last wednesday was my busiest weekday last week, but even so, i still was able to spend some time with my dad before his flight back home. my afternoon class lets us out an hour earlier compared to the afternoon class from my first semester, so we were able to spend a few, unrushed hours together for dinner. i passed silver lake a few times when riding on one of the city buses during winter break, but it was my first time walking in the neighborhood. the area certainly had a ‘ hipster ‘ vibe, and we thought it would be interesting to visit a nearby supply store before heading to therestaurantnearby. the shop mostly had survival/camping/military-type goods, but there were some highlights…like the hanging camouflage suit! a lol moment! the restaurant, flore vegan cuisine, was on the same street so we walked on over and found a place to sit inside the small establishment. the seating options outside were not that bad either! we were seated in a booth near the wall and the bakery display—which housed delectable-looking cakes and cupcakes to one side, and produce supply on the other it looks like it was voted “best restaurant” by la weekly back in ’12… there were so many choices, but i chose to get the verde bowl and my dad got the southwestern quesadillas. we also asked for the beet salad as our deli side. while our food was being prepped, my dad and i ended up having a conversation about how the people behind the small business operations (such as the many vegan restaurants in la) must really be in the business out of passion more so than profit. after roughly calculating the costs it takes to keep such a small, niche business open, we were amazed by how there are so many restaurants and cafes out there, but we were not surprised that many of them don’t keep their doors open for long…actually, i found out the other day that arestauranti visited upon first moving to la had closed—and it happened just like that! well, hopefully flore has a brighter future, becaus