Clever Rabbit, learning to love "bacon".

I have to admit that I have been to Clever Rabbit a number of times before (actually more than I would like to admit) and when it comes to the food I have never been disappointed! I figured that now would be a pretty excellent time to throw out a review of one of the small handful of vegan restaurants in Edmonton! 

Clever Rabbit is located on 124st and (approx) 108ave, it is nestled between a couple of other locally owned shops and cafes. For years prior to hearing about the restaurant I would walk/drive past totally unaware of its location since it is quite small in comparison to some of the establishments on 124st!

My most recent visit was this Saturday around lunch time, and I was surprised to find the restaurant must busier than it usually is and we were forced to sit at a small table surrounded by couches because all of the dining room tables were full. However, I was not deterred since I knew the food would be delicious. We sat at the small table and sipped our beverages until a table opened up and we quickly moved our belongings so we didn't lose a prime spot. 

The waitress we had was clearly new and a little bit overwhelmed as she seemed a little bit frazzled and we couldn't help but smile as she flitted from one table to another trying her best to keep up with all of the tables demands, granted it is a small place hosting only 6 tables at a time it can get a little overwhelming! She was incredibly friendly, and to be honest she gave us the best service that I have ever received at Clever Rabbit. That being said, the majority of the times I have been to Clever Rabbit it is a total ghost town but the server is nowhere to be found, and our meals take an extremely long time to reach the table. It was very pleasant to have such a different experience, even though it was as busy as it was! 

I have to admit that I usually get the Walnut and Chickpea Burger when I go, but I felt like I should branch out this time and give something else on their menu a little bit of a whirl! After some contemplation I decided to try the BLT, I was a bit concerned because vegan bacon is not usually something that is well done and it ends up being a tough piece of tofu that doesn't have much of a taste at all. However, the menu boasted that it was handmade seitan maple smoked "bacon". As soon as I read maple I was pretty close to sold! They have a number of sides to choose from, and this time I opted for fresh salsa and tortilla chips.

Our food made it to the table pretty promptly (this time), and I was starving so I dug right in before I thought I should take a picture of my meal. 

I have to say, I am super pleased that I broke out of my comfort zone and decided to try something new because it was a delicious flavour explosion!

Everything right down to the bread it claimed to be homemade, and I admit that I believe it for sure! The bread was so soft and fresh that would melt in my mouth, it was sweet yet hearty enough to hold together the sandwich! The maple seitan bacon tasted incredible, however it was a little bit tough and I found that I was not able to bite through it and it ended up pulling out of the sandwich with each bite I took. The tomato was fresh and I found that it was not to soft and was nestled between the bacon and lettuce which kept it from soaking through the bread, the lettuce however was shredded and honestly I found it to be a little bit strange. I don't usually find shredded lettuce to effective in a sandwich and subsequently spent a large amount of time trying to shove the lettuce back into the sandwich in order to take my next bite. Finally to round out the sandwich they handmade some mayonnaise, and from what I could tell it was an almond mayo (similar to the one that I had at Pangaea). I felt like the mayonnaise was a great addition to the BLT, but I would have appreciated it more if it was a little bit less sour tasting. 

To accompany my sandwich I had some homemade fresh salsa with tortilla chips, which is never disappointing to me! They usually put a little bit to much cilantro in it, but this time it was a perfect combination of tomato, onion and cilantro!

All in all, I think it was a very successful visit to Clever Rabbit, and this time around the food quality matched the quality of service! I still have my reservations about that restaurant, since the level of service is not guaranteed but I am open to attempting it again on a weekday!

Thanks for reading, I really appreciate the support! I am still getting used to restaurant blogging, and I feel like I will grow in this very soon but I am open to suggestions and support as always! 

Be well. 

Becki

My first restaurant review, ever!

Recently I have been discussing with a restaurant blogger/friend of mine and we thought it would be a really interesting idea if I tried my hand at restaurant blogging! I have a little bit of a different view of restaurants in Edmonton since I take the vegan route, and I wanted to share how I go about eating out in this city. After some consideration I thought that I would integrate restaurant blogging in with this blog for the time being and deepening on the level of success I will move it to its own separate blog! So please share your suggestions, criticisms or praises because I would love to hear what everyone thinks!

I am starting off simple and choosing a small deli in a local organic food market that I attend quite regularly named Pangaea. It is located in downtown Edmonton on 104 st a block north of Jasper Avenue and to my recollection is a recent addition to the eclectic mix of shops that line the street of our beloved outdoor Farmer's Market (which to my elation will return to 104 st from City Hall at the end of May)!

Like I mentioned previously, this establishment is a small and primarily locally supported. They pride themselves in supporting locally grown produce as well and organic meat. All of their products are of the highest quality possible and the deli products are completely hand made from scratch, which is something I have to admit I was really excited about!

Each day the staff in the deli section prepare a number of specials from scratch that cater to omnivores, carnivores, vegetarians and vegans! However, since it is so small, they only prepare a small variety of foods each day and while there is not a huge variety of choices the products that they do have are outstanding!

On Saturday afternoon when my friend Amanda and I ventured through the cold, slushy weather their vegan special was roasted broccoli and butternut squash sandwich and potato leek soup. As soon as we walked in we were greeted by a number of smiling faces, and we were asked if we had ever visited the deli before and we were offered a sample their vegan soup that twitter had told us they had.

I decided that soup and sandwich would be the best combination for me today, and I (obviously) opted for the special they had!

As we paid for our meals, they offered to warm up our sandwiches on the panini grill and we agreed since it seemed to be the most delicious choice! We sat down to eat our lunch and one of the deli staff brought over a sample of one of their raw cookies they made that morning, she was incredibly knowledgeable and clearly passionate about the food that they make which helps the customers get excited about the food they are about to consume! It is very refreshing to see such commitment.

I started off with the sandwich because I was so intrigued with the combination of flavours, I had never seen broccoli or butternut squash in a sandwich before, but I was not about to scoff at it! Though the vegetables had been roasted they still maintained their crunch and freshness associated with raw vegetables but had a warm and savoury tone to them that was outstanding. When it was paired with the smooth homemade almond mayonnaise and the warm toasted bread it ended up being so much more than a sandwich. The layers of flavours all paired together really nicely but still maintained a distinctive separation allowing every bite to showcase something different.

I am a huge fan of soups especially on day like Saturday when the wet heavy snow will chill you right down to the bone, and this soup did not disappoint. The potato and leeks were blended together to create this smooth and creamy soup (but with no dairy added)! The onion like taste from the leeks was paired excellently with just the right amount of dill and it finished off with a nice light peppery spice.

I couldn't have been more pleased with my lunch! I felt like we made the right choice after a long hectic day at work!

Hope you all enjoyed my first attempt at restaurant blogging, I am still learning how this works and I can't wait to hear your feedback!

Be well.
Becki

Today, I am sad for baby seals.

As some of you may already know, today marks the beginning of Canada's baby seal slaughter and it is utterly breaking my heart. I decided that since my emotions regarding the subject are so strong I should tell the world, if only to shed some light to the horrific things that are still occurring in our homeland.

The Canadian Government subsidizes the slaughter of upwards of 400,000 baby seals each year, which is more than what trained scientists have suggested in order to sustain the marine animals. To some, this previous statement may seem ridiculous, that's because it is! There is no need to subsidize the murder of any animal, and here is why:

For the past number of years there has been a number of countries who have banned the sale of any seal products, which translates into no profit for Canadians. We are truly just giving our tax dollars to the government so they are able to inhumanely kill animals most of which are still sitting in storage since even Canadian markets have taken a second look at the detriment caused by the seal slaughter. Not only is it a huge waste of money, Canadians are stealing from the Native people's livelihood (as much as I am against the killing of animals as a whole). Since the seal slaughter is killing such a high volume of animals each year the sustainability of these wild creatures is in jeopardy and could lead to the eventual extinction of seals.

Although there is a lot to be discussed in regards to societies downfalls when it comes to a dying market I would like to focus on the humane nature of the seal slaughter.

We have all (I'm sure) seen the photographs of skinless massacred seals spread across the crimson stained ice caps in Eastern Canada, but that is simply the end result of an endless spree battering. These baby seals which are all under 3 months of age had been bludgeoned with a heavy wooden bat with a spike on the end. Don't you worry though, they claim everything is done humanely since it is still illegal to kills baby pups under 11 days old... (are you kidding me!?) There is absolutely nothing humane about the way these pups are murdered. The stakes are used to jab the seals in the skull, eye, nostril or mouth multiple times they are then dragged across the ice before and skinned, sometimes these pups are still alive when it comes time to ripped the skin from their muscles. The adult seals are not left from harm either, they are forced to watch as their babies are inhumanely killed. There is nothing they are able to do to keep these men (and women) from stealing their pups from them.

I could continue on with this, but I feel like I should leave it for now. I am very clouded by emotions right now, so I should apologize for the grammatical errors that may occur throughout this blog. However, I hope that I managed to get a point across or at least shed a little bit of light on the situation that is currently happening. I would love to chat with anyone about it, and see what their opinions are on the whole situation.

Be well.

I'm a convert to Lush Toner!

My most recent purchases at Lush are hands down new favourites, one of them being something that I have recently been converted too!

I have to admit that I was not convinced toner was something that I needed to incorporate into my everyday beauty routine, especially since these days my routine consists of next to nothing! However, when I went to West Edmonton Lush for a free facial I was convinced! They used "Breath of Fresh Air" toner water which comes in a super handy little spray bottle (pretty handy for the lazy lady I have become) and as most of the products I am using, is totally vegan! The combination of sea water, aloe, seaweed and rose is outstanding, and totally great for all skin types (mine is a bizarre combination of oily yet super dry!) Throughout my research I have learned that most elements from the ocean are incredibly beneficial for skin that gets put through the ringer all the time, and I figured I would put it to my own test! For those who know me know that I am huge fan of aloe/seaweed type scents but I am not interested in floral scented products at all and so I was pleasantly surprised that I did not pick up on to much of a rose scent when it was sprayed on my face!
After a couple of different tries I figured out the best way to use this product, so here we go. First wash your face with your most beloved face wash (I will tell you my new fav a little later on in this post) then after your face has dried for a few seconds spray your face (I find 2 sprays work best) a few minutes before you apply face lotion! Make sure after you spray your face you allow it some time to soak in and work its magic before slapping the lotion over top.
I honestly found that my face felt so much fresher immediately, I didn't find my skin felt tight and dry like it normally did! After a couple days of using it I noticed that I was not getting nearly as greasy by the end of the day, my complexion began to even out a little bit and, AND I felt that I didn't need to use as much make up to even out my skin! Such a bonus!
So yes, my name is Becki and I am now addicted to my toner. Not a day goes by that I do not use it and I do not plan on ever running out of toner again!

My other purchase was face wash, I honestly cannot tell you when the last time was that I bought the same face wash more than once. I am always finding new ones, or finding out that the face wash I had was not as cruelty free as I thought that it was. So, I have been switching brands and types pretty frequently. The newest one is 9 to 5 cleansing lotion from Lush.
I love that it is made from almond oil and orchids which give off an amazing smell! Not to florally which I definitely enjoy! It is of course vegan, and one of the few (if only) liquid cleansers that Lush carries. It does not disappoint I will tell you that!
The explanation brags that this is made for the working girl, and for most skin types with the ability to remove all the dirt and make up off your face at the end of the working day! Thus far, it is not lying! The most beautiful part is that a little goes a long way, I usually use about a dime sized amount and can easily clean my whole face and neck! Once I have washed it all off I feel so clean and refreshed and there is no make up left, including mascara! An added bonus was that I am able to clean my fresh tattoos with this because it is so gentle on your skin and doesn't have harsh chemicals or perfumes that can very easily harm sensitive skin.

So, all in all I am so impressed and in love with my new products. I am even considering buying a second bottle of the 9 to 5 when I am finished with this one!
Hello major life commitment!

As soon as my tattoos heal and I am allowed to soak in a bathtub again be ready for my review on a couple of the bath bombs I've been so nicely storing underneath my sink!

Be well
Becki