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I had a great experience at the brand new Animal on Fairfax the other night. It is not called Animal for nothing. The menu is filled with pork belly, sweetbreads, quail, rabbit, chorizo, steak — and don’t forget the chocolate crunch bar with bacon bits.

While on the lookout for new (to me) interesting neighborhood joints, I came across this vegan one. Right across the street from giant karaoke dive Boardwalk 11 on National, The Vegan Joint is a small, cozy little cafe with a huge vegan menu. Heavy on the Asian fare, they offer many soups, salads, wraps, sandwiches, noodles, curries, and fake meats. They use soy fish, soy meat, tofu, soy cheese, "egz" and soy bacon. When I eat vegan, I prefer to stick with vegetables nuts and grains, and pass on the phony meat. I eat meat, so I don't need a substitute.

Every once in a while, I feel the need to eat lighter, perhaps detox a bit.

So I will head to Leaf, a raw vegan cafe in my neighborhood.

As much as I try, I usually enjoy the first couple of bites, then find myself struggling to enjoy the rest. Surprisingly, raw cuisine (other than your average salad) is quite filling.

Before reading any further, go to itunes and download a podcast called Rome Review.

Two years ago, during my first trip to Rome, we ate at this charming "restaurant" in Trastevere. Prior to that trip, I had read about it in New York magazine, which did not give the address. Believe it or not, it was on our street in Rome (of all the streets in Rome).

There were a couple of openings in Culver City I eagerly awaited – and they all opened while I was out of town!

Father’s Office, M Café de Chaya and Vinoteque.

I have been to M Café several times, and it is just as good at the original location. We tried to go to Father’s Office, but at 7 o’clock on a Tuesday night the place was full, and no one was budging.

I heard that a friend of mine had been getting sandwiches from a new cafe in downtown Culver City called Skratch.

As a seasoned food blogger, I pride myself in knowing about all the new eateries around town, especially in my jurisdiction of Mar Vista/Culver City.

I stopped by this morning and found out they have already been open for five months. How could I have missed a new restaurant in Culvert City for five months?

After spending the afternoon haggling with carpet salesmen downtown (funny how a $300 rug can drop to $100 by the time you get one foot out the door), we worked up an appetite and headed straight for Tiara Cafe.

Owned by chef Fred Eric of Fred 62, Tiara Cafe is a contemporary, whimsical cafe filled with Project Runway wannabes from the fashion design school across the street.

After a nice little 5K race in Griffith Park this last Sunday, my friend and I thought we would round out the morning with a stroll through the Hollywood Farmer's Market and a Carbo-Re-Load breakfast at the newly opened Waffle on Sunset.

It is situated in the bottom of an office building, and that is what it feels like inside.

The large tinted windows cast a dimness to the interior, as opposed to a bright, sunny, cozy feel I prefer while eating breakfast.

Aahhh...Sunday supper at Lucques.

No reservations were available, so we snagged some seats at the bar.

They always start you off with almonds, Lucques olives, house-baked bread, Plugra butter and fleur de sel.

This and a glass (or 2) of wine is really all I need.

For a mere $40, on Sunday they serve a 3- course meal. Our dinner began with a salad of miner's lettuce, beets and labneh — absolutely heavenly, then a choice of braised lamb shank or blue nose sea bass — I selected the fish.

Last week I had the pleasure of dining at Bloom Cafe not once, but twice.

Bloom Cafe is a charming cafe on a funky stretch of Pico Boulevard near Hauser. One side of the cafe has a take-out counter, where you may get coffee, juices and pastries for breakfast, and the other side is their main dining room.

They have a patio seating out back, and sidewalk seating out front. We had our lunch inside, which is bright, airy and a little loud with the music and chatter.