Photos From The First Annual LA Vegan Street Fair!

March 5th, 2015 - filed under: Furthermore » Reviews

LA Vegan Street Fair

Last Sunday Waits, Jeremy and I had the pleasure of experiencing LA’s newest vegan extravaganza – the LA Vegan Street Fair. Organized by my friend and fellow vegan power-mama Jess from The Vedge, this event is just the latest in a long line of incredible SoCal vegan festivals. And man, I know that when people think “Vegan Mecca”, it’s always New York, Portland, and San Francisco that come to mind.

But I gotta say – I am just continually impressed and delighted by the BURSTING vegan scene that’s happening in Los Angeles right now! Events, meetups, shows, gatherings, so much enthusiasm, and more so than in any of the other cities I’ve experienced – DIVERSITY. It’s truly special and I feel so grateful to be a part of it.

And last weekend’s Vegan Street Fair was no exception. It was packed – and I mean overly-packed, haha, but that’s a good thing right? – with people from all walks of life. Very old and very young, all colors and backgrounds, hipsters and hippies and families and squares, and everything in between. Basically, it was a wide cut of the general overall LA populace, and to me that means just one thing:

Vegan has gone mainstream!

What a wonderful thing to experience. And it really was a wonder of a day, full of catching up with old friends, getting to know new friends (I finally got to meet Laura Yaz from Big Fat Vegan Radio!), and sampling delicious bite-size treats from dozens of SoCal restaurants and vendors (which was like, actually the point of the event).

So without further ado, here’s a few photos from our day:


LA Vegan Street Fair 1

A pic from our drive down to LA. I Instagrammed: “Eatin’ #seaweed and muggin’ for the camera on our way down to the very first @VeganStreetFair! Sooooo excited for this awesome event by the amazing @thevedge_ // If you want to keep up with my daily musings and mischief, you can follow me – @sayward – on Instagram!


Like the compulsive early-birds that we are, we arrived bright and early before things really got rolling, and immediately bumped into a big ol’ mess of long-lost friends. Mini reunion!


LA Vegan Street Fair 2
Jeremy catching up with Whitney – they haven’t seen each other since he opened Still, so there was definitely LOTS to catch up on! And it means so much to me to hear someone tell Jeremy, “You’re like a different person! You seem so relaxed and alive!” I’m so proud of him, for what he’s accomplished and where it’s brought him. ♥


LA Vegan Street Fair 3
Games!


LA Vegan Street Fair 4

LA Vegan Street Fair 5
And food! Lots of food.


LA Vegan Street Fair 6
Oh hello, gluten-free vegan chocolate-chocolate cake pop.


LA Vegan Street Fair 7
. . . which he promptly stole from me.


LA Vegan Street Fair 8

By noonish the festival was really starting to fill up, as thousands and thousands of vegans swarmed the streets in pursuit of food, friends, and fun (as an aside, please note the height of the rock climbing wall in the background there).


LA Vegan Street Fair 9

LA Vegan Street Fair 10
Of course he had to climb it . . .


LA Vegan Street Fair 11
Like a boss! That’s my entirely plant-built 4-year-old, y’all. (But like, it’s not healthy for kids to be vegan, right? /sarcasm)


LA Vegan Street Fair 12
More mini reunions with long-lost friends! We got to catch up with Jason.


LA Vegan Street Fair 13
And Kylie, who I first met at Vegan Beer Fest the same day I met Jeremy!


LA Vegan Street Fair 14
Oh these two goobers. (this sign was at the booth for the new cruelty-free clothing line, BEET x BEET. I love them! And I totally bought the Go Vegan Right Meow baseball tee. You should check them out! ♥)


LA Vegan Street Fair 15
My adorable friend Joni from Just The Food had a booth of her own, serving up AMAZING pulled jackfruit and faux-fish tacos.


LA Vegan Street Fair 16
TACOS


LA Vegan Street Fair 17
Follow Your Heart was sampling their new line of block cheeses. I think this is the best “cheese and crackers” cheese I’ve ever had! I usually only like to eat cultured nut cheeses if I’m eating them plain/cold, on their own. But these were awesome! And the tomato soup was a fantastic bonus.


LA Vegan Street Fair 18
Oh also this bakery-fresh-gluten-free-vegan-”oreo” happened, because oreo.


LA Vegan Street Fair 19
Josh was there representing Herbivore, and (broken record, I know) it was soooo good to see him!


LA Vegan Street Fair 21
More sweet treats. I guess it was just that kind of day? This is gluten-free German Chocolate Cake and it was my favorite thing I ate at the whole fair. Perfection.


LA Vegan Street Fair 20
Storm clouds gathering . . . (in LA?? say it ain’t so!)


LA Vegan Street Fair 22
No really, gathering.


That pic was taken right before the sky opened up and dumped – I mean DUMPED – all over us. It was hailing big icy chunks and Jeremy, Waits and I had to scurry into a Porta Potty to wait out the “winter” weather madness. It was actually kind of fun, and within 10 minutes the worst of it had passed.

Of course, it did continue to rain on and off for the rest of the day. Soggy.


LA Vegan Street Fair 23LA Vegan Street Fair 24

Like I said, soggy.


But all in all, it was an absolutely amazing day that far exceeded any of my expectations. And you know what? LA just keeps doing that to me.

So thanks, LA. I think I kind of love you.

And cheers! Cheers to LA and the badass vegan army that’s making it burn brighter than ever. All my love.


LA Vegan Street Fair 25

♥ Until next time! ♥


  • http://thewh0lestory.com Vanessa

    This looks like soooo much fun! I can’t believe Portland hasn’t put on their own street fair before. Keeping my fingers crossed!

  • http://howtofeedawookie.blogspot.com/ WookieWifey

    Everything looks so good and like so much fun! I’m still so digging your hair. I’ve done full-on rainbow before, but never just mermaid pastels and I love it. You still using Manic Panic? If so, what shades did you use?

    Also, the link to the gorgeous Still website reminded me, gotta brag, totally picked up an original 1960s atomic-style carafe for $1 at a thrift store the other day. ^_^

  • Rebecca Carnes

    So much fun!!!! I am totally sad we missed it but cannot wait for next year – It will definitely be worth the drive!
    All of the food looked sooo yummy. Loved all the pictures AND knowing that the Vegan community is growing here in So Cal:)

    ….Holy Moly Waits made it all the way to the top of that climbing wall!! I def. would not have made it even halfway lol

  • veganinbrighton

    What an awesome day, not the hail, that didn’t sound so great, but yay for everything else especially Joni and her tacos!

  • http://bonzaiaphrodite.com/ Sayward Rebhal

    Haha, I know right? Get on it Portland!

  • http://bonzaiaphrodite.com/ Sayward Rebhal

    I’m actually not using Manic Panic these days! I found a new brand, called Ion, which is AWESOME! Vegan and cruelty-free, made in America, and with the best range of colors (including premixed pastels) I’ve ever seen. LOVE IT.

    Ooh and great score on the Atomic carafe, that’s a great price. I *love* those sorts of treasures. =)

  • http://bonzaiaphrodite.com/ Sayward Rebhal

    Next year you guys have to come for sure! It was so fun and *super* kiddo-friendly.

    Waits is a climbing pro, it’s crazy. He goes to the rock gym with his dad, but still. I’m constantly surprised by his strength and agility.

  • http://bonzaiaphrodite.com/ Sayward Rebhal

    Joni’s tacos (and her smile!) were most definitely a highlight. ♥

  • http://howtofeedawookie.blogspot.com/ WookieWifey

    Oh, I have used Ion, but I had no idea it was Vegan or cruelty-free…my niece just gave it to me because she didn’t like it, lol. I did like it, but it is pricier than Manic Panic at the local beauty joint. It was more vibrant than MP (as was Splat) and longer-lasting, so I plan to swap for my brighter colors…for pastels I still prefer to mix down MP with conditioner because…broke/cheap.

  • http://www.theveganchickpea.com theveganchickpea

    what an awesome day.

  • Momster

    Looks like an awesome time.. And yay for Vegan going mainstream, I mean if it’s here in eastern Kentucky it’s gotta be everywhere lmao!!

  • Gretchen Keller

    Looks like an excellent day! And more vegan cheese posts/pictures, please!!! Those cubes look awesome! xo

  • Ginger Baker

    Isn’t he 5 now? ;-)

  • Ginger Baker

    Wait, I see I am ahead of myself, nevermind!

  • Leigha

    Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I didn’t hear about this! Yet another reason I need to go to the big city – it’s so much easier to be vegan. I hope I can visit this street fair sometime in the next few years!

  • Pingback: Celebrating FIVE Years With My Favorite Person On Earth | Bonzai Aphrodite

  • Kylie @ FotV

    That was a fun day to start a week of vegan epicness! So glad I got to see you and the crew!!!

  • Pingback: Spring Reading and Links - Honest Beans

  • Pingback: Spring Break Family Road Trip Part I: Anza Borrego Desert & The Salton Sea | Bonzai Aphrodite