Green Owl Cafe Vegan Groupon!!!

The best vegan food in Madison is half-off with this Groupon deal! Click here to buy yours!

A Vegan Hair Salon - Can it Be?!

Have you ever taken a trip to Target for toilet paper and ended up spending ten times as much as you should have? Then, when you get home and unpack your bags, discovering all the things your hands somehow snuck into your shopping cart you stumble upon that box of hair dye you bought? Excited, you rush to the bathroom and start mixing all those little bottles until the colors blend together and you pour this “stuff” all over your head without thinking twice about it. Your scalp starts to burn, your nose bleeds from the fumes, and you have to turn on every fan in your apartment because the stench of toxic chemicals is so overbearing that your cat has begun walking like someone who’s drunk in public? I know you know what I’m talking about. But seriously, does anybody REALLY know what their “natural” haircolor is anymore? I doubt it. We live in an age where looks and beauty and pampering yourself is in the forefront, and yes, even us vegans need to feel pretty! So what do we do? We KNOW that nearly all haircolors bought at Target or at your high-end salon are tested on animals, filled to the brim with harmful chemicals, and just plain aren’t GOOD for you. But you want to look and FEEL a certain way.


My hair color and/or cut changes with the moon phases. Seriously. It’s not a thing of vanity, but of self-expression for me. Being sick, there are many things about myself that I cannot change, but I still have control over my hair, so I express myself through it. And thank Mother Nature that I finally found a salon in Madison that caters to my need to express as well as my desire to be as eco-conscious as possible!




KODE Salon. Founded and owned by three of the most talented hair designers in the Midwest, and as someone who has lived coast to coast, I’d say in the country! You walk into the salon and just *know* that your experience here is going to be different from any other salon you’ve been to. From the hairstylist stations that were built from recycled barn floors, to the amazing nook the salon is nestled in in one of the coolest, most eco-friendly neighborhoods in Madison, to being tossed a beer as you walk in to wait for your appointment, this place has it going on!
KODE strives to source their resources as locally as possible, keeping money in the community.




The products that they use are not only vegan, but gluten-free, too! Now, out of sheer curiosity, I HAD to do some of my own research on this, because, well…I’m not good at taking things at face value. So I researched the brands and products they use and was so happy to see that, as far as a salon goes, this one is about as cruelty-free as it gets, folks! From Davines Haircolors, which even come in eco-friendly packaging on top of their cruelty-free stance and ingredients, to Surface styling products, which are all vegan and gluten-free and amazing in general!




But what about your HAIR? Does it look good when you leave? Let me just say, I’ve been to some of the most expensive and well-known hair stylists in the country and I have never left a salon more happy than when I left Kelly Z.’s amazing hands for the first time. The stylists spend massive amounts of time formulating a look that is not only 100% “you”, but one that is simple to maintain, grows out nicely, and a look that you will be more than happy about. I’ve only seen Kelly Z. when I go, as she’s my go-to-gal there, but I’ve seen the work the other stylists do and it’s also nothing short of awesomeness.




So, if you live in Madison and have been desperately searching for a place to get cut up, dyed out, or waxed off, then hit up KODE Salon. And afterwards, hop across the street to the best vegan restaurant in town, the Green Owl Café. Yes, it’s right across the street! I told you it’s located in the best neighborhood in town! So what are you waiting for?! Check them out and “fan” them on Facebook!


*All photos from the KODE Salon Facebook Page*

World Go Vegan Week!!!

For those of you who don’t know, next week, October 24-30 is World Vegan Week!!! I wanted to give a heads-up, because you should definitely start scoping out your areas for vegan deals! I know that, in Madison, a few bookstores are having sales on vegan cookbooks, and *drumroll* certain restaurants are giving discounts on vegan food!! Some are even donating a portion of the cost of your meal to different vegan-friendly charities and such! So get your butts on out of your house and start supporting!!! The more people that support these movements will give bigger and bigger momentum each year to continue doing these things! When companies realize how many people appreciate these things, they’ll be more apt to put vegan items on their menu or stock more vegan cookbooks, or even begin to educate themselves on the vegan lifestyle. So rock on with your bad-ass vegan self and support World Vegan Week in your area!!!

Now, if you’re in my hood (I’ve been in Madison almost a year now, so I think I can start calling it that…haha), here are some of the restaurants that are offering specials next week:

The Green Owl Café: If you read my blog, you’ll know that I have reviewed this restaurant a handful of times, just because it is absolutely my favorite place to eat in Madison! If you mention “World Go Vegan Week” when you order, you will get 50% off a dessert with a meal purchase here!!! Hell yes! Their desserts seriously make life worth living!

Bunky’s Café: Order a vegan entrée (make sure you mention World Go Vegan Week) and receive a complimentary vegan Mediterranean Appetizer Platter!!! Also, 10% of the cost of your meal will be donated to the Madison chapter of Alliance for Animals.

The Roman Candle Pizzeria: Mention World Go Vegan Week and take $3.00 off the purchase of their “Animal Lovers Pizza” – Any size! Just make sure to ask for it without cheese!

As of now, these are the only places I’ve heard of that are participating in Madison, as well as Borders Bookshop having a large display/sale on vegan cookbooks in the store entrance, but I’ll try and update this weekend if I hear of any other places getting involved! Is there anything going on in YOUR town for World Go Vegan Week?!

For more information, jump over to http://www.worldgoveganweek.org/


You'd be downright silly to pass up half-off on the amazing vegan desserts at the Green Owl!!!

Vegan Jambalaya on World Vegetarian Day

Yesterday was World Vegetarian Day, and let me just say that I stimulated the crap out of the vegetarian economy, that's for sure!! I got not one but TWO new pairs of super cute vegan shoes from ShoeDazzle, got some vegan cupcakes for the office at Bloom Bake Shop, which were a hit, as always, and then when I got home from work, I wanted to go to my favorite vegan restaurant, the Green Owl Cafe. Now, I've eaten at a lot of really good vegan restaurants. Julian and I would go to them all the time in Los Angeles, but none of them can hold a candle to Green Owl, in my opinion! Their servers are always the absolute sweetest, their foods are unique and filling, and don't even get me started on their amazing desserts!!!

So we headed to Green Owl last night, and I was determined to try something different, while Julian was already content with the fact that he would be getting the exact same thing he always does, but he was really looking forward to their apple crisp, which is one of his favorites.

We get there and are seated in the back area, which is our favorite and took a look at the menu. And waited. And waited. And waited some more. A table was sat right next to us, and greeted right away. And we waited some more while all the waitstaff looked right at us and walked by. After 10 minutes, the people seated after us already had their drinks and salads, and we hadn't even been aknowledged. And I was hungry! I finally went up to the front and asked for some service, which, after a few more minutes, we finally got. Then, the special that I wanted was sold out, which made me sad, but I tried the vegan jambalaya instead, and I'm very glad I did! Every course took a very long time to receive (20 minutes for a dip platter, 40 for soup and salad, and an hour for our main course), but as always, neither of us had a single bad thing to say about the food! My jambalaya was absolutely delicious! It was so flavorful and filling, and it came with the most delicious roasted red pepper cornbread. And my Mediterranean Bean and Orzo soup was awesome as well...no suprise there. By the time dessert rolled around, we'd already been there two and a half hours now, and had missed the movie we planned on seeing, so we skipped dessert for the first time in our Green Owl history, and just went home...we figured if we stayed it may end up being another hour...hahaha!

But, although this was by far our worst service experience here, the food will no doubt keep us coming back for more...and more...and more!!


So how did you spend your World Vegetarian Day?



Honestly, how can you be upset when the food looks this good?!?!

Weekend Treats!

So I know that it’s already Wednesday, but I had such a goodie-packed weekend that I just wanted to share! Now, don’t judge me, I haven’t had a sweet thing in ages, and my new medication is starting to kick in finally so I’m exercising like a crazy woman, and I thought I deserved a little indulgence this weekend!! Friday night, Julian and I went to our favorite 100% vegetarian/vegan restaurant in Madison, the Green Owl, just for dessert and drinks, since we had already had a nice dinner by the time we craved sweets! We usually try to get different desserts when we go here, so we can try each other’s, but this time, there was one dessert that just really stuck out to both of us, and I’m glad we each had our own piece, otherwise there may have been a fight…haha! We both got the vegan berry tart, which was a vanilla-rosemary shortbread filled with a vanilla custard and topped with fresh strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries! *Heaven* in my mouth!!! We washed this down with a lovely drink made with their own homemade Pineapple Rum…which I think may now be up there in Julian’s all-time-favorite-rums (second only to my mother’s homemade Ginger Rum, of course!)! All in all, another successful experience at the Green Owl!



Saturday, I started off my morning volunteering at a charity fundraiser for the Heartland Farm Sanctuary, which is quickly gaining notoriety in the Southern Wisconsin region! I think that, for the first big fundraiser that the Sanctuary has had, it was definitely a success! It was great seeing how excited kids got being around the farm animals, and the money it brought in for the Sanctuary was obviously great, too! It also got recognized on a few news stations, so that’s great too! I got home, sweaty, stinky, and yucky, and got a big grin from my boy…telling me he STILL had a sweet tooth even after our amazing dessert last night! So, I hopped in the shower, and hopped on Facebook, to see what a local bakery’s specials were that day. Just two short miles from our place is a very new cupcake shop called Bloom Bake Shop. Now, it is not all vegan, but they do always try to have an equal amount of vegan cupcakes each day to their non-vegan counterparts. Not to mention, they are insanely delicious! Well, considering every flavor looked good on the vegan cupcake front, we headed over for a little mid-day treat. I got the vegan vanilla butter cake filled with orange marmalade, topped with a dark chocolate ganash with an orange buttercream flower on top…100% vegan, 100% delicious! Honestly, I don’t know how I didn’t gain 15 pounds this weekend!!

Can you say, insanely delish?!


I must say though, sweets aside, I did keep my diet in check the rest of the weekend…aside from the sweets, we did a raw veggie weekend, and it was great! There are so many delicious veggies in season right now, that our selection definitely wasn’t lacking, and I got to put my brand new eco-friendly knife set to use chopping up all our lovely veggies!! Thanks for the great Prepology knives, mommy!!

Restaurant Review: The Green Owl Cafe

So being fairly new to Madison, I have discovered that this city has a great love for good food and eclectic restaurants. Even before I went vegan, Julian and my favorite restaurants in Los Angeles were all vegan places, and there was literally one on every corner of that city! Now, there are restaurants on every corner (I read somewhere that Madison has the largest restaurant:people ratio in the country!), but not very many strictly vegan/vegetarian ones. In fact, the only one we have come across thus far is called The Green Owl. That’s not to say that it’s the only place in town I can get a good vegan meal, because there are TONS of places that I have had amazing dishes at, but this place is unique in the city for being the only meat-free zone in Madison! I discovered this place as I was looking through Yelp for any vegan bakeries or restaurants, just to scope out my options here. The place had amazing reviews, was apparently very new (only opened a month before we moved here!), and the menu looked amazing. It also looked like someplace that a meat-eater could go and be perfectly satisfied as well. So, on a bitter cold Friday night, we ventured in to this adorable little nook in the heart of town.


I must say, I was pleasantly surprised when we walked in. There was not an empty table in the place, and it smelled delicious!! Clearly, business was good! And the only way a restaurant has good business is if the food is good! We waited about 15 minutes for a table (we could have sat at the bar, but it was right next to the door, and it had just begun to snow, so it didn’t seem like the best idea!) and were greeted by the sweetest server! She fully explained everything on the menu, and we both ordered a beer and started with their Mediterranean Platter, which was a gigantic platter of warm soft pita, vegetables, and four different dips ranging from hummus to muhumarra. Every single bite was incredible! Then, our main courses came out. We decided to just get sandwiches, because we wanted to save room for dessert. I got an “Italian Beef” Sandwich, and Julian got the “Crab cake” po’ boy. We tried a little off of each others, and both of our plates were cleaned off pretty quickly! Julian loved his crab cakes made of tofu (even though he insists he hates the stuff…hahaha), and my seitan beef with delicious pickled veggies was definitely something to write home about. Well, it came time for dessert. Of course, we had to try the nightly special, which was a vegan grasshopper cheesecake, complete with whipped ‘cream’ topping and all! With every bite, I melted a little more into my seat as the smooth creamy cheesecake literally melted away in my mouth with just the perfect amount of minty-ness.


Amazing food, amazing service, great atmosphere, what’s not to love about this place?!?! I’m writing because I am hoping that maybe at least a few people from Madison will read this (I’m sure all my followers are not from Wisconsin), and that they will have an opportunity to experience this absolutely amazing restaurant. Please support this local gem, let’s hope it lasts. This city needs amazing and unique food that the Green Owl brings!! Check it Out!!!!


Delicious-looking Empanadas:


Mouth-watering Gyros:


Vegan Lava Cake I'd do illegal things for:


Vegan Marshmallow Mud Pie...yum!:


Credit:
All photos used are from the Green Owl Facebook Fan Page