The Mile High City

Denver, Colorado...Home of the Broncos and Rockies, the unsinkable Molly Brown's House, and some pretty good grub!!

In the video at the end of the post, we visited Watercourse Foods and chatted about it's other location, City O' City Pizza Bar and Coffee House. Both locations were excellent and really involve their loyal customers and the community in regards to the artwork and feel of both locations.

www.watercoursefoods.com

In addition to Watercourse, we visited the Vesta Dipping Grill in Lodo (the locals abbreviation for lower downtown). It was a perfect choice as I was the only veggie in the group but I was still able to enjoy a fantastic meal. They specialize in dishes that are to be dipped in a variety of sauces of your choosing and I got a rad grilled tofu with brown rice dealio. The trendy look of the restaurant and the cool bar really give the place a certain "je ne se quoi" and it is a definite must for everyone, healthy or not ; ) www.vestagrill.com

One more place to visit when you are in the mile high city is Mercury Cafe. They are an organic, "colorado cuisine" cafe that also boasts a bar and nightclub! They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner and party on through the evening with no gastronomic guilt! www.mercurycafe.com

Viva Las Veggie!!

Ok so, I know it's hard to feel healthy in the city of sin, but it can be done!! As long as you steer clear of the buffets and all those sugary drinks, you can still keep your waistline in tact and not feel guilty every time you see some rail thin showgirl ; )

There are some great options on the strip but if you have a car and some time, there are even better ones in the residential areas. What? People don't LIVE on the strip? Yep!!

Off the strip:

Paymon's Mediterranean was killer. We had lunch there with some friends and there was something for everyone. I had an enormous veggie plate packed with hummus, tabouli, dolmas, rice and babaganoush. Everything was incredibly fresh and tasty. My main squeeze and our friends had a roasted chicken meal that also looked very fresh and prepared quite nicely. Apparently they have 2 locations - http://paymons.com/med_main.html

For the Raw Foodist, try the Go Raw Cafe. They have 2 locations really close to the strip. http://www.gorawcafe.com

Why not be a little sinful and check out Ronald's Donuts. They have all kinds of specialty toppings and fillers, including soy cream as well as vegan donuts!! 702-873-1032

Whole Foods has landed at Fort Apache, just minutes away from the strip as has Wild Oats on Lake Mead Blvd.

On the strip:

For the luxurious health nut, spoil yourself at the Canyon Ranch Spa at the Venetian. They have all kinds of organic plates as well as veggie and vegan options.

There is no harm in a chain restaurant like PF Chang's as they have lots of tofu dishes and brown rice. They can also steam any dish to keep away from the fatty fried stuff. I love the Cheesecake Factory for the monstrous salads (they veganize everything for me) as well as their veggie stir fry and home made veggie burger.

So no matter who you are with or where you go, there is no excuse to not keep healthy, kosher, vegan or just plain vain in Vegas!!

How I Love Mount Zion...

Let me count the ways!! Zion National Park is nothing short of breathtaking. The Virgin River running through it, the greenery and the majestic canyons were enough to make me want to pack up my city life and move to a ranch just outside the gates; ) The Zha Zha of Zion!

We arrived fairly late in the day so we decided to stay the night and tackle some hikes the following morning. We got so lucky by getting the last room at the cutest hotel ever, The Pioneer Motel. Not only was it convenient, it was hands down adorable. At the foot of the hill, we enjoyed a jacuzzi and a cabin style room with the whole kit and caboodle, mini kitchen, etc. The lobby boasted a gift and coffee shop that carried soy for my morning fix. Next door to the hotel was a great deli that made fresh sandwiches for hikers.

We had dinner at Pizza & Noodle, a great place in a converted church that shared space with a cool outdoor sport shop. They made me a cheeseless veggie lovers pizza and I noticed they had some nice pastas and big salads (good for people staying away from carbs or glutten).

During our day long adventure through Zion, we hiked into the cafe inside the Zion Lodge. I was afraid I'd be out of luck here as it was a very theme parky, order-from-our-limited-menu-at-the-counter scenario. But no! Zion surprises yet again! They had fresh salads, juices, veggie sandwiches and veggie burgers!!

Reluctantly, we had to leave that evening but made one more grub stop at the Bit & Spur. We each had a huge and delicious salad and the staff went out of their way to make sure my salad was vegan. A+

So a HUGE thumbs up for the beauty that is Zion and the small town of Springdale for making our stay awesome!!

(Art work by my one and only, Dan Hamilton. It's an on site watercolor sketch of Angel's Landing in Zion)

Passing Through Lake Powell

Pulling into Page was a bit confusing as the town seemed to have a bit of an identity crisis. Some businesses said we were in Page and some in Lake Powell. And some had both!! Either way, we were pleasantly surprised with what Page/Lake Powell had to offer a few drifters like us.

We were only going to spend the night on our way out of the Grand Canyon and into Zion but ended up finding some neat-o stuff. After having a yummy lunch at the Dam Bar and Grill (where I had a pretty good chinese chicken salad, sans chicken) and a soy latte at the neighboring coffee shop, we hopped over to the gift shop. Looking through the post cards we discovered that there were slot canyon tours 5 minutes from where we were so we headed right over.

Antelope Canyon is the most photographed slot canyon in Northern Arizona. It appears like a crack in the rocks from the top but once down below, the caverns are lit from above and are absolutely stunning.

On our way out of town we drove over the Glen Canyon Dam and had to stop for a quick photo op!

So if you visit Page to take a nice boat tour of Lake Powell or an adventure through some extraordinary slot canyons, I would suggest the Dam Bar & Grill. They were super nice and had no problem accommodating an herbivore ; ) I also saw the Mandarin Gourmet, a chinese restaurant that can make veggie and vegan meals upon request.

A is for Arizona!

A quick one day trip before we headed to the south rim of the Grand Canyon, we rolled into Sedona and it's neighboring ghost town, Jerome. One of the most beautiful and grounding spots in the country, Sedona is famous for its red rock formations and natural beauty. Known for its spiritual energy, fabulous spas and amazing landscape, you know you'll find some good and healthy eats in Sedona.

I popped into the Oaxaca Restaurant when we first got into town. A super cute Southwestern & Mexican place, they pride themselves on heart healthy food. A great option where everyone can enjoy a meal that not only reflects the taste of the region but the also the connection of mind and body that Sedona is well known for. Oaxaca has picturesque views, is family friendly and is open all day for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Check out their yummy menu at http://www.oaxacarestaurant.com/index.html

On our way to Jerome, we drove by D'lish. We were stuffed from our morning meal but it looked super modern and I found out it was 100% vegan and organic, offering sandwiches, salads and other green treats. Definitely a place to go when I come back for a spa weekend!!

Now, Jerome was pretty neat. Not to far from lovely Sedona, Jerome is a living ghost town. Yep! An old mining community perched in the mountains overlooking the valley below, it began to die out after WWII as the demand for copper slowed. It is now a thriving artist community but has kept it's 1920s persona. Lots of old buildings and boarded up mine shafts, we spent a couple of hours walking around and strolled into the Grand Hotel where we decided to fill our tummies at The Asylum. Once the town's hospital, the hotel was renovated and is fully operational, complete with 30 rooms and guests from another dimension ; ) I had a really, really, really good veggie sandwich at the bar and I adored the ambiance. It had spectacular views and the staff was full of good Jerome fodder. Even in a ghost town, my belly was super satisfied.

I had a blissful day in these 2 Arizona gems and I hope you are able to visit some of these places someday soon!!

Health Friendly Flagstaff

After walking over the Grand Canyon with nothing but glass between us and the canyon below, we headed off to Flagstaff, Arizona. We stayed here for a few nights and I loved the health friendly vibe.

A nice mountain town and the closest place to stay if you are heading towards the southern rim, and most frequently visited, portion of the Grand Canyon. Home to Northern Arizona University and somewhat of a ski town as they are a quick drive to the Arizona Snow Bowl, Flagstaff has alot of great options for the healthy food aficionado. Flagstaff has a great downtown area with some rather cute bars (yes, I am The Healthy Traveler, but I can still whoop it up!!)

I stumbled across Macy's Coffee House & Vegetarian Restuarant our first morning. My better half was none to excited as he is my polar opposite when it comes to dining. Although he was happy to indulge me as most of our trip I was making do at any stop we made. Just another obstacle that The Healthy Traveler has no problem conquering ; )

Macy's had a great indie, college vibe with the menu to match. Fresh Juices, soy lattes and delectable snack size meals were a great way to start our day. And health was the name of the game here at Macy's. Nothing was fried or processed and even though I saved no room for dessert, they looked great in all their organically sweet glory. www.macyscoffee.net

On our way out of town, I wanted to stock up on goodies for the road and I hit the jackpot. We passed right by New Frontiers Market as we pulled in to gas up next door. This was a small version of a Whole Foods but sacrificed none of the variety. In fact, I wanted to do cartwheels in the deli!! They offered all types of breads for their sandwiches, including wheat free spelt, as well as some killer sides like vegan potato salads, dolmas, quinoa and much more. I also had to throw a scrumptious slice of chocolate tofu cheesecake into my overloaded basket. Even my convenience food counterpart agreed it was convincingly yummy! I have to add that the service was impeccable and the staff incredibly sweet!

So yes, I was as happy as a kid at Chuck E Cheese in Flagstaff and when I return, I want to stop at these places I missed:

• Amelia's Garden
• Morning Glory
• Mountain Oasis
• New Jersey Pizza
  

All of which offer clear conscience cuisine for the omnivore and herbivore ; )