Central Florida Veg Fest 2011 - Part IV

"Facts are meaningless. You can use facts to prove anything that’s even remotely true."
- Homer Simpson

Hi everyone! May your weekend be full of hope, happiness and promises of a better tomorrow.

Let's wrap this event up today, okay? Today it's a new weekend and both Tiffany and I still have fresh fond memories of the Veg Fest weekend past. Yes ~ It was that nice.

Sitting in beer garden looking out towards information vendors.

Now that all is said and done, Tiffany and I have but only two complaints abet minor ones I suppose. Our first was one unnamed food vendor who simply was not prepared to handle crowds. Only two people tending to the entire booth! One person taking the money and a second line (after payment has been made) to order your food. Not only was this second person taking the order but they were the same person who was making what was ordered, fresh from scratch for every order.

Guess what? Tiffany spent about an hour simply to order and receive hummus! I kid you not... just hummus.  I'm certainly no Hollywood acting genius but even I know that if the order is simple, you momentarily put the fried falafel balls on hold to scoop out a bowl of previously prepared hummus?  I dunno... Perhaps I am missing something here and should simply stick to my potentially Academy Award winning movie roles?

It was indeed delicious and fresh hummus but it was nowhere worth the effort to purchase it. Next year we plan to visit the "established" food vendors such as The Loving Hut, Joe's Oat Patties, The Drunken Monkey Coffee Bar, Ethos, or Dandelion Cafe. A word to the wise... before simply choosing and ordering your lunch, take the extra second or two and observe how they are managing themselves. Chalk up another lesson learned.

Oh yeah... this explains why Chucky took so many pictures from the roped-off "Beer Garden" area (see Part I). Tiffany and I only had a single beer each but I spent lots and lots of time watching these beers ferment as she retrieved the hummus.

Oh? The second lesson learned? If you stay and watch the last of the food demonstrations, be prepared to leave and face food vendors exiting the festival. Dumb old Chucky figured we'd grab dinner after the final food demonstration.

Chef Rama Raghava

Guess what? When we finished watching Chef Rama, we were met by all of the food vendors breaking down and packing away their booths. I suppose that everyone had an obligation to leave the park before sundown.

Crap! I almost forgot another lesson learned. We had a most pleasurable day but were dawg-tired as we trekked back to the parking garage a block away. Then Tiffany & I said to ourselves, "Wait a minute! Since we cannot grab dinner from the Veg Fest vendors, let's go to the Florida Hospital's vegan Lakeside Cafe we've been promising ourselves to visit!"  After all, it's just another 100 yards over yonder.

Guess what we learned after walking another distance away from the direct Veg Fest to parking garage direct path? Not only is Lakeside Cafe not open whatsoever on weekends, they also close early on weekdays at 4:30 PM. Anywho... not only did we run out of luck with the Veg Fest food vendors for dinner, looks like we've lost out on the Florida Hospital as well.

Where did we end up getting dinner on the way home? After stopping by Wrap Planet and just missing Olga's closing, we dropped by Chamberlins Market & Cafe. Guess what? Again, too late. The cafe had closed for the evening.

Nope. Not an issue. Their deli counter is opened until store closing. We picked up some vegan tofu "veal" cutlets and a couple of side dishes "to go". We arrived home to feed The Seed and enjoy a most delicious vegan take-home dinner. This after a most magnificent afternoon at Central Florida Veg Fest 2011.

Thank you to everyone who has anything to do with the event! Abet some minor and humorous inconveniences, both Tiffany & I had a superb time. I am savoring fond memories of my first Veg Fest as I look forward to the next one!

Hi-dee hi-dee why-not-Google-"vegetarian events"-in-your-home-town-ho my friend?