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Northern/Central New Jersey

Northern/Central New Jersey

Started by Patricia Ruiz on January 17, 2011

13 Comments

Patricia Ruiz said #1 Jan 17, 2011 at 12:27pm

Hi! I'm new here and have only been a vegetarian for about 8 months, but I'm totally committed to become Vegan by the end of the year. Would LOVE to meet locals who share the same goal so we can swap recipes, talk about local restaurants, etc :) - Patty

Jennifer Tome said #2 Jan 17, 2011 at 1:38pm

Hi Patty-

Where are you locate? I live in Yardley, PA but grew up in Pennington, NJ and am often in Princeton, NJ and Lambertville, NJ for work.

I have been vegan since July.....found some great restaurants but not many.....

Elle said #3 Jan 17, 2011 at 2:09pm

Hey,

I live in North Jersey and spend a lot of time working and eating in the Montclair area. I belong to a couple Vegan meetup groups in the area, which is a really great resource!

There are some really great restaurants in Montclair, and other towns in the area. Not too many vegan only, but quite a few that are more vegan/vegetarian friendly!

I've been vegan for almost 2 years, so let me know what info I can share with you guys!

Patricia Ruiz said #4 Jan 17, 2011 at 2:22pm

Hi Jennifer & Elle!

YEY! I'm so glad you both responded. I live in Warren NJ and do real estate in central and northern NJ so I'm pretty familiar with Montclair. I've been to Princeton and Lambertville but not super familiar with it :) I have been looking into local vegan/vegetarian groups that I think meet up at different restaurants. I've always been scared to go though bc I'm still transitioning to Vegan and didn't want to get shunned for still having by products like eggs or dairy. I think my biggest challenge is that I have a soy allergy so I need to find a really good protein other than beans (which i love and eat tons of). Any recommendations? What have both of your experiences been? why did you chose to become vegan? Also I'm trying to make my own hummus tonight. Will let you know how the recipe goes! - Patty

Elle said #5 Jan 17, 2011 at 3:32pm

Hi Patty,

Well, for me going vegan was an all at once step which I do not regret in the least. But, you have your own journey, so don't worry if it takes you longer. In fact, from the research I have done in holistic health, it may not even be the best choice for everyone's body. I highly reccomend free-range organic eggs (and if you get them from the farmer through a co-op its even better!), if you do continue eating eggs and the like. Also, for "milk" I absolutely adore oat and hazelnut milk (although hazelnut often has brown rice syrup if you worry about any natural sugar content), for cereal, baking and basically anything u like that is not so savory. I love plain almond milk for everything else!

Oh, for protein I would also try seitan (made with wheat gluten and can be made from scratch or bought at whole foods and other grocery stores), as well as seeds and nuts. I love the Ezekiel grain products and all sprouted grains are an amazing source of protein and super foods as well! And don't forget quinoa is a grain and protein and another superfood!

For the most part people are pretty nice about Vegetarians in Vegan groups (in my experience). However, there are some people who can be judgmental, in which case I say just ignore them. To me, being vegetarian and vegan is not only about physical and emotional health and well being but also in (by byproduct or goal) bringing peace. Vegans that judge others who are not in the same place are not doing that and should be taken as people who are still ill themselves. Oh well =)

Good luck with the hummus! Fresh hummus is the best!

I will have to come up with a list of some awesome vegetarian and vegan restaurants to try out!

Patricia Ruiz said #6 Jan 17, 2011 at 4:09pm

Hey Elle,

Great ideas! I actually made amazing raw almond milk once but unfortunately it made my throad itchy (same as if I eat raw almonds) so I'm going to give it another try and heat the milk for a few minutes to see if it kills off the enzyme that causes that reaction. i bought hemp milk at trader joes and it was yummy. Never thought of oat milk! I'll have to look that up. I still eat eggs, but i try to get them from the farmers market we go to upstate NY. I've seen the farm where they come from and it's really nice. The chickens run around all day, are fed corn, and have a really nice clean barn where they go at night. They don't have them over populated and the place is clean. I've heard of seitan (it's from India right?) You're absolutely right about people needing to be more accepting when you're starting out. It's hard enough to get the funny looks from family members. It's definitely not for everybody, but I've been feeling AMAZING since I stopped eating meat. I still have scallops or shrimp every once in a while, but I'm fazing those out too. I think once I have really solid go-to recipes I will not feel like I need those nutritionally. I've also been reading Becoming Vegetarian: the complete guide to adopting a healthy vegetarian diet. The only two vegetarian places I've eaten at were in NY. One is Vatan (Indian from Ghandi's village) and Taim (a whole in the wall that makes the best falafels ever). What part of NJ do you live in? Yes we will work on a restuarant list!

Kathleen Lucas said #7 Jan 21, 2011 at 2:01pm

Hey everyone! Can't post much at the moment, but had to say hello! I'll be moving back to Montclair in 6 days (SO EXCITED!)! I'm currently in Toms River (not so exciting. lol). Hope to chat/maybe even have a veg get together :)

-k-

Lori B said #8 Jan 23, 2011 at 9:20am

hi all, my name is Lori. I live in Caldwell (near Montclair) and I used to live in Warren (small world!). Shall we plan a get to know you lunch at Veggie Heaven in Upper Montclair?

PS - for the locals: are you aware of the Montclair Vegans group on meetup.com? I've started going to some of the events and the people are really cool, low key and non-judgemental (that I've encountered at least)

My email is loritheplanner2003@yahoo.com if you want to contact me.

Looking forward to meeting everyone!

Melody S said #9 Feb 9, 2011 at 4:29pm

Hi all,

I became a vegetarian in 2008 and was one for 9 months, but one day I slipped and ate a cheeseburger. I don't want to call myself a vegetarian now since every now and then I do eat a cheeseburger or chicken nuggets/salad but I am planning to make my transition into being a vegan soon so I'd love to meet up at one of the few vegan spots in North Jersey.

Erin Hennessy said #10 Feb 27, 2011 at 8:03pm

Hi everyone,

I'm in Summit and still feel pretty new to the area (it's been three years...). I miss city life and I'm definitely up for meeting like-minded people. I'm going to look into the Montclair group, but let me know if you're up for a potluck or something one night.

Best,

Erin

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