Winning with waffles

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The latest addition to Barcelona’s growing vegan scene comes in the form of Väcka, a completely vegan and partly raw restaurant with a Swedish name and Argentine owners.  Väcka, which means ‘waking up’ in Swedish, centres its philosophy around awakening compassion and awareness of healthy eating.

Open Monday to Friday from 9am to 8pm,  Väcka is small cafe and takeaway that seems to mainly cater towards the lunchtime office worker crowd.  There is just one small bar with stools, so don’t plan a visit with a big group.  Nearby, on Passeig de Gracia (just above Diagonal), there’s a small public garden with a fountain and benches, where you can take your food if you opt for takeaway.  If you’re visiting Barcelona and looking for somewhere for breakfast during the week, Väcka is a good option, along with old standby and one of the longest-running vegetarian restaurants in Barcelona, Teresa Carles.

So, what kind of food is on offer at Väcka?  As you might imagine, healthy options, like various salads such as ceviche and raw taco salad, ready for takeaway in glass jars.  They also offer a burger option, or a savoury waffle with mushrooms.  The burger is made from seeds and is really tasty – but be forewarned it comes with kale chips instead of regular ol’ potato-based chips!  Their kale chips are tasty but I don’t want you to be shocked when your burger plate comes out with a big pile of leafy greens instead of the stack of chips you might expect.

The most important part of the menu, of course, is the sweet waffles section.  A waffle will set you back just €5 and come with a selection of different toppings to choose from, including raw-tella, their spin on Nutella, coconut ice cream or a chocolate “bath”, which I can only assume is the best bathing experience ever.  The raw-tella was a bit too healthy for my tastes (I mean come on, it’s a waffle, is there a point in making the toppings healthy?!) but the waffles were crispy on the outside, fluffy inside perfection.

All in all, Väcka looks set to be a great addition to Barcelona’s vegan scene, which keeps growing all the time.  Its location in the trendy Gracia neighbourhood means it’s close to other vegan gems like Amapola, a vegan shoe and bag shop, and Pastisseria Besneta, a vegan bakery (which I recently told you about in Vegan Cake in a Jar).  It’s never been a better time to be vegan in Barcelona (or Gracia)!

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