Chrissie Hynde Loves Her Veggies

Okay..below is a story I wrote when covering Akron's favorite daughter, Rocker Chrissie Hynde, when she was promoting the opening of her new vegetarian restaurant here in the Rubber City last Fall. It still makes me laugh....she's...uh...different..but you gotta love her passion.

Enjoy.

PS..FYI..she's opening a second eatery in Columbus this summer....I gave the story to The Dispatch as a friendly media-sharing thing....and when the placed the story in their paper over a week later...I received no attribution...AT ALL....hmm....and you wonder why I'm not a fan of the print media, ;)

Hynde Is A Vegetarian & That's YOUR Problem
9/13/2007 11:14:13 PM By: Craig Simpson

The new vegetarian restaurant headed by Akron Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Chrissie Hynde isn't an effort to get meat eaters to understand the vegan mindset, its for those who aren't "terrorists".

That's what Hynde, the lead singer of the band "The Pretenders", calls those who eat animal byproducts.

Who are The Pretenders?:
Hear 'em: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5pECaW-VMI or
Read About 'em: http://www.rockhall.com/inductee/the-pretenders

She says she's at a loss as to why a vegan eatery hasn't opened up in the Rubber City. "I don't know. I thought it would have happened about 25 years ago, but when I said 'vegan' people thought it was too radical. But now people are saying this is just what we need", she says. Hynde goes on to say, "I guess I was the only one who didn't want to eat in a restaurant
where...well...there is such a thing as a vegetarian menu, but of course if it's a meat restaurant it doesn't work for vegetarians because the kitchen is contaminated."

And don't think meat eaters are being unfairly targeted, Hynde says nothing against you..she just doesn't want you around. "I don't like to associate with meat eaters at all, so I don't like to be with them in restaurants. So I'd rather be in a vegan restaurant." Asked if others feel as strongly about it as she does, why haven't they stepped forward and opened similar establishments? She said, "I don't know why no one started it. I think people are used to being complacent and not doing anything."

The restaurant called "The VegiTerranean" will be located at the new Northside Lofts downtown. http://www.vegiterranean.com/

Who should attend her new eatery? The outspoken rocker stated, "Usually in these restaurants you'll find the clientele...less than half are vegetarian. People come because they love the food, that's how it usually works out."

AkronNewsNow was curious to know if she would encourage a meat eater to sit down at her new Akron venture just to get an idea of what it was like. Well, she said no and could care less. "I'm not telling people to do anything. They don't even have to come to the restaurant. It's only for people who don't want to be around slaughterhouse byproducts", she claims.

Hynde was at the Barnes & Noble Bookstore in the University of Akron Student Union Thursday. She introduced her best friend Dan Mathews, a top official of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), who spoke to students and signed copies of his new book, "Committed: A Rabble-Rouser's Memoir."

As for Hynde, she will be in concert Saturday at the Akron Civic Theater to kick-off the grand opening of the restaurant & some famous friends are expected to join her. We know Jerry Lee Lewis will be there, but as for the others...she claims to have no idea.

Then again, would she really want to spoil the surprise?

Link to original story: http://www.akronnewsnow.com/entertainment/itemdetail.asp?ID=10229&section=entertainment&subsection=localentertainment