London can you wait?

More Best Vegan Candy in the World

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As if I wasn’t losing my mind enough over these things, I got word that more of the best vegan candy in the world is heading to the UK.

My mate Joe in Berlin sent the following photo and I am beside my chubby self with excitement.

You will notice these goodies are made by the producers of the aforementioned No No’s which you can buy currently via Vegan Tuck Box.

Rudy in Vx has let me know he will be stocking all three products very shortly, so keep pestering him on Twitter to find out when they land in London.

Anyone else as excited as me?

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Junkyard Dogs

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Big vegan food announcements don’t come along often enough for my liking and when they do, they rarely have anything to do with one of my events.

Here is some glorious news, London. I am giggling with excitement.

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Vote for vegans

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Here is your chance to make a difference for a vegan or vegan-friendly company.

There is this thing going on at the moment called the Urban Food Awards. It is an initiative to bring attention and recognition to small business traders making a go of a food business in London.

What is interesting for all of us reading this is the inclusion of some wonderful vegan and vegan-friendly enterprises in this year’s nominations. Check them out.

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Eating raw in West London

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Somebody call my therapist. This was my second raw meal in a month and I’m a bit frightened by how much I enjoyed the experience.

Have you been to Nama in Notting Hill?

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The big one

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You know we are only a week away from one of the biggest (the biggest?) vegan events anywhere, right? Approximately ten thousand vegans, vegan friendlies and curious carnivores will descend upon London Olympia for VegfestUK on September 27 and 28, 2014

This show is the result of the tireless dedication shown by organiser Tim Barford who is a rare breed in the vegan community. He works himself ragged getting these monumental shows together and reaches countless people every year with a compassionate message. His shows have been staged for over ten years and he rallies against adversity and financial hardship to put together events packed with information, education, entertainment and food.

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It would be wonderful to see how many non-human animals have been saved directly by the influence of these shows. I would imagine the number would be emotionally overwhelming.

Following are some reasons I think you will love this year’s event at London Olympia:

  • it is a fab place to take non-vegans so they can see what it’s all about in a friendly and fun environment
  • there is SO much tasty vegan food
  • meet the people behind some of your favourite vegan brands (and thank them for their hard work)
  • it is wonderful to be in a building with THOUSANDS of other vegans
  • meet inspiring vegans from the worlds of sport, education, activism and entertainment
  • grab some show day deals and specials on your favourite vegan brands
  • get inspired to take action by signing up with organisations fighting for animals

You can buy tickets online now and download the programme here. Make sure you follow VegfestUK on Twitter and don’t forget to give Tim a shout out online to thank him for his dedication to improving outcomes for animals.

 

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Vegan venture

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There are some fabulously exciting things happening for vegans in London and most of them are pop up ventures. What’s behind this drive to sell food in temporary locations?

London is surely one of the most expensive cities in the world for real estate. It was announced this week that the average house price in London is £514 000 while the average house price in central London is £1.6 million. The increase in property prices in London over the past year has been at a rate of 19%. This is staggering.

The cost of renting commercial space in Camden Stables Market is upwards of £1000 a week. You can see why vegan start ups can only afford to run temporary events and pop ups are the new trend of getting food to the masses. Vegan businesses cannot get permanent premises unless they have a hell of a lot of money behind them.

Get up and get out of the house this weekend and support a vegan pop up venture. Show the people making cruelty free food for the masses that you care.

You might very well start with the brand new Club Mexicana pop up in east London. The taco masters have set up temporary shop in The Convenience, an inventive and quirky cafe near Chatsworth Road with a roof terrace for dining.

The Club Mexicana pop up runs from 6pm Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday and from 4pm on Sundays. See the current menu below but be warned it will be rotating so not everything will be available every night. Rumour has it they are working on a Mexican seitan burger and that chocodilla on the menu sounds fabulous.

The pop up will run until October 12. Follow Club Mexicana on Twitter.

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Vegan for miles

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Just over a week ago I visited the Specialty & Fine Food Fair held in London Olympia and I am now only getting around to sharing photos of some of the fabulous vegan products I encountered.

I have included social media links for each company, so please feel free to reach out to them and let them know how keen you are to see their products in stores. Some of the products are even available to order online so make sure you do some investigating.

Here we go.

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Cakes ‘n’ Treats update

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It appears the owner of Cakes ‘n’ Treats in Camden has been arrested along with her boyfriend following a violent altercation outside the vegan business.

Video footage has been posted online showing a man attacking another person on Pratt Street. The article on ITV refers to the man as the boyfriend of a local business owner who has recently been the target of an anti-fascist campaign. Even though the article doesn’t refer to the owner or her boyfriend by name, it is evident it is referring to the Cakes ‘n’ Treat owner following recent coverage of the topic.

You can view the full article here. Please be warned the article contains violent video footage.

The ITV article states that the man shown being violent has been arrested for possessing an offensive weapon while his girlfriend has been arrested for obstructing police.

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vegana – an exclusive Italian experience

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Vegan dining in the capital rises to a previously unseen level as Fat Gay Vegan collaborates with legendary Caffè Caldesi of Marylebone. Sunday 5th of October, 2014 is a date for dedicated food disciples.

Caffè Caldesi is located in London’s Marylebone and is the flagship of the Caldesi group of Italian restaurants and cookery schools. The restaurant is known for its un-comprising dedication to creating authentic Italian regional food under the watchful eye of patron Giancarlo Caldesi. Giancarlo, a Tuscan by birth, has been running Italian restaurants for 40 years in the UK and along with his wife Katie has written many books on the regional food of Italy. The couples latest book ‘Venice – Recipes lost and found’ is due to be launched in October 2014.

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Caffè Caldesi is a favourite haunt of Italian ex-pats in London given that it truly is the ‘real Italian’ – you won’t find chequered tablecloths or packet grissini here. The restaurant is split into a downstairs bar/cafe and an upstairs fine dining restaurant, the dishes served in both are seasonal, regional and authentic providing the customer a choice of the classics and less well known.

When Giancarlo and Katie considered delving into the (for them) unexplored world of vegan fine dining they called on the experience of Sean O’Callaghan, known throughout the UK as blogger and event planner Fat Gay Vegan.

Sean has pulled together an exquisite menu utilising the skills of Italian-born vegan chef Sara Mittersteiner. Sara, of vegan supper club Pomodoro E Basilico fame, has lovingly crafted a selection of dishes perfectly matched to an autumnal fine dining experience in this stunning Marylebone setting.

The menu is as follows:

Primo Piatto – Main Course

Tagliatelle al Cacao con Crema di Noci, Fave e Fave di Cacao – Chocolate Tagliatelle with Walnut cream, Fava Beans and Cacao Nibs

Secondo Piatto – Second Course

Erbazzone – Spinach Quiche

Contorno – Side

Insalata di Finocchi allo Zafferano – Saffron Fennel Salad

Dolce – Dessert

Tiramisù al Caramello – Caramel Tiramisù

In addition to this peerless plant-based menu, diners will be treated to a glass of peach Bellini and an amuse–bouche on arrival as well as tea or coffee following dinner. A selection of vegan beer, wine and spirits will be available for purchase from the bar.

Caffè Caldesi, Fat Gay Vegan and Chef Sara are the ingredients guaranteed to bring London a night of magical vegan eating never before seen in the capital.

Book early to avoid disappointment.

Tickets are priced £35 plus booking fee and are non-refundable. Seating is unreserved however we will endeavour to meet emailed seating requests prior to the evening.

Visit Caldesi online. Follow Caldesi on Twitter. Like Caldesi on Facebook.

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Something vegan for the weekend

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What are you getting up to this weekend?

I have put together a few ideas to save you from having to stagger around the Internet in search of fun. If you’ve got any other top tips for the weekend, please post them in the comments below.

Here it is then. FGV’s top vegan and vegan-friendly things to do in London on Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th September, 2014.

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