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| Topic | Post Date | Replies |
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| Restaurant Listing Debate: Not 100% Veg In order to continue our discussion regarding Happy Cow listings of Veg-friendly restaurants (http://www.happycow.net/forum/travel/view_topic.php?id=83), the webmaster asked that we start a new discussion. While adding a section that says old listings or Veg-friendly places that don't meet HC criterion is a good idea, it really is a bad idea. In doing so, you're going to get rivalry from restaurant owners or people partial to the restaurant, so why not let the reviewers do this part for you? Here what I would do: List the restaurant at the very end of all listings, I believe the non-100%-veggie places are in a light pink color now, so why not list those other ones in grey. Add a disclaimer within the description basically stating "Warning: This is not a 100% Vegetarian/Vegan place. Happy Cow does not support this restaurant as meat/dairy contamination is very likely" (or something close to that) – this solves the issue with preference and owner rivalry. If it's a bad restaurant, it will be clearly reflected in negative reviews by HC members. And when the owners read what the consumer has to say, maybe they'll clean up their act. By keeping only the good restaurants on the site, I think, only does more harm than good. Like I had said previously, how will we know if a place is good/bad? If I find a place that has Vegan options, I want to find out about it and possibly try it. I understand that if a place is not listed on the site that it probably doesn't meet HC's standards, but how do we really know if that place meets HC's standards??? What if it's a new place? Or a place that no one has discovered (the webmaster can't be out everywhere scouting these restaurants out)? A lot of places don't advertize; and I know a lot shy away from the word Vegan, especially in the Midwest where the term is still unfamiliar to many. For example, there is a place called Sweet Cakes Bakery that carries about 50% Vegan baked goods, if you ask they will tell and assure you of the Vegan items …but they don't advertize things as being Vegan – same with Bleeding Heart Bakery (well they have the words Vegan posted in the store). I'm so lucky I found those places via word-of-mouth; otherwise, I wouldn't be able to enjoy these wonderful Vegan baked goods. My overall point is that I don't thing being one-sided does any good. It also comes across as being elitist to others; I feel that this tends to shy others away from Veganism. I truly wonder how many people are scared off due to this; we're essentially being counterproductive when it comes to helping people become Vegetarian/Vegan. And another point I'd like to make, what about new Vegetarians/Vegans or those thinking about going that route? I'd think the unknown would be scary to some; when I was just vegetarian (for almost all of my life) and had never even known about these special Veggie places…I was weary. I remember being 18 and weary about going to Chicago Diner (which is one of my favorite places now). For the newcomers, I think having those places (with some veggie options) listed helps to ease them into Vegetarianism; the familiarity of what they knew is there while they're free to explore the unknown, become more interested, and then begin to explore fully Vegetarian/Vegan places. What does everyone else think? Post Date: 09/07/10, Replies: 62 | ||
| Does HC underrepresent vegfriendly venues? Health food store - We will add it just as soon as possible. I found a Thai restaurant in Folsom, CA yesterday with a separate vegan-friendly dinner menu with over 30 items, and about 15 items on a separate veg lunch menu. I think it's important to have this restaurant to put Folsom on the map, otherwise vegans traveling thru here have zero options. But I ran into the below policy. Folsom is a mainstream city that does not have any pure vegetarian restaurants, nor health food stores (other than ones selling only vitamins), nor farmers' markets that I know of. A vegan traveling thru Folsom might love to know about this restaurant, but I can't seem to get it listed b/c of the policy below, which I think does a disservice to travelers. I think that when one does a search for "100% vegetarian restaurants" for a particular city, they should simply get a "no match found" message. Or a "no match found, but this city has at least one listing for a veg-friendly restaurant." The policy: "Also note regarding Veg-friendly but Not 100% Vegetarian: In order to add a new US city to the HappyCow website, there needs to be a pure vegetarian restaurant OR a health food store in that city also, in order for us to add veg-friendly/not 100% veg places. Otherwise, when a visitors chooses the "Show 100% vegetarian only" default, the newly created city will not show, and the website will lead the visitor to an ERROR page ("this page does not exist... there are no vegetarian restaurants in this city")." Post Date: 08/15/16, Replies: 61 | ||
| Vegan strip clubs -should HC promote them? Portland's vegan strip club is in serious need of promotion - it is located at the old "Pirates tavern" location. . The old Pirates Tavern - famous mostly for it's bad, bad food - not "loved" by HappyCow reviewers - http://wweek.com/editorial/3251/8129/ . Owner Johnny Diablo (not related to me) has a very unusual "take" on vegan business! . +Pirates Tavern went out of business in December 2007, Diablo says, because most vegans live at the poverty level or below.+ . Hmmm - I take a look at my veg*n friends & I cannot agree with Johnny D. - I think that Pirates Tavern went out of business because it was a complete dump of a place & served bad food. . . . . The new strip club - opened last month - same location - "vegan cheeky" - http://wweek.com/editorial/3413/10351/ . +The club's main claim to veganism seems to be that strippers cannot wear any leather, fur, silk or wool. If a dancer slips up and sports snakeskin heels, Diablo says he pulls the woman aside to talk about "not bringing murder victims into the establishment."+ . The new strip club is now - "For Sale" - http://wweek.com/wwire/?p=11310 . +Thanks to a tip from a blogging stripper, WWire has learned that Portland's Casa Diablo, the world's first vegan strip club, is for sale after just a month and a half in business. + . Price: $995,000 - http://www.cimls.com/sale-listing/44372 . http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/off/612878875.html . The Craig's List post - Reply to: [email protected] Date: 2008-03-20, 1:56PM PDT . Own your own gentlemen's club. Beautiful interior. Good times. Email for more information. Serious buyers only. . Post Date: 03/09/09, Replies: 47 | ||
| Review Moderation on HappyCow We'd like your feedback on our review system here at HappyCow. Here's a little background before you respond: http://www.happycow.net/review_removal.html http://www.happycow.net/review_removal_owner_steps.html Some topics we'd like feedback on are: - How do you feel about members who write reviews on places they've never been to? - What (if anything)should be done with a negative review by a member who's only written one review ever? - Should HappyCow keep reviews indefinitely, or should they expire after a set time (i.e.. 2 years) - Should members who write reviews be asked to display their true identity (full name) - Any other relevant points you can think of. Thanks for your input! Eric & the Cows Post Date: 03/28/10, Replies: 33 | ||
| Forum Rules for HappyCow I think all personal attacks and passive aggressive behavior should be grounds for banishment. On the Postpunkkitchen.com the moderators first talk to the offender and let them know if their post was inflammatory. If it happens again or the person doesn't apologize or clarify themselves they are banned. There's no room for negativity. When a discussion goes beyond positive constructive friendly debate it should be removed. Post Date: 09/22/08, Replies: 15 | ||
| Phone use Using Happy Cow on phones is something I have never done. However, I am up to get a new cell phone and since I have never connected to the web w a phone b4, I figured I should ask y'all happycowers if there is something I need to look for as far as compatibility or if there is a kind of phone that works best w your site. Also, is it free like the web version? Any tips for someone who really only wants a phone to make calls and is tech ignorant would be appreciated. [sorry if this is not under the right heading, it seemed more appropriate than others] Post Date: 11/29/09, Replies: 12 | ||
| Canadian Rant I am a newbe to this website and not sure if I'm even in the right spot for my little rant that follows. Apologies I have traveled a lot over the last 20 years, 10 of them as a vegetarian. As you all well know, restaurant menu offerings around this planet for vegetarians can be a bit meager at times (God bless the Vegans in this regard). I have become a bit tired of my choices in most restaurants being restricted to a veggie burger, pasta or a salad (if anything at all). In the same breath, in some unique places, I have come across some amazing and creative vegetarian foods from all parts of the world. I have often thought "If I could only bring this type of vegetarian food back home to Canada, people wouldn't care weather it was vegetarian". So I did, and my wife and I opened up a little restaurant not far from Queens University in Kingston Ontario to serve these great international vegetarian foods (that also cater to our vegan friends). So where am I going with all this. Since we have been open we have had some great customers pass through our doors who tell us they love the food ect. However, I was hoping that being close to a University like Queens, and it's a big school, that we would at least attract the veggie student population. That hasn't happened even after our best efforts to advertise as our little place is now hurting. We are the only vegetarian restaurant in town. What am I missing here as time is running out. Thanks Post Date: 09/06/08, Replies: 11 | ||
| Please Bring Back Chat Many people are voicing their sorrow that the chat room has disappeared from Happy Cow. The chat room was a fantastic avenue for vegans and vegetarians to share their experiences, recipes, and simply a place for people who don't have many others who share their values to commiserate. It was a valuable resource for new vegans and vegetarians to get real-time information and support. It would be a shame to see it not return. Post Date: 06/06/16, Replies: 11 | ||
| Thank You for this Community Forum! Hi HappyCow Webmaster - Thank you for creating this cool new community forum. It's great. Peace - Chia. Post Date: 05/08/09, Replies: 10 | ||
| Prison Food PETA does it again! Great story! So can we now please have a HappyCow section on where it is best to commit crimes / get arrested? (I am joking Guys). . . . Top 10 Vegetarian-Friendly Prisons! . When we announced our top 10 vegetarian-friendly ballparks, part of the idea was to encourage more people to check out a game or two at those stadiums and sample their vegetarian fare. Same sort of deal with our top 10 colleges—one effect of publicizing their veg-friendly cafeterias was that more people would want to go there. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that if this latest top 10 list gets you all amped about the prospect of going to one of these prisons, you may want to set some slightly more ambitious goals for yourself … but for the people who—through bad luck or poor planning—are on their way there, this will come as some very good news. . We get calls all the time from inmates who want to make a positive change in their lives by going vegetarian, and in the course of responding to these individuals, we've assembled the following list of the top 10 vegetarian-friendly prisons in the United States as a tidbit for curious citizens, a resource for prisoners' rights groups, and, well, a menu for future inmates. Whichever category you fall into, I hope you enjoy it. . Go here to read Newsweek's coverage of the story . www.newsweek.com/id/74327 . , and check out the top 10 below: . Idaho offers a lentil shepherd's pie, vegan pizza, vegan Mexican pie, soy patties, soy sausage, veggie loaf, veggie lasagna, veggie meatballs, vegan hot cakes, vegan biscuits, cookies, cakes, pies, and puddings. . Massachusetts offers meatless chicken macaroni casserole, vegetable bologna, veggie burger, veggie meatballs, meatless chicken cutlet, meatless chicken nuggets, vegetable chop suey, vegetarian chicken stew. . Pennsylvania offers tofu cacciatore, soy BBQ, tofu stir fry, veggie burger, soy Salisbury steak, soy meatballs, tofu scramble, soy croquette, soy sausage patties, soy loaf, soy pasta casserole, soy stuffed cabbage and soy stew. . Georgia offers vegan BBQ, meatless deli slices, veggie patty, vegan breakfast patties, vegan chili, baked macaroni crumble, stir fried vegetables and oriental sauce, tofu scramble, vegan cornbread, vegan cookies, vegan cakes, vegan pies, vegan brownies, vegan muffins, vegan peach cobbler. . New Hampshire offers chili with texturized vegetable protein, chop suey with texturized vegetable protein, shepherd's pie with texturized vegetable protein, veggie links, lentil meatballs, grilled tofu sandwich, vegetarian pot pie, veg stir fry, hummus, veg tacos, veg chow mein, veg stew, and several veg soups. . Utah offers sweet and sour tofu, tofu taco rice casserole, vegetable and tofu chow mein, veggie burgers, veggie dogs, veggie meatballs, tofu ala king, lots of tofu dishes. . Hawaii offers vegetarian shepherd's pie with texturized vegetable protein, vegetarian stuffed cabbage with texturized vegetable protein, vegetarian stew with texturized vegetable protein, grilled tofu slices, vegetarian teriyaki burger, vegetarian long rice with tofu. . Tennessee offers texturized vegetable protein ala king, vegetarian sweet and sour, veggie burger, veg chili, veg stir fry, texturized vegetable protein country gravy. . Kansas offers a veggie burger, taco crunch, burrito, meatless pasta, meatless chili, loaded baked potato, vegetable rice soup. . North Dakota offers a veggie burger, meatless sloppy joes, veg fajitas, veg noodle stew, veg potato soup. . blog.peta.org/archives/2007/12/top_10_vegetari.php Post Date: 06/18/08, Replies: 10 | ||
| Veggie UNfriendly places & products I'm hoping this experience is uncommon, but: Last week in Brownsville we found a diner with gorgeous green signage, menus, etc. where everything was touted as pure + natural. We ordered a couple different soy sandwiches. One bite each and we sensed something was wrong. The waiter lied to my wife, but when I asked to talk to the cook he shrugged and admitted that the soy stuff has a substantial amount of beef, "For flavor." Now, there's no way these guys are going to reprint their expensive menus, so it bothers me to know that we won't be the last folks scammed by these jerks. Don't know how many places like this exist though. Post Date: 06/18/08, Replies: 8 | ||
| "Stat's" page - natural growth - Thank you for the new "Stat's" page Mr. Eric - http://www.happycow.net/reports/happycow_stats.html It is inspiring to see new vegan eating places opening daily / getting listed / being updated / receiving reviews. HappyCow.net is growing so quickly & without any artificial growth hormones! Post Date: 09/21/08, Replies: 8 | ||
| A suggestion for Happy Cow Sernicki gave me this idea, though he doesn't realise it (see Ser - I do pay attention) How about having a directory of Vegan trades people? Vegan plumbers, electricians, caterers that sort of thing. It would have to be broken down into categories for countries and states like the current directory for restaurants and health food shops is. Whaddya reckon? Post Date: 11/30/09, Replies: 8 | ||
| Why is vegan censored? I am wondering! Why is "vegan" censored on this site at times? :/ Post Date: 07/15/14, Replies: 8 | ||
| Veggie Friendly Pubs/Restaurants How about including in the guide pubs/​restaurants that cater for vegetarians/​vegans? Here in the UK purely Veggie eating places can be thin on the ground but, a lot of places offer decent veggie/​vegan options. Just a thought. Dave Post Date: 12/11/07, Replies: 7 | ||
| 10,000th Review This morning when choosing where to go for dinner tonight I noticed that 10,009 reviews were already posted. That makes me happy! Post Date: 11/27/07, Replies: 7 | ||
| Compassion or Vegetarian Hi everyone, We've recently changed the name of the site in the title graphic and would like your feedback. It used to read: Vegetarian Guide to Restaurants & Stores and now reads: Compassionate Eating Guide we've also considered: Compassionate Dining Guide How do these titles sound to you and which should we go with? Thanks for any thoughts on this. Post Date: 11/30/09, Replies: 7 | ||
| A place for veggie stories Hi, I think it would be neat if there was one place where alot of us could post our experiences in dealing with meat eaters, and the lessons in life that we've learned over the years. I thinks its a good idea because many new members, and people new to veg*nism, enter the chatroom seeking difficult questions that cant always be answered in that setting. Sometimes they enter when the current conversation moves with its own momentun, and the question goes unheard. We try our best to help out, but it would be nice to have something more substantial to rely on. Not like a blog (where people just go to vent or ramble about thier problens), or a forum (where the topic tends to be evolve around each comment). What I have in mind is something simple and easy to find; in the topics link maybe. I can imagine quite a compilation of tales to beheld for those seeking to benefit for those looking advice and understanding among thoses who have been there. And maybe a few laughs anc be shared to, who knows. Anyway, thats my suggestion to help make Happy Cow a better place. Post Date: 05/25/12, Replies: 7 | ||
| Calling All Experts Hi Everyone, If you are especially knowlegable about a field or topic related to vegetarianism and veganism and would like to write an article to be published on HappyCow, please email us. Related topics may be anything about vegetarian health, vegan diet, nutrition, healthy foods, animal rights, raw food diet, home gardening, organic gardening, vegetarian nutrition for pets, arguments for a vegetarian diet, vegetarian philosophy, travel tips about a major city or country, etc... HappyCow will link to your website or blog from any accepted articles you write. To begin, use the "Contact Us" buttom at the top of this page. Thanks! webmaster -eric Post Date: 08/25/14, Replies: 6 | ||
| Submissions? I submitted a bunch of restaurants a month or two ago, and they still haven't showed up. Is this a typical time frame? Post Date: 03/23/09, Replies: 6 | ||
| Chatroom down :( Anybody heard anything about when our fave chatroom will be back up again? :) Post Date: 10/07/11, Replies: 6 | ||
| I just went to a new shelter today looking I just went to a new shelter today looking to adopt a dog with little time to rescue and find it a home. My husband is allergic to cats so we cannot have any. There was this little black and white kitten about 8 weeks old, quiet, nice and playful. She has been there a week today and that is there limit! I just did not feel right leaving her there and I cried the whole way home. I would be willing to pay her adoption fee even though and whatever else if the right person would give her a home. I hope she is not dead by then. I am going to call the shelter and tell her that I am coming to get her. They are closed tomorrow because that's when they get rid of the old animals. Please someone respond. Thanks you can text me at 714-615-8870. I live in temecula, ca Post Date: 07/09/14, Replies: 6 | ||
| Links to video media I would be interested in finding links to free video files concerning vegetarianism and how meat-eating contributes to the slaughtering of animals. The files I have found at www.peta.org have been very effective getting friends to take the subject of vegetarianism seriously. If HappyCow could provide links to other sources, this would be very helpful. Post Date: 09/13/08, Replies: 5 | ||
| Regional Editors - a very good idea - Eric thank you for your email - yes I fully agree that having an informal /​ formal group of active Regional Editors will really help to keep the listings on HappyCow more up to date - "chefmoz" have 2,600+ volunteer editors to update /​ list in their restaurant directory. OK - my offer - until further notice /​ death /​ insanity I will work on Hong Kong SAR & Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam. For other provinces /​ areas of Viet Nam I will ask friends around the country to regularly check on the listings in their areas /​ join HappyCow themselves. Any suggestions from other members on how best to do it will be most welcome - to get started my method is phoning around /​ visiting the listed places at least twice a year to weed out closed businesses /​ collect new email addresses & website details /​ asking them to become "Friends" etc. Other veggie Internet Directories featuring Hong Kong /​ Viet Nam are almost useless - all the ones that I know of are many years out of date. Post Date: 03/03/08, Replies: 5 | ||
| This is an excellent site I work as a concierge, we often get requests for vegetarian restaurants in cities overseas. I searched in google and came up with your site. Did the job perfectly for me, used it as in intro to various spots, and then check them out further on other sites. Just wanted to say thanks. When our clients book, I'll be sure to let the restaurant know that I found them here first. Post Date: 12/02/09, Replies: 5 | ||
| HappyCow - in the top !% of sites & PR6 Congratulations once again Mr. Webmaster Eric! ! ! . . I like the "new look" HomePage very much. . . HubSpot's Website Grader now rates HappyCow.net in the top 1% of websites. . . "Website Grade 99 out of 100." . . "A website grade of 99/100 for www.happycow.net means that of the hundreds of thousands of websites that have previously been evaluated, our algorithm has calculated that this site scores higher than 99% of them in terms of its marketing effectiveness. The algorithm uses a proprietary blend of over 50 different variables, including search engine data, website structure, approximate traffic, site performance, and others." . . See the full current report here - http://www.websitegrader.com/wsgid/828954/default.aspx . . HappyCow.net's Google PageRank = 6 . . http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/45/The-Importance-of-Google-PageRank-A-Guide-For-Small-Business-Executives.aspx . . "6: Very popular sites that have hundreds of links, many of them quality links." . . John Post Date: 02/16/09, Replies: 5 | ||
| how to get updates by email for cities? I tried to add a city to follow to my list but could not find any way of doing this. Can anyone help?? thanks! Post Date: 06/12/16, Replies: 5 |
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