I’ll pay you to cook for me

Throw all your hands up

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Some wondrous food adventures were had during my recent Southern Californian vacation, but none quite as joyous and inspiring as Anthem Vegan.

San Diego is one of the must-visit destinations for plant-based food lovers and one of the most convincing reasons is this 100% vegan market stall. Anthem Vegan is a labour of love for its activist owner Patrick who serves up some of the tastiest food I have ever had the pleasure of devouring.

The stall travels around various locations in San Diego and my pal Steven and I made sure we crossed paths with it at the Pacific Beach Farmer’s Market. I was overwhelmed by the gorgeous menu and infinitely more so by the food itself.

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Hello old friend

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There are some food places on the planet that fit like an old, vegan shoe. You almost don’t get excited when you enter because it’s more of an all-encompassing, comforting feeling. Almost as if you have come home.

This is how I feel at Flore Vegan Cuisine.

When you get to Los Angeles, make Flore your first point of call. The menu is brimming with delectable and nutritious dishes that will have you wishing you lived in the neighbourhood. There is simply too much good stuff to try in a handful of visits.

That said, this FGV is a creature of habit. I know what I love and I get it every time. The Flore chicken and waffles is the stuff of legend. This vegan brunch item is one of my favourite things to eat in the entire world and I would most definitely eat it every day if given the opportunity.

Follow Flore on Twitter and get to LA as fast as you can. Those vegan chicken and waffles aren’t going to eat themselves!

cake
Chocolate and peanut butter cheesecake
lemonade
Fresh lemonade with agave
shake raw
Raw cocoa shake
waffle
Vegan chicken and waffles

Drive thru

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San Diego has everything to make this FGV happy.

Vegan donuts? Plentiful and decadent. Can I get nutritious and delicious soul food that is still cruelty free? Sure thing. Gay dive bars, Native Foods, gorgeous beachside neighbourhoods, farmers markets everywhere and vegan Mexican food? Yes to all of it.

Then surely it doesn’t have a fabulous vegan fast food restaurant with drive through window? It couldn’t that awesome, right?

Check it out. Evolution Fast Food is what every compassionate person deserves to have in their life.

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So popular

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Here’s a quick post to let you know I made it back to my favourite place to eat in the USA and it was perfect.

Native Foods Cafe is a rapidly-expanding restaurant chain in the USA with locations far and wide. News of a huge financial investment deal means they are now set to appear in even more cities over the next few years.

I would be the happiest FGV in the world if they could find a way to open a London branch. I would eat there every day. Honestly.

Follow Native Foods Cafe on Twitter and then check out my most recent feast below. The Oklahoma cheese burger is the stuff of legend and the Native wings are crunchy sticks of irresistible glory. I threw in some polenta bites and lavender lemonade to make sure it was a well-rounded meal at their Santa Monica location.

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Spring supper

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If you are in London this week and are not attending London Vegan Drinks, I have two questions for you.

Question the first: why the heck not? Question the second: it’s because you are going to this fabulous vegan Italian supper club, right?

My pal Sara is a much-loved food creator and she has once again put together an eating experience for hardcore foodies. Sara has just arrived back in the UK following a vacation in South Africa and she is fired up, ready to put some serious food on the dinner table this week.

Check out the menu.

STARTER – Farinata – baked chickpea pancake with red onions served with handmade vegan garlic mayo

MAIN COURSE – Handmade Beetroot Ravioli filled with Fava Beans in cheesy cream

SECOND COURSE – Artichoke and Asparagus Gratin

SIDE – Blood Orange, Beet and Fennel Salad served with handmade sourdough

DESSERT – Caramel Tiramisù

Sounds lovely, right? If you are reading this soon after I posted it, you need to act quickly to book your ticket.

All details can be found here.

Mary again

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A little while back, Josh took over with a blog post about a vegetarian cafe in the heart of the Bloomsbury neighbourhood that serves up tasty meat-free meals during academic term time. Read about his love of the place here and then scroll down below for a shot of my tasty lunch there today.

The Mary Ward Centre Café is a long-standing favourite of students, staff and visitors to this learning complex, as well as visitors and staff from the nearby Great Ormond Street Hospital. The prices are maybe some of the lowest you will find for vegan options in central London.

Here is an Instagram snap I took of my lunch today. I thoroughly enjoyed the borlotti bean pie topped with creamy mash and the lentil stew with crispy potato wedges. Both plates of food just over £4 each.

So cheap and so nutritious.
Click here to see this photo on Instagram

Raw in Camden

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I was about to start this post by saying another week sees the appearance of another vegan food market stall, but I think they are popping up faster than one a week in London.

Rawwwsome is kind of unique, though.

The fabulous Steph has started this super cute stall right in the heart of Camden Lock Market. It is packed with incredibly healthy (and tasty!) handmade raw treats such as mint chocolate brownies, raspberry cheesecakes and banoffee bites.

Steph told me she is having a great time exposing this type of food to the mostly non-vegan punters of the market. During my visit, I counted almost a dozen curious people stop by to taste the samples on offer and every single one of them looked and sounded impressed.

And so was I. Everything I ate was gorgeous. Check out the photos below.

Get down to Camden Lock Market and eat all the raw treats from Rawwwsome. Follow Steph on Twitter. It might be a good idea to double check with her before you head down that she will be there. I think she is currently at the market most Fridays and Saturdays.

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Not just falafel

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I’m not going to pretend the food in Just Falafel even comes close to my favourite eating place in London, Mr Falafel, but I will say they do a fabulous job of making vegans feel like they have another friend out in the wilds of the big city.

Just Falafel is relatively new to London, with a handful of franchise locations popping up recently as well as the corporately-owned outlet on Fulham Broadway. It was the Fulham branch that I first stumbled into and I was pleased I did.

The menu clearly states what is suitable for vegans and the manager of the store was more than happy to talk me through how they could veganise other items. I was attracted to an Egyptian falafel wrap with a side order of fries.

The fries were delicious and delivered in a super cute mini deep fryer basket. I was grinning from ear to ear. Potato is my life and Just Falafel on Fulham Broadway knew what they were doing with the good stuff.

The wrap was good, but certainly not overwhelming. I would rate it 7 out of 10. If I was in the area and hungry, I would definitely buy it again. I wouldn’t travel for it. I would travel for the fries, however.

Curiously, Josh and I visited the Just Falafel outlet in Covent Garden and were slightly less impressed. Josh actually said he would not go back and he works just a few minutes away. I was surprised by how different the experience was compared to the Fulham location. The Covent Garden fries were left unfinished by the two of us. That speaks volumes.

Now, back to the good stuff.

Check out my photos from the Fulham Broadway Just Falafel. I recommend eating there if you are in the area.

meal store

Tempeh on Leather

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There must be something about Leather Lane that attracts the veggie food crowd. This curiously-named London street is now home to not one but two vegetarian sandwich stalls. Get eating down Leather Lane!

A short while ago I wrote about the glorious sandwich I enjoyed from Killer Tomato and now the Mexican sandwich stall has company in the form of a vegetarian Indonesian-style tempeh vendor, located on the opposite side of the lane.

This is a brand new business with a few kinks to iron out, but you can’t fault their enthusiasm. The owner makes his own fresh tempeh (a rarity in the UK) and it is fried and seasoned right in front of you on the stall.

All you have to do is pick your fillings, pay your money and eat a delicious tempeh wrap.

Word of warning: even though the stall is emblazoned with the words ‘100% vegetarian’, they bizarrely have a sauce that contains real fish. The owner told me he cannot find a replacement for this ingredient, which doesn’t sound completely believable to me. My pal Messy Vegetarian Cook conjures up all sorts of southeast Asian cuisine requiring fish sauce and her stuff is delicious. She has even shown me a bottle of vegan fish sauce she bought in London.

Get along for a tasty treat, but remember to voice your rejection of the fish sauce.

menu stall tempeh wrap