London vegan news, reviews & events
I often make a joke at this time of year where I say I do not celebrate Christmas, but I do celebrate cake/chocolate/etc.
Check out these photos and understand why I’m in full celebration mode right now thanks to the Cooperative supermarkets here in the UK.
I was sent a gift this week that I suspect quite a few readers will love.
I reported a while back about the new vegan Baileys and how it is now available through Whole Foods Market stores in the UK.
Well, now you can get your hands on a bottle even if you can’t get along to one of those stores.
Online retailer The Goodness Project is currently selling a Christmas hamper that contains the vegan Baileys as the centrepiece.
The box contains a bottle of the drink, truffles, biscotti and chocolate.
The web retailer is also selling single bottles of the drink and you can order your own supply by clicking here.
Dear Oxford, UK.
You have a brand new vegan eatery opening this Saturday (November 25, 2017)!
Here is a little piece of info from the owner of Happy Friday Kitchen:
I’m Lola. I’m 24 and have been vegan for two and a half years. I decided to open a vegan restaurant offering people veganised versions of their favourite comfort food on Cowley Road in Oxford. We’ll be serving vegan comfort food including pizzas, burgers, burritos, nachos, mac n cheese, Buddha bowls, and lots of fresh baked goods every day. There will also be cocktails, craft beers and hot drinks, as well as a small retail section selling vegan food products and gifts.
This place sounds fabulous.
Like the Happy Friday Kitchen Facebook page and follow them on Instagram.
See the exact location thanks to Google Maps.
Now, let’s look at some of the food to be served. I’m drooling!
In case you missed it, you can listen back to The Food Programme on BBC Radio 4 right here online.
The show description is as follows:
The number of young people turning vegan is rising. Grace Dent meets some of the people opening vegan eateries and finds out how creatives are using social media to further the “vegangelical” cause.
Grace goes to the Hackney Downs Vegan Market to speak to Jay Brave who argues that adopting a vegan diet is as much about personal autonomy and challenging the status quo as it is an ethical step. He delivers a few bars of ‘Vegan Shut Up’, his parody of Stormzy’s ‘Shut Up’ released on World Vegan Day, and tells Grace why veganism is becoming big in the London grime scene. She also speaks to Sean O’Callaghan AKA Fat Gay Vegan who set-up the market and has seen its popularity grow, and gives his reaction to the mainstream restaurants who are falling over themselves to come up with vegan menus.
Ian Theasby and Henry Firth from Bosh! create simple and imaginative vegan recipes which are filmed and broadcast to over 1.4m Facebook users. Toby Field visits them at their studio to find out what fuels their idea to create plant-based options and to ask why they keep out of the argument around the ethics of veganism.
Maria Rose has just opened a vegan cafe in Barnstaple and explains how it’s slowly creating a more enlightened scene in North Devon.
So is this just a trend that’s fine for the hipster herbivores of Camden, or can it gain traction across the country and start a food revolution?
The episode will probably only be online for a limited time, so apologies if you follow that link and it’s no longer there.
As you probably already know, I have a vegan boot.
Yes, a Fat Gay Vegan boot is in the world and it is fabulous.
I tried a pair on today and I’m totally in love. Check it out.
The boots are made in collaboration with brand new ethical apparel company Workers Playtime and we have a very limited run that can be ordered right now.
The size run starts at European 36 (UK 3) and goes up to European 46 (UK 12). The upper is patent microfibre, the sole stitching feature is pink, the lining is a pink fleece, and you even get a pair of pink laces.
This really is the boot of my dreams. Use your festive gift receiving excuses to get yourself a pair!
Order online now and your new pair of FGV boots will be sent directly to you straight away.
You can see close up shots of the boot and order your pair online here.
This is VERY cool.
Steve of Friendship Vegan Shoes wanted me to share some amazing information with London’s vegan community.
I’ll let him explain it in his own words.
I don’t know if you know but before Caroline and I set up Friendship Vegan Shoes, I had 41 years in the Music industry as a recording engineer and some of that time was spent directing and producing TV shows.
I retired and went into vegan shoes but we recently set up a world class surround mix studio as we get invited to mix for film and TV commercially.
Now we get empty days in the surround studio so Caroline and I want to give these studio days away free of charge (and include an engineer where and when needed) to film and programme makers we would align with such as vegan animal rights and environmental action groups.
Here is a link to the studio page and the photo (below) shows the Fairlight EVO system control desk.
The studio can mix content from Mono to 7:1 surround and is acoustically treated and very comfortable to work in, and without fear of repetition we offer it free of charge to film and programme makers when we agree with their mission.
I’d be really grateful if you can share this message. My experience is when budget gets tight the first thing that suffers is audio post production, but nowadays audio is half the picture!
Follow Friendship Vegan Shoes on Instagram and reach out to Steve and Caroline if you are in need of sound mixing for your ethical project!
Harmonium bar and kitchen has vegan work available.
The neighbourhood hot spot in Edinburgh is looking for a new Assistant Manager.
If you think you can be as wonderful as the amazing Heather (the current Assistant Manager) then get on with it!
Job description: http://bit.ly/2mtK3XB
Application Form: https://goo.gl/forms/Fir3XuQoN1FtGoQM2
Deadline is 5pm 28th November, 2017.
Follow Harmonium on Instagram.
A new vegan sandwich has been launched by Tesco and it sounds interesting.
We are so overloaded with falafel and humous sandwiches in the UK, anything slightly unique is a call for celebration.
Check it out.
Bubble and squeak fritter with spiced red cabbage!
This isn’t the most affordable snack at £3.50 but with over 3,000 stores around the UK, there is something to be said about the convenience of this item.
Extra note: I believe that when we shop with independent, local business it is better for our communities. This is not to shame people who have little choice in their area or who are dependent on stores such as Tesco, I simply think it matters to counter a post about Tesco by reminding all of us about ethical shopping.
If it’s the time of year you start planning a festive meal, you might just want to get your order in from Moodley Manor.
Their famous vegan roasts turn any meal into a feast. Just add vegetables and gravy!
Moodley Manor sold A LOT of these roasts at my vegan festive market last December and I heard rave reviews for weeks following the event.
I’m doing my best to get them along with their goods again this year but if you or they can’ make it to the market, you can still order the roast online here.
If you own a vegan or vegan-friendly shop, you can also buy the roast and other Moodley products wholesale to sell on to your customers.
Follow Moodley Manor on Instagram.
The fab Vegan Tuck Box company has launched a series of three letterbox sized snack boxes called… wait for it… Letterbox Snacks!
These boxes are slimline and designed to find through your letter box in the instance you are not home to take a delivery.
How super annoying is it when you have to go to the local collection office with one of those cards to pick up a missed delivery?
Well, that isn’t a problem anymore!
You can shop for the Letterbox Snack boxes online here and watch my unboxing video below to get a glimpse inside them. You can choose from the original, the healthy or the chocolate boxes.