Yesterday, many people went to Che Cafe at UC San Diego – a veggie hangout, co-op and music venue since 1980 – for some great vegan dishes by Southern Fried Vegan. The event was a fundraiser for the nonprofit run the Southern Fried Vegan folks called Community Animal Project (CAP). Dedicated to making animals’ lives better through outreach, animal rescue and more methods, CAP started in New York and is now based out of San Diego.

Southern Fried Vegan gives festival food to vegans and prods along others with vegan versions of comfort foods. They sell at huge events like Earth Day, cater for smaller events, and sell at the UCSD farmer’s market with a plan to add a few more markets over the next few months.

Choices at the event were somewhat different than what Southern Fried Vegan usually makes and included entrees like the vegan chickun sandwich with chipotle mayo and avocado hummus, jambalaya, fried cajun ‘shrimp,’ and a few choices of quesadillas. For sides people munched on mac n’ cheeze, collard greens, organic cornbread and french fries (cajun or regular). I heard people raving about the desserts: organic red velvet, pumpkin chocolate chip or vanilla/chocolate swirl cupcakes, or mocha cheezecake!

Awesome activist Kevin Marks entertained the group by playing on his cardboard air guitar a song called “Stars” written by Hear N’ Aid for starving children in Africa. Frequently organizing and attending vegan meetups and farm/food events, Kevin dedicated the song to the animals.

Find Southern Fried Vegan on Facebook for more info on future events. They are planning a veggie thanksgiving at Che Cafe on Nov. 21. Between that event and the APRL Turkey-Free Thanksgiving Potluck, also on UCSD campus the same afternoon, one can enjoy an abundance of vegan dishes for the holiday.