This is one the of the best, most affordable vegan restaurants that I know and love. If you are looking for a healthier restaurant or a vegan restaurant, this is the one you should definitely consider. The Loving Hut is an international vegan restaurant chain that provides a delicious fusion of American and Asian cuisine!

There are only two locations in Georgia. The one I make the most trips to is in Norcross-Peachtree Corners since each location has a different menu and pricing. They have amazing food of Asian and American fusion, and also offer buffets every month. If you don't live in Atlanta or the US, you can still see where the closest location is to you here. I say this because I long for the expansion and success of vegan establishments along with the increase of more people becoming open to veganism and vegan options!


First off
The BEST VEGAN BURGER
When I make the drive to get this burger, I don't just order one.. I stock-up for later.
If you think a vegan burger can't taste good, you need to try this!

Panini in the background

Appetizers 
Their take on Vegetable Dumplings


The best "Chicken" Nuggets I ever had!



Entrees

The Buffets

August 2016 - Vegan hawaiian pizza, amazing lentil soup, spaghetti, and the softest vegan Cake I ever had!

I wanted to take so much with me that I stuffed it in a cup

Lentil Tofu Veggie Soup

So full from #loving hut #vegan #buffet. #lovefood

A photo posted by RS (@rsblueberry) on Nov 21, 2015 at 3:43pm PST

Buffet at #lovinghut. So good. Rice, pasta, potatoes, kale quinoa pineapple salad, and vegan deserts. Three plates. #vegan #veganrestaurant #buffet #allyoucaneat

A photo posted by RS (@rsblueberry) on Aug 22, 2015 at 5:37pm PDT

Perfectly moist raspberry cake and chewy crumbling chocolate chip almond cookies from #LovingHut buffet. #Vegan #veganrestaurant #vegandesserts #cake #cookies #buffet

A photo posted by RS (@rsblueberry) on Aug 22, 2015 at 9:21pm PDT

This is also the only place where I can find Sjaak's vegan chocolates and my absolute favorite vegan cookie company Alternative Baking Company. The chocolate chip/chunk and lemon poppyseed are my favorites.

Alternative Baking Company. Best vegan cookies. Tastes like lightly baked choco chip cookie dough #altbakingco #vegancookies

A photo posted by RS (@rsblueberry) on Aug 3, 2015 at 10:27am PDT

I hope this was helpful in finding another vegan restaurant and providing some insight on more vegan foods, snack products, and dessert options!

I know I cannot wait for my next trip to the Loving Hut!

If you're in Georgia and are looking for both a natural food store and cafe, this one is THE ONE. The cafe features all vegan food and menu items, while the co-op store itself is filled with some awesome vegan finds and deals. Completely vegan establishments outside of Atlanta and Alpharetta can be difficult to come by when you're not living there and don't feel like taking the long drive to and from the city. But Life Cafe is an outlier of that norm and their prices aren't outrageous either.

I have been dining at the Life Cafe for the past several years of my vegan-hood and my favorite menu item has been the blonde burger along with a few other items that are not on the menu anymore- but might come back. However, a new favorite (as there has been a recent menu change) is the soul food plate.





This is my absolute favorite bean burger made and served fresh by any restaurant--vegan and otherwise. The flavors are what make it what it is, and it's quite filling as well.



The plate comes with well-seasoned collard greens with tempeh, mashed sweet potatoes so sweet, it tastes like pie filling, and the American classic mac'n cheese (made vegan).


Another recent comeback is the Avocado Melt with "sun sauce", tomatoes, vegan cheese (maybe), and of course avocados!

Hearty Quinoa Mushroom Burger from #lifegrocery natural vegan cafe. #vegan #quinoa #quinoaburger #atlanta #burger #veganburger #veggieburger

A photo posted by RS (@rsblueberry) on Aug 27, 2015 at 5:11pm PDT

This burger is another new addition to the menu. It has a stronger resemblance to an actual burger with its meatier texture and melted Chao vegan cheese (which tastes just like traditional white American cheese).


Creamy Mac-n Cheese side

Quality Vegan Pizza






One of the more challenging aspects of veganism, excluding the arguments against the vegan lifestyle, is going out to eat. Finding a vegan restaurant that is nearby can be really difficult and inconvenient unless you live in a city. Driving all the way to the city to dine at one or a few vegan restaurants is a bit ridiculous to do on a regular basis or anything more than once in a while. So it's really nice to find regular, non-vegan restaurants that can work with the vegan diet/lifestyle.. there is even a vegan menu for Mellow Mushroom.





There are a few pizza places I really enjoy that offer both quality food and vegan options. In the past few years, I have found that Mellow Mushroom and Maddio's Pizza Joint are nearby pizza places that make for great alternatives to vegan restaurants. Both restaurants offer vegan options and their regular crusts are vegan (you can still ask to make sure). Mellow Mushroom also offers a gluten-free, vegan crust that is much lower in sodium than the regular crust and is made of ancient grains- I didn't take a picture of that one though.

Mellow Mushroom is my very favorite non-vegan restaurant and in the past couple months, I have probably ordered and eaten there so many times I don't even know the number. But if you're looking for or longing for a vegan pizza that is baked fresh, with really fresh ingredients, and not some prepackaged, frozen, vegan pizza, I highly recommend visiting a Mellow Mushroom restaurant.






One of the great things about Mellow Mushroom is that if you order Daiya vegan cheese and/or make it known that you're vegan, they already know not to add butter, parmesan, or any other non-vegan items to your pizza. And this is awesome because I too often forget to (verbally) provide the common vegan list of what-not to add to my meal- "no butter, no eggs, no meat, no dairy, no milk, no etc." I often forget to include all of these no's when placing my order at a regular/non-vegan restaurants because I usually eat out at vegan restaurants and going out to a non-veg restaurant is not something I usually do unless I'm familiar with the place (and I am very familiar with Mellow).

The same thing also goes for Maddio's Pizza, only you can see how the person prepares your pizza, and you will also notice that they usually change their gloves after making every pizza (if not, just ask for them to do so).  I'm pretty sure that the Mellow Mushroom and Maddio's chains are nationwide in the U.S., and they should provide vegan opinions such as Daiya vegan cheese, tofu/tempeh, and of course a variety of fresh vegetables.

Last time I went to Maddio's, I didn't take a picture of the pizza itself, but here's one of the take-out pizza boxes with a vegan dessert I made later on (will share the recipe of the photos below in a later post).



Fast forward to 2020, Atlanta has an awesome small business chain of ALL VEGAN pizza restaurants called Plant Based Pizzeria! So if you're in ATL and would like a place where you don't have to triple check for non-vegan contamination

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On another note regarding representation in media, I came across a number of articles that not only mention Olivia Wilde's part in the UCLA "State of Female Justice" panel, but also also examine the usual sexism within the film/television industry and media in general. This article led me to a great discussion panel from Laura Flander's GRIT TV. 






This State of Female Justice panel features some really great and inspiring women Eve Ensler, Ashley Franklin, Susan Burton, Olivia Wilde, and Kimberle Crenshaw. I'm actually familiar with Crenshaw's works since I have read a few of her essays on intersectional feminism and how women of color are greatly disadvantaged/marginalized in the legal system in my feminist theory course.

I highly suggest that this video be watched in its entirety because it is brilliance. These women accurately articulate only a few of the major and severe, complex systemic issues women still face in our society, showing that there is so much more that needs to be done to create positive change for women.