Provincial towns you jog round

Vegan pop up in Sheffield

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You can’t keep vegan Sheffield contained and this latest plant-based pop up food event is just more proof.

Have you heard of FANFARE?

FANFARE will be bringing mouth-watering tacos, fresh crunchy salads and flavourful fluffy rice to a one day only pop up café in co-working space, Union St. Don’t miss out on Friday January 27, 2017 between 11:30am and 2:00pm.

All dishes can be served with a selection of toppings and sauces while mouthwatering delights await hungry customers, such as beer battered aubergine and smokey pulled jackfruit. Gluten free eaters won’t be overlooked, either.

FANFARE will also offering range of cakes by Rawkus which, you guessed it, are raw. Diners will also be able to buy hot and cold drinks.

I’m super excited to see the photos that come out of this event and with whispers of FANFARE getting a permanent location soon, Sheffield is one of the hottest vegan spots on the planet.

Keep updated with FANFARE on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. You can RSVP to the Facebook event here.

Click here to see exactly where Union St is located thanks to Google Maps.

Eat vegan in Taunton

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If you keep updated with vegan UK news, you won’t need me to tell you about The Planet Café in Taunton, Somerset.

I asked owner Wendy to give us an update on what is happening and it sounds as though locals are loving the plant-based offerings:

My little cafe is tucked away in Paul Street, Taunton. I’ve been running it with my daughter Anneliese since April 2016, and neither of us has done this before. Opening and working with a very tight budget, I wanted to show people they can eat vegan for not a huge amount of money. So far it seems to be working.
We cook/create everything onsite with fresh ingredients, including the vegan cheese, but excluding the puff pastry because there’s better things to do than make pastry everyday!
We sell a couple of different pastries. The ‘Not Sausage roll’ and a Spinach & Almond Feta roll both fly out during lunchtime. We currently serve two homemade burgers and a few main dishes that change regularly.
We have a solid range of freshly made cakes/slices everyday plus there is always a gluten free and/or nut free option available.

Thanks for the update, Wendy.

Now, let’s take a look at some photos.

You can like The Planet Café on Facebook and follow them on Instagram.

Click here to see the location on Google Maps.

Walsall goes vegan

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Wikipedia tells me that ‘Walsall is an industrial town in the West Midlands of England. It is located 8 miles north-west of the City of Birmingham and 6 miles east of the City of Wolverhampton.’

What Wikipedia doesn’t state is that Walsall is set to host its first ever vegan fair on Saturday February 18, 2017.

The Facebook event page for Walsall Vegan Fair informs us that there will be more than 60 stalls as well as informative talks and tempting cooking demonstrations. Follow that page for full list of vendors soon.

It’s free to get in, so you have little excuse not to be there if you are in the area.

Yay for vegan events in Walsall!

Vegan Restaurant Week

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Here is some first-class consumer activism.

Emma of blog Canny Food has started a fantastic initiative to make non-vegan restaurants and cafés in her area more aware and inclusive of veganism.

Vegan Restaurant Week is a simple idea but certainly one that can pack a lot of punch.

Restaurants in the Newcastle and north east region are being encouraged to develop and promote purposively vegan menu items for the week of January 23 – 29, 2017.

While some completely-vegan eateries are taking place, Emma has been more focussed on getting the non-vegan outlets on board, encouraging them to raise their game when it comes to plant-based food offerings. Establishments that previously had not given vegan food a second thought are lining up to make plant-based options a priority for this campaign.

Vegan Restaurant Week is getting a LOT of attention around Newcastle including mainstream press and there is no shortage of food venues wanting to get involved. I think the count is edging close to 40!

You can see the full list, including what their vegan week specials are, over on the official Vegan Restaurant Week website.

Congratulations to Emma on a campaign that has the potential to make real change in her community. We all know a lot of people who don’t eat vegan because of availability and ease, so this campaign is valuable in helping to redress those shortcomings across non-vegan venues.

Campaigns such as Vegan Restaurant Week need to take place everywhere. Come on, people. Be active participants and let’s get busy changing the world for the better. We want people to go vegan so it is up to us to make it possible.

A seemingly-small change of a few additional dishes on a menu is often the start of something a lot bigger for non-vegan restaurants. Well done, Emma.

Follow Vegan Restaurant Week on Twitter.

Vegan sushi

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Here is a little piece of news that is going to make a lot of people extremely happy.

Vegan sushi superstars Happy Maki now have a permanent shop front in the seaside town of Brighton. Yep, open RIGHT NOW for all your vegan sushi needs.

A photo posted by Happy Maki (@thehappymaki) on


If you have been to any vegan events during the past few years, there is a strong chance you have seen Happy Maki wrapping and selling their much-loved food to throngs of appreciative customers. They always have one of the longest lines at events I’ve seen them at and I’ve never heard a bad word.

People love this stuff!

Now people can love this stuff more regularly at the new Happy Maki shop front situated in The Lanes area of Brighton (next door to famous Boho Gelato).

The doors have only just been flung open but I’m sure there is already no shortage of loyal customers flowing into Happy Maki.

Yay for vegan sushi!

Visit the Happy Maki website for opening times and location. Follow them on Facebook and Instagram for upcoming festival appearance news.

Veganuary in Henley

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Here is a super quick update to let you know about a vegan dining experience taking place in Henley-on-Thames throughout January 2017.

The Old Bell is a much-loved and frequented pub run by vegan couple Pam and Rob, and to celebrate Veganuary the animal-friendly landlords are offering up a special deal.

Every Monday and Tuesday for all of January 2017, you will be able to enjoy their tasty, home-crafted vegan cuisine for the following prices:

All Mains – £6.50

Two courses – £10.00

Three courses – £13.50

(menu varies each week – typically there will be two starters, three mains, and two desserts to choose from)

I hear nothing but rave reviews about this pub from the few locals I know, so you should make an effort to get along if you are in the Henley, Reading or Maidenhead area.

In addition, The Old Bell is the oldest building in Henley so there is some extra incentive for all you history buffs out there.

You can follow The Old Bell on Twitter and Facebook.

 

New vegan store in Swansea

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You read the title correctly.

A new 100% vegan grocery and lifestyle store is opening in Swansea on January 3, 2017.

I reached out to owner Charlie for a little insight into Brontosaurus Vegan Lifestyle Store (what a fab name!) and here is what she had to tell me:

Brontosaurus Vegan Lifestyle Store will be Swansea’s first vegan store. We are located within Swansea’s historic Indoor Market, an ideal place to do your weekly shop: lots of green grocers, bakers and a few lovely places to have lunch.

Brontosaurus stocks a wide range of vegan products: chilled, frozen and prepacked foods, specialist dietary products for vegans who may have an allergy or intolerance, cosmetics, toiletries, household and lifestyle products. We stock products from many local vegan businesses (Naturally Kind Foods, Mr Nice Pie, Heavenly Organics, Manmane, Lincolns Lunchbox, Hygge Illustrations, Bewilder Photography, Wear Your Voice, PopCycle – to name more than a few!)

I have been helped by many kind hearted people to demolish, paint, clean, construct shelves, varnish, etc – basically make my shop! Family, friends and even strangers have offered their time and support. I truly appreciate their kindness.

Thanks for the info, Charlie!

I adore hearing stories of communities coming together in the name of veganism and your store sounds like a real labour of love for you all.

Brontosaurus will be open Tuesday to Saturday 9:30am – 4:30pm initially. The store is located at Stall 23b Swansea Indoor Market, Oxford Street, Swansea SA1 3PQ.

You can follow Brontosaurus on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Vegan fish and chip shop

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Is this a UK first?

Word has just reached me of a vegan fish and chip shop being readied for a grand opening in the UK city of Bristol. Is this the first 100% vegan chip shop in the country?

There are very few details at the moment but Jason, one of the owners of the new venture, wanted me to pass on this information to anyone who was curious or had heard whispers:

I’m one half of a partnership that is starting Bristol’s first 100% vegan chip shop next month. We are taking over a Chinese take-away in the city and converting it to a vegan take-away. We will be serving regular things you get in a take-away like curry sauce, gravy, mushy peas, there will be pea fritters and battered sausages and tofish too. Most of the ingredients will be organic. I’ll let you know more soon as we are in the process of getting our marketing side together and working on the images and fonts. The chip shop will be called Matter Battered and we are working on the shop front this week.

Wow!

Rest assured that I will bring you details, photos and links as soon as they are available.

Anyone excited?!

Vegan at a steakhouse

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Sheffield is the future vegan capital of the UK.

Make No Bones is turning out food perfection, BurgerLolz has garnered a lot of fans, The Incredible Nutshell is one of the best 100% vegan grocery stores in the country and I’m even launching Sheffield Vegan Beer Fest in the city during 2017.

If you need further proof of how much plant-based eating has impacted on this South Yorkshire location, you only have to look at the GIANT vegan menu on offer at Italian steakhouse Luna Rossa.

Yep. Sheffield is so very vegan that even a freaking steakhouse has a bigger vegan menu than most plant-based places.

Check it out below.

I’m thrilled to see such a rapid vegan takeover of Sheffield.

If you have a meat eater who refuses to go to a vegan restaurant, you now have two choices for dealing with the situation.

Never speak to them again or take them to Luna Rossa.

See the restaurant website here and check out the location on Google Maps.

Hornett second birthday

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I hear some many positive bits of news and info about Hornett Wholefoods in Wellingborough that  I thought a few of you would like to know the shop is throwing a 2nd anniversary party on January 7, 2017.

Check the old school flyer.

Everything being handed out as a gift on the day is vegan, even the glasses of Prosecco.

Get along to this much-loved store in Northamptonshire and support their birthday.

You can follow the shop on Facebook or see where they are located on their website.