn't get on the subway!! Loved our brunch, especially the desserts! Can't wait for Wednesday!

MJC said...

^^Me too! :)

Vegan Chick Pea said...

That festival sounds great. I hope to go next year too! :) And, yes, I will pay. :p

Anonymous said...

SO crazy running in to you this morning! I loved it!! Definitely next time when I am in town, I would love to do a meet up somewhere!! I hope everything is all good with Peanut too!!, and hope you guys had fun together today! :D

MJC said...

^^I know, it was such a strange coincidence! But I'm glad I did. And definitely the next time you're in NY we'll hang out somewhere. You can pick one of the many veggie restaurants off my list. ;)