I’ll pay you to cook for me

Eat like an Egyptian

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Unless something drastic happens such as a Veggie Grill opening in Soho or a Native Foods Cafe popping up on Regent Street, I will probably never again eat vegan food in another central London location other than Koshari Street.

Koshari Street is what vegan London has been lacking. Affordable, quick and incredibly tasty food to eat on the go. Every single person I know who has eaten there cannot sing its praises loudly enough. It is beyond game changing. It is the best vegan food in central London.

The sign says it all
The sign says it all

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Eat in Soho

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Can you believe it? I’ve only just made it into one of the longest-standing and most-loved vegetarian restaurants in London. Shame on me.

Mildred’s of Soho is one of those places I always told myself I would get to one day. It was always just around the bend. Days turned into weeks turned into years and I still hadn’t put my fat foot through their doorway.

A few weeks back, I decided to break the drought and discover why Mildred’s is such a popular eatery for people deciding to give meat a miss.

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New vegan kicks

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UPDATE: This cafe has now closed!

Have you been along Oxford Street in central London lately? Longstanding businesses are being turfed out as the area gets dissected by the Crossrail tunnel project currently tearing up that part of the city. Shops are closed or closing and it is a sea of discount retailers mixed with scaffolding.

It’s a bit of a sad visual but something good has come of this messy situation. London just got a new vegan cafe!

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Box it up

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Vegans have got a good life in London. We can dine in fancy restaurants like Saf. How about cake delivered straight to your house? Sure thing. Vegan gourmet hot dogs are another treat and don’t even get me started about Cookies & Scream in Camden.

Yes, life is grand. But there is always room for improvement and expansion. Enter food delivery service The Urban Kitchen.

Before I dive into telling you how delicious the meal was I was sent to review, I would like to state up front that this caterer is not a vegan company. That being said, all of their vegan dishes are clearly marked online and they are very approachable people. If you are wondering about any ingredient or element of a dish, get in touch with them.

Now, down to business.

Delivered with style
Delivered with style

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Up in Archway

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Some of you probably think that if a restaurant in London is serving vegan food, the FGV must have been there. Right?

Sorry to disappoint, but even after all this time eating and reporting back to you there are still eateries that have escaped my fat clutches. Loving Hut in Archway was one such destination and I was constantly being asked for my opinion on their food. I couldn’t take the harassment from curious vegans any longer, so I made a special trip to the north London restaurant just to get you all off my back.

Just like Loving Hut locations the world over, the Archway version serves a completely vegan menu and is staffed by followers of the Quan Yin Method (Google exists for a reason, people). The menu is much more extensive than the recently-closed Camden branch but I do believe the Edgware location still holds the title of most gigantic Loving Hut menu in the world.

Josh and I ordered like the professional eaters we are. Wanna see what we got our teeth into?

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A little too late

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I feel kinda guilty.

I’m not trying to suggest that a blog post from me would have saved this company, but taking two years to write a review certainly isn’t getting them any attention they could use.

I was trolling through some old holiday snaps (imagining myself in the sunshine somewhere), when I came across these pics of a completely vegan food truck that once fed hungry highway commuters just outside of Miami, Florida.

Josh and I paid a visit to the Mac’n Food Truck  a couple of years ago on a journey between Miami and the Florida Keys. This gorgeous looking truck was positioned in a nondescript parking lot just off the South Dixie Highway outside of Miami and we were so keen to eat that we lined up to be the first customers of the day.

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World’s best burger

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BAD NEWS UPDATE:

The following information was just posted in the comments at the bottom of this page. Sad news for epic vegan burger fans.

MJ says:

This burger has been discontinued!!!! We were so upset having trekked all the way there to find out that the suppliers no longer work with the restaurant?! As a result, there are no veggie or vegan options on the menu 🙁

Here is the original post on this burger:

A long time ago, there was a burger like no other. Before central London was torn in half by the Crossrail construction, meat-aversionists would swarm on Soho to feast on this burger. Its status was legendary.

But as the machines moved in to build the rapid transit railway, the fast food outlet serving the burger was forced out by the Government. Maybe you remember it? RedVeg was a paradise of deep fried potato, breaded mushrooms and the tastiest vegan burger patty on the planet.

Not long after the Soho location was shuttered, the Brighton RedVeg location was also forced to shut its doors following dwindling fortunes. I was so in love with their burger, I made a special trip to Brighton on their closing weekend and ate what I thought was to be one of the final RedVeg burgers ever served. See here.

But have I got news for you?!

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Buy cake without leaving the house

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I make no secret for the respect I have for Ms Cupcake and the hard work Mellissa Morgan has put in to make her brand one of the most respected independent businesses in London. Notice I didn’t say ‘vegan’ before businesses? That’s right. Ms Cupcake is in the majors.

One of the secrets to their success has surely got to be the relentless attitude to keep creating new products and new ways to get them to people.

Take for instance their new mail order service. 

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NYE with FGV

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Make your last meal of 2013 extra special as Fat Gay Vegan partners with vegan cuisine leaders Saf to bring you a New Year’s Eve supper club to be remembered. Book now or read on for more details.

Saf Restaurant & Bar (located inside Whole Foods Market on Kensington High Street) serve some of the finest plant-based food in the UK. Every item featured on the Saf menu is world class and lovingly-prepared by the staff.

This exclusive New Year’s Eve event will see Saf closed to the public and will feature a 3 course meal (2 options for each course) with a fizzy welcome cocktail all for £30 (+fee) per person. Fat Gay Vegan (that’s me!) will greet and host throughout the dinner.

There will be time to mingle around the bar and diners can purchase extra wine, cocktails or beer from Saf. All alcohol served in the restaurant is vegan and there are gluten free drink options.

The event will commence at 7pm and come to an end at 10pm, allowing diners time to spirit away into the night to ring in midnight with friends and loved ones.

View the evening’s menu below.

Book now to be part of this special meal.

Limited availability. No refunds.

See my recent review of Saf here.

Saf’s what I’m talking about

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Almost every day. That is how often I get emails or tweets asking for my London vegan dining recommendations.

Of course I don’t mind giving my opinion. The belief that my view matters is the self-centred reason I write a blog. However, I was getting a bit tired of saying that I thought London wasn’t a patch on other international cities when it came to vegan cuisine. Sure, we have some OK places to eat plant-based food but I was never overly impressed the way I have been by Gentle Gourmet in Paris or Vedge in Philadelphia.

Well, finally we have something in the UK capital that I am more than happy to recommend. Vegans and vegan-curious, say hello to the re-imagined  Saf Restaurant & Bar menu.

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