Végétalien à Paris

One stop on my European travels was a little city called Paris. Ever heard of it? We found a little health food store that had some amazing vegan cheeses and spreads. Le Sojami is a french company that makes some ridiculously good herb cream cheese and veg pate. PURAL makes one of the best vegan cheddars I’ve tasted. Carlie and I had a picnic under the Eiffel Tower and made warm baguettes with fresh fig and three cheeses! “Get out of town,” you might be saying to yourself… well I did! I went to France and it was great!

Rory Freedman and I ate at a handsome little veg place called Le Potager Du Marais (mostly vegan) and enjoyed a delicious, traditional French meal with a super-rich chocolate mousse dessert. See the menu below for a descripion of what we ate. We were so thrilled to be eating French food, as oposed to just typical vegan food. One of the many things I loved about Europe is that the sidewalk cafes and bars are all set up to face the street, which makes people-watching so much easier.

Another spot we hit up was La Victoire Supreme Du Coeur. This was fine dining at its best, and if you go to Paris, this is a must. It is totally vegetarian with many vegan options.

In addition to eating out, we also cooked a few meals! I dumpster-dove those gorgeous sunflowers, and we bought produce at little markets in the neighbohood to enjoy with a breakfast of multi-grain banana pancakes that I made from scratch. For dinner, Joelle and Carlie made pan-fried brussels sprout-cakes, roasted chickpeas, and herb-polenta with gravy.

Finally, we went out in search of dancing partners, bars, and booze.

Paul Smith F09, Our Enemy Jason Wu & UK Hospitals to Go Veg

It seems that Europe is always strides ahead of the rest of the world when it comes to health, environment, and social justice. Meat-free menus are to be promoted in UK hospitals as part of a strategy to cut global warming emissions across the National Health Service. This will have several benefits in addition to cutting the #1 cause of global warming, considering the number of diseases associated with meat consumption. ♦LISTEN♦ to Juliette Jowit on her proposal to cut NHS carbon emissions.

Paul Smith’s Paris runway collection for Fall ’09 took flight 2 days ago. My favorite parts of the collection are the double-breasted, high contrast plaid waistcoats, mis-matched tartans,  the meticulous layering, and obviously  – the bow tie. The weathered chelsea boots and hearty twill jackets with pops of color are great for urban boys with bucolic nostalgia – or country boys with city dreams. Collections like these remain a fantasy for many of us who have ethical and ecological aspirations that designers like Paul  Smith haven’t quite been enlightened to yet.  It seems many designers have some fashionable chip on their shoulders, and the thought of doing ‘good’ can’t play into their rebel ambitions. By oh contraire mon frere, the only real iconoclasts are those challenging the great myth. Since Paul has been know to use rabbit fur in his collections, I am thrilled to not see any of that grotesque stuff for Fall ’09. My ideal? All organics, recycled fabrics, and cruelty-free -  don’t change a thing about the aesthetic. Oh, to dream!

Jason Wu is about to become my enemy. After designing Mrs. Obama’s evening gown, he recieved 4 million hits to his website, and what do you think he’s doing with this newfound stardom? Unfortunately, I was absolutely horrified and disgusted when I read his quote on Ecorazzi: “I’m doing a significant fur collection, and the message will be all about luxury.” Ugh! Jason! Please don’t use your powers for evil! Not only is the stone age over, but it would be so typical and thoughless! (Not to mention that promoting luxury in this economic climate might come across as poorly planned). We need visionaries here, not the same old crap. We need to redefine glamour and luxury in ways that don’t torture helpless animals.