Vegan food in Mexico City

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When I mention to people that I live in Mexico City part of each year, more often than not I am met by a comment about the city being tough for vegans.

That couldn’t be further from the truth.

To start with, many of the staples of Mexican cuisine are vegan suitable or easily veganised. Beans, corn, mushrooms, fruit, nuts, seeds, and so on.

On top of that, a huge number of vegan eateries have popped up creating fabulous vegan takes on traditional and common Mexican foods. There is food for vegans to eat all across the mega city.

I’ve been back in the Mexican capital for about a month now, so I wanted to take the time to share some food photos with you. Of course this doesn’t come close to representing everything I’ve eaten over the past few weeks, but it will give you something to sink your teeth into.

Provecho.

FGV at a festival

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I’m doing my best to spread the vegan word and my latest collaboration is going to spread it to a lot of people to whom I’ve yet to spread it.

I have been invited by the good people of Bestival to curate a vegan food corner!

What is Bestival?

Bestival is a multi-day festival combining live music, DJ sets, performance, art, visuals, and so much, much more. It is billed as the most colourful show on Earth and it has something for everyone… and then some!

The 2018 outing of Bestival takes place at the stunning Lulworth Estate in Dorset on August 2, 3, 4 and 5.

The musical line up is fantastic with announced acts including Grace Jones, M.I.A., Plan B and London Grammar.

But what about FGV and this vegan food corner?

Each year, Bestival hosts a food tent called Feast Collective and this year they are adding a vegan corner curated and hosted by me! I’m so thrilled to be asked to bring a handful of my favourite vegan food traders together in one spot to make sure no vegan at the festival is left behind.

It will also be a wonderful way for me and the traders to do a spot of sassy vegan outreach to non-vegan festival goers who will be tempted by an amazing line up of succulent things to consume.

If you have always wanted to go to a summer music festival but were worried there would be nothing to eat, Bestival 2018 is for you.

The four-day event is obviously centred around camping (like all good summertime festivals) and there are plenty of options to explore in this regard. I will be on site for most of the festival and would love your company.

Click here to visit the official Bestival website where you can explore entertainment line up, tickets, payment plans (yes!), and all other relevant information.

Extra note: I forgot to mention this earlier but I will also be presenting a talk in the Bestival Literary Tent on one of the days. It will be loosely based on my book Fat Gay Vegan: Eat, Drink and Live Like You Give a Sh!t.

Good times!

You can also follow Bestival on Instagram.

Gourmet vegan cake for Valentine’s Day

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The super talented Lizzie of Heart of Cake is famous in London for her glamorous and irresisitible cake creations.

Her layered cakes and macarons are exquisite and she is now offering the best of everything she does in a run of exclusive mini cakes especially for Valentine’s Day.

These Valentine’s Day mini 4″ sharing cakes are perfect for your partner(s)/best friend/yourself!

Each cake is individually crafted and includes macarons, chocolate ganache, flowers and fruit. There are even gluten free options, too.

Priced at £27 and available for collection on February 14 in Stoke Newington, these cakes are limited so contact Lizzie via heartofcake@hotmail.com to lock in your order.

 

Support independent vegan business. Share cake with loved ones. Everyone can win!

Follow Heart of Cake on Instagram.

Vegan eatery coming to Doncaster

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Doncaster!

Yes, Doncaster.

If you are unfamiliar with this northern town, Doncaster is situated in Yorkshire just about an hour south of Leeds.

I’ve been to Doncaster a few times in my life and I never remember anything close to a vegan restaurant existing in the town. In fact, I would not have named Doncaster if you asked me to list unlikely locations that would soon have a vegan eatery.

So, I am thoroughly delighted and pleasantly shocked to hear about the soon to launch The Greenhouse Eatery.

The Greenhouse Eatery has been sharing food teasers for a few weeks ahead of their highly anticipated launch night on Valentine’s Day.

The set menu launch dinner taking place on this loved up day has actually sold out for the later sitting, but if you HURRY you can book some spots for the 6:30pm meal. Click here to see this special menu on Facebook.

Before I share some of the glorious food photos from this new vegan eatery, please take a moment to follow The Greenhouse on Instagram and Facebook.

You can see the exact location of The Greenhouse Eatery thanks to Google Maps.

Now, here’s that food.

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Vegan wine from London

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One part of learning to live vegan that comes as a surprise to a lot of people is needing to shop carefully for wine.

Yes, that’s correct. Wine is often not suitable for vegans.

Animal derived products such as egg albumen, casein and isinglass are used as fining agents to clarify the wine before bottling.

But there are more and more vegan-suitable wines hitting shelves all the time, including this boutique brand from London!

Forty Hall Vineyard makes a few varieties, including this Brut they are selling and shipping in time for Valentine’s Day.

A little about the vineyard: 

Forty Hall Vineyard is an exciting social enterprise which has established a new 10 acre organic vineyard in north London. Run and managed by local people, the vineyard is the first commercial scale vineyard in London since the middle ages. The vineyard produces and sells quality English still and sparkling wines.

A bit about the Brut:

  • Believed to be London’s first Sparkling Brut
  • Made in the traditional Champagne Method
  • ‘Single Estate’; Produced exclusively from grapes grown on Forty Hall Vineyard
  • Certified Organic
  • Natural and unfiltered
  • Vegan and produced using biodynamic practices
  • 11.5 % Vol

You can order your own bottle (or case) of the Forty Hall Vineyard Brut by clicking here.

You can also follow Forty Hall Vineyard on Instagram.

Vegan food trike in Sheffield

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This is some fabulous, old school vegan news.

Sheffield has a vegan food trike operating in the city centre, selling stacked burgers featuring potato waffles. Yes. Potato waffles inside your burger bun!

No Meat Today UK commenced trading in December 2017 but I’ve only just heard about it thanks to my Sheffield spy on the ground, Jez (who works at Incredible Nutshell and admins the Sheffield Vegan & Vegetarian Facebook Group and always has the best news for me).

The new burger trike takes me back to when this sort of trading was extremely popular for vegan businesses. Heck, there was even a vegan hot dog trike in my hometown of Australia about a decade ago.

For some reason, the trike gave way to regular street market stalls so I’m thrilled to see No Meat Today bringing it back.

The No Meat Today social media accounts seem to be just warming up so help get things kicking along by following them on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

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New vegan eatery in Sheffield

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Sheffield marches forward in its mission to become recognised as one of the vegan capitals of the UK.

Say hello to Just Falafs.

Located on Chesterfield Road just a few steps from legendary vegan food provider Make No Bones, the brand new Just Falafs has a gorgeous menu overflowing with irresistible delights.

You can see the exact location of Just Falafs thanks to Google Maps.

The images below show some of the tasty food being served in Sheffield’s newest vegan eatery, as well as the menu which includes falafel, shawarma and omelettes!

Follow Just Falafs on Instagram.

New vegan items from Ocado

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Supermarkets in the UK are falling over themselves to expand their vegan product ranges and that includes online retailer Ocado.

The online grocery store has always been impressive when it comes to plant-based eating, but this latest release of products takes them to the front of the pack when it comes to catering for vegan shoppers.

A wide range of meat alternatives and a few new cheeses can all be ordered online for home delivery right now, with some of the products available at a special price.

If the below photo is too small to see the details, click here to see the entire range on the Ocado website.

Why today is a big day for vegan London

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Today is a monumental day for vegan London and I want to share a few thoughts with all of you.

Only a fraction of us get a chance to really understand what it is like to open our own business. It is consuming and terrifying.

As Rebecca and Pat open the doors today of the second permanent location of their superstar vegan food business, Temple of Seitan, I want to send a very heartfelt ‘thank you’ to both of them.

For anyone who hasn’t been in the situation of launching their own business, start by imagining your ability to pay your bills, rent and food expenses being gambled on one of the most notoriously risky business models in our modern world.

Think of the feelings associated with risking everything. Now multiply those feelings ten times and consider what it is like to have that with you 24 hours a day. Yes, even in your sleep.

As Temple of Camden welcomes the crowds today, I send my deep and very real gratitude to Rebecca and Pat.

They have put untold energy (both physical and emotional) into securing the future of their vegan business. This business is not just a way for them to make money, rather it has captured the imagination and attention of the mainstream and is shaping the way people see veganism.

Their delicious food (and the carefully crafted cool image of their stores) is making a lot of people believe they can make the change to a vegan life. They are actually building a bridge to veganism over which hundreds of people are rushing.

They are making veganism seem achievable for thousands of people.

But Temple of Camden is more than just vegan activism. It is the safeguarding of jobs for their employees. Vegan jobs.

Rebecca and Pat have worked impossibly long hours to create a businesses that doesn’t just pay the bills and put money in their pockets. They have created a space where people are able to earn a living without having to be part of a system that abuses and mistreats non-human animals.

Temple workers get to work in an environment that aligns with their worldview. They don’t have to partake in exploitation to pay their bills.

And then there is more.

Temple of Seitan is a certified Living Wage employer. What is that you ask?

Living Wage is a guideline that outlines what workers would need to be paid in order to meet the cost of living in the UK. Temple of Seitan as a business has committed to paying wages in accordance with these guidelines.

To put it basically, they want to champion animal welfare while paying people fairly.

If you visit Temple of Camden this week, month, or year, I would love for you to take a moment to look around and feel thankful.

Feel thankful that we have such hardworking and decent people on our side, putting everything on the line in order to make the world a better place.

Bec and Pat. I couldn’t be prouder or more in awe of all you do.

Thank you.

Follow Temple of Seitan on Instagram.

Vegan bar and restaurant in Newcastle

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Try to stop this vegan revolution sweeping the UK and you will not be successful.

The northern city of Newcastle has enjoyed eating at vegetarian restaurant The Bohemian for a while now, but they have even more reason to fall head over heels in love with the place.

The Bohemian is now 100% vegan.

The kitchen serves a whole range of comfort food, with their pizzas getting a lot of attention on social media.

Unlike some pubs that launch vegan food menus but forget about the bar aspect, The Bohemian has also converted their drinks menu to be 100% vegan.

As if all of this isn’t cool enough, there is also a record store INSIDE the restaurant. Yep, you can shop for vinyl after you fill up on tasty food.

Click here to see the exact location of The Bohemian.

Follow The Bohemian on Facebook and Twitter.