You’ve got to be a pretty big deal to get an arena like SAP Center to blow up its entire concessions menu. Billie Eilish is that big of a deal.
When the Grammy and Oscar-winning singer-songwriter brings “Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour” to San Jose for two sold-out shows Tuesday and Wednesday, fans will find only vegan and vegetarian options, in line with Eilish’s advocacy for plant-based diets.
So what does that mean? Vegan hot dogs, chicken tenders and pizza will be on the menus, along with popcorn, pretzels and chips and salsa. Vegan Mob will be offering vegan soul food options; Arteaga’s will be making its burritos and tacos with sofritas or veggies and serving them with vegan cheese and sour cream; and Sushi Confidential will be offering veggie rolls, teriyaki veggie bowls and fried tofu for at least Tuesday night. Even the soft serve ice cream at Sugar + Ice will be made out of oat milk.
And, the suites will get in on the action, too, by serving a non-meat menu with vegan chicken tenders, Impossible sliders and a crudite with hummus offered along with vegan versions of ranch dip, aioli and ketchup.
SAP Center regularly has some vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options, but this is believed to be the first time the arena has changed its entire menu for an artist. (The willingness to do this could even be a selling point for SAP Center should Paul McCartney, who is a vegetarian, decide to bring his “Got Back” tour to the Bay Area next year.)
What if you’re not a vegetarian? Well, you could give it a try for the night or at least consider yourself forewarned and make plans to eat before the show.
As part of the push, Eilish also has partnered with Google Maps to recommend vegetarian and vegan restaurants in the cities on her tour. For San Jose, her picks are Vegetarian House (520 E. Santa Clara St.), Good Karma Fine Ales (37 S. First St.), Veggie Grill at Santana Row and Merit Vegan Restaurant (548 Lawrence Expy. in Sunnyvale).
I’ll add to the list Tofoo Com Chay, a great Vietnamese vegetarian restaurant at 388 E. Santa Clara St., and Vegan Bistro and Donuts, which also houses Aina’s Vegan Banh Mi, on 10th and Santa Clara Streets (though it’s regularly closed Monday through Wednesday). Pizza My Heart at 117 E. San Carlos St. also offers lots of vegan and vegetarian specialty pizzas including a vegan version of its garlic-filled Big Sur pizza.
If concertgoers want to make their trip even more sustainable, they should remember that both VTA and Caltrain are good, climate-friendlier ways to get to SAP Center.
ON THE RIGHT TRACK: On the subject of Caltrain, state Sen. Dave Cortese can’t believe the transit agency has agreed to transfer its entire retired fleet — 90 gallery cars and 19 diesel locomotives — to Lima, Peru after finally getting its entire fleet electrified this fall.
“This is no way to run a railroad by taking the diesel off California’s carbon footprint then putting it right back on in Peru. Are we not all fighting to decarbonize the same air?” Cortese, who chairs the state Senate Transportation committee, said in a release. He introduced a bill Monday that states the intent of the Legislature to restrict the resale of decommissioned diesel trains and rolling stock for continued use.
I still like the idea of planting a locomotive and gallery car on permanent display at San Jose’s Diridon Station as part of a transit museum.
NINETEEN TIMES TWO FOR THE HOLIDAYS: San Jose musician Gus Kambeitz is being a tuneful Santa Claus this season, with his jazzy Nineteen Big Band performing benefit concerts for two downtown theater companies. On Dec. 10, Nineteen will provide the tunes at City Lights Theatre Company for seven actors who’ve performed in “The Rocky Horror Show,” “Kinky Boots” and other City Lights musicals. Go to www.cltc.org for tickets.
Then, a week later on Dec. 17, Nineteen will be at San Jose Stage Company for its “Sounds of the Season Holiday Bash,” performing jazzy versions of holiday favorites along with some familiar San Jose Stage voices: Adrienne Herro, Allison F. Rich, Will Springhorn Jr. and Jonathan Rhys Williams. Tickets are available at www.thestage.org/tickets.
And if that’s not enough, vocalist Ren Geisick has two chances to catch her 10th annual “Winter Wonderland” show at City Lights this month, bringing a mix of classic holiday tunes and originals on Dec. 8 and 15.
MUSICAL TRAFFIC JAM: After the 49ers last couple of games, you might be looking for a less stressful way to spend your Sunday afternoon than seeing if they can beat the Chicago Bears. If so, there is a trio of musical options on Dec. 8 — but they’re all at 3 p.m. at different South Bay venues.
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The San Jose Metropolitan Band will be playing its “Holiday Spectacular” concert at the Hammer Theatre, the San Jose Wind Symphony has “Hollywood Holidays” at the McAfee Performing Arts Center in Saratoga, and the First Congregational Church of San Jose, at 1980 Hamilton Ave., is welcoming chamber orchestra Harmonia California for its Concerts on the Corner series (which will include the world premiere of Bay Area composer Alan Hebert’s “The Orchestra and the Orchard.”) Take your pick.
If you don’t get to the First Congregational Church, though, you can always stop by Dec. 13 when it has its holiday program, “Carols on the Corner,” with the church’s Bell Choir, Chancel Choir and Family Band joined by guest musicians. Donations of non-perishable food items will benefit the Campbell United Church of Christ Food Pantry.