London vegan news, reviews & events
Glasgow has got the goods for vegans. You can’t walk a few blocks without stumbling upon a vegan-friendly eatery or bar in the city centre.
Of course the plant-based eating isn’t just confined to the town centre and a short bus ride or taxi fare will deliver you to the most wonderful venue with a 100% vegan food menu.
Check it out!
I am a bit of a fan of the chain of cafes called Le Pain Quotidien. They are not a vegan company but they do have an impressive range of permanent dishes suitable for plant eaters on their menu. I often pop in to my local LPQ for the creamy cashew butter parfait and a vegan muffin.
As you might recall, I recently hosted a vegan baking class at the LPQ location in Borough. It was a runaway success, with the available spaces booking out in record time and attendees singing LPQ‘s praises across social media.
My favourite thing to come out of my partnership with LPQ was the sneak peek they gave me of their tasty-sounding vegan Christmas menu. Yep. That’s right. A London-wide chain of non-vegan cafes has a dedicated three-course dinner for vegans in the month leading up to Christmas.
Check it out below.
I think you need to make plans to visit the West Midlands before the end of the year.
As you all know, a fabulous 100% vegan food truck launched a while back called The Vegan Grindhouse. The idea behind the business was to supply events in the local area with completely plant-based tea, coffee, cakes and treats. I wrote about them here.
The truck has enjoyed an incredibly successful start, but things are about to change slightly for the vegan business.
I reached out to Lisa, the owner of The Vegan Grindhouse, to see how things were progressing and I received some not so good news and some excellent news.
Nottingham almost got a new vegan cafe today, but pesky and harmful dairy made it on to the menu.
Such a shame.
Today marks to grand opening of a new food provider, The Bluebird Vegetarian Café. This café is operated by Adrian and Kate, two vegans who (according to their website) were able to achieve their dream of opening The Bluebird thanks to the help of family, friends and Freecycle donations.
As happy as I am for the vegan community of Nottingham to have another location to dine out on plant-based food, I am puzzled as to why a vegan of more than 20 years (Adrian) would open a cafe with dairy on the menu in 2014.
Vegan comfort food enthusiasts in the Liverpool area have got a new reason to smile.
Say hello to The Old Hardware Shop.
This vegetarian coffee shop opened just weeks ago in the neighbourhood of Woolton Village, which is a bit of a posh area if you are to believe Wikipedia.
Amy and Rosie and the people behind this new meat free enterprise and wanted me to share some photos of their vegan options which include vegan cheese and chorizo toasties, vegan sausage and bacon butties, vegan hot dogs, vegan tuna mayonnaise sandwiches and vegan fish finger sandwiches.
They assure me they always stock a vegan cake option and vegan ice cream, while any coffee, milkshake or hot chocolate (with marshmallows) can be made vegan.
Check out the photos below, like The Old Hardware Shop on Facebook and get in there for some good eating.
Of course it is a shame the venture isn’t 100% vegan but this is sure to be a welcome addition to the Liverpool food scene for compassionate eaters.
As you know, London Vegan Drinks taking place this month is also a celebration for World Vegan Day.
I am expecting to welcome more than 150 vegans and their friends to Kabaret in Wood Green this Saturday November 1st, 2014 from 6pm onwards.
Kabaret is the fabulous 100% vegan bar and cafe co-owned by Louise Wallis, the person who actually founded World Vegan Day. Louise will be behind the bar and doing a few DJ spots, so make sure you congratulate her and show your thanks.
We also have a very special guest who will be chatting with attendees. Vegan legend Colleen Patrick-Goudreau will be mingling throughout the evening and will have a few copies of her books to sell and sign.
And then the food!
Anarkali is the resident chef at Kabaret and she has created a super fun bar snack menu for the night.
Revellers at London Vegan Drinks will be well fed with the following:
Handmade gourmet burgers
– tofu burger and salad on bun (can be gluten free on request)
– garlic sausage burger and salad on bun
7″ pizzas
– classic with tomato, cheese and basil
– spinach and mushroom
– margherita
– Hawaiian
– pepperoni
Extra toppings available for pizzas
Home cooked wedges featuring sweet potatoes and rustic fries
Selection of relishes and sauces
Vegan champagne £30 per bottle
How exciting!
Come along on Saturday night from 6pm. All the details including directions and address can be seen by clicking here.
I received an interesting email today, asking me to share some information with you all.
The information is about delicious-sounding Japanese cuisine, so I figured it would be rude not to let you know.
Check this out.
My visit to Berlin was a race against time. The city is crammed solid with restaurants and cafes selling vegan food and my five day long vacation didn’t afford me enough time to even scratch the surface of everything on offer.
I will be detailing a few of my culinary adventures in Berlin over the coming days, but I wanted to start with one of my favourite food memories from the city.
Imagine eating in a non-vegan restaurant where they not only have clearly labelled plant-based options on the menu, but where you will also be charged less for choosing a vegan option.
That happens at Ning.
Manchester is rapidly carving out a reputation for being a particularly special place for vegan food and the photo that crash landed in my inbox today is further proof.
Tucked away in the once derelict (and now slightly less derelict) barrio of Manchester known as the Northern Quarter, a non-vegan canteen and bar called Soup Kitchen is serving up one of the most impressive vegan meals I have heard of in the UK.