We have been longing to go the LA County Museum of Art lately. There is a women’s surrealist show called “In Wonderland” that looks intriguing. It features many originals from Frida Kahlo, one of my favorite artists, which is a big plus.

My husband suggested finding a local vegan restaurant to add to the day’s festivities. I used an iPhone App called “VegOut” that helps you find vegetarian, vegan, or vegetarian-friendly restaurants locally. There are reviews to help you find something you’ll enjoy. It’s kind of like Yelp for vegetarians powered by HappyCow.net.

Hunk of Burning Love from Real Food Daily

We decided to go a little out of our way and head into Santa Monica first to Real Food Daily. We arrived a little before they opened, but were pleasantly surprised to find a lovely library right across the street. We were able to visit the library, use the restroom and spend a little time before Real Food Daily opened.

It’s a bright and cheery restaurant. We were seated upstairs overlooking the counter and dining area below. It was a little loud when they were running the steamer and juicer, but the lovely scent of cinnamon and freshly juiced carrots made up for it.

Total Rueben from Real Food Daily

I ordered the Hunk of Burning Love special, which was a kung pao tempeh fried rice with pineapples and cashews. Dave ordered the Total Rueben which was baked marinated tempeh on toasted rye bread with tofu cheese spread, thousand-island dressing and tangy sauerkraut. He got a Cesar salad as his side dish.

So how was it? It was good. Not great. I’m not sure if we are spoiled by having a Native Foods and FreeSoulCaffe so close by, but our standards for vegan food are pretty high. Both meals were good enough, but not something I would go out of my way for again. I’m not sure if it is because it is LA, but the prices were much higher, too. The place was crowded however, so people must like it. Maybe it’s the location since it is in a nice part of town. Most of the patrons seemed well off.

So if you are in Santa Monica, should you go? Sure. It’s good enough to be worth a try, especially to support a vegan business. I think I’m just spoiled by Tanya Petrovna’s exquisite cuisine at Native Foods. If only she would open a nice sit down restaurant, I’d be in heaven.

Oh, and the surrealist show at LACMA? Go see it! It was wonderful. I even found a new women surrealist painter to admire named, Sylvia Fein.

I often take living in Southern California for granted. I live within 10 miles of the ocean, yet I rarely go. I live within an hour’s drive of the mountains, but I go there even less.

This Saturday, started out like most with errands to run and chores to be done. After breakfast, Dave and I went to the bookstore to look for a Father’s Day gift. I was making lunch for his dad on Sunday.

After we left the bookstore, Dave asked me where else we needed to go. I suggested the grocery store to get items for the lunch. “No,” he said. “Let’s go somewhere fun.” He suggested driving to Laguna Beach and going to our favorite taco stand, Taco Loco. It sounded perfect. I put aside the dirty floors and piles of laundry waiting for us. It could be done later; a day of frivolity was needed.

It was a beautiful day, sunny but not too hot. Both the sky and the ocean were a gorgeous blue. This can be rare here as often the sky has a hazy brown hue from all the pollution.

We found parking and walked to Taco Loco. Taco Loco is a small taco stand on Pacific Coast Highway just south of Laguna’s Main Beach. The food here is a lesson in simplicity and good taste. We ordered the Blackened Mushroom and Tofu tacos. Sliced mushrooms and small squares of firm seasoned tofu are grilled and blackened. Warm blue corn tortillas are the vehicles for the filling and topped with a fresh salsa with large chunks of avocado and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro.

After lunch we walked down to the beach and stepped in the calm surf. It’s literally been years since our toes touched the water. We walked up the beach and through Wyland Galleries. Both Dave and I used to work for Wyland more than a decade ago. The gallery and residence next to his first Whaling Wall mural were just being remodeled when I left eleven years ago. We walked around the small beach town reminiscing about working down there.

It was a fun day. It was a micro-vacation that was sorely needed. Sometimes you need to put responsibilities aside and just have fun.

The afternoon at the beach was followed up by a nice nap at home before we went out to dinner and to an art reception with some friends. Oh, and the dirty laundry and floors got cleaned the next day.