Crammed into a teensy tiny storefront on the UES, Good Health is strangely serene, with just a few tables and an orange hue. Burgers are served with tasty whole grain tortillas, and other menu items don't disappoint, like sweet edamame dumplings and BBQ Tofu Teriyaki.

The prices are also reasonable, so if you're in town visiting friends, treat them. You can also rely on Good Health's delivery, which always turns up in eco-kind brown paper bags.

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· Good Health [MenuPages]]]> sedona 2007-04-19T14:18:51-05:00 40.769551 -73.955064 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/2/7/154731/0417
PlanetTran, the once Boston-exclusive all-hybrid car service, has launched its San Francisco Bay Area operations. The SF office operates a fleet of Toyota Priuses and serves San Francisco International, Oakland, and San Jose Airports. They do most of their business as an airport car service, but can accommodate most trips around town with a reservation.

An online quote shows a sample base fare of $71 from the Savoy Hotel at 580 Geary Street to SFO, and $88 to OAK. That's a billion times more expensive than the BART, but ask yourself this: does the BART have WiFi? It sure doesn't, but PlanetTran's cars do! That's right: WiFi in the cars. Could it get more geeky or amazing? Are there black-out windows so no one has to know what we're overpaying for?

PlanetTran accepts reservations online for departure times that are at least two hours away. After that, you'll have to call 'em.

Related Stories:
· PlanetTran - Eco-Friendly Airport Shuttle Service [Official Site]
· Rent Green, Trail Mix Surcharge Optional [Jaunted]
· Avid Bringing High-Speed to the Highway [Jaunted]]]> djk 2007-02-07T15:52:15-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/1/24/101212/943
Quantum Leap, the natural foods/vegetarian-friendly restaurant whose West Village location has inspired a wave of positive MenuPages and Citysearch reviews, has opened an East Village outpost. The new joint is located on First Avenue, just around the corner from Angelica Kitchen. That's a bold move for a hippie restaurant--Angelica is tough competition, though sticklers will tell you it's an apples and oranges thing (Angelica is vegan and fully organic; Quantum Leap serves fish and is only partly organic.) Quantum Leap is indeed a bit more like Souen than Angelica, but it's the only one of the tree that delivers to the far east, so it should do brisk business.

A large percentage of Quantum Leap's fans head there for the burger selection, and the new location serves up plenty of bun-hugged treats. A baked lentil-walnut burger goes for $6.95, a "ranch soy chik'n sandwich" also for $6.95, and a grilled mahi-mahi burger for $7.50 (that's real fish, by the way.) Quantum Leap also does a weekend brunch from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., which means you can add it to your East Village rock star stalking list, because the mid-hangover "whole deal" breakfast combo is sure to be popular.

Related Stories:
· Quantum Leap (West Village) reviews & menu [MenuPages]
· Quantum Leap Natural Food (West Village) reviews [Citysearch]]]> djk 2007-01-24T13:00:02-05:00 40.730358 -73.983679 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/1/9/102852/5526
There's no car like the Prius. Short of a wheelbarrow, it's the ultimate granola mobile, loved by hippies and yippies alike. Some drive it to be green, some drive it to be "green," and some don't give a shit and just want the gas savings.

Whatever your motivation, if you don't own a Prius but have always wanted to take one for a spin, EV Rental Cars has got your back on the West Coast. The company is partnered with Fox Rent a Car and has eight locations out left, including one in Las Vegas, where they're rapidly expanding their fleet. EV rents only hybrid vehicles, including Priuses, which provides an amount of assurance rare in the rental industry--you know how "or similar" basically means you run the risk of ending up with a Barbie Power Wheels.

Prius driver jokes aside, hybrids really are a great choice for road trips, when gas prices are of special concern. A sample price check for Oakland Airport turned up rates better than Avis' for a Saturday rental ($39.87 at EV for a Civic Hybrid and $46.77 for a Chevy Cobalt or similar at Avis).

[Photo: 77Bird.com]]]> djk 2007-01-09T11:30:02-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/1/3/131955/3383
One of the great ironies of the Upper East Side is that some people who would never consider living there may currently be inclined to make the switch, now that they've driven up rents downtown. As the uptown granola contingent grows, so must the downtown-style health food restaurant count. There are a few hippie joints up east, but the general UES idea of "health food" is Tasti-D, which is not really food.

Now open at 84th Street & Second Avenue is an outpost of Josie's, a sleek restaurant that serves wholesome, whole foods. It's neither vegan nor vegetarian, but emphasizes simple, natural dishes and many organic ingredients. Dishes at the new Josie's Kitchen include steamed organic Belgian potato & broccoli dumplings, organic macaroni & cheese with wild mushrooms and peas, a "veggie plate deluxe," and air-baked organic fries.

Entrees are priced in the $15-20 range, a fair but not rock-bottom charge for the delicious eats.]]> djk 2007-01-03T15:46:04-05:00 40.776239 -73.952503 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2006/12/18/91659/884
Ok, so you had rats on a plane the other day. Some nut flying Saudi Airlines decided to stuff 80 of them into his carry-on luggage. Once they escaped, all hell broke loose. But what's scarier: rats on a plane, or flames on a plane? You can thank some hippie with an air purifier for the latter incident.

A Continental Airlines flight was diverted to Colorado Springs on Friday when a passenger's Fresh Air Buddy caught fire. The device is a mini air purifier that can be worn around your neck. Apparently the guy was powering it with regular batteries that he had stuck in a re-charger, which is not recommended.

Now, who would really want to be caught with one of those things around their neck? Not you, right? Well, just in case, you should know that EcoQuest is recalling all of its Fresh Air Buddy systems. Since no dinky doodad is going to completely sterilize nasty airplane air anyway, we're still recommending one of those USB-powered aroma fans. The flowery aroma will fool you into thinking the air's clean, and they'll almost look hip when plugged into a MacBook.

Related Stories:
· Fire on aircraft spurs the recall of air purifier [Houston Chronicle]
· Airline Report: In Heaven and in Hell [Jaunted]]]> djk 2006-12-18T09:16:59-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2006/12/13/12727/649
Gizmodo tips us off to this device that's perfect for environmentally-conscious travel: a "portable" solar power box. By "portable," they mean about 75 pounds. That's not going to fly for your easyJet baggage limit, but we suppose you could stuff it in your Prius. The unit costs about $566.

It's powerful enough to wind up your small travel essentials: cell phones, iPods, etc. The company says the unit is designed for ease of use--good luck with that. We recommend this device for campers and Peace Corps transplants.

Related Stories:
· Portable Plug and Play Solar Kit [Red Ferret via Gizmodo]]]> djk 2006-12-13T14:30:02-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/