Restaurant 20: Akasha

My Dalliance with Craiglist
If you want to go down the path of website dating, Craigslist is a terrible idea. Though I’ve never pursued the various E-Harmonies, Matches, or Lava Lifes, Craigslist seemed to be the best because of its user friendly approach; however, it’s a pain. If you’re thinking of responding to an ad, don’t waste your time. You’re a virtual needle in the available date haystack. How do you stand out in this city? If you do get a reply, you may not like her pic or she may not like yours. It’s a crapshoot and as games involved with gambling go, it’s not a fun crapshoot. Sometime soon I will compare this to E-Harmony or Match. I’ve heard mixed reviews about these, but on the face of it, I believe in these websites. These seem more scientific and more immune to bias than the typical approach to finding a mate these days: “hooking up” at a club or dive bar. I’m always amused talking to couples who met in these contexts as they attempt to give it their best to make it work. But in their dogged quest at romantic survival, they don’t see that their relationship is as shallow as all the reasons they kindled it in the first place. “Her tight skirt is really short,” “he’s a good dancer,” and “she drank me under the table,” all seemed like legitimate reasons for a relationship at the time.
I met Froujke from an ad I posted on Craigslist. (You will benefit from posting an ad as opposed to responding to one). We met at the Metro line at Hollywood and Highland. “My name is Froujke,” she said. “What?” I said. “Froujke.” “Freejka?” “Froujke.” “Feelke?” This went on for awhile. What I remembered from her e-mail was she is vegetarian. I have an ex who was vegetarian, and , like Jules from “Pulp Fiction,” that pretty much made me a vegetarian. I had to take her to Culver City’s “Akasha.” This joint’s claim to fame isn’t just its food but also it is fair trade, sustainable, cruelty-free, organic, and made by local food growers. Let me try to explain these things:
Fair trade: This food movement advocates the payment of a fair price for foods grown in under-developed countries which include goods such as sugar, tea, bananas, and chocolate.
Sustainable: This refers to the taking of resources from Mother Earth and our ability to give back. You see, for humans to live “sustainably,” the Earth’s resources must be used at a rate which can be replenished. Akasha is sustainable, they don’t make more than what they can give back
Cruelty-Free: Translation—“Not tested on animals.” Any pork chop I munch on at Akasha was quickly killed. Cows and pigs were not exposed to med labs or concentration camps. Lucky them.
So did I feel good about myself for eating at Akasha? Not really. I don’t care. In fact, I think it’s all nonsense. I just wanted to know this as I looked at the menu. Will my meatloaf rock? Will my sweet potato fries with pink sea salt sing? Will my farmers market vegetables snap? (Yes, yes, and yes, by the way). My date Froujke? She loved it so much that she wanted to extend our date for another two hours by going to a club. Now this was not in the plans so I was skeptical. And already exhausted. We saw the excellent Australian band The Temper Trap at Spaceland. Free tip: watching bands Monday nights at Spaceland is free. My eylids were getting heavy so I did something I’ve never done: I left my date on the dance floor. Hey, she told me she’d take the bus home and that they run past midnight. Okay, that wasn’t very nice of me. My food may be cruelty-free but that doesn’t mean that I am.