Loving Hut Buffet Anniversary In Review

 Last Saturday, VegWorcester celebrated the one year anniversary of VegWorcester vegan buffet fundraisers held at the Loving Hut on Chandler Street. It was one of the the busiest vegan buffets since the location began their partnership with VegWorcester, back when they were still called Buddha Hut. With customers waiting at the door to be seated, and staff scrambling to find tables to seat all of the guests, it was a jam-packed afternoon.

Drew Wilson presented The Loving Hut owner and staff with a certificate of appreciation for one year of fundraisers and support on behalf of all of the VegWorcester community. It has been amazing to see so many people at the buffet fundraisers this year, participating in and encouraging vegan businesses thriving in Worcester. The Loving Hut has become one of the hubs for the local vegetarian-vegan community to gather, enjoy good food and promote compassion for animals. They have served food at a wide variety of local events, including Worcester’s own first annual Vegfest last Spring.

There were all kinds of fun things going on at Saturday’s $10 all-you-can-eat fundraiser. As usual, 10% of all the buffet sales were donated to VegWorcester and the buffet spread was well rounded with rice and noodle dishes, a variety of delicious mock meats, fresh veggie roll-ups, soup, and fruit. Many took part in the free raffle and won a host of goodies like vegan recipe books, gift certificates, t-shirts and more.  The former Barely Legal Treats vegan bakery made yummy free vegan cupcakes in a variety of flavors for guests who arrived early enough to snag one!

You may have noticed Supreme Master TV representatives were on location, filming portions of the event. They were hard to miss! “Supreme Master Television is an international, non-profit channel airing constructive news and programs that foster peace and promote healthy, green living.” Their motto is “Be Veg, Go Green, Save the Planet!” The TV reps interviewed several VegWorcester members, asking questions about the buffet fundraisers, their personal interest in going veg, community events, environmental issues and animal welfare.

VegWorcester would like to thank everyone who came out to show their support for The Loving Hut, and who continue to spread the word about local vegan eateries, outreach and community events. We couldn’t do it without you!

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cross-posted @ (http://vegworcester.com/2010/11/17/loving-hut-buffet-anniversary-in-review)

October Loving Hut Buffet w/ members of MARC

                                                      The October Loving Hut (Chandler St) VegWorcester fundraiser buffet was on Saturday. After the first circus showing protest (which I'll blog about later,) we all headed over for the $10 vegan meal. Our group arrived around 3:30pm and the place was packed! In fact every seat was filled and we had to wait a few minutes for people to finish eating to have a table cleared. It was great to see so many people out supporting veg businesses in Worcester. (The next Loving Hut buffet is Sat, Nov 13.)

I got a chance to hang with some friends and talk with Massachusetts Animal Rights Coalition (MARC) Executive Director Helen about how she started the group and some of the current events they're hosting. If you're in MA definitely check out their website massanimalrights.org.  From the website: "MARC is a volunteer group that works to end suffering for all animals: "food animals", animals in laboratories and entertainment, companion animals, fur animals and other wildlife. MARC is the largest and most active animal rights group in Massachusetts, with over 2600 members."

Also be sure to check out Helen & Steve of MARC's animal sanctuary, Sunny Meadow Sanctuary. Join the Sunny Meadow Sanctuary Yahoo group and the MARC Yahoo group  to get email updates on upcoming outreach events!

stART On The Street: Fall 2010

So many amazing artists and performers came out to Park Ave this weekend to celebrate their craft at stART On The Street, the best and biggest festival in Worcester for the arts!  

Loving Hut vegan cuisine has been taking part in so many community events and it was great to see them at it again, serving and handing out reusable "Go Green! Go Veg!" bags to customers.  Also serving it up in the stART "food court" was One Love Cafe with Jamaican veg options. (One Love Cafe - Main St. Worcester.) Chris's hot dog cart was there too with those tasty veggie dogs, but for lunch this time.. I went for the tofu & fresh rolls at Loving Hut. ;)

 VegWorcester was reppin with a table a stART, doing vegan outreach along Elm Park, getting mailing-list sign-ups and handing out veg literature. 

Among the creations for sale by art vendors were a vast variety of homemade crafts and many recycled & re-purposed items. Recycled postcards became surfaces to paint, plastic bottles became sculptures and all sorts of toss-able metal bits became wear-able jewelry. I saw a few vendors with vegan candles and vegan soaps that were hard to resist.

The turn-out and good energy was overwhelming.  Looking forward to the next stART!

September Loving Hut Buffet

 September Loving Hut buffet VegWorcester fundraiser 

This month's Loving Hut (Chandler) buffet was great as always. The Fresh Loving Rolls and the Joyfut Satay were delicioussssness! Its always a pleasure to see familiar faces and eat the hell out of the scrumptious vegan food. Good times ;)

VegWorcester at Open Road Music & Arts Festival

When we heard Honor Roll Productions was putting together the Open Road Music & Arts Festival, VegWorcester was one of the first to jump in and take part in what is being described as "Worcester’s first sustainable and earth-friendly music and arts festival." Drew and I (Manda) were excited to partake in some vegan outreach and check out the first of what will become an annual event!

Worcester locals headed over to Institute Park this past Saturday, September 4th to enjoy a sunny afternoon of 10+ musical acts, visual arts, fun for the kids, vegetarian food and a vast array of eco-friendly vendors. Among the green-oriented goals of Open Road Festival was bio-diesel generated power for the sound system, recycle bins and organic/recycled promotional materials.

At the VegWorcester table we met many attendees and other vendors who were equally interested in environmental issues and the music as well as trying our free vegan food! At our table we gave out free samples of Thai Peanut and Teriyaki Primal Strips, a meatless vegan jerky voted best new vegetarian snack by VegNews magazine. We also handed out vegan dark chocolates by the company Endangered Species. Their chocolates are ethically-traded and 10% of net profits are donated to help support species, habitat and humanity. We even had some Oreo cookies to share with attendees, based on the thought that many people already eat them and are shocked to find out that they are veg-friendly!

Armed with brochures about reducing cruelty to animals and free vegetarian starter kits, we shared the message of living a veg lifestyle in Worcester and received great feedback and email list sign-ups. One couple said their son had become vegetarian in the past year and they were impressed by how naturally the transition had been. Other festival attendees said they enjoy veg food, but haven't made the jump to preparing and cooking the food themselves. I was excited to share my new Worcester-oriented vegan blog (http://vegpanda.blogspot.com,) hoping to inspire others to experiment with recipes or try some of Worcester's many vegan restaurant options.

Among the food vendors at Open Road were Loving Hut, a local vegan favorite, (located on Chandler St.) They served up a good mix of crispy appetizers to compliment the tasty rice & lo mein. (Be sure to come to one of the Loving Hut buffet VegWorcester fundraisers. They occur monthly and are only $10!) To add to our excitement about the veg food options on Saturday, there were delicious veggie dogs for sale at the cart parked just outside the gates! The avocado, tomato and onion toppings were a nice surprise and made for a unique vegan option that many seemed to enjoy.

Check out Worcester Mag's Open Road review online with a write-up towards the end about our table!

We are looking forward to the rest of the festival season in Worcester with Pet Rock Festival and stART On The Street later this month!

Vegan Dinner at Loving Hut (Hamilton St.)

Vegan Dinner at Loving Hut (Hamilton St.)  Loving Hut on Hamilton Street is bright, cozy, inexpensive and completely vegan. I keep going back to try all the different menu items. I enjoy their wonton soup and their vegan cupcakes are pretty good as well. You definitely will be feeling the love at the Loving Hut- I'm always welcomed and remembered. You get individual attention and your delicious food comes out lighting fast. All of the items are pretty tasty, but today my friend Aurora and I shared an appetizer, an entree & a rice dish:

Golden Nuggets w\ special sauce 
(soy protein similar to chicken nuggets)

Sweet & Sour Divine (soy protein, bell peppers,
pineapple, carrots, green onion, sesame seeds)\

Healthy Fried Rice (brown rice, carrots, 
peas, corn, onion, soy protein, green onion)

NYC: Tons of vegan options!

This entry may be a bit of a departure from Worcester-oriented eateries, but being able to scout out good veg food when you're traveling is vital! I've been hanging out in NYC lately and I'm lovingggg the veg options! Everywhere I go I see vegetarian and vegan plastered on the front of restaurants. I've noticed many coffee and sandwich shops offer soy-milk also which is great. I stopped in a cute smoothie "bar" and with mentioning that the menu seemed to be all yogurt  - based smoothies, they were happy to oblige my interest in a non-dairy smoothie with either a juice or soy milk base. I ended up with a freshly made pineapple-orange-strawberry-banana smoothie similar to one I'd make at home. Some other great finds:

                                                             

Vegan Chocolate doughnut from a shop in the Lower East Side.   My friend got up early and waited in a long ass line to get us some vegan doughnuts. I woke up to this chocolate-y awesomeness. Worcester needs more vegan breakfast options. Am I right?

 

Healthy veg selections at a small Turkish restaurant called Döner (Brooklyn / Williamsburg.) One of the girls I'm traveling with is actually from Turkey and this was her first time in NYC. This little Turkish place kind of jumped out at me when I drove by in the cab. She explained to me after that Döner means something similar to hamburger?, and though they do have veg options, they also do have specific meat & grille food as a highlight. I ordered a small falafal appetizer and the shepard salad (diced tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley & mint flavored with extra virgin olive oil & lemon juice) and my friend had the hummus/pita. 

Full course vegan goodness!   Angelica Kitchen  NYC (East Villlage) Angelica Kitchen has atmosphere, service and amazing food. This place has a good variety and does a unique twist on the usual  faves. We got a complimentary appetizer of Angelica cornbread with tahini spread to share, and everyone seemed to enjoy it. For a drink I had the fresh lemonade, and it was actually the best lemonade I've ever consumed! Very natural, perfectly sweet and without any of that eye-squinting tang that I'm not a fan of.

    For an appetizer I also tried the Agrarian Salgado  (baked rounds of mashed yukon gold potatoes and herbed seitan, with a basil-walnut pesto center; topped with dill-tofu sour cream & garnished with piquant marinated kale.) The marinated kale was delicious and I liked that portion even better than the actual potato/seitan rounds.

   For my meal I ordered tofu & soba noodles with black sesame sauce  (wasabi, garlic, toasted sesame oil & sesame seeds) Twas soooooooo good. Two basic vegan foods but with the twist I spoke of earlier- The black sesame sauce was.. well.. unexpectedly fucking awesome. 

   Although we were all full, we ordered the vegan cheesecake, which we all agreed tasted nothing like cheesecake. I honestly feel like this was another dessert that they mixed up with the cheesecake because other than looking similar to a slice of cheesecake, it tasted nothing like cheese at all. It was really delicious though- light and fruity. I ended up taking two bites (hence that missing portion in the photo...) and saving the rest for breakfast! 

   

Loving Hut Vegan Cuisine New York City NYC (7th Ave)

Loving Hut is one of my favorite places in Worcester, so I thought it was only fitting to visit the NYC location. The interior is tiny but colorful and chic! The menu has items such as: Crispy Vegan Burger, Avocado Salad, Spinach Quesadilla, Thai Curry, Happy Dumplings, and The Loving Hut Sandwich. There are tons of gluten free options. All items on the menu are vegan and less than $10! Yay. I'll miss all the NYC veg food, but I'll be just as anxious to visit Worcester veg-friendly spots when I return!

August Loving Hut (Chandler) Buffet

 I had another awesomeee vegan lunch at The Loving Hut (Chandler) today. The Loving Hut (formerly Buddha Hut) has a bountiful vegan buffet once a month, with 10% of the proceeds benefiting VegWorcester. Typically its on the second Saturday of each month from noon-7pm. I've been to about five of the buffet events now, and its always cheap (just $10/all you can eat) and tasty, with good service and good people. Dessert is extra, but for $2.00 for a slice, you won't be able to say no to the vegan chocolate cake. ;) Hell yeah.

Loving Hut's Thai Coconut Soup for lunch

I had a scrumptious lunch at The Loving Hut on Chandler Street today with my friend Melanie. We both got the Thai coconut soup and shared fresh loving rolls, yummy fingers and the healthy fried rice. It was Mel's first time there, and even as a non-vegetarian she was diggin on it.
At only $3.50/bowl, the thai coconut soup is a must-try menu item and happens to be my current fave. It has an assortment of veggies and tofu, with the perfect amount of creamy-sweetness and a spicy kick. I should branch out to other menu items, but I can't help but fill up on the damn soup every time!