Potato equals truth

New vegan crisps

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Do you love potato as much as I love potato?

It’s my favourite food no matter how it is served, but I am particularly in love with crisps.

Of course I never called them crisps until I moved to the UK. Growing up in Australia we called crisps chips and what UK people call chips, we called hot chips.

Ha!

Anyway, back on track.

Mr Singh’s is a family-owned company from London. Known for their hot sauce, the company has branched out into crisp production!

At the moment, the crisps from Mr Singh’s are available in three flavours:

  • Chilli, lemon & cracked salt
  • Chilli, cheese & onion
  • Spicy tandoori chicken

You can order the crisps directly from Mr Singh’s website and look out for them in independent stores and online via The Vegan Kind Supermarket.

Follow Mr Singh’s on Instagram.

Vegan chips in London

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It’s the old age dilemma.

People think vegans will eat any old chips because chips are made out of potato. But we vegans know that some mass-produced chips actually contain animal fat as an ingredient.

In addition, some chip shops cook their chips in with fish, sausages and other derived items. A lot of vegans don’t want their potato to be bubbling away next to a dead sea creature and a battered sausage.

Yes, the hunt for vegan chips is a predicament a lot of us experience.

Imagine my joy when I strolled by a fish and chip shop just around the corner from my house and say ‘Our chips are 100% vegan’ printed on the window?

The owners told me they promote the vegan chips at the request of their wives who are both vegan. The shop also does a vegan falafel wrap on request.

Codfather is a 9 minute walk from South Ealing Underground station on the Piccadilly Line. You can see the location and walking directions thanks to Google Maps.

Of course I prefer to support 100% vegan eateries such as Vegan HQ which is located a 10 minute walk in the opposite direction of the station and Falafel Box another 10 minutes walking, but I might stop in for chips at Codfather after a few beers. South Ealing is becoming a vegan-friendly hub!

Not just falafel

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I’m not going to pretend the food in Just Falafel even comes close to my favourite eating place in London, Mr Falafel, but I will say they do a fabulous job of making vegans feel like they have another friend out in the wilds of the big city.

Just Falafel is relatively new to London, with a handful of franchise locations popping up recently as well as the corporately-owned outlet on Fulham Broadway. It was the Fulham branch that I first stumbled into and I was pleased I did.

The menu clearly states what is suitable for vegans and the manager of the store was more than happy to talk me through how they could veganise other items. I was attracted to an Egyptian falafel wrap with a side order of fries.

The fries were delicious and delivered in a super cute mini deep fryer basket. I was grinning from ear to ear. Potato is my life and Just Falafel on Fulham Broadway knew what they were doing with the good stuff.

The wrap was good, but certainly not overwhelming. I would rate it 7 out of 10. If I was in the area and hungry, I would definitely buy it again. I wouldn’t travel for it. I would travel for the fries, however.

Curiously, Josh and I visited the Just Falafel outlet in Covent Garden and were slightly less impressed. Josh actually said he would not go back and he works just a few minutes away. I was surprised by how different the experience was compared to the Fulham location. The Covent Garden fries were left unfinished by the two of us. That speaks volumes.

Now, back to the good stuff.

Check out my photos from the Fulham Broadway Just Falafel. I recommend eating there if you are in the area.

meal store

Need chips?

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Chips. Fries. Pommes frites. Papas fritas. Frieten. Whatever name you give to it, sliced potato cooked in scalding oil and dusted with salt is my favourite food of all time. I can’t get enough of it. No seriously, I cannot get enough of it in London.

I need your help.

Where can I buy freshly cooked chips that are vegan in the capital? I don’t want fries that have been reconstituted with lard. I am not interested in thick cut chips that have been fried in the same oil as fish. Please don’t tell me about potato that is covered in chicken-flavoured salt as soon as it comes out of the basket.

I need more vegan chips in my life.

Here are some photos of my favourite chips and fries in the UK. I will be eternally grateful to anyone who can point me in the direction of any London cafes, shops, restaurants or market stalls that will do right by me and potato.

Suggestions below!

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Hash browns

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I am passionately in love with potato and firmly believe the humble hash brown is one of the finest achievements in the long and colourful history of this vegetable.

The photo above shows a simple snack that had me feeling joyous a few days ago. Sainsbury’s own brand hash browns with yellow mustard created the perfect coupling. Amazing.

Do you have a favourite brand of hash browns? Suggestions below!

Best vegan breakfast?

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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
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!

You can vote for Cafe Kino (and FGV!) in the VegfestUK awards

Follow Cafe Kino on Twitter

Never enough again and again

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My previous posts detailing my vegan over eating throughout the USA were nothing compared to this installment.

Since we last spoke I have been on a food consumption journey. I ate in Bend, Oregon. I ate in Redwood forests. I ate in the rental car. I ate in the mountains. But most importantly, I ate during a three-day conference for vegan bloggers in Portland.

Hold on tight as I power through this list of vegan delights.

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