Eat, drink, be vegan at festival
The country’s largest vegan food and wine event is poised to make its Los Angeles debut to bring the best and latest in plantbased living to the city.
And it won’t be just about kombucha, either: The four day event — to be held in Pasadena, West Hollywood and downtown Los Angeles — will include a 5K run, yoga and meditation session, a “conscious clothing” fashion show, food and documentaries about environmental preservation.
The event marks the evolution and expansion of the annual Eat Drink Vegan festival held here in Los Angeles: The festival joins forces with the Miami-based Seed, which puts on the annual Seed Food and Wine Festival each year in Florida.
“Our mission is to elevate that conversation about people’s connection with food, how it can be transformative to their health and the health of the planet and to do it in a fun, sexy and hip way,” said Alison Burgos, a co-founder of Seed.
It begins with the Seed Summit, running May 23 and 24, encompassing workshops and panels; the Califia Farms film festival will show documentaries including “What the Health.” A Grand Tasting evening will allow ticket-holders to try foods from plant-based gourmet eateries such as Crossroads and Gracias Madre.
On the final day, the Rose Bowl will be transformed into a haven for anyone into plant-based food and drink; 100 food vendors, 250 beverages — including craft sodas, cold brew and, yes, lots of kombucha.
Throughout it all, said Eat Drink Vegan founder Nic Adler, the focus needs to be on wellness: “As we’ve grown this food festival, I felt we were moving away from health, mind and body. We want to return to that. Our ultimate goal is to bring people together and be a platform for discovery.”
Also new is a CBD area — for those ages 21 and over.