Vegan Food at Bonnaroo!

I'm back from Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, and I can't even tell you how awesome it is to sleep in my own bed (instead of an air mattress in a tent), use a real toilet (instead of a porta potty), and take a proper shower. This was my sixth year attending the massive music fest, and while I love it every year, I'm always so glad when it's over.

I had some great experiences though! I got to see anarcho-punk band Against Me! with lead singer Laura Jane Grace post-transition. When I saw them last, she had not yet come out as trans. Since I attend Bonnaroo for work, I get to photograph the artists from the photo pit, so I get a great view of the shows.

I saw Corey Feldman's weird band, Corey Feldman and the Angels. And I was introduced to the post-dubstep sound of SBTRKT. I danced and hula-hooped late into the night to the sounds of Deadmau5 and Bassnectar. Good times. I finally took a yoga class at Roo, something I've been meaning to do for years. Practicing under the early morning sky with hundreds of other fest-goers was a magical experience, especially knowing that most people at Roo were still asleep in their tents or nursing their hangovers.

But you're here for the food, and luckily, Bonnaroo is sooooo vegan-friendly. Most vendors have a vegan option, and some are entirely vegan or vegetarian. This year, I tried to branch out and sample new stuff that I hadn't tried in previous years. But I did eventually go with some old standards, like this Vegetable Noodle Bowl. I had this dish Thursday night, our first night there, when I was having a super-craving for noodles. Tried this last year and just loved it. It didn't disappoint. Carb-heavy, saucy goodness.

I ate a fair amount of food at the campsite — just stuff I brought — to save money since most meals purchased inside the festival grounds cost about $10. And I'll do a full post tomorrow on camping food. But each night, I made it a point to buy a dish from a vendor for dinner. On Friday evening, I headed straight for the Food Truck Oasis, where trucks from all over the South park and sell meals. I'd heard there was a truck peddling vegan poutine called — and this is the best name ever — Poutine Your Mouth. Ha!

Poutine Your Mouth sells all kinds of poutine, but they offered a vegan version. I went with Magic Mushroom Poutine — fries, gravy, vegan cashew cheese, mushrooms, and kale sauteed in truffle oil. OMG! Best thing I ate at Bonnaroo this year.

Deadmau5 performed late on Friday night, so I got hungry for a late-night snack. These Vegan Black Bean & Corn Tamales from the Dia De Los Tamales vendor hit the spot. Soft, warm, hearty, and covered in a tasty red sauce.

On Saturday, I decided to buy lunch and dinner from the vendors so I could try more things. I sort of just wanted to order poutine all weekend, but I knew I should sample variety so I'd have more to blog about. I ventured out for lunch, seeking something light since it was extremely hot outside. I was wearing a unicorn dress and a unicorn horn headband, like you do. And when I walked past a taco stand, dude complimented my unicorns, and then we got into a discussion about unicorn action figures. And before I knew it, I was ordering his Black Bean Tacos with Cabbage Slaw. These were tasty, but they were a tad small for the $10 price tag. These were my first post-Austin tacos by the way.

I had to shoot photos of Hozier and The War on Drugs on Saturday afternoon, and once that was done, I went back out in search of food. I noticed a pizza vendor's menu offered something called "secret garden vegan" pizza. So I stopped by and asked for the vegan slice. The guy working said, "Um, we have vegetable pizzas," and he pointed to one covered in cheese. I said, "Your menu says you have a vegan one, too." And he said, "Oh, like cheese pizza?" And I said, "Vegan means no cheese." He looked puzzled and turned to ask another worker. She pointed at the last slice of a veggie-heavy pizza that appeared to be cheeseless and said, "That one's vegan. No cheese." And he said, "Oh, I had no idea that vegans didn't eat cheese! I learned something." He was apparently new, but I was glad to educate. And this slice of Secret Garden Pizza was delicious! It had big chunks of roasted garlic, zucchini, spinach, onion, banana pepper, tomato, and marinara.

I stayed up until 3 a.m. on Saturday because I couldn't miss a moment of Bassnecter's set, which started at 1 a.m. So I knew I'd need some late-night fuel. And the samosas at Bonnaroo are sort of a tradition for me. So I got a couple of Vegetable Samosas. Perfect fuel for dancing late into the night.

There were tons of other vegan options to choose from. But this is all I had money and room in my belly for. But I'll check back in tomorrow with a post on my favorite instant camping meals.