The Lion's Chic Tonight

I mentioned before that The Lion is the hot restaurant du jour since its chef John DeLucie formerly worked at The Waverly Inn. While neither place is going to win any culinary awards, The Lion might just win some design awards. It has an old school New York vibe and tons of fabulous vintage photos on its walls hung gallery style with a Basquiat and a LaChapelle. Designer Meg Sharpe apparently used to work for Kelly Wearstler and wanted The Lion to look “a little Miss Havisham.” I wish more restaurants in New York looked this cool! Enjoy!

The Lion

62 West Ninth Street

New York, NY 10011

212-353-8400

Five Ways to be Green in Chicago

Chicago is home to Obama, Oprah and 'oh so good' deep dish pizzas but what about its green scene? Here are five impressive green places to get you started.

Shop at Pivot (pictured above)
After you've sat in the audience for a taping of Oprah (we should all be so lucky) and then checked out the Oprah store, why not walk a few blocks to Pivot and shop for some sublime eco fashion? Pivot is 'Chicago's first boutique devoted to eco-fashion' and their stylish, CFL lit, zero-VOC painted store has every popular eco label a girl could wish for: Mociun, Del Forte, Ecoganik, She Bible, Toggery, Kate Organic and of course, Chicago based designer, Lara Miller. Pivot often hold events in store which is great news for any local green girls but for those girls not lucky enough to live in Chicago, you can still purchase Pivot's chic pieces through their online store. Want more good news? It's currently sale time at Pivot and they are offering a whopping 40-70% off items in store and 50% off online purchases (until July 24th). Just visit their website to nab the special discount code.

1101 W. Fulton Market, Chicago, IL, 60607
Pivot Boutique




Eat at Green Zebra
This vegetarian-friendly restaurant is located in West Town and offers a slick and sophisticated menu featuring tempting taste bud delights such as Roasted Parsnip Ravioli, Foraged Mushroom Dumplings, Miso Risotto and equally scrumptious desserts. In fact ever since reading the description of their Vegan Chocolate Cake with crispy peanut butter, banana sorbet and salted caramel, I have not been able to think of anything else!

1460 West Chicago Ave, Chicago, IL, 60642
Green Zebra




Shop for little ones at Green Genes
This adorable store is relatively new to Chicago (it opened in March 2008) but their carefully selected range of eco-friendly products for 'children and their grown-ups too' will excite both locals and tourists alike. Not only do owners Heather and Christina aim to fill their store with organic and eco-friendly products but they even made sure their store interior adopted a similar eco conscious philosophy by using bamboo counters, low VOC paints and packaging from biodegradable materials. Look out for their online shopping site coming soon.

5111 North Clark St, Chicago, IL, 606040
Green Genes




Eat at Karyn's Fresh Corner Cafe and Raw Vegan Gourmet Restaurant
Karyn Calabrese is making it oh so easy to live a healthy life in Chicago with her two restaurants, holistic day spa and weekly meal program! At the North Halsted location you will find a Raw Salad Bar, Fresh Juice Bar offering exotic smoothies such as the 'Really Rare and Raw' smoothie made with 'nutmilk, dates, banana and vanilla' and raw, vegan desserts like strawberry cake and lemon squares. Yum, yum, yum! The Raw Vegan Gourmet restaurant serves an eclectic menu from pad thai to tamales of corn husks filled with organic masa and other wondrous delights! There is also a store and an Inner Beauty Center on site.
1901 North Halsted Street, Chicago, IL, 60614

Karyn's Cooked - Conscious Comfort Foods
Vegans need their comfort food as well, so this is the perfect stop for anyone seeking a delicious alternative to the raw food offered at the Raw Vegan Gourmet restaurant. Here you will be served wonderful brunches of banana french toast or lunch and dinner dishes like vegan pizzas, enchiladas and burgers!

738 N Wells St, Chicago, IL
Karyn Raw




Shop fair trade at the Greenheart Shop
Shopping for an array of products under one roof is bliss but what about when all the products are fair trade? A green girl's heaven! Greenheart is Chicago's 'only nonprofit eco friendly, fair trade store' and you can happily, rest assured all the wonderful products lining the shelves come from artisans who have been paid 'fair living wages'. Greenheart has a treasure trove of items for everyone and every occasion. It is the ideal place to purchase gifts that are both ethical and aesthetical for your family, friends or you (choose from clothing, homewares, beauty, food - it's all here). They even stock my favourite eco bag brands, English Retreads and Mar y Sol, formerly known as Mad Imports. The store has recently moved into larger premises (1911 W. Division) proving the demand for green is growing in major cities like Chicago.

1911 W. Division
Greenheart Shop (online shopping is available through their website).

Naam Vegetarian Restaurant, Vancouver

Next time you are in Vancouver, stop by the Naam restaurant for some heavenly vegetarian food in the beachy, hippy-esque area of Kitsilano. Winner of countless awards for a menu that is available 24/7 (except Christmas day), the Naam has something for everyone, vegetarian or not.

Grab some pancakes, granola or free-range eggs over easy for breakfast or for dinner choose from Mexican enchiladas, burritos, burgers or Asian stir-fries. My all time favourite meal had to be the ‘Maui-Maui Platter’ which featured the Maui burger with mushrooms, water chestnuts, pineapple, teriyaki sauce served with sesame fries, salad and miso gravy. I still dream about it to this day! Despite the large portions it is difficult to say no to the dessert menu which includes the ‘Shakti Cake’, a vegan chocolate carrot cake with hemp icing or try the wonderfully named, ‘Noh-Pie’ which has no eggs and no dairy but lots of yumminess in a banana date nut cream pie.

The Naam is the city’s ‘oldest natural foods restaurant’ and very popular with locals who love its relaxed vibe and live music. The garden patio is especially great during the summer. If you visit, have a ‘Maui Maui Platter’ for me and let me know what other dishes you enjoyed.

The Naam – 2724 W 4th Ave, Vancouver, BC.
Image: From Naam website.

The Corner

I attended a little gathering at La Esquina Friday night and I was once again reminded as to why it is one of my favorite restaurants if not my all time favorite. Mexican food usually isn't known as a healthy culinary choice but the food at La Esquina is always fresh and light and delicious. And the prices aren't bad either. The restaurant's original claim to fame was that you had to traipse through the kitchen to get to the dining room but luckily the food has kept the place from turning into a flash in the pan like many New York hot spots. Unfortunately, reservations are hard to come by and are worth scheduling a month in advance but if you can't wait that long, you can eat at the Taqueria or the recently opened Cafe upstairs.

The reason for the gathering was an industry insider's decision to open her own studio, more on that after the formal announcement, but I also met a few other people who had taken that scary leap of faith to start their own companies. If there is a silver lining to this grey economic cloud, I think it will be that more people decide to open their own companies or go out on their own as a designer. I encourage those of you who are thinking about working for yourself to lay the groundwork now while you are still working elsewhere. It makes things a heck of a lot easier and if you do find yourself in the unfortunate position of getting laid off, you will be one step ahead!

La Esquina

114 Kenmare Street

New York, NY 10012

646-613-7100