London vegan news, reviews & events
To anyone who thinks they have eaten the most delicious food in the world, I respectfully inform you that it gets better.
Last week marked the second event in my month of Friday night supper clubs known as Around the World with FGV and Vanessa of Essential Vegan gave attendees a culinary experience they won’t forget in a hurry.
Vanessa started the proceedings off by serving an irresistible selection of Brazilian bar nibbles including cheese bread, polenta sticks and cassava chips.
There is a lot of vegan cake in London, but is it ever enough? I say no.
Congratulations to the people of Archway in north London. Their suburb is the location of the latest in a long line of 100% vegan cake stalls taking over the street markets of the capital.
A stroll around Archway on Saturday 15th March, 2014 could very well land you with a handful of gluten free, vegan cake if you make time to visit the outdoor market on Holloway Road.
Maria will be working behind the table and selling her homemade creations on a stall called Lilla Gull Cakes. The food-curious will be able to buy brownies topped with caramel corn, savoury muffins, coconut oat balls and more.
The plan is for the home business to be at that location every fortnight before making it more permanent once they are established and have a following.
Is there a vegan cake stall in your local market?
The first Friday night of my month-long Around the World with FGV supper club series took place last week and it was a vegan meal of epic proportions.
Adrian and Diana of Vegan Peasant Catering came up with the vegan goods (and then some!) during their Caribbean themed dining event. It was a truly world class affair.
You only need to see the photos below to understand that Vegan Peasant are one of the finest catering companies on the planet. You don’t often get vegan food of this quality in the UK. It’s a rare treat, indeed.
Follow Vegan Peasant on Twitter and like them on Facebook to make sure you keep updated with all of their upcoming events and culinary adventures. I can’t recommend hiring their services highly enough if you are planning a special event that requires catering.
Your guests will be blown away. Mine were!
A recent trip to Loving Hut Archway resulted in a mammoth amount of vegan food being ordered. Seriously. So much food.
I was hanging out with Ange and James of glorious ethical boutique The Third Estate and we were all hungry. Even though we all knew we would be unable to show any form of restraint, we boarded the 390 bus in the direction of north London suburb, Archway. We ate everything.
James has spent the most part of the time I have known him raving about the vegan duck rolls at this Loving Hut location. He had convinced me my life was a devalued experience without them. I succumbed and it was the first thing we ordered. Old Jimbo might just be onto something. The build-you-own pancake rolls were tasty.
But the food didn’t stop there.
For some reason we ordered three types of crispy vegan chicken, a sizzling dish of vegan beef, side of rice, a vegan chicken burger with fries and a vegan fish burger. We all had to pull together as a team to chomp through the mound of deliciousness placed before us. Vegans united in greed.
Check it out below.
Exciting news for pop music fans. Properly exciting news.
Remember when I raved about vegan pop performer Betty Who? You don’t? Go here and here to remind yourself of how I lost my heart to Betty Who.
Now that you are up to speed, hold on to your cruelty-free hats as I drop the latest.
Betty Who is performing in London on May 27th, 2014!
Fresh from topping the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart with her hit Somebody Loves You, the Australian singer has locked in a date to perform in east London. The venue appears to be rather intimate so I strongly suggest being quick when tickets go on sale this Wednesday (March 5th, 2014). You can buy here.
See you at the gig. I’ll be the FGV in the front row.
My Instagram account got a good workout today. I spent a large part of the day in north London and managed to snap a few photos of things that caught my attention.
Here are two of my favourite things from Saturday March 1, 2014.
Follow me on Instagram!
So much has been going on since I returned home from Mexico City. It has been a whirlwind of activity.
But certainly one of the highlights for me since arriving back in the UK was hosting the mammoth London Vegan Breakfast Club in conjunction with Shambhu’s Vegan Catering.
40 people packed into the kitchen and canteen known as The Food Chain in King’s Cross to enjoy one incredibly satisfying morning meal. The plates were piled high with vegan breakfast delights such as fried bread, baked beans, sausages, greens and hash browns. Attendees guzzled record amounts of fairtrade coffee, tea and orange juice while the organic olive leaf tea was a smash hit, too.
Many thanks to all who came along. It was a wonderful community event.
Huge thanks to the companies involved in feeding the masses. Please click through to follow these people on Twitter and let them know how much it means that they support the vegan community: Fry’s Vegetarian (sausages), Mr. Organic (baked beans), Soyfoods (tofu), Vx (discount vouchers) and Mirabilia Olive Leaf Tea (tea, obviously!).
Finally, enjoy the photos below!
I was out and about in London tonight, drinking beer and laughing at drunk people (yes, it turned out to be a mirror), when a thought crossed my mind.
Had I confirmed the date for the 2014 London Vegan Beer Fest on my blog yet? I remember excitedly posting the date on Twitter and Facebook, but it occurred to me I hadn’t shared this information with my loyal FGV readers.
How rude of me.
Pencil it in. Saturday July 12, 2014.
In celebration of you now knowing this date, I am kindly sharing this photo of a pint of beer I consumed earlier this evening in a pub near Charing Cross, London.
Let’s me finish this brief (yet informative) post by asking you to leave a comment below telling me which beers we should feature at the event this year? What is your favourite vegan beer?
Answers below!
Every single day seems to bring another plea for donations. Crowdfunding has become the go-to way to pay the bills for everything from home baking enterprises to fully-realised restaurants.
The seemingly never ending requests for money can get a bit tiring. You only have so much to go round. How can you be sure that what you are backing is a worthwhile endeavour?
Getting a recommendation from someone is one way to cut through the sea of monetary requests and I am about to give you a recommendation that I truly hope you take onboard.
Made in Hackney is everything the world should be. This community-driven initiative organises pay by donation classes focussed on food growing, cooking and composting. These classes are delivered to residents of housing estates, local children, adults at risk and charities supporting people with mental health conditions.
All of their programs are plant based. Yes, 100% vegan. How awesome is that? Made in Hackney shows class attendees how to preserve foods, forage for ingredients and even make their own cosmetics.
The centre holds masterclasses to financially support the pay by donation classes and has been partially funded by Lottery funding that is now coming to an end. That is where concerned people like you and me come in with our money.
Made in Hackney needs money. The organisation is attempting to raise £12 500 in order to keep performing their vital community work. The campaign so far has seen just over half this amount amassed with just 21 days remaining.
Here is what I think you should do:
Even if this is the one community fundraiser you back this year, I am confident you couldn’t find a more deserving cause.
Read more about Made in Hackney here.
Donate to the Crowdfunder campaign here.
I used to think I knew what my favourite pastime was… and then I got an email from vegan sweet food producer Scoff asking if I would like to sample their creations. Now my favourite pastime is eating Scoff treats.
Based in Brixton, this new vegan sweet treats provider is changing the game for cruelty-free eating in the UK forever. Their truffles and fudge are decadent, delicious and irresistible. I haven’t often experienced melt in your mouth moments, but the Scoff vanilla fudge took me to that place instantly.
The company does sell at local markets (check the website for locations), but the real thrill is their mailing service. Why leave the comfort of your house when you can have dark chocolate and Amaretto truffles delivered straight to your door? No need to get wet and cold by exposing yourself to the elements. Scoff will post bags of creamy ginger fudge directly to you.
Almost as nice as the food is the care and attention given to making the food look lovely. The fudge bags feature the super cute Scoff logo while the smart truffle boxes are held closed by ribbons. Obviously perfect for gift giving.
Did you hear I like getting gifts? 😉
Scoff is the future. Order online now!
Follow Scoff on Twitter
Like Scoff on Facebook