Anyone here Vegan?

[JBH3]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

I went vegetarian for a few weeks in the past, for me it wasn't hard at all. My problem with being vegan is that it takes time to prepare meals,sometimes it costs more, and there aren't many vegetarian/vegan restaurants around. As a college student, it's just cheaper and faster for me to put something is the microwave or go to a fast food place.

Well...frozen and steam bag vegetables are extremely convenient, healthy, and cheap. I buy lots of frozen veggies and steam and serve for dinner.

I love my frozen peas...I bring some in to re-heat and eat for lunch while at work quite often. Today one of my co-workers was like "John you really love your peas", and I responded w/ they are great and very good for you.

I then googled "nutrition of peas" and navigated to a "self" website which gave the nutrition facts of a pea, stating a serving of 1 cup of fresh/frozen green peas has 8grams of protein and 7grams of Dietary Fiber!

I love my meats/dairy....but the veggies and fruits are just as precious.

[Jdoug312]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

I went vegetarian for a few weeks in the past, for me it wasn't hard at all. My problem with being vegan is that it takes time to prepare meals,sometimes it costs more, and there aren't many vegetarian/vegan restaurants around. As a college student, it's just cheaper and faster for me to put something is the microwave or go to a fast food place.

Fast-Food restaurants are starting to better accommodate vegans. My favorite restaurant currently is Noodles & Company. Their meals are very customizable, and they even have Tofu!

[55]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

Veggie subs from Subway (on wheat bread, of course) are the only "fast food" I eat.

[RockinDaMike]

I eat Mexican a lot. I get salad: Tortilla with black beans, lettuce, Pico, guacamole and chips.

I also go to all different types of Asian restaurants. They usually have all vegetarian dishes.



Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

[Sublime12089]

Veggie subs from Subway (on wheat bread, of course) are the only "fast food" I eat.

Chipotle is good also, just get black beans bc the pinto beans are made with pork.

Sent from my HTC VLE_U using Tapatalk 2

[AUChase]

I actually like black beans. My usual weekday lunch is baked chicken, brown rice, and black beans.

I've learned in order for me to get a solid workout, I have to eat good throughout the day.

Sent from my Desire HD

[TimmeH]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

My GF has gone Vegan over the last month. Time will tell if she actually sticks to it.


She's made me a few of her vegan meals and everything I've tried so far has been damn tasty. That being said, I love beef way too much to do it. Not to mention her vegan grocery bill is way more than I could imagine spending on food.

[55]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

Chipotle is good also, just get black beans bc the pinto beans are made with pork.

Sent from my HTC VLE_U using Tapatalk 2

The thing with Chipotle is that there are nearly 2,000 calories in one burrito from there. It's also overly loaded with sodium. It does taste damn good though, but I will only go there once or twice a year anymore.

Luckily, Cleveland is a very progressive and forward-thinking city and there are a lot of legitimate vegetarian restaurants in the area that I simply don't need to settle for fast food.

Mike nailed it about the Asian spots, too. Within one mile of my house there are two Thai places (one of which is fantastic) and two Japanese places that all cater to my dietary demands. There is also an out-of-this-world Vietnamese place about five minutes away. I steer clear of your basic Chinese food joints though. That stuff is so Americanized and watered down that it is pretty much worthless.

I'm also really big on Middle Eastern food and since we have a large population of Middle Eastern folks in this region the sheer number of restaurants like that are extremely large. Indian cuisine is very veggie friendly too and my personal favorite place is a spot called Cafe Tandoor about 10 minutes away.

Come to think of it, my diet has EXPANDED since becoming a vegetarian and not been reduced in the slightest. I was never much of an adventurous eater in my teens and early twenties, but now into my thirties I actually look forward to trying new things.

I still smash Italian food 2-3 days a week though. Lots of carbs and all, but any type of pasta/noodles is probably my favorite thing in the world. In fact, I think I have eaten baked ziti for dinner at least once a week for about 4 years. It just never gets old to me.

[Sublime12089]

Would be really nice to live in more progressive city. While Tampa is not the worst, it could be much better. Btw, you used to live here, right 55? Were you veggie at the time? Any tips or know of any good places around here?

Sent from my HTC VLE_U using Tapatalk 2

[55]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

I'm from the Orlando area and I pretty much was a "meat and potatoes" type person back then. I moved to Cleveland in 1997 and have been a vegetarian since 2007, so I don't know anything about maintaining a vegetarian diet in Central Florida at all. While it is certainly a more progressive region now than it was when I left 15 years ago, it still has a long way to go to catch up to where I am at now in that regard.

[JBH3]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

This has unfolded into a great overall discussion on food, healthy choices, etc. I could never be a vegan or vegatarian, but I sure as hell love all my veggies...except brussel sprouts.

As a carnivore (lol) I still wish there were more appeasing/healthy options for simple casual dining.

For instance, given within the 5 mile radius of my house there are the following food choices:

Panera Bread
Subway
5 Guys
Cracker Barrell
IHOP
McDonalds
Taco Bell
Dunkin Donuts
Pizza Hut
Dominos
Papa Johns
Jerry's Subs
Nori Express and a few other American-Chinese eateries

These choices outright suck. Panera Bread has some ok options, but they are way too damn expensive.

I find that the best healthy option is an Indian Cuisine restaurant nearby called "Kabob E Kabob". Portions are reasonable, some skewered chicken breast, w/ chick peas, rice, salad, and Naan bread is a great wholseome meal.

I wish restaurants served more fresh veggies.

Panera would be better if you could get veggies when it didn't involve a salad bomb chock full of chicken, bacon, and some creamy style dressing.

[NDAlum]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

The thing with Chipotle is that there are nearly 2,000 calories in one burrito from there. It's also overly loaded with sodium. It does taste damn good though, but I will only go there once or twice a year anymore.

I freaking love Chipotle and I eat the following:

Salad bowl with double chicken (don't hate me), fajita peppers/onions, mild salsa, and cheese! I don't eat the beans or rice because I just don't eat grains any more unless it's a cheat meal.

They have such high quality meat and it tastes amazing...and their mild salsa (pico) is my favorite.

Off-topic post...so sorry...but I just had this meal the second day in a row and am currently obsessed with it. Will probably eat it tomorrow too as I won't have time to cook tonight!

[JBH3]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

I freaking love Chipotle and I eat the following:

Salad bowl with double chicken (don't hate me), fajita peppers/onions, mild salsa, and cheese! I don't eat the beans or rice because I just don't eat grains any more unless it's a cheat meal.

They have such high quality meat and it tastes amazing...and their mild salsa (pico) is my favorite.

Off-topic post...so sorry...but I just had this meal the second day in a row and am currently obsessed with it. Will probably eat it tomorrow too as I won't have time to cook tonight!

Chipotle is by far my favorite restaurant. Wish there was one nearby where I live. The closest is about 12 miles away @ Potomac Mills and that location is a madhouse; you'll wait in line for 35 minutes at least.

I always, Always, ALWAYS get Tacos. Everything else on the menu is a food-coma, meaning too large of a portion for me.

I get chicken hard tacos w/ black beans, tomato-salsa, sour cream, and lettuce. Best damn meal on God's green earth.

[RockinDaMike]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

This has unfolded into a great overall discussion on food, healthy choices, etc. I could never be a vegan or vegatarian, but I sure as hell love all my veggies...except brussel sprouts.

As a carnivore (lol) I still wish there were more appeasing/healthy options for simple casual dining.

For instance, given within the 5 mile radius of my house there are the following food choices:

Panera Bread
Subway
5 Guys
Cracker Barrell
IHOP
McDonalds
Taco Bell
Dunkin Donuts
Pizza Hut
Dominos
Papa Johns
Jerry's Subs
Nori Express and a few other American-Chinese eateries

These choices outright suck. Panera Bread has some ok options, but they are way too damn expensive.

I find that the best healthy option is an Indian Cuisine restaurant nearby called "Kabob E Kabob". Portions are reasonable, some skewered chicken breast, w/ chick peas, rice, salad, and Naan bread is a great wholseome meal.

I wish restaurants served more fresh veggies.

Panera would be better if you could get veggies when it didn't involve a salad bomb chock full of chicken, bacon, and some creamy style dressing.

I agree, you have to do some research on Yelp to find some healthy spots in your area. It's a trap out here seeing all the bad food options every mile you drive. It's like a crackhead trying to overcome drug abuse but majority of his neighborhood are crack houses.

What's helped me with temptation was to think all this food you see in stores and fast food joints are poison and I mentally make myself sick thinking about eating bad food.

I'm really glad we do talk about nutrition, because not enough people do. Look how passionate people are about their video games and sports but they don't care about their health and body. I realized how f'd up my priorities are and I paid the price with an uncurable disease.

I'm actually glad that I going through it young because I experienced how much it sucks to be sick. It really opens your eyes when you meet diabetics who got their foot cut off or is blind because they can't control what they eat.

The worst is talking to kids with juvenile diabetes. It breaks my heart seeing 10 year olds with this disease and its all because the way their parents feed them.

What I recommend everyone do is find your local farmers market. They are freakin awesome. Not only do you get organic, its way cheaper than from stores and its extremely fresh because its from your local area. Also you are a supporting the local economy and supporting hard working farmers that do it right.

[TheMatrix31]

Re: Anyone here Vegan?

Would be really nice to live in more progressive city. While Tampa is not the worst, it could be much better. Btw, you used to live here, right 55? Were you veggie at the time? Any tips or know of any good places around here?

Sent from my HTC VLE_U using Tapatalk 2

We could switch if you want.