Sunday, February 13, 2011

Have a Heart for Animals!

Happy Valentine's Day, y'all! When you're gettin' gushy with your loved ones, don't forget about the creatures who need our love the most. Every year, on the weekend before Valentine's Day, our local veggie group Food Awareness puts on a "Have a Heart for Animals" demo at the busy corner of Poplar and Highland in East Memphis.

I didn't take any shots this year (oops, forgot!), but here's a snap from last year's demo. The people in the back — Vaughan and Barbara — organized this year's demo, but the guy in the front (Mark) wasn't able to come this past Saturday:

I believe we ended up with about 10 people, all holding signs with pro-vegan, Valentine-themed messages. Here's my sign (it's the same one I've used for the past several years):

After lunch, we all caravaned to Mosa Asian Bistro, a regional eclectic Asian eatery with lots and lots of vegan options. Our server was so amazing. He literally went through every dish on the menu, explaining what was and wasn't (or what could be made) vegan. After much deliberation (I don't do choices well!), I finally settled on the Thai Curry with Brown Rice:

Unlike some Thai curries, this one is naturally fish sauce-free. It was all coconutty, and Mosa was quite generous with the fried tofu and veggies (potatoes, carrots, broccoli, and onions). I ate every last bite, including that giant mound of brown rice. Of course, I doused the dish in sriracha and Mosa's hot chili sauce first.

For more on Mosa or other Memphis vegan dining options, check out my Memphis Vegan Dining Guide.

7 comments:

dreaminitvegan said...

I love that you do this! We do need to remind people about our animal friends.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Jessica said...

What a great thing to do, Bianca. I like the association of v-day with animals. There is so much talk of treating animals well, right up until the point when you are ready to eat them. There are new ads here from the ohio pork farmers showing off how well they care for their pigs. Yum, bacon, right?! Anyway, I hope you got some good attention in town!

Amanda @ Hungry Vegan Traveler said...

What a lovely idea! I wish I had thought to organize such an event around here in time for V-Day. Oh well -- every day is a good day to have a heart!

Sarah S. said...

Hey, we both have Thai curry V-day posts! :) hope you have a lovely day!

Eat Vegan said...

Next time I'm on the way to Tunica I'm stopping at Mosa!

morganbb said...

Someone just recommended your blog to me and I LOVE IT! I went vegan (sometimes vegetarian on days I slip up!) this past year and it has been so hard trying to find places to eat! I love your Memphis Food Dining Guide. Thank you for everything you post on here, this is such a God send! And I would really like to get involved with your Food Awareness group here in Memphis. The more like minded people I can meet the better! Love the valentines day theme for the animals too, my dogs are my valentines every day, they are part of the reason I decided I could no longer eat animals.

morganbb said...

I just tried this thai curry at Mosa's and truly it was DELICIOUS! I will be going back! Thanks for this suggestion.