Alright folks, I’m back! I apologize for the absence. I foolishly thought I’d only miss a day or so of posting, but then Nate’s ultra-mega birthday party starting rolling towards the big surprise like a snowball down an embankment, getting bigger and messier and funner and more decorative and delicious and AWESOME til I was like aaaaaahhh!!! No time for blogging til it’s over!!!
The big day has come & gone – and it was perfect and I’ll tell you more soon – so we can get back to business, or at least this month’s VeganMoFo theme: Atlanta, the vegan-friendly jewel of the American South! This post is kind of like two others, in that 1) it’s a grocery store tour and 2) it focusses on exciting veganness that’s not quite in Atlanta proper. Of course, I’m talking about
Reason number 8: Cosmo’s Vegan Shoppe!
Quick: think of an entirely vegan grocery store run by a family of cool vegans. Time’s up! Food Fight come to mind? VeganEssentials? Somewhere else? Whatever, those places are great, but since I learned of their existence in 2007, Cosmo’s Vegan Shoppe has been my go-to for vegan goodies. Online shopping is fun and all, but like opening a menu at a vegan restaurant and sighing with joy at the knowledge that you can order ANYTHING, there’s something special about walking into Cosmo’s retail location in Marietta, Georgia. Their selection is vast: cookbooks, personal care items, wallets and accessories, companion animal food & accessories, lots of local products, and of course, a giant grocery. You can buy all the things!!
BREAKING: World-famous cookbook author and all-around awesome person Isa Chandra Moskowitz is going to be at Cosmo’s on October 30th, promoting her new collaboration with Terry Romero, Vegan Pie in the Sky. Order your copy now if you haven’t already. (I’m excited to try my pal Lagusta’s chocolate raspberry tart.) You’d better be there!
Owners Leigh & Ken are long-time vegans and importantly, super-duper nice people. Here’s an example: so Cosmo’s is only open to the public on Saturdays these days, and Nate & I *really* wanted to stop by en route to my cousin’s wedding reception last Saturday.
my lovely cousin Laurel & her perfect new husband John on their wedding day!
Unfortunately, a late start, terrible Atlanta traffic, and yes, even a little fender-bender (not involving us!), had us getting out of the city later than usual. Nate called Leigh and said we were on our way, but we’d probably be there right at 6 – is that okay? She conferred with Ken, and yes! No prob! And then we had to call back because it was going to be 6:10, and they were all like, see you soon, drive safe! Isn’t that something. (NOTE: This little anecdote should not encourage you to push boundaries of Leigh & Ken’s kindness. Don’t be jerks like us, get there between 10 – 6!)
As a yummy thank you, I brought them one of the grasshopper cupcakes I’d made for Laurel & John’s reception.
Based on recipes from Isa's Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World
Walking in, I spied the seasonal candy display of Sjaak’s, Yummy Earth, and Sweet & Sara products. Sjaak’s is a great little organic chocolate company in Petaluma, California. Cosmo’s introduced me to their products years ago and I have been a fan since.
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You know, cuz they’re vegan, AKA not made with gelatin, which is a partial hydrolysis of collagen extracted from the boiled bones, connective tissues, organs and some intestines of animals such as domesticated cattle, pigs, and horses. Yuck!
Turn around to greet the candy shelf:
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general grocery stock
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Angel Food products: marshmallow kits & vegan meringue cookie mix. Made by my friend Alice, imported from her shop in New Zealand!
Vegan chicharróns – “pork” rinds.
The elusive white chocolate chip! Imported from Israel.
Let’s walk back towards the cold cases, where we’ll find lots of interesting things.
Passing by a great stock of meaty mixes, TVP, and Soy Curls…
We come to a freezer. Gardein burgers, May Wah products (chicken nuggets, tuna, fish sticks (?!?!), citrus spare ribs, ham, bacon…), even vegan calamari?!?! (All the links are to Cosmo’s, but you should check out May Wah’s website too, just to see all the crazy things they’ve veganised. Like LOBSTER.)
The other freezer has slightly less-weird vegan choices: seitan-based products by Atlanta locals gutenfleischers.
The MATCH meats:
Cosmo’s carries MATCH brand Mediterranean-style stuffed vegan chicken, New England-style crab cakes, vegan ground beef, ground breakfast sausage, ground chicken, ground crab, ground Italian sausage, and ground pork. I haven’t tried MATCH products but all the folks I know who have just love ‘em. Honestly, while I absolutely agree that meat analogs can help ease the transition to veganism, I don’t really use them. I’m more of a tofu/tempeh/seitan kinda gal. In fact, typing all this “ground” chicken/crab/lobster business is really weirding me out! Even if my freezer isn’t stuffed with it, I’m still glad it’s an option.
Nate was possibly most excited about this from Vegetarian Plus brand:
After thawing, I whipped it up with Vegenaise, sweet relish, dijon mustard, and a little black pepper. (My first “tuna” recipe in fifteen years, and somehow I never forgot the “proper” components.) It was absolutely too fishy and “real” for me, but Nate LOVED it. I broiled Daiya on a piece of wheat bread for him so he could have a tuna melt like the one he got a Curly’s Vegetarian Lunch in NY over the summer. He was in pieces. This box comes with two rolls and makes enough tuna salad for 4-6 sandwiches.
When you tell people you’re vegan, one of the most common (non-bitchy) responses you get goes something like this: “Oh, I could probably/definitely do vegetarian, but I could never go vegan – I couldn’t give up CHEESE.” Setting aside the fact that cheese is absolutely horrible for the environment, (in terms of carbon emissions, cheese is third only to lamb & beef. Seriously, go look at this chart from the Enviromental Working Group’s Meat Eater’s Guide right now.), and the fact that most of the “cheese” people squee over is total crap anyway, there are SO MANY DELICIOUS MELTY CREAMY TANGY YUMMY VEGAN CHEEZE CHOICES THESE DAYS. There’s simply no excuse anymore.
Teese by Chicago soydairy in mozzarella, cheddar, nacho cheeze, and creamy cheddar; Wayfare Foods’ “We Can’t Say It’s Cheese” dips and spreads in cheddar, hickory-smoked cheddar, cheddar-style dip, and mexi-cheddar.
My favorite vegan cheeze is Dr-Cow, made of cultured cashews! Daiya is another that’s generally beloved by all, renowned for its stretchy, melty texture.
And then there’s Sheese by Bute Island Foods, in gouda, mozzarella, smoked cheddar, blue, medium cheddar, cheddar with chives, and strong cheddar.
Owner Leigh & shopper Nate discussing the Teese.
Moving on from the cheeses, we can go play with makeup: Beauty Without Cruelty and
and Herbs of Grace Mineral Makeup both have displays.
Browse the t-shirts and “Cupcaprons” by Atlanta crafter (& friend!) Becky Striepe of Glue & Glitter (etsy shop ; blog.)
Wallets…
And stickers, too! they always have a great selection of stickers. Guess which two of these Nate picked up at Cosmo’s?
Ok, so you know how earlier I said this place is not actually in Atlanta? Cosmo’s moved from N. Highland (Atlanta) to Marietta a few years ago. Atlanta really isn’t a very big city – wikipedia tells me our population is about 400,000. (Please don’t laugh.) Include the “metro” area and it zooms up to several million. So, there are cool things outside the border that is interstate 285.
We have this little joke around here: ITP vs OTP, Inside The Perimeter or Outside the Perimeter. The Perimeter is defined by interstate 285. If you’re inside, the joke goes that you’re a hipstery urbanite, all loft livin’ and Whole Foods shoppin’. You value a walk (or short bike ride!) to Trader Joe’s, independent movie theatres, clubs, adventurous restaurants, and take public transit. Outside? You’re defined by suburban values: an emerald front yard, coupla cars, coupla kids, and the latest-model flatscreen you can afford. You like fast-casual chain restaurants, Hobby Lobby, volunteering at church or with a civic organization, and you live in your car (thanks to a soul-crushing two-hour+ commute to & from your intown job).
THESE ARE HUGE STEREOTYPES OF COURSE, but for some reason, some folks get a kick out of them. If you *do* decide to make Atlanta your home, don’t think anyone’s gonna look down on you if you choose to live outside the perimeter. It’s not my choice, but you’d definitely be closer to Cosmo’s – and that’s a huge plus. :)
Another? Our two Loving Hut restaurants are located OTP! (Norcross & Kennesaw.) Do you know about Loving Hut, the worldwide vegan chain nurtured by the Supreme Master Ching Hai?
Reason 8.5: Loving Hut!
If not, all you basically need to know is that they make one of the best veggie burgers around:
I have dreams about this burger.
My stomach is tying itself in knots of longing over this picture. If only you weren’t so far away!
If you’re already an in-towner, make a Saturday trip to Cosmo’s and be sure to stop in at Loving Hut in Kennesaw for a burger. Think of it as a mini-vegan road-trip. Yum!
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