London Vegan Events

15 Years Of Vegan London: From DIY Potlucks To Corporate Takeovers

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Fifteen years ago when I started this very blog, if you wanted to be social as a vegan in London you had to make it happen yourself. There were no vegan pubs and certainly no high street chains with dedicated plant-based menus.

This wilderness forced me to launch London Vegan Drinks, a monthly gathering where we carved out a space for ourselves in a world that barely acknowledged we existed. London Vegan Potluck was another community-driven event I curated, where people cooked and shared food because there weren’t many places to eat out.

Back then, if you wanted a vegan meal, you might get lucky at Pogo Café in Hackney (if they were open and serving something edible) or a measly number of eateries that weren’t always great. Other than that, it was whatever scraps you could cobble together from independent health food stores and Holland & Barrett. There were no vegan ready meals, hardly any supermarket own-brand plant milks, and certainly no Gregg’s vegan sausage rolls.

Then the independent vegan revolution happened. Slowly at first and then rapidly.

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Dine Scandinavian Style In London

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I don’t know a lot about Scandinavian food.

As a person originating from outside the region known as Scandinavia, I’m not even sure how effective it is to use a coverall term such as Scandinavian to describe all the food developed across a handful of countries with diverse geographic landscapes and historic influences.

To develop an understanding of what really constitutes Scandinavian food, the best I can do as a non-Scandi living in London is to defer to a chef who is happy to use the term to describe the food they create.

And if this plate of deliciousness is the norm, sign me up as a Scandi fan!

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Learn To Cook And Contribute To Society

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If you sniff around these parts of the Internet often, you’ll undoubtedly be aware that I work with food security charity Made In Hackney.

Made In Hackney does a lot of work around food security, education, and access however it most well-known in London for the free community cooking classes hosted inside our Clapton Common kitchen.

These classes are designed to help empower the community to eat nutritious and delicious cuisine that is culturally relevant. Often the classes will have a wellbeing focus such as ‘cooking to combat diabetes’ or low cost recipes for people struggling with the cost of living.

These classes are open to anyone and are not income tested. Check out the image below to see some of the upcoming community classes.

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Be my vegan Valentine

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This is a call for anyone looking for an exclusive Scandinavian dining event on February 14, 2025 in central London.

It doesn’t matter if you attend with a partner/s, friends, or on your own. This meal is suitable for people in all types of romantic entanglements.

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Ferments and Pickles

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Celebrate Veganuary’s Finale with Purpose and Flavour

Join me for an exclusive, one-night-only dining experience at E3 Vegan, a proudly independent and celebrated restaurant nestled on Roman Road, East London.

This special supper club is your chance to savour an inventive three-course plant-based menu created by Head Chef Marc Joseph, formerly of the iconic Vanilla Black, London’s first vegetarian and vegan fine dining destination.

Born out of a love for sustainability and a passion for exceptional cuisine, E3 Vegan’s hyper-local, seasonal approach has made it a standout on the culinary map.

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Clever girl

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If you need two middle-aged gay vegan men complaining about a film released a decade ago, you’ve come to the right spot.

In the latest episode of Tell Me Where I’m Going (Wrong) podcast Josh and I cover diverse topics, starting with my journey with dentures and their impact on my self-image. Heavy stuff! We explore societal perceptions of body image, especially the stigma around weight, before shifting to Hollywood’s power dynamics and how appearance influences success.

We also delve into the Jurassic Park franchise, with a focus on Jurassic World. Our discussion highlights issues like sexism, the male gaze, and the problematic messages around motherhood and fat characters.

Such a horrible movie!

Additionally, we address themes of racism, toxic masculinity, and the appropriation of the term “woke,” critiquing how these elements shape the film’s messaging.

In addition to watching/streaming on YouTube, you can also listen on Spotify via the link below.

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Mini festive market 2023

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If you think it feels like a long, long time since I’ve posted on the blog you are completely correct.

The reason I’m coming back to speak to you all after all this time is because it’s the end of 2023 and I’m inviting you to a celebration!

To celebrate this blog being alive and well again, I’m thrilled to announce that I’m hosting a vegan mini festive market in conjunction with vegan food charity, Made in Hackney.

Please join us in The Redmond Community Centre on Saturday December 16th, 2023 between 11am and 4pm for festive fun, gift shopping with local traders, tombola, live music, and time to socialise with friends old and new.

Drop in anytime across the day and say hi… we can’t wait to see you! The market is in support of all the crucial work Made in Hackney does around plant-based food security and nutrition.

Independent traders and stalls will include:

VG Coffee – selling hot drinks and hand held nibbles
I AM NUT OK – award-winning plant-based cheeses perfect for your festive table
Pinkeens Prints – gift ideas including hand-painted mugs in support of London wildlife conservation
Ecotricity – chat with Britain’s leading ethically-sourced energy company
Made In Hackney – chat with us about or community classes and masterclasses
Citizen Cake – homestyle cakes and bakes
Con Pasión Perú – cook-at-home Peruvian tamales and snacks
Cake Cult – decadent cookies, cakes, and tray bakes
Canopy Indoor Plants – plants and pots for you to buy for loved ones… or yourself!
Copperhouse Chocolate – handmade artisan chocolates and chocolate drink mixes
POH Books – specialist in African and Caribbean books for all ages… including vegan recipes!
Singing Santa – the jolly old man will be on the mic singing your favourite pop songs

Extra note: FGV and Made In Hackney would like to thank Ecotricity for financially supporting this event. If you would like to find out more about this ethical energy supplier, click here for a quote. Ecotricity will kindly donate money to Made In Hackney for each new customer signing up via that link.

Vegan pizza party with FGV

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I love a good party just as much as I love a good pizza, so why not combine my love for these two things?!

Join me in a week for The Future of Food co-presented with NXT LVL PZA.

Join Fat Gay Vegan at NXT LVL PZA’s Hackney Wick launch party!

Your £5 entry goes straight to madeinhackney.org, a local plant based cookery school and food kitchen helping some of East London’s most vulnerable people. It also entitles you to 1 free beer and free pizza all night!

NXT LVL’s master chef will be cooking up a storm in our courtyard, showing us the secrets of making food so good, you don’t notice it’s saving the planet. Come down, try some next level pizza, talk about the future of food and get to know your community.

@ HWK – 29 White Post Ln, London, E9 5EN

Thursday 12th May: 7pm – 11pm

£5 entry – free pizza + 1 beer* – 100% of proceeds go to Made In Hackney

CLICK HERE to buy your ticket now. Numbers are strictly limited.

*Pizza will be served by the slice. Beer tokens will redeem 1 alcoholic or 1 non-alcoholic beer. A soft drink option will also be available. Please check bar listing for more information.

Win some food with FGV

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Here is a super rapid Instagram competition where you can win some food and hang out with a bunch of vegans and vegan-friendly peeps.

On the first Wednesday of each month, I host a London’s best party for compassionate people. Get excited for London Vegan Social!

London Vegan Social is the place to meet people, sing karaoke, eat delicious food, and sip refreshing cocktails. Spread across three floors of the Old Crown Pub at 33 New Oxford Street. It’s perfectly located halfway between Tottenham Court Road and Holborn Underground stations.

The monthly party runs between 6pm and 10pm on the first Wednesday and this month I am giving away a food and drink package for two. The event is tomorrow (May 4) so get reading below about how you can win!

This food and drink prize is supplied by resident vegan kitchen Vetomeato and host pub The Old Crown.

Here is what you need to do to win:

I’ll be picking a winner at 5pm on Wednesday May 4th, 2022. The prize can be claimed at London Vegan Social that same night!

The prize does not cover any travel expenses but the winner will get the following:

  • 2 burgers
  • 2 fries
  • 2 Mac n cheese bites
  • 2 vegan cocktails

Click here to visit and comment on the Instagram post.

Don’t forget to follow Fat Gay Vegan and Vetomeato on Instagram.

Vegan taco night in Hackney

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Black Cat Hackney and Huitzmil present Tacos Against Borders, a benefit for Akwaaba.

Akwaaba is a Hackney-based social centre for migrants. They offer a space for rest, play, learning and mutual support. Akwaaba is for all migrants regardless of immigration status, ‘race’, religion, country of origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity and (dis)ability.

Akwaaba doesn’t currently have a venue and they are putting all their efforts towards securing one, so you can support them by attending this event (and letting them know about a spare venue if you know of one!). They need space every Sunday so a school hall in the Hackney area would be perfect.

Now… onto news of the event taking place inside Black Cat Hackney this Sunday December 5, 2021 at 6:00PM.

Talks and activities

  • Huitzmil speaking about how he crossed from Mexico to USA and the challenges he faced
  • Andres Posada from Colombia speaking about how he arrived to the UK and the challenges he faced as a migrant
  • Mini market
  • Acoustic set by Hugh Vivian from the anarcho punk band Omega Tribe

Menu

  • Marinated lamb style seitan , vegetable escabeche, pineapple, tomatillo salsa , avocado
  • Drunken fish pieces cooked in tequila , chilli and coriander , vegetable escabeche and charred salsa.
  • Beer battered Oyster mushrooms , guacamole, escabeche
  • Nachos :Freshly fried corn tortillas, spicy smokey beans , jalapeños, shitake bacon and cheese sauce

Everything served on corn tortillas or house made flour tortillas.

And of course you can follow Black Cat Cafe on Instagram.

Extra note: if you cannot attend this event in support of Akwaaba but would like to donate to help the important work they do, please donate via their website.