When I announced plans for a vegan Christmas dinner in conjunction with The Gallery Cafe, I kinda knew it would be popular. What I didn’t know is that all 50 tickets would sell out more than a month in advance of the event!
Push harder, Superman!
With every ticket long gone and people emailing me daily about joining a waiting list, I have decided to add another night for this festive dinner.
The Gallery Cafe will be closed exclusively for this special event on Thursday December 12th, 2013 from 7pm where diners will enjoy homestyle food created by the cafe staff just for us.
Go here now to check out the menu and buy tickets.
Pogo Cafe is gone but in a city the size of London, vacant cafes don’t sit empty for long.
It is with great excitement that I welcome Black Cat Vegan Café to the capital food scene. This workers’ co-op has taken over the old Pogo site and looks set to keep the spirit of vegan eating alive and well in Hackney.
I am yet to make it over to the new cafe but that hasn’t stopped me from sharing with you what I know. Here are some bits of information sent through by Carolyn, the chef at Black Cat Vegan Café.
I would love to hear what you all think of the food on offer.
I love discovering something unexpected in London and it doesn’t come more left of centre than a vegan pie in a jellied eel shop in the heart of London’s East End.
Lesley Brown recently wrote to me to say she enjoys my blog (aww!) and wanted to know if I had heard of a vegan pie available in the most unlikely of locations. Here is her email reproduced in part. I am sure you will find it as eye-opening and wobbly tummy-inducing as I did.
You gotta give props to The Gallery Cafein Bethnal Green. They don’t rest on their east London laurels and are constantly looking for inventive and tasty ways to make hungry vegans like me visit them more often.
Josh has kindly stopped by to tell you about a little vegan surprise he found in central London, just a short stroll from Holborn Underground station.
Talk on it, Josh.
A couple of weeks ago my dad told me of a small independent bakery near my work which proudly displayed a sign out the front asking, “Have you tried our vegan options?”. The establishment in question is the Fleet River Bakery on the northwest corner of Lincoln’s Inn Fields just behind Holborn station. Many colleagues had spoken very highly of this bakery/cafe and I was excited to hear of their vegan-friendly bragging.
Maybe I am not the all-knowing vegan guru of London, after all. I seem to be stumbling upon formerly unknown (to me) vegan and vegan friendly locations almost weekly.
“Here we go again. FGV is complaining about a vegetarian restaurant. Why can’t vegans just take what they get?”
Indian Melodywas the scene of one of the most disappointing dining experiences I have ever had in the UK. I thought I was onto a sure thing when I discovered an almost entirely-vegan Indian restaurant in the city of Southampton, but I was rudely awakened to a different reality.
Welcome to the first ever Fat Gay Vegan monthly news round up!
These posts are designed to give you that little extra dose of vegan gossip from in and around London (and occasionally further abroad). I welcome any tips or leads. The news round up won’t contain reviews as such, instead acting as an information portal.
Of course I would love for you to add your own experiences and views relating to the topics I touch on.
Here’s the news!
Tiramisu in a jar
inSpiral have relaunched their vegan and raw cakes in jars! I spotted the tiramisu in Whole Foods Market Kensington but I’m sure it won’t be long until you find them dotted all over the UK.
Only sausages
I got quite a shock during a recent stroll down Old Compton Street in Soho. Gone is the all-you-can-eat vegan buffet, now replaced with a German sausage restaurant. The server told me he has to keep turning people way who ask “is everything vegan?”.
Ms. Cupcake on the shelves
I was shopping in the Camden Urban Outfitters a few weeks back and was pleasantly surprised to stumble upon the Ms. Cupcake book. I caught up with Mellissa Morgan this week and she told me you can actually buy the book in all Urban Outfitters across Europe. Good stuff!
Two for one is better than one for one
I know Saf is a bit on the pricey for some of you, but there is one deal they offer that has me going back for more. Every Thursday is 2-for-1 on the entire Saf cocktail menu. The photo above shows my recent mango/jalapeño margaritas. This deal is especially good news when you consider London Vegan Drinks takes place in the same building and on the same floor every third Thursday of the month!
Dough!
The final news item for August is probably my favourite. Cookies & Scream situated in Camden Lock Market are not resting on their delicious laurels. These purveyors of tasty treats have upped the game with this incredible cookie dough shake. Not pictured is the equally impressive salted caramel shake. They aren’t messing about!
My partner Josh loves to jump onboard now and then to let you know about the food making him smile.
Please give him a warm welcome as he returns to let you know about an amazing vegan breakfast he consumed in Bristol. Could this be the best vegan fry up in the UK? Answers in the comment section, please!
Take it away, Josh.
FGV’s recent post about the vegan brunch at Down To Earth in London reminded me of a trip earlier this year to Cafe Kino in Bristol. This was my third trip to Bristol yet for some reason I had never made it to the cafe before. Passing through on the way from Cardiff to Bath with my sister-in-law and nephew from Australia, we stopped off at Cafe Kino one morning to fill our bellies before a long day of driving.
For those that don’t know about Cafe Kino, it’s a co-operatively run vegan cafe (except for cow milk in the drinks) situated in a picturesque area of Bristol. They’re open every day of the week, selling mostly home-made vegan food.
On the morning of my visit, I of course gravitated towards the vegan fry-up. It arrived quickly at my table with sausages, baked beans, hash browns, fried mushrooms, fried bread, bacon rashers and grilled tomatoes. It. Was. Perfect.
Amazing vegan fry up in Bristol
I can’t remember how much I paid but I remember thinking it was very reasonable for the amount of food I received. I wish there was something like this in London!
Notting Hill Carnival is bursting into action this weekend but I’m not sure I can deal with the sheer number of people that will be swarming the area. Instead, let me give you an insight into some of the vegan finds within this world-famous district by traveling back in time ever so slightly.
A few weeks ago, I made my first ever visit to Portobello Road and I discovered more than a few vegan highlights.
My first treat was a super sweet watermelon juice served cold from a nondescript stall. The fruit chunks were pulverised before my very eyes and the temperature outside was sweltering, hence no photo due to guzzling.
The photos that have survived are included below.
The vegan churros were served piping hot. I know it is an issue but I adore food lifted straight from scalding oil. I dined on scrumptious falafel and was delighted to see the stall promoting the food as 100% vegan. Josh picked up more falafel plus a cold lemonade from Falafel King and he wants me to pass on his recommendation.
If groceries are needed, the compact Portobello Wholefoods is brimming with vegan products including tofu, plant-based meats, bulk grains and snacks. There is also a vegetarian cafe/bakery called The Grain Shop. I didn’t purchase anything, but a quick peek inside revealed a large number of vegan options.
Verdict? Portobello Road Market is a vegan-friendly utopia waiting for you to show up and eat!
