Yesterday I went to a little get-together at 02 Vegan Cafe in Cambridge hosted by Jasmin Singer of Our Hen House. The fabulous Hen House ladies were in town because Mariann Sullivan was judging at the National Animal Law Competitions at Harvard University Law School, and the plan was for some local supporters to join together for lunch then to go over to the campus and watch a round or two of the competition.
I'm not normally the kind of person to go to a thing like this, but I figured there probably won't be many other opportunities for me to go to either a Moot Court event at Harvard OR for me to hang with some bona-fide vegan/animal rights royalty. So what the heck, right?
Excellent decision.
Not only did I get to have that weirdly sinking sensation that I get whenever I find myself on the campus of a spectacular name-brand college (namely, "if I'd known how unbelievably great these top-tier schools were when I was younger, I may have applied myself a little more in high school*), but I also got to see a room full of 25-year-olds who could kick my ass in a thinking and speaking contest without breaking a sweat. Luckily all that self-loathing was nicely balanced by lunch at O2.
Invitees got to bring a "plus-one" to this little excursion so I brought my daughter Katie with me. Since she's in the process of getting a vegan cafe of her own off the ground (Chickpea), I figured a little recon of a like-minded business might be just the thing. Plus, I wasn't going to know a soul at this event and it's always nice to have a buddy just in case the other people weren't very sociable. It turns out, though, that they WERE all sociable and as friendly as can be.
Back to the lunch. We all introduced ourselves and there were people from all over MA who were at all different levels of involvement in animal rights or vegan/plant-based awareness-raising...health practitioners, fund-raisers, educators, and of course people like me who just dabble here and there around the fringes. I listen to the Our Hen House podcast every Saturday morning like it's some kind of holy ritual and I can tell you that Jasmine Singer is exactly as lively and fun in person as she is on my earbuds. She kept the conversation going with all the diners there (mostly ladies, BTW... only two men-folk in the hen house that day) and she seems like a person who is at home wherever she is.
Anyway - the menu at the cafe is pretty short so Katie and I decided to each get a different sandwich and share half-for-half so we'd get two items for the price of one lunch each. The Banh Mimi (the owner's name is Mimi) was a nice slab of seasoned seitan on a crusty roll (maybe a ciabatta) with a bit of salad and dressing on top. The Seitan Slam was a pressed sandwich done up Ruben-style with rye bread, slaw, seitan, and a most worthy dressing. Sandwiches came with a little eeny meeny fraction of a pickle spear and no chips at all. That's right...no chips. I suppose with the whole yoga lifestyle thing going on at the 02 cafe, chips aren't exactly in keeping with healthful eating. But still. A sandwich without chips at home is acceptable, but at a restaurant, a sandwich plate with no chips on it seems practically unlawful. Even without chips, the lunch was satisfying and I have no complaints at all. Especially since Mimi kicked in free desserts for us because we were so cool and hanging with vegan royalty.
I really liked 02 Vegan Cafe. The people were super-nice, the food was good, and I always feel good about patronizing businesses that have their heart in the right place. I'd definitely go back again and sample some other sandwiches and maybe get a smoothie.... and maybe take a yoga class in the back room if they take drop-ins.
The moot court was fascinating, but we had to leave before the second round because I had to get home to make some Mac&Cheese for the Veg Worcester Mac Daddy contest in Worcester that night. That event was also a good time, but leaving early meant that I never did get to meet Mariann Sullivan or her famous pitbull rescue, Rose. Some other time, maybe. And maybe more about the MacDaddy competition later too.
*nah. I probably wouldn't have tried any harder. I would have just felt more guilt over my lack of achievement.
