Ethos offers amazing vegan food and live music.

Posted on by Thor

Between sketch opportunities, I decided to have dinner at Ethos Vegan Kitchen (601 S New York Ave, Winter Park, FL.) A three piece band was setting up, so I sat at the end of the bar so that I was close enough to sketch. The bass players wife was at the bar next to me with her daughter. They had just been to the Orlando Science Center to see the Mummies Exhibit. The young girl had purchased tiny dinosaur pills that would grow when placed in water. She unwrapped the package and desperate waited for the waitress to bring her z cup of water. I of course warned her that dinosaurs are unbelievably large and it might not fit in the restaurant. The spongy dinosaur only grew to about an inch or two.

I had sketched the bass player before. He had a sheet of cardboard on the floor, and it was puncture full of holes from the bass stand. The music was in full swing, when the food arrived. I had a Sheppard’s Pie which consisted of mashed potatoes filled with vegetables in a dark gravy. It was tasty, but a bit dry. It came with extra bread which I couldn’t imagine eating since the dish was so large.

With the sketch done, I lingered a bit to hear the end of the set. The musicians then came | the bar to eat and I share the sketch. After they ate, they were going to do another set. I packed up and headed out.

Ethos Vegan Kitchen

Posted on by Thor

On October 22nd, I planned to go to Rollins College to sketch a concert. I got to Winter Park several hours early and decided to get dinner at Ethos Vegan Kitchen (601 S New York Ave, Winter Park, FL). I hadn’t eaten at Ethos since it moved from it’s previous location in Ivanhoe Village. The new restaurant location is cavernous with a long bar set up against one wall. The interior easily had to be more than twice as large.

I sat at a table for one and asked advice on ordering a drink with caffeine.  The waitress suggested a sweet, organic iced tea which was quite good. I ordered a lasagna which was just as good as any meat filled lasagna I’ve ever had. If vegan food is this good, then I can seriously consider changing my diet.

I really didn’t have time to sketch if I was going to get to the concert on time, but I couldn’t resist drawing the bar which vaguely reminded me of Edward Hopper’s “Nighthawks” painting. The people at the bar were Ethos employees who were eating dinner before starting their shift for the night. My waitress checked up on me periodically. I don’t think she was used to having someone linger as long as I did. Pumpkin pie was written on the chalk board and I couldn’t resist kicking off the fall season with a slice. I deserve a small treat.

Sure enough, as I finished up the sketch, I realized that I was late to the concert. I decided to bag the concert and I walked back to my car instead. Sometimes my sketch plans change on a whim. I need to pay attention to that inner voice, especially when it whispers “pumpkin pie…”

ALAK Block Party

Posted on by Thor

Not every sketch is a gem. This was a rare case where I tried to do a watercolor in the rain. The ALAK Block Party invitation put the address as 715 N Thornton Ave. Bands on the play list included Attic, Surfin Serf, Permanent Nap and of course the California based headliners ALAK. When I arrived, I didn’t notice any stage but I did see a food truck pulling into a parking lot.  That had to be where the event was. I parked down the block and hiked back. A musician was unpacking a drum set from the trunk of his car. It had just started to drizzle. He carried the drum set to the back of a small deserted alley. The La Espinada Food Truck didn’t have a generator, so she backed the truck next to the alley and then she searched for a power outlet. A tenant on the second floor apartment let her run an extension chord up through his window, tapping one of his outlets for a small fee.

I sketched as quirky cat banners were hung around the alley. This small alley was dubbed “Cloud 9” by the event organizer. A young crowd slowly gathered as the rain continued to lightly fall. I tried to salvage the sketch from the constant rain with no success. It became such a wet mess that I couldn’t work on it anymore. I called Terry and we agreed to meet for dinner at Dandelion Communitea Cafe. I bumped into Julie Norris as I was about to order. She had been busy storing a whole bunch of restaurant furniture and cookware.  Ethos Vegan Kitchen had just moved into a new location in Winter Park and the new space was fully furnished so they donated their unneeded furniture and equipment to Julie. A win-win for the Orlando Vegan community. I ordered an all Garden of Eden themed dinner that tasted great.

After dinner, Terry and I walked back to the Block Party to see if it had been rained out. By now the rain had stopped and die hard hipsters were still partying. Terry wasn’t impressed, so she headed home. I considered a second sketch, but I was still wet from the first sketch so I went home as well. I’m sure things heated up as it got dark.